Crazy ideas

[Ralf]

I don't think you can beat 3/4 inch plywood for sides. I'm sure someone has figured out how much heaver it is, but couldn't be much more. A few hours and the sides are done. I am using high end marine plywood now but next time it is BC plywood from Lowes. I was inspired to build my current build by a guy I met at the Charlotte Auto Fair. A two day build, he had a utility trailer, cut the rails off and bolted on exterior plywood sides. He used 2x2s for roof frame and nailed 1/4 ply for roof. No hatch, cut the door out with a jig saw and slaped a coat of black paint on it. He was camping in it the next weekend. Crude, yes, But he was camping and I'm still building. Since I forgot my tent tht weekend, I was sleeping in the back seat of my truck, his TTT looked like the Hilton.

[Esteban]

Bippy, Gaston's fiberglassed foam sided teardrop might intrigue you to follow your dream. It's a beautiful masterpiece. Personal Gallery of Gaston

Shaped foam.


Fiberglassed.


It's a beauty.


Sweet Dreams

[2bits]

Steve that is soo ironic because to me, the Teardrop is just a progression from an idea I had a couple of years ago when my 75 Monte Carlo was stolen and stripped down to the frame. Since the rear of the car was the only thing left, I had a plan to cut the car in half and rivet some aluminum to the front sort of in a boat shape and haul it around behind my other Monte Carlo as a car show trailer. I never got around to it, but I was telling my friends in my Monte Carlo forum about the teardrop and one of them suggested using the rear quarters, just like the PT Cuiser photos you posted! I would love to do that, but it will need to be on a later project. Man that looks awesome behind that Purple PT cruiser too!

[Joanne]

Hi Bippy,

The Puffin is a really neat build, eh? It has inspired quite a few builds and it's neat to hear about another.

When I decided to build my trailer I thought that covering the plywood with fiberglass and expoxy would be cheaper and easier than covering it with aluminum. I'm not sure about aluminum, but I know know that fiberglassing is neither cheap or easy. By the time I finished paying for the epoxy resin, fiberglass cloth, and a boat paint system, I had spent a lot of money.

I won't tell you not to try your method. This forum is full of successful builds using non-traditional methods. That said, I would be hesitant to undertake your proposed project. A lightweight build is more about being weight consious about every piece you put into the trailer. An inexpensive build is about being cost consious about every piece you put into the trailer. (Ask me how I came in way over budget and way over weight.)

I hope you go forward with your build in whatever fashion you finally decide! I have found it to be a very rewarding experience. The end result is a lot of fun too. I just love to camp in my little trailer.

Take care!
Joanne

[brian_bp]

Bippy, Gaston's fiberglassed foam sided teardrop might intrigue you to follow your dream. It's a beautiful masterpiece. Personal Gallery of Gaston

I second that! His method was lots of work, but seems like a sensible blend of materials and methods to me... and the result is great.

[starwars]

Hi there, I'm interested in building an ultra light TTT, kind of like the Puffin (in fact, a LOT like the Puffin- I read that thread strait through until 7:00 in the morning. Wow. Amazing stuff.)

I was thinking of building it with fiberglass, since it's lighter than wood,

Not necessarilly.

and the difficulty and learning curve seems to be about the same with wood construction as with fiberglass.

Not true. Wood is much easier to work with.

The best site I've found describing how to build with foam and fiberglass is http://www.rqriley.com/frp-foam.htm but I will flat out admit I don't know what I need to know about what all the various parts do and how they interact with each other, but I DID notice that there were people building with foam, and then taking the foam away later to just leave the fiberglass shell.

That is not what they are doing, they are putting fiberglass over foam permanently then covering it with bondo and using the bondo as the surface for primer and paint. The foam is not "pulled" off like a mold.

That got me thinking that perhaps the foam is NOT so important to the finished process, and wondering if I could find something cheaper than foam to build with...

I am currently toying with the idea of building a frame with poplar or some other light and lovely wood, and then instead of using plywood, using fiberglass screening, like this stuff from home depot

Then I'd lay the fiberglass cloth over that, use one of the epoxies, and lay a few layers over in different directions for strength.

Does anyone have any idea if this would work?

It would sag.

My thoughts are that the plus side to this is, it's cheap as heck, would be sturdy and rot-proof, and very very light.

There would be no structural integrity to it. You would push on one side and the whole thing would fold like a cardboard box. All your strength would have to come through the wood frame you built, which from the sounds of it wouldn't be much.

[2bits]

StarWars, did you not see the plane, and the PT Snoozer? It can be done, although yes, not cheaper or easier.

[Steve Frederick]

Hello Bippy!
Keep thinking out loud, but don't let opinions scare you away from your dream.
I agree that Gaston's composite creation is wonderful. A less complicated shape like the Puffin, should be relatively easy, although time consuming.
There are quick ways to do things, and more adventurous methods. I tend to pursue the more time consuming..It's just as much about the challenge, as the result. Plan it out, and go for it!

[starwars]

StarWars, did you not see the plane, and the PT Snoozer? It can be done, although yes, not cheaper or easier.

You didn't read the post. Bippy wanted to know if stretching window screen across the open span of a wooden frame then putting fiberglass cloth and resin on it would work - the answer is no, it would not work.

[2bits]

[elderjay]

I need light weight too since I pull with my motorcycle. Come to think of it, my bike is the only rolling stock I currently own with a hitch. I'll probably put a hitch on the Highlander one of these days in case I need it.

How much does a sheet of 3/4 ply for the sides weigh? My trailer body will be about 7' long and 3' high. It's a pup tent on wheels for me. I doubt if I'll even have the hatch on the back. I'd probably fill the space with interior cabinets if anything.

[angib]

How much does a sheet of 3/4 ply for the sides weigh?

Way too much.

1/4" ply with a 1x1 stiffener (not 1x2, not 2x2) every 12-18" is ample. Really 1/8" ply is enough, as long as you don't turn over in the night and punch a hole with your elbow.

Andrew

[Wolf]

Bippy,
Looks to me like it would be easy enough to bend 1/4" plywood around the front and back and use the same on the sides with minimal framing.

You might just look at Ross's Runlite in the hall of fame, this looks like a very light trailer.
Wolf

[GPW]

Angib , I noticed your interest in the aerodynamics of the TDs... Have you investigated the Kline-Fogelman airfoil ??? A small "step" creates a bubble and keeps the flow attached in the rear or the 'foil".. Might adaptable to the TD...???

[Leon]

If you want to go light, you might try carbon fiber, but it is even more expensive and difficult to work with. It is neat stuff, and is being used on high end cars for the weight savings. the top-end Corvette uses it to save weight.