Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

After a long "Off" period I have finished sanding the profile for my tear to shape and am ready to start building the wall frames using the method Steve Frederick has in his CD.

With that in mind I went looking for the pine boards I need for the frame and found several types including, Eastern Pine, SYP (Southern Yellow Pine I think) which is considerably heavier and seems stronger than the Eastern pine, and whatever they are calling Whitewood which seems to be the lightest weight of all.

Not being an experienced carpenter I'd appreciate hearing what wood those of you that have built using this type of wall construction used.

BTW, the tear will be a Modernistic model that is 11 feet long and the side wall is 54 inches tall.

TNX...Gene

I'm not an expert by any means, but I personally would use the SYP. Any of the them should work for you. It really depends on the width that you use and the method of fastening the pieces together. If you are following Steve's way, then that would be biscuits, I believe. I likt the SYP because of the way it cuts and shapes under different conditions.

Gene, my choices were select pine and white wood in something I could afford. I couldn't find select pine in straight boards so I ripped my frame out of white wood 2x6's. Mine is probably different than Steves though.

I used what ever I had laying around... you know---old door frames. molding,cutoffs, recycled framing lumber.......

Micro469 wrote:I used what ever I had laying around... you know---old door frames. molding,cutoffs, recycled framing lumber.......

One small problem with that is that they are not necessary all the same thickness and that can cause some problems. JMO

Finally, a productive Tear weekend. Reviewed the comments (Thanks) then searched and read some more of the forum archives. I decided to go with Select White Pine because the whiteboard was too thin and most of the SYP pieces I looked at had excessive warp. Today I began cutting and placing them on the profile, almost finishing the first wall. I found that by using a couple of thin plastic strips across the joints and an electric staple gun I can get them to stay in place while I work on the next one. Its good to be able to see something happening!

Sounds like an excellent way to keep things in place. Glad your getting things done.

GitRdun

Please!!

Gene...at the risk of starting some disagreement...seeings how you are in SC...and there are lots of furniture manufacturers in that part of the country...another option may be poplar...it's really straight even grained, light weight and easy to work, and takes just about any fastener without splitting, and can be painted easily if you want...It is used a lot in furniture manufacturing...If sealed well, I wouldn't think that any deterioration of it in the future would be a problem...I use it for interior cleats, ceiling ribs etc, but it doesn't finish up pretty if you want natural wood.... I guess it's also one of those things, depending on what part of the country you live in, what is the best deal for your buck. Just a thought...a bit late however, but info for maybe interior workings Doug

doug hodder wrote:Gene...at the risk of starting some disagreement...seeings how you are in SC...and there are lots of furniture manufacturers in that part of the country...another option may be poplar...it's really straight even grained, light weight and easy to work, and takes just about any fastener without splitting, and can be painted easily if you want...It is used a lot in furniture manufacturing...If sealed well, I wouldn't think that any deterioration of it in the future would be a problem...I use it for interior cleats, ceiling ribs etc, but it doesn't finish up pretty if you want natural wood.... I guess it's also one of those things, depending on what part of the country you live in, what is the best deal for your buck. Just a thought...a bit late however, but info for maybe interior workings Doug

...NOW YOU TELL ME????

John...some will finish up nicely...the furniture grade stuff probably won't...like I said..."at the risk of starting some disagreement"...poplar is typically a construction wood not a finish grade type material as it doesn't show grain and figuring like other woods can, especially with a dye or a stain...but from the looks of your galley, if it's poplar...you have no problem...looks great!!! Doug

Hi Gene , Glad to see you're working on the tear. I used Fir from Boozer Lumber on Atlas Rd. Its a more rot resistant than pine and Boozer has better quality than HD and Lowe's, although not as convienent to Irmo.
Clancy

GeneH wrote:After a long "Off" period I have finished sanding the profile for my tear to shape and am ready to start building the wall frames using the method Steve Frederick has in his CD.

With that in mind I went looking for the pine boards I need for the frame and found several types including, Eastern Pine, SYP (Southern Yellow Pine I think) which is considerably heavier and seems stronger than the Eastern pine, and whatever they are calling Whitewood which seems to be the lightest weight of all.

Not being an experienced carpenter I'd appreciate hearing what wood those of you that have built using this type of wall construction used.

BTW, the tear will be a Modernistic model that is 11 feet long and the side wall is 54 inches tall.
TNX...Gene

Hey Gene!
Use whatever you can find that is straight. I realize that can be a challenge! I usually pick through the pile at either Home Depot or Lowes.
I try to use select pine, just 'cause it seems to have fewer knots.
The wood choice won't matter once it's in the wall!
If you have any questions on the CD, please, don't hesitate to contact me!
Thanks for using my CD!

I HAVE FOUND THAT #1 GRADE 2X10 OR 2X12 SOUTHERN YELLOW PINE STOCK IS FANTASTIC CUT DOWN INTO 2X2 OR 2X3 AS SPARS. THERE IS NO GRAIN RELEASE ( boards gone wild) AND NO STRUCTURAL DEFECTS KNOTS SPLITTING OR CHECKS BECAUSE OF THE GRADE. COSTS A BIT MORE BUT YOU ARE NOT THROWING AWAY PART OF THE BOARD BECAUSE OF DEFECTS.

FOR FINISHED PROJECTS I LOVE THE LUMBER WITH MAYBE A LITTLE LIGHT STAIN AND A CLEAR COAT OF POLY. THE GRAIN REALLY POPS. I MAKE SHAKER STYLE WOOD BENCHES OUT OF 2X12 AND SAND AND CLEAR COAT THEM THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL.

OOPS !!

Sorry I was shouting !

Work programs require all caps and I sometines forget if I'm working or playing.