Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I have been looking for info on doing a fiberglass body for a TD, but I haven’t found anything… I’m trying to come up with a design that would be very light (under 500 lbs) for the body as I only have a total towing weight of 1000 lbs, but want to be under that.

Has anyone done a fiberglass body? I was thinking about this: from outside in…fiberglass, felt fabric (to form the shape), 1/4” marine grade ply (cut out for only a frame), spray on Cascade ThermaGuard insulating compound (only .22 pound per sq. foot, only 7 lbs for a 4x8 sheet of ply), then a 1/8” sheet of something…

I figure total weight per side would be about 35 lbs. not including doors or windows.

Ideas?

Thanks in advanced for any help for the noob.

What size are you planning? Most wood/aluminum or all wood teardrops weigh in at 1000 or less!


But if you have your heart set on fiberglass, here's a thread on it. It might be hard to read, but might help you:

http://tnttt.com/viewto ... fiberglass

toypusher wrote:What size are you planning? Most wood/aluminum or all wood teardrops weigh in at 1000 or less!

I was thinking of a 4x8, but I want to tow it with my Saturn L200 which has a 1000 lb max tow weight, so add in the food, propane tank, stove, sink, oven, etc...weight becomes a concern, I would like to keep the total loaded weight at 800 lbs or less.

I have not weighed mine, but lots of folks have. You should be able to build a 4x8 within those limits.

Here's a thread to read with a few that are well within your limits: http://tnttt.com/viewto ... ight=weigh

Your plan sounds like a lot of (lot of lot of lot of) work and I'm not convinced it would be lighter than using two skins of 1/8" ply. Have a look at the Cowper - there are plans for it in the 'Vintage Plans' menu option above (but it's not vintage) and you can search on threads about it using the Cowper name, or the username 'steve wolverton' who was the builder.

Steve describes his weight reduction techniques and he got under the 500lb mark - he did sheath the trailer in fiberglass but I think that was as much for longevity as strength.

The fiberglass idea has been suggested many times, but so far only 'gaston' has made one and I don't think his is very light. In truth, plywood is probably even lighter material for this application, but I think it's how carefully (ie, weight-consciously) you build, rather than what material you use, that makes the big difference.

But I'll be delighted to be proved wrong! And welcome, which I forgot to say first.

Andrew

Keep th frame minimal, use 1/4" outside skin, 1/8" inside, 1/2" for the floor, keep the framing in the walls, ceiling and floor minimal and you should have no problem keeping your weight around 5-600 lbs.
Mine is 5x10 and it's around a 1000 lbs. The next one will be the same size and I'm sure it will be under 800 lbs finished. A 4x8 shouldn't be hard to keep that light.

If you plan the trailer frame right you can eliminate most of the framing under the floor and lay it right on the frame.

Are shell run less than 1 lb per square foot of surface area that with 1" of foam insulation there 8 that are done 5 being build i only sell the shells. The last shell that whent out was 246 lb