Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I am going to rhino coat my roof 1 or 2 layers of 1/8 in plywood ?? And has anyone used that plastic hinge for the galley or there door. Do they work as well as they say they do.
Thanks Dan
also i have pics in my album

Dan, I used a McMaster-Carr PETG plastic hinge (#1195A13) on my hatch. It has worked well for two years so far - no cracks, tears, or leaks. I put aluminum strips on it to stiffen it up a bit.
I used two layers of 1/8" Baltic birch for the roof. One would probably have been stiff enough, but I wanted more puncture resistance in case of flying stones while towing, and falling acorns, twigs, etc. while camping.
Sam

Sam thanks
i am at work now i think we have there catalog
Dan

got mine installed and it is working good so far. one tip is to pre drill it. i did this by clamping a guide on the drill press and marked the increments with a silver sharpie. letting the screws make the hole will warp it.

depending on how much you open the door or hatch you might want to bevel the edges a little. Did this with a dremmel belt sander with a guide clamped on the plate and the plate tilted ~45 degrees.



oh and if at all possible use 2 layers of the 1/8th.. a single layer IMO isnt enough.

am going to rhino coat my roof 1 or 2 layers of 1/8 in plywood ??



I would definitely use two layers of 1/8" plywood with the second sheet covering the seams of the first sheet by a few inches or more. Use the best quality of plywood like Baltic Birch. Danny

I've put the same hinge from McMaster-Carr and it works fine. My hatch is very heavy and the hinge shows no signs of wear or stress (caveat is that I've been using it only for 3 months now). I also saw a T@B trailer this weekend and it looked like they had a similar hinge on their hatch. Aluminum bar on top and pre-drilling is essential.

I'm with the others on using two sheets of 1/8 th inch ply for covering the outside. It adds a little weight but there is no serious downside as it isn't much weight - I put on one layer of 1/8 inch oak ply which is vastly stronger than my second layer of luan. My 6 year old could walk on the top before the aluminum was on. I also found the two layers helpful for smoothing the curves - I have a few more than most and staggering the seams made it come out smoothly.

Good Luck!
John

every one seems to be backing up the hinge looks like the way to go.
and do you glue and screw the 2 layer ??
Dan