Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Thinking of taking a 4' x 4' trailer I have(Menards bolt together)and stretching it and building a small TD around 6 foot long x 3' tall(too short?). Originally thought of using 1/2 ply for the walls, but have been contemplating sandwich walls, my main question is what thicknesses to use(1/4 ply inside and out with 1x studs?). Would like to go with a scad-about type profile. Here is trailer as it is now
http://www.tnttt.com/gallery/image.php?image_id=23078
Thanks
Aaron

I don't see a problem with the concept. I know Roly's 1/4 Nelson is built on a trailer roughly that size, and my own Itty-Bitty also falls in that category. The only change I made to the trailer was to extend the tongue length by two feet and cantilever the floor out front and back past the frame. Roughly 7 feet long and 4 feet tall. In my case I used 3/4 ply (uninsulated) for the walls.

Do it!!! And post lots of

that's a pretty small trailer, so I'd think on the thin side -- look at Rollys Tweaka build -- it's pretty small as well and might gove you some ideas about sizing.

You can build a nice cub style trailer on that chassis. The cub wouldn't have much frame, due to the lower curves...

You would need a longer tongue though!

Mike...

Got thinking today about scavaging as much as possible on this build. Have 2 windows(need new rubber), should be able to salvage plywood from box for floor, and maybe some of the aluminum, also hinges, might rob the fan vent out of my motorhome bathroom. Will have to scrounge around the farm to see wht else I can find.
Measured the trailer and it is 40" wide.

Had my nephew pick out a profile from the design library, his first choice was the campmaster, the second choice was the square TD, so will experiment on cardboard to get the profile, bent new side rails for the frame at work today, so it looks like the frame (not including tongue) will be 74".
Question of the day. What for the floor, 1/2 ply or salvage(splice) 3/4 ply from the box that was previously on the trailer? Think I have decided on 1/2 ply walls, what type of ply should I be looking for?

It's just the floor and nobody is really going to see it. If it were me, I'd use the 3/4" you all ready have and splice it to fit.

I like both of your nephew's choices, leaning more towards the campmaster. I'm partial to curves though. Cardboard is cheap!! I wouldn't rule out something like the cub or even a modified benroy scaled to the size you are looking for. I've done 3-d renders of most of the profiles designed to fit the size (width) trailer you are working with. If I can find them and blow the dust off them, I'd be more than happy to share.

BTW.... the 40" frame gives you just enough interior width for a twin size mattress.

From somebody who has one to a possible prospect..... welcome to the 40 wide club!!!

OK here are pics so far, will try to take pics throughout the build, I guess since there are pics the build is officially on.
This is the frame with my new side rails (12 ga steel)
Windows, the longer one I picked up at a swap meet just after finishing my first TD for $20, the smaller one is salvaged from a topper and needs new seals.
The other small window and hurricane hinge from the same topper.
The fan vent that I may possibly use.Any body tell me if this will be difficult to wire? Probably wont use all three windows. Don't have a pic of the hatck lock rods that I won at ITG.
I can get 4' x 10' sheets of cardboard at work for nothing, it comes in on sheetmetal, and since I work in sheetmetal I'm the one that has to handle it, asked my supervisor if he thought they would notice if I slipped 3 sheets of 20 ga stainless steel in between a couple of sheets of cardboard, he thought they might notice that.
If you don't mind I would love the rendering of a cub or benroy.
Thanks
Aaron

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The more I look at the cub profile, the more I like it. It looks like its going fast just standing still. So many profiles, decisions, decisions, decisions, how long of a tongue would I need for a cub? The tongue on this trailer is actually longer than on my first TD. Any thoughts on reinforcements on the frame, will possibly use on of the old side rails as a second crossmmber and maybe put a piece of 2x2 tubing inside the sexisting tongue and extend it back to the second crossmember. The trailer originally just had the single tongue, I added the triangulated angles to stiffen the crossmember as it seemed kind of twisty, with out it.
Or am I just overthinking?

Couldn't locate the model I did for the Cub, so this morning I knocked out another one in Sketchup. Based it on the floor being the 74" length that you are extending your trailer to. The overall length of the cabin ended up being 8' 6" long. It's a simple galley with potato bin storage underneath. There was some room at the front, so I threw in a closet/headboard wall with an a/c unit that would be above your head. The interior lay out would of course be of your own choosing.

The link to my Photobucket album with the Cub and some others that I was able to find is here...

http://s239.photobucket.com/albums/ff165/tinksdad01/mini%20profiles/

As far as the length of your tongue, I would try to make it extend at least 30" past the front profile. (Itty-Bitty's is a 6' single piece of 2 1/2" square tube 1/8" wall extending from the center cross member and has served well thus far; but Itty-Bitty only weighs around 450 pounds totally loaded.)

Thank You I'm so glad I found this thread. I'm thinking of building a tiny tear this winter about that size also and only 6' long so I'll be following your build closely. Was searching for what the minimum wall thickness could be for safely pulling.
Do you know the weight of your bare frame at start?

Don't know about the Menard's; but the HF 40x48 with 12" wheels was 187 pounds shipping weight.

tinksdad wrote:Don't know about the Menard's; but the HF 40x48 with 12" wheels was 187 pounds shipping weight.

How funny I was just looking at the HF site when this was posted. Thank You

Would that be lighter than building one yourself?

seeing as how it's along the same lines as this thread it won't be a total hijack. What's the thinnest wall one could go with? I'm looking at a sandwich wall construction.

I really couldn't say if it would be lighter or not. I have no welding skills at all, so I used what was available at the time. I have since developed a friendship with somebody who does weld and is willing to work for beer!!

As far as wall thickness, the first one was 3/4" solid ply. Out of curiosity, I recalculated the weight since then using a 3/4" skeleton, insulated, with 5mm skins and the difference was really negligible on a trailer that small.

I have another 40x48 that I am making a Cub mini baggage hauler with (temporarily on hold) using 1/2" ply for the sides and 3/4" ply for the floor. Floor and walls are cut; haven't started assembly as of yet. Both wall profiles cut from one sheet of ply and the floor is from a damaged Detour sign I picked up for free from the DOT. The hold up is that the trailer needs some repair. Tongue is bent from being overloaded. I would have changed out the c-channel tongue for a square tube any ways.

I have to keep things hidden in the mean time. The neighborhood "busy bodies" have all ready turned me in once to the town for having too many un-registered vehicles in my yard.

Didn't get the bare frame weighed and I have been tearing it apart to put the longer rails on. On my first one I used 2 inch 3/16 c channel and would have guess that this is lighter, will see if I can find a leftover chunk of C-channel and wiegh it and part of the new frame and do some figuring to come up with a rough estimate on the frames.
I'm planning on using 1/2 ply walls, my goal is to come up with a semi-lightwieght TD that I can pull with my Omni. Still haven't decided on profile yet, now leaning towards a cub, but then again...
Aaron