Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I have decided on the teardrop profile i want, thing is how to mark it out !
as you have probably guessed this will be my 1st attempt so any information will be gratefully appreciated.

THE WHINGE

Depends on the profile. I used measurements and drew it out on the plywood. Should have used a guide of some sort. Maybe some lattice stripping or something.

If you are using one of the profiles from the design library, they are dimensioned on a 3-inch grid. I used a drywall t-square to create a grid on the plywood. Then you plot out the points on the grid. For curves, I used wood scraps stuck to the plywood with double-sided tape to mark the points along the curve. Then take a wood strip (actually I used a "fake wood" plastic batten trim) and bend along the wood scraps to form the curve.

Good tips – then you can use the first wall to draw the second one – then you’ll have a matching pair.
OR
You can also mark the second one off the first, cut it a little wide of the line (1/8 inch or so) and then use the first as a template and using a flush trim router bit, trim it to match.

Yeah definitely use the graphs from the design library and mark it out on the plywood. Like aggie79 I have done the similar:

First mark out plots along the curve, then screw some small scraps of wood to the plywood sheet at certain key points along the curve so you can attach strips of 1/8 ply to them. Basically you don't want to draw the curve you want to trace something bent along that curve. Be sure to use the SAME sheeting you will use for your roof because then you'll know if it can actually be bend to those radii. I found that out the hard way. My strips were from a more flexible luan and then I bought more and it was stiff and broke every time I tried to bend it. Boiling hot water helps too though. Anyway, so now you have a nice trace of your profile along strips of plywood bent to that shape. If you want to take it a step further you can cut it out and trace it again onto another sheet of plywood by bending some more strips along the edge to see if the sheeting will follow it nicely. There are always high and low spots. This second cutout should be a very nice pattern to use for your actual sides. Clamp them together and belt sand them until they are the same.

A tight radius can be a major pain too for bending plywood. I've used bendable plywood which is super flexible but pretty much too floppy and doesn't provide any strength or support. I had 1/8 which was actually thinner than true 1/8 but maybe they make some thicker bendable plywood that would work good...

Lucas

Get an overhead projector ... go to the copy shop and have them photocopy the profile on a piece of transparency sheet ... place the sheet on the projector ... place the projector in your shop/garage, and project the image on the wall and adjust it to the size you want ... place your plywood for your teardrop's wall against the wall where the image is ... trace the image on your plywood ... done!

CHEERS!

Grant

grant whipp wrote:Get an overhead projector ... go to the copy shop and have them photocopy the profile on a piece of transparency sheet ... place the sheet on the projector ... place the projector in your shop/garage, and project the image on the wall and adjust it to the size you want ... place your plywood for your teardrop's wall against the wall where the image is ... trace the image on your plywood ... done!

CHEERS!

Grant

grant whipp wrote:Get an overhead projector ... ... trace the image on your plywood ... done!

Grant, you might like to know that this is, more or less, a technique used by some Japanese shipyards for marking out steel plate before the days of computer-controlled cutting machines. OK, they were probably using much higher resolution slides and they did it in a tall dark room/tower with photo-sensitive primer on the steel plate, so once the steel plate had been exposed, the shapes to cut were 'burnt' into the primer. Wouldn't that be nice?

Andrew

Get an overhead projector ... go to the copy shop and have them photocopy the profile on a piece of transparency sheet ... place the sheet on the projector ... place the projector in your shop/garage, and project the image on the wall and adjust it to the size you want ... place your plywood for your teardrop's wall against the wall where the image is ... trace the image on your plywood ... done! Thumbs Up

That's how I did the profile for the herringbone

use a large piece of card board and a electric cord or garden hose

lay it out the way you want mark cut