Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

howdy-

Well I am at the stage of skinning the roof and picked up two pieces of 4x8 laun ply. Since one sheet won't completely cover the roof I will have to use two pieces. My thought is to use a full sheet attached at the galley end and glue and staple it - and then finish off the rest with the remaining piece. Or would I be better off starting at the tongue end and working up to the galley? (This gives me a less visible seam)

Also what is the best way to secure the ply? I have looked at various personal galleys and have seen both wood screws and staples.

Thanks

Bill

Hi Billy!
I start at the front, where the curve is rounder. That way, you don't have a
joint in the ply at the wrong (sharp curve) place. It's very difficult to get a tight seam on edges that are under stress from bending. The center of the seam will want to open up, leaving a gap.
Yeah, I know this first hand A gap in ply that IS the finish, as in woodies, is not good! It's repairable, but a big hassle.

I started at the hatch and worked my way to the front. I used alot of heavy items on top to hold things in place while the "Gorilla Glue" dried. At the front I screwed some temporary boards over the spars to hold the luan in place. After the glue dried I removed the boards. My seam is in the front but it is not in a curved area so a gap was not a problem.

I still smoothed the seam with some filler prior to installing my aluminum.

Thanks for the advice. After I posted the orginal question and since I am building a Cubby (well almost) starting at the tongue and working back to the galley makes sense.

My question to Steve is - besides the glue what other fastners would you use. Since I do not plan on putting another materials over the roof (except some fiberglass) What would you suggest? Also - what is the best type of wood filler to use?

Thanks

Bill

Aw, come on Steve, I wanna know too!!!

Mike...

Steve Frederick wrote:

BILLYL wrote:Thanks for the advice. After I posted the orginal question and since I am building a Cubby (well almost) starting at the tongue and working back to the galley makes sense.

My question to Steve is - besides the glue what other fastners would you use. Since I do not plan on putting another materials over the roof (except some fiberglass) What would you suggest? Also - what is the best type of wood filler to use?

Thanks

Bill

Bill, Check your PM Mailbox!!

Steve-

Worked like a champ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Took all of 30 minutes to install - am only doing one layer of ply. I also added a board at the bootom to act like a shelve so the ply could rest on it and start the aggressive curve.

One other thing I did was to attach the ply on the frame a few days before - so it gets use to being curved under pressure. Let it sit for a few days and it began to think that it should be in that shape. That helped out a lot.

Thanks again

Bill

I took one end and glued it down with polyurethane caulk. I clamped it down with at 2x4 on end. It was either screwed down or held in place with a floor jack (the weight of trailer clamping it down.) When it was dry, I removed it and started bending it over the curve. I pulled it with straps while the same board clamped the other end. I would also put screws into it to hold it down.

mikeschn wrote:Aw, come on Steve, I wanna know too!!!

Mike...

Steve Frederick wrote:

BILLYL wrote:Thanks for the advice. After I posted the orginal question and since I am building a Cubby (well almost) starting at the tongue and working back to the galley makes sense.

My question to Steve is - besides the glue what other fastners would you use. Since I do not plan on putting another materials over the roof (except some fiberglass) What would you suggest? Also - what is the best type of wood filler to use?

Thanks

Bill

Bill, Check your PM Mailbox!!

Steve, I want to know too. I should skinning my roof this weekend. Jim