Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hi, first time poster. I have a great teardrop that a tradesman built but the interior width is only 48". I need 60" friends, 48" is just too tight for two sleepers. The trailer chassis seems exceptionally well built, not one of those cheaper 55mph bolt together deals. However the two chassis tubes are only 48" apart -- as would be expected. So the 3/4" plywood floor is flush with the chassis tubes, no overhang.

Question: if I built a new shell on the existing chassis, this time with a 60" wide plywood, would I be creating problems? With a 60" wide sheet I'd have of course a 6" overhang on each chassis tube since the tubes are 48" wide. Would it work?

I'm sure you can do it since there are many 60in builds on Harbor Freight trailers. The only problem would be is if the wheels are too big to go underneath.

asianflava wrote:I'm sure you can do it since there are many 60in builds on Harbor Freight trailers. The only problem would be is if the wheels are too big to go underneath.

For that, you can build wheel wells inside the TD or build over the tires. Here is my planned sub-frame, many people have done similar. 4x8 HF trailer.

HF Trailer and Wood Subframe by jseyfert3, on Flickr

Those are 1x4's, 64" wide. High enough so plywood on top clears the top of the fenders over the wheels. Many more people build shorter and build in wheel wells into the TD. I did not want to do that myself because I wanted to be able to use a standard queen sized mattress with no modifications to the mattress, so I needed it flat.

It's one option. I would think you'd be ahead if you started a 5-wide from a 5-foot trailer and then sell your tradesman built 4-wide.

Tony