Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Folks,

I am continuing to read and learn. So far I have discovered that I have the necessary inexperience, primitive tool cache and naivete to undertake a teardrop. In short, certifiable/commitable. That said, I would appreciate advice about the following:

On the matter of doors: Given the above, advice about 1) making your own; or 2) buying from RV parts source.

In the case of the second alternative, do the doors come with a 'sandwich' type frame or or they simply single layer frame mounted on the outside of the wall? If they are sandwich type construction I assume you better know the width of your walls before you start?

Still pondering trailer alternatives,

Jim

Jim, just let me say this...premade doors are VERY PRICEY and makin' your own isn't much harder than cuttin a hole in the side and trimmin' the cutout with some dead soft T molding from one of the TD suppliers...and we will be here to help and advise...just remember the pics
madjack

All of the above.
Jim,
I have an 1 1/2" of insulation in my walls and I'm considering only going with 3/4" of insulation in the doors, so I can incorporate a door stop into the jamb and head without infringing on the cabin space...
I'm starting to see that build #1 is having more and more issues decided on the fly...

Dean in Eureka, CA wrote:I'm starting to see that build #1 is having more and more issues decided on the fly...

...the best laid plans of Mice and Men...
madjack

Of course, Jack's right, Jim.

Even if you bought premade doors, you could still screw it up when it comes to fitting them into the openings.

Do like I did--screw up the doors AND the openings. When you screw them both up, they cancel each other out and sometimes fit.

Dean, where are the pics of your build? All I can find is your trailer and one wall up in the photo section......

Micro,
That's not a wall... it's the master template clamped on to one very stout frame.
I'll be posting more pics after the wall framing is complete and that's what I'm working on right now...

Jim,
Most that buy doors say they bought because of time constraints. I would think the 1st step, that you didn't mention here but might have in other posts is what type of TD are you going to build. Pre-made doors don't lend themselves to all types of teardrops but all teardrops lend themselves to build them yourself doors.

I think the doors I built are a little different, heck, most of the stuff I build is different. My doors have a exterior frame, and two 1/4" sheets of oak plywood, this was all epoxied and clamped together, no screw, dowels, biscuits, or mitered cuts. I over sized the plywood parts and trimmed them with the router.... took all of an hour to make a door not counting the time for the epoxy to cure. They were easy. Hardest part was cutting boards close to the same length. But this wouldn't hardly be suitable for an aluminum sided tear... would have had to put the frame pieces in the middle. But, there are many ways to build a door.

Steve

Great looking door Steve

Steve, What are your door demensions?

Everybody else too please, how tall and how wide should doors be?

Not sure of what they "should" be but mine are 21" x 36".

I opted for "fatboy" doors 31 1/2" x 31 1/2", mostly because that was the size of the originals.

the doors I found are surplus RV "bunk bed" doors. They are 1" thick ,prehinged in 2" thick surface mount frames with windows, weatherstripping and keyed latches. Cut a hole, lay down a bead of sealer, drop in the door and screw it to the side wall. I'm doing it this way cause the doors cost me less than a hinge, window, and latch . ($75.00 each)

Gaston, sounds like a deal!! What are the over all deminsion?

Steve
the doors are 36" tall by 30" wide outside the frames and the frames are 2" thick but can be fit in a thiner wall they would just stick into the cabin
The company I got them from buys surplus and damaged mobile home and RV stuff. The doors like I got are pretty rare but can be made by shorting rv doors and moving the hinge