Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

What's the recommended thickness for the aluminum skin?

I have seen online people saying anywhere from 0.024 to 1/8. There is also the aluminum alloy type 3003, 6006 etc. I'm totally lost.

Any pointers are greatly appreciated. Also, if there is good place to order online, please share it too.

Thanks in advance!

DesertApprentice wrote:What's the recommended thickness for the aluminum skin?

I have seen online people saying anywhere from 0.024 to 1/8. There is also the aluminum alloy type 3003, 6006 etc. I'm totally lost.

Any pointers are greatly appreciated. Also, if there is good place to order online, please share it too.

Thanks in advance!

The norm is .040". The extra thin stuff would be hammered by hail. 1/8" would be a bear to pull around a curve --and add a lotta weight.





Tony

We used pre-finished .040" sign panel aluminum for the sides (green) & mill finished .040" for the roof. No problem with the curves, & it's plenty stout for a small trailer. Call around at larger cities, find a sign supply company with lots of aluminum panels & find what you need there.

seen .032" 3003 sheet

was just glued to the aluminum tubing with sikaflex

Large sheets (cut to length from roll) can be available from commercial truck repair businesses. Usually in white. They use it commonly to line vans and trailers.

I got my 0.040 sheets from a roofing company who had ordered them by mistake. Apparently 0.040 is too thick for regular roofing applications (would break when folded 180° in their bender), so got my aluminum sheets for super cheap!

I bought 0.036" from my local metal supply shop. They had great prices (~$400 for the Al for the whole trailer) and were willing to deliver the 5'x12' sheets I ordered.

I purchased my aluminum (.040") from a somewhat local distributor. But if there are no suppliers where you are located, you may want to look into this company
harborsales.net
I don't remember who it was but another member on this forum mentioned them. I looked them up and they seem to have a good supply of aluminum, anodized (silver) as well as colors.
I think they had 5 x 10 sheets in white only. That size seems to be limited to white.
If I remember correctly, I think they were in the Maryland area. I'll go to their site, if I'm geographically "off" I'll report back.
good luck.

John

Capebuild wrote:I purchased my aluminum (.040") from a somewhat local distributor. But if there are no suppliers where you are located, you may want to look into this company
harborsales.net
I don't remember who it was but another member on this forum mentioned them. I looked them up and they seem to have a good supply of aluminum, anodized (silver) as well as colors.
I think they had 5 x 10 sheets in white only. That size seems to be limited to white.
If I remember correctly, I think they were in the Maryland area. I'll go to their site, if I'm geographically "off" I'll report back.
good luck.

John

Thank you so much for your response John! I managed to get the 5x10' 040 aluminum sheeting from a local sign shop. Now I got a new worry about bending the aluminum sheet.
I have never worked with aluminum before. As shown below, my naive thinking was to use one sheet to cover from point 1 through 5 (approx. 101") with 3 bending points (2, 3, 4). I don't have a bending machine. Will this be a problem with the 040 aluminum sheeting?
I also intend to build a hatch that spans from point 5 to point 7. I'm not sure where to place the hinge, also point 6 is a sharp bending point, not sure whether that's a problem.

I've always built traditionally curved teardrops. Three have been sheathed with .040 aluminum. But, I can't believe you will be able to bend it without a brake and have it look okay.



The stuff is stiff.

Tony

I had 45° bends in my aluminum to accommodate the front windshield area, and a 90° bend in the rear of the roof. I experimented with wood blocks and a hammer, and it looked awful. Then I borrowed a sheet metal brake from a roofer friend. It was not strong enough to bend 0.040 aluminum (roofing aluminum is thinner). I ended up taking it to a local machine shop and paying them $50 per bend. Seemed like a lot at the time but not bad in the grand scheme of my build. They came out perfect.

The front bends are visible in this pic.

Thank you for your reply lfhoward! That's very helpful information. Is your aluminum .040?

Given the potential challenges, I may consider Poor Man's Fiberglass. It's a lot more work, but I don't have to deal with the aluminum bending. I have got a big (late) decision to make.