Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Here is The Dinette - a winter trailer (for Merkans - it'd be a summer trailer for Brits). The idea started out with the Sequoia (yup, I do seem incapable of original ideas) and sorta went from there. Sadly the 3D images are not up Mike's standard but you'll get the idea. And for Bev it includes a Scamp-style alternative interior (that doesn't really work).



I've also added something that I've been meaning to do for a while - a Trailer Designs Size Comparison to show the relative size of the various designs on my site. It's also my practice in using frames for my web design evening class!

Andrew

Andrew,

That is very very nice! I like it. You did a wonderful job with the inside.

How do you convert the dinette into the large bed?

I'm just now back from a long 5 day weekend, and I have a lot of catching up to do...

Mike...

Why don't you think the Scamp-type layout works for this trailer?

An alternative you might consider (for the sie-dinette version) is allowing the rear seat to extend across the full rear of the trailer. That would give you either a dinette seat for those with more - well - seat. It could also be modified into more like an L-shaped couch/lounge with a freestanding table. That would make a more comfortable place to kick back and chat at the end of the day.

There's a lot to be said for the Sequoia's layout. I don't like that big vending-style window they put into the design, but it makes a heck of a lot out of a very little space.

mkw

I think there's already way too much text on my web pages - and if I wrote all the things I think of saying while designing, they would be much, much longer! So some (lotsa) things get left out.

Mike (S), the folding goes like this:

The blue (fixed) part and the red (folding) part are both 1/2" ply, hinged together. The widths are slightly different so that you cen get your fingers in, etc. The table is identical, though not very pretty with its 1/2" ledge hanging out. I see I forgot to include in the 3D model the strip running along the front of the galley that all the folding panels rest on when they're folded out. This pdf is the diagram above in more detail - it's now added to the web page.

Mike (W), I had about five different interior combinations but only drew one - the full-width 'back seat' (that might give you the wrong idea.....) is certainly a good one. It makes a nice seat for the cook, it's one less folding panel and it gives more storage, but it does make access to the galley cabinets harder.

I don't think the L-seat works - if you put up a table, such as when eating, you can't get to the galley, which rather defeats the point of eating....

The problem with the Scamp layout is that all the beds are 70" (5' 10") long, which is a bit small nowadays. Oh, except for Bev, obviously.

Andrew

angib wrote:I think there's already way too much text on my web pages - and if I wrote all the things I think of saying while designing, they would be much, much longer! So some (lotsa) things get left out.

Mike (S), the folding goes like this:


Andrew

Ah that is really sweet. That's a wonderful interior.

Regarding your "too much text on the webpages" , I know of a good place for all your text.... here on the forum, broken up into bite sized messages!

Let's talk about the outside profile you used briefly... I think you kept it square to allow ample headroom... because of that it doesn't have nearly the grace that the 2+2 design has, which in my mind is your best exterior profile to date!!! So the question is, is it possible to marry the 2+2 exterior to the "winter teardrop" interior? You might have to design in some additional "storage" to "use-up" the space you create.

I do like the interior bathroom. Just last week I had sketched up an interior bathroom that was mounted on part of the tongue, with the walls following the 50* tongue profile for about 3'. The roofline was also slightly curved. I haven't had a chance to model it yet, but after seeing your design, I realized that I was on the right track!

BTW, some of the best designers in the world don't invent anything. And remember too, that there is nothing new under the sun!!! So just keep reshaping and repackaing... you're doing a wonderful job.

Mike...

I'm curious to see what Cathy has to say when she and Bob see this design.

Mike wrote:Just last week I had sketched up an interior bathroom that was mounted on part of the tongue, with the walls following the 50* tongue profile for about 3'. The roofline was also slightly curved.

This sounds like a real nautical 'heads' up in the bow of the trailer! You just have to watch the weight/space equation - would the weight of the extension used instead to build a larger simpler body deliver more usable space?

And I do wish someone would chime in with "This ain't keeping it simple" - I do have the feeling that I'm straying into the realm of the ungodly with all these larger trailers.

Andrew

K.I.S.S

Andrew,

As far as interior layout goes, I think the one that makes the most sense is your alternate layout.

On the small trailers like the Boler and the Scamp, they seem to use this one the most. On some of them they have used a dinette, and some a gaucho (couch) and some of them had a fold down bunk above. Even if a seperate bathroom was required, it could easily placed in the front space.

Also, they made up the extra 4-5" of height by dropping the centre section down in front of the axle. The front dinette/couch and rear dinette would then be elevated.

And if I wanted to keep it simple, I would pack a bed role, saddle up the horse and head off into the sunset............So, simple is not always more comfortable..........I much prefer comfort, and the challenge of fitting more features into a given space. So let's keep it complicated.......

angib wrote:And I do wish someone would chime in with "This ain't keeping it simple" - I do have the feeling that I'm straying into the realm of the ungodly with all these larger trailers.

Andrew

Andrew,

I think we all recognize there are fine lines to cross. The first line we crossed was recognizing that there was more to life than traditional teardrops.

The next line that I think we are crossing is that there can be more facilities inside a tiny travel trailer.

If you think about the roots of a teardrop, it was a travel trailer that you didn't have to take a 30 year mortgage out on, and you didn't have to buy a semi truck to haul it.

So now, lets take a quick visit back to the past. If the teardrop builders of the 40's were alive today, what would they want in their teardrops now? And what shape would they be? If you can answer that question, I think you'll find that you are not venturing in to the realm of the ungodly large trailers... Oh, and just to make things more confusing, these teardrop builders from the past all live in a wonderfully sunny, temperate climate most of the year, something that we here in the midwest, or Canada, or even in Flordia don't have. So what would these guys have designed had they lived elsewhere?

I still believe that if you can design a tiny travel trailer that is:

1) easy to pull with your existing car
2) affordable
3) gives you a comfortable place to sleep
4) gives you a place to cook
& 5) gives you rest room facilities

... you would have captured all the goals and desires of the old teardrop designers if they were alive today.

Of course, teardrops and tiny travel trailers are a series of compromises. Back then they couldn't package everything on the list. Could they today? I don't know. But it's the people on this forum that are trying to package 10# of stuff into a 5# bag, that are stretching the limits of what is possible.

I think that if we keep working on it, we can write a chapter in the history books of travel trailers. And you, and the rest of the guys here on this forum, are on the bleeding, I mean leading edge of it. Lets keep plugging forward.

Mike...

Mike why do you have such an issue with fitting the 5 in a 10 if thats what people want to do who cares???????

Anyway, This one is a real beauty, love the interior set up

Dean in Eureka, CA wrote:I'm curious to see what Cathy has to say when she and Bob see this design.

Dean, are you trying to bring me out of hiding, its working!!!

We have decided to go with the fibreglass shell that you see in my avatar. It will have a side door for access to the cabin and barn doors to the galley. After much discussion, we really want a kitchen area that is open to outdoors. we tend to do most of our cooking outside anyways so it doesn't make sense to have an indoor kitchen. Having said that, we may work in some sort of counter area inside so that we can bring a coffee pot inside in rainy weather......or for those cool mornings.

Hi Cathy,
I've been out of the loop for a while also.
What struck me was the toilet. That's what I thought would get your attention. I remember to talking about some kind of "pot" or something as a substitute for the real deal.

We are still sketching various floor plans but it will have some sort of 'facilities'. We've been playing with the idea of going with a longer trailer. We have a choice of 12' or 15'. First thought was that 15' was very long but there isn't a big difference in weight so we are thinking of going with the longer one The build time for the shell is about a month so we'll have to make the final decision in about March.

Good to see you back Dean Hope things are working out for you.

Cathy,
That looks like it will certainly be a nice roomy setup.
Are you guys still planning on making it to Minden?
So far so good. I signed the papers yesterday to start the deal on this fire station. Looks like I'll only be putting up about 14K down payment at first, because the owner is going to carry the rest of the down payment for me, but I've got to square up with him by mid May 2005 with about 37K all at once. (Ouch) After that it will be a breeze. My monthly payment is only going to be $80 more than what I rent it for right now.
So it's back to the drawing board and refinement as far as my teardrop goes at least until after May. I would really like to at least attend Minden, just to meet everyone and check out all the trailers.