Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I’m always thinking ‘bout what’s next – what will be #5. The ladybug is nice and has served well, but there are a few issues that cannot be resolved within the design limitations.
1. My daughter is no longer 12yrs old – she is now 14 and full fledged teenager – the ladybug had only one queen sized bed which all three of us slept. That was fine until she hit her growth spurt! We thought about shortening the bed and letting her sleep on the floor – No such thing, the floor is not insulated, plus we would have to be constantly maneuvering around her if we need to get out for a nighttime potty visit.

2. With the weight of the hatch being in consideration, I had to make the inside height a little lower that a full standy for me. I compromised and made it 5’3 inside – a standy for the Mrs and a stoopy for me. That I can live with – we just sleep inside of it anyways

3. Opening and securing the hatch – the ladybugs design makes it perfect to store inside a garage and lowers the drag on the tow vehicle, but is a pain to set up each time I want to move it. I didn’t have the foresight to incorporate a lifting mechanism when I started building and it’s beginning to take it’s toll. I’m just getting tired of the set up time required. I just want to back in and set out some chairs under an awning and be done.

I think I have struck a compromise and settled on what will be #5




This design has two sleeping areas – one up front for the daughter and one in the rear, for us. The one in the rear will fold out to a double bed size, but could also fold up into a seating area as well. The addition of overhead storage is also a plus since we don’t have to worry about an articulating hinge.
Dimensions are 126 inches long X 76 wide X 63â€

Looks like a nice project. I look forward to watch it progress.

Ditto!~ It is a nice design!

Is there a reason you are not making it tall enough for you to stand... Moving around in something that long stooped over that far will be painful fast. I am only 63ish" and mine cause me pain if I bend for too long in 4'10"..

Looks slick.

...too cool...I love the graphics...double A++ for them....so the question becomes...when's the debut...
madjack

Miriam C. wrote:Ditto!~ It is a nice design!

Is there a reason you are not making it tall enough for you to stand... Moving around in something that long stooped over that far will be painful fast. I am only 63ish" and mine cause me pain if I bend for too long in 4'10"..

No problem for me - Just as long as I can stand up far enough to pull my legs into a pair of pants - that's good enough (for some reason - people around me prefer that I wear clothing - go figure?) I also have a height restriction of my garage - i thought about dropping the floor, but it would only give me a few extra inches,. the 63" is only four inches less than the maximum head room of the ladybug

starleen2 wrote: I also have a height restriction of my garage - i thought about dropping the floor, but it would only give me a few extra inches,. the 63" is only four inches less than the maximum head room of the ladybug

A pop top of some kind is a possibility as you know. If you are concerned about the weight or the difficulty of lifting it, there are 12vdc linear actuators that could do the lifting. I'll be doing that with my hinged pop up but not because of the weight, but just for the coolness factor. That little bit of added height will make a big difference to my aging frame. It's good to be able to stretch out a bit. Also, the pop up provides a nice way to add ventilation. Worth a second look, I'd say.

myoung wrote:

starleen2 wrote: I also have a height restriction of my garage - i thought about dropping the floor, but it would only give me a few extra inches,. the 63" is only four inches less than the maximum head room of the ladybug

A pop top of some kind is a possibility as you know. If you are concerned about the weight or the difficulty of lifting it, there are 12vdc linear actuators that could do the lifting. I'll be doing that with my hinged pop up but not because of the weight, but just for the coolness factor. That little bit of added height will make a big difference to my aging frame. It's good to be able to stretch out a bit. Also, the pop up provides a nice way to add ventilation. Worth a second look, I'd say.

I did consider a pop top - but then I'm right back to the set up issues - been there done that. Some find it necessary to stand up in the camper - I do not find the need. When I sleep - I'm not standing, when I sit up in bed, I'm not standing - I do not cook inside and I'm usually outside when i go potty ( the girls prefer that I'm outside or somewhere else!) - so i have no real need for a standy. The idea of a simple small camper to sleep in is just fine with me - I kinda like the concept of a teardrop - just back in - pull the hatch up for the kitchen - and you're done. Someday I'll build a teardrop for two - but right now we still have one young en' left

madjack wrote:...too cool...I love the graphics...double A++ for them....so the question becomes...when's the debut...
madjack

gonna try to have it ready by Beaver's Bend in March - gathering parts right now - the construction begins after LCG (november) - Just putting the design out there in case I might have missed something

I like your design. You might consider a storage area over the front bed. Also you could design a rear pullout galley. The galley would fit under the rear bed/couch area. Just a thought.

Dan

starleen2 wrote:Just putting the design out there in case I might have missed something

Looks like you will need a longer tongue to avoid crushing the rear corners on the tow vehicle when turning tight and backing it into spots.

It's a *really* nice design.

Prem

An idea for a bit more head room- Consider raising the roof 4" at the front, then sloping it back 1" per foot to the rear edge. To garage, drop the tongue wheel until the roofline is level. Of course that means hand pushing into the garage.

Also consider a little "swoosh" at the rear edge like the late 60's to early 70's Cardinals had.

Check out this image from Tin Can Tourists:
http://www.tincantourists.com/wiki/lib/exe/detail.php?id=cardinal&media=cardinalmid60s.jpg

Another site with a 14', 1971 Cardinal with dropped floor:
http://www.physics.sfsu.edu/~sburt/Site/My_Albums/My_Albums.html

madjack wrote:...too cool...I love the graphics...double A++ for them....so the question becomes...when's the debut...
madjack

Well - MJ - it looks like I'm gonna be movin' over to da' build threads with this one. The Ladybug will have anew owner shortly and i ain't sleepin' in a tent!

Not that I'm trying to throw a wrench in the works but... , your 14 yo is about to the age where they don't wish to be seen with their parents any longer. I've got three kids and they all pretty much stopped camping after they hit 15, even though we still invite them. Now it's just the wife and I along with our friends and frankly, that's kinda nice. I just wouldn't want to see you do all the work on this design only to have it outgrow it's useful life shortly after the build is finished. Just some food for thought

atahoekid wrote:Not that I'm trying to throw a wrench in the works but... , your 14 yo is about to the age where they don't wish to be seen with their parents any longer. I've got three kids and they all pretty much stopped camping after they hit 15, even though we still invite them. Now it's just the wife and I along with our friends and frankly, that's kinda nice. I just wouldn't want to see you do all the work on this design only to have it outgrow it's useful life shortly after the build is finished. Just some food for thought

I'm looking forward to the day when she decides to be independent - however the design of the front bed is easily converted to a seating /storage area whether she is there or not.