Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hi all,
I thought I'd share my design with you: I have a pretty good idea now of the profile of the TD I'm planning to build.
Took what I thought to be the most practical points of several designs, mainly shape-wise:



The combo, with the Burton up front, will look like this:


Note that the cabinet section is not complete yet. Still looking for more inspiration
Weight will be a major issue. The TD will be 290 cm (9' 6") long, and 122 cm (4') wide. Ready-to-roll weight should not exceed 400 kg (880 lbs) (loaded! )
The walls and floor will be 12 mm (1/2"), floor only insulated by mattress, walls will have 10 mm (3/8") EPP on the inside, finished with upholstery material, probably vinyl. No framework on the walls, I expect the cabinet section to provide some strength. Roof will be 3 mm (1/8") outside and inside, insulated. At this point I'm still undecided: what height of the spars is mostly used? Is 38 mm (1 1/2") acceptable? How about less than that?
The doors will also be 12 mm (1/2"), they will be some 3 cm (1 1/4") larger than the door-opening. They will sit on the outside. This should eliminate the need for aluminium trim, but I should still be able to create a good weather seal between door and body. As the door will be relatively thin, I won't use ready made windows, but I'll make something myself. Windows should be able to open and have insect screens.
No alu cladding, I plan tu use CPES or whatever equivalent I can find over here in Holland, then followed by a good quality epoxy yacht paint.
Chassis will be a simple rectangle of 5 cm (2") angle iron, New Lightweight Cub style.
I expect to be able to start construction around October...
Any comments would be welcome!

Willem

Looks like a nice lowrider Benroy. What the height of the sides?
You might want to skip on the standard forward cabinets. You will hit your head trying to sit up.

Is that a Alfa Romeo 8C? It will be kool if the wheels and fender match the car.

Hi Willem, Good looking design sir. Junkboy's right, the forward over head cabinets would be head bangers. You could add a simple aft cabinet over your feet though. A single shelf from side to side and a simple face frame with cubbies or doors shouldn't add much weight. You'd get a ton of useful storage. I built all my cabinets and shelves with 1/2" Baltic birch cabinet grade plywood. They are very strong without too much weight.

Remember to have fun,

Dave

Junkboy and Dave, thanks for the suggestions. To be honest, I too have my doubts of the interior height. The side walls would be 4ft high, but, as a friend here in Holland also suggested, one wouldn't even be able to sit up. But is 4ft not the 'standard' outside height most TD builders use?
I did find out though that I can obtain sheets of 130 cm width (just over 51") so I'll probably go for that, both for height and width.

Junkboy, the car, I'm afraid, is not an Alfa, but a Citroen based kit car. It is called a Burton. The factory is in Holland. The Burton is based on a Citroen 2CV.


The car is only 900 lbs, engine is 2 cylinder, air-cooled, 30 hp, so keeping the weight of the TD is a crucial factor!

Willem

The 4 foot Height is mainly due to the fact thats store only carry plywood, paneling, and other sheet good
at 4X8. Other stuff can be found, we have to be special ordered it.

I saw a standard TD on my first TD gathering. It had a drop down section in the floor. The bed turned in the the
seat allowing two to set up and watch TV. Or a small table in the floor and 4 people in there. But it is tight. It
looks something like this.





If I can find his build log I‘ll append it to this post.

Here is a Benroy with a drop floor..
viewtopic.php?f=50&t=50901&hilit=drop+floor#p942398

Junkboy,

I've been thinking about a folding bench arrangement like you are talking about. I haven't drawn it up yet, but here's what I've got so far.

The mattress stis on a platform made of four pieces. The piece farthest back towards the galley is the width of the overhead cabinetry. The front section covers the dropped floor when in the lowered position. All four sections are hinged together. To make the bench, you push the front section towards the rear of the trailer and lift slightly on the second section from the front. The two center sections fold into a V, makeing the back of the bench and allowing the front panel to slide back and expose the footwell. A groove or slot in the floor would allow the front edge of the third panel to drop in and lock the backrest into place. A table top could be hinged or hung from the forward bulkhead and flip down to provide eating space.

I like having the bunk face forward instead of backward because it opens up the droped footwell and makes getting in and out of the doors much easier.

Let me try and draw this out. It would make a lot more sense that way.

jstrubberg

So we don’t fill WillemII post up with our junk I’m gonna start a Thread called
Folding bench arrangement, sitting up in a TD. I’ll post what I have drawn up for my TD I want to design.
This way you and I and hopefully other can share their bench and seating arrangement in there TD.

In the case of the own I seen at the Crawford TD gathering, The builder was going to build a folding headboard
but decided just to use the Bed / Bench cushions to make the seat itself. Placing the pillows and blankets behind
the back bench cushions worked well enough. Willemll TD need to be light as possible because if his car. That
might be a plan for him as wall.

Hey WillemII

While searching for thread with ideal for drop down floors, I found a nice picture of a Triumph with a profile
of a TD. The guy is gonna use spare fenders and tires to match his car. I thought you’d like it.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=24106&p=343234&hilit=drop+floor#p343232

Love the Burton! All good, but me I'd do something different.

I'd copy the lines of the Burton from the back of the door jam going up and follow the design on the car's trunk going back.
The profile would be the same, but larger than the car. I'd also consider doing it as a foamy and I'd look at the suspension for torsionn bars. I'm picturing it with wire wheels or motorcycle wheels as well, much easier toget rolling than wider car tires.

Cool car! That's why I'd have a similar design for that "matching" look....

Bikerman, I've been playing with the colours...



Willem

Hi Willem, I like the bottom one, it's a stronger design.

Cheers,

Dave

Not sure about the height of your buddy there in holland. Yes, 4ft is the standard ht, and we can sit up just fine with out even coming close to hitting our head. At 5 ft 6' if over four foot of me was in my torso, even accounting for 6" mattress, I'd have some really short legs.

Whoops, just checked the date, looks like i am way late here!