Hello from Holland

[H@nk]

Hi Graham,

Nice to see, there is an other Dutch member.
Where do you live? I live in N'kerk aan den Ijssel.
Nice project, good luck, grtz Henk

[graham17457]

Hi Graham,

Nice to see, there is an other Dutch member.
Where do you live? I live in N'kerk aan den Ijssel.
Nice project, good luck, grtz Henk

Hi Henk, I'm down in Helmond, close to Eindhoven. I'm surprised Teardrops haven't taken off here - the Netherlands is a caravaning nation and space is in short supply, so a teardrop would be ideal. Do you know anything about Funtear, the Dutch company that has a website but don't seem to be active at the moment?

[H@nk]

Graham,

Good to see you live in the Netherlands, but are you Dutch?
The point that we dutch don't have the little loveble teardrops is, what will the neighbour say? Its better you have a big white thing weighting 1500 kg behind your overspoilerd towcar than a little to warm washed bed on wheels. I guess, when this situation is holding on, a lot of people will make a turn of about 360 degrees to the little trailers. Petrol is expensive and the trip to spain to long for a rig that size. So we wait and if there is no turning, well, we are some of the less, that have a little trailer.
The planning is to have the maiden voyage to Germany in the beginning of june. If you like I can make a stop and go penalty at your place when I go there. Its a gathering with the German T@B-club. I found this link a year ago, where is also my TT pictured.
http://www.autometclub.ddaktief.nl/AM-teardrop.html

Grtz Henk

[graham17457]

Good to see you live in the Netherlands, but are you Dutch?
Grtz Henk

No not Dutch, but a Brit who's lived here for 25 years! And unfortunately, that 'keep up with the neighbors' thing is not just Dutch - happens in Britain too. But I've found a crowd of like-minded people here who enjoy simpler things (and building things). It would be fun to see you in June en route to Germany. Graham

[H@nk]

Well Graham,

If you lived for 25 years in Holland, we can write in Dutch? Kidding, the other members won't understand us. Send me a PM with your adress and I'll meet you in june. Already decided on what you are building? Henk

[graham17457]

Well Graham,
If you lived for 25 years in Holland, we can write in Dutch? Kidding, the other members won't understand us. Send me a PM with your adress and I'll meet you in june. Already decided on what you are building? Henk

Dutch is no problem! I'm building an ultralight with a very rounded profile. It's my first, so I want to keep it simple, and tow it behind my Reliant.

Okay... I was sidetracked in the garage.
4' x 8' x 1/8" luan plywood = 10 lbs , approx
.032 H32 5052 Aluminum - .46 lbs per square foot...

Thanks Mark for the data. I'm actually enjoying this part of the design process, designing down to a specific weight. I've revised the design (again!) and cut down the chassis to save about 7 kg of metal. I've gone back to a more rounded teardrop shape too. I realise this is far less space efficient, and the bed is just long enough for me, but I like the looks.

I'm doing some sums right now to work out what the saving is by making the sides from 15 mm ply cut out like below, and faced with 3 mm ply inside and out (compared to 18 mm solid ply)

Shall I move to another part of the forum? This is getting quite long for an intro!

[Mark McD]

There you go, Graham, that should shave off some weight. The profile looks more natural ,too.
Nice CAD work, too!

[graham17457]

The revised design with the trimmed down chassis

[Juneaudave]

The design is looking really nice!!! The curves look just right to me!!!

[Rigsby]

[I know of a couple of Reliant vans that have raised the roof (with half a skibox bonded on) and an estate that's been turned into a trailer/caravan. The camper versions have to trade in one front seat to get the length for a bed, and the trailor versions are not particularly space efficient inside. The floor is quite high and not flat, the transmission tunnel is intrusive and so on. It would take quite a bit of remodelling the shell to get it right inside. And the shell, chassis and rear axle are quite heavy - not sure I could get it down to 250 kg.[/quote]

What i meant was, loosing the engine, box and front suspension, adding an A frame with overrun hitch coupled to the handbrake cables, and flattening the floor

[mallymal]

Hey Graham,
Just wanted to say Hi as another Brit, and congratulate you on the STUNNING quality of your drawings... we can all have different opinions on positions of doors, walls, etc, but no-one could have anything but admiration for your draughtsman's skills!

By the way, I too am thinking of going for a "cookie cutter" inner wall (12mm? 15mm?) then facing it with ply inside and out (3mm? 6mm?).
You could then work insulation into the voids (either rigid foam sheet, or even spray on).

[Roly Nelson]

Hi Graham, welcome to the best trailer forum on the internet. Yes, it is possible to build a really light teardrop trailer, if you are willing to sacrifice some of the bells and whistles that the "heavy weights" add to their tears. I have a 6 footer that sleeps only me (or perhaps a really skinny couple of friendly folks). My rig only weighs 245 lbs and pulls like it isn't even there. If you want a place to sleep, nice and cozy, a spartan galley and the talk of the town, this is what you are looking for.

Keep it as light as you can, all of those add-ons only add weight and increase the cost. Good luck on your build (if you decide to do so) and plan to come on across the pond, we'll talk teardrop trailers when you get here ( in Southern California, the land of sunshine, earthquakes, surfing, mountain climbing and the best teardrop gatherings you could ever imagine).
Roly

[graham17457]

...My rig only weighs 245 lbs and pulls like it isn't even there. If you want a place to sleep, nice and cozy, a spartan galley and the talk of the town, this is what you are looking for.
Keep it as light as you can, all of those add-ons only add weight and increase the cost...

Thanks again for the encouragement. I've trimmed my design down even further, and have been doing some weight calculations.


This is about as small as I can go and still lie down! I've looked at various constructions, and at present the estimated weight for the chassis, floor, walls, kitchen surfaces, cross members, floor supports, hatch, roof and ceiling is 165 kg. That leaves a maximum of 85 kg for the wheels, hitch, axle, mudguards, door, window and lighting. I'm planning a wall construction of 15 mm ply cut to a skeleton (see below) and faced on the outside with aluminium and on the inside with 3 mm hardboard or 3-ply. Compared to a solid 18 mm plywoood wall with aluminium facing, this saves over 12 kg.

I'm planning an aluminium roof (no plywood directly beneath it) and a 3 mm hardboard ceiling. If I can't keep down to 250 kg, then I may look at molding fiberglass sides. I'll keep you posted.

[graham17457]

...By the way, I too am thinking of going for a "cookie cutter" inner wall (12mm? 15mm?) then facing it with ply inside and out (3mm? 6mm?). You could then work insulation into the voids (either rigid foam sheet, or even spray on).

Thanks for the compliment, I still enjoy illustrating. The cookie cutter idea is a good one, and in my calculations, the weight of the two sides came down from 48 kg (solid 18 mm ply with aluminium face) to 36 kg using 15 mm ply and a 3 mm inside face. That's a 25% saving, it's still the same thickness, and with a foam insulation, it may even be cosier inside!

[graham17457]

Further refinement of the design - a sliding hatch instead of hinged. It should save some weight. The panel slides up into the space between the roof and the ceiling. Plastic u-channels as guides. I've also gone to 10-inch wheels instead of 13 inchers for weight saving. My Reliant runs on 10-inchers, so it should look better anyway. Unfortunately the PCD is different (4 inch on the Reliant, 100 mm on the trailer axle), so no common spare!