Ramps VS Doors

Converting Cargo Trailers into TTTs

Postby pete42 » Tue Jun 14, 2011 8:28 am

Dant sounds like a couple of great trips.

never thought about the doors providing some privacy thanks.

Do you have solar cells or did you charge your trailer batteries using the tow vehicle?

99% of the trips I have taken since I started back in 1964 I stayed where they had electric even the trips out west.

I have a friend here in Ohio who has a son in college in Utah and when they go to visit they never hook to the grid as they say.

I have stayed many a night in truckstops, road side rest, and restaurants never made the wal-mart thing yet.

pete
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Postby bookcrazzzy » Tue Jun 14, 2011 10:37 am

Hi Pete,

Like you, I can walk but not for a long time so I have a mobility scooter. My husband is a private pilot and we take plane trips sometimes so I sprang for the lightest scooter on the market. It weighs 35 lbs without the battery and is made of aircraft grade aluminum. I've had it for 5 or 6 years and have never had a single problem. I've also run into (well, not literally :shock: ) a number of people who have them (especially at fly-ins or air shows) and love them too. I have a really bad left shoulder even with joint replacement and can't lift with it but I can lift my scooter out of the back of my SUV using just my right arm to lift and my left arm just to stabilize it a bit (and I'm a small woman). And it folds up into a large duffel bag! Really amazingly well designed and built. Expensive though, but I've never regretted the purchase. :thumbsup: The website for these scooters is www.travelscoot.com

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Postby Dant » Tue Jun 14, 2011 7:59 pm

pete42 wrote:Dant sounds like a couple of great trips.

never thought about the doors providing some privacy thanks.

Do you have solar cells or did you charge your trailer batteries using the tow vehicle?

99% of the trips I have taken since I started back in 1964 I stayed where they had electric even the trips out west.

I have a friend here in Ohio who has a son in college in Utah and when they go to visit they never hook to the grid as they say.

I have stayed many a night in truckstops, road side rest, and restaurants never made the wal-mart thing yet.

pete


I was in a hurry to get going, so I just used solar panels. Still haven't hooked up the house bank to be charged with the truck's generator, so the two systems are completely separate. I don't need much electricity, that was the plan, so no problem.

I was always able to find a good spot to camp, but it's great to have the security of knowing you can just pull over and park.

When I visited my kids in L.A. I just camped on the street. Even tho' they had an extra bed for me, I preferred to stay in my own bed in the trailer. One of the smartest things I did was to pay a bit extra and get a 6" thick twin size piece of natural latex foam to make a mattress.

Only trouble is, when I'm home I prefer that bed in the trailer to the bed in the house. =o)
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Postby pete42 » Tue Jun 14, 2011 8:47 pm

Margie
My scooter is quite large it has to be to carry me.
fitting it into a plane is out of the question unless it would be a Cessna 182 with the seats removed.
I too am a pilot commercial multi engine land with an instrument rating I use to haul sky divers here in ohio but that was long long ago
I have diebetes so my flying days are over.
Osh Gosh was a yearly trip for a lot of years.

Dant:
one of these days I will make the plunge thanks for sharing.
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Postby woodenchef » Wed Jun 29, 2011 9:55 am

I like my ramp easy to load unload my two ATV's easily and it also provides my sleeping quarters...

I also have a 12' side awning with add-a-room where I setup my kitchen and sitting quarters, nothing fancy but it does the job for the type of camping I do which is mostly in the back country on crown land off the grid ATVing and fishing.

Lighting inside is 12v LED with 12v fantastic fan, battery is kept topped up from solar panel on front. I also use the jumpers cables to add a second battery extra run-time. Simple porta potty, generator for coffee maker, griddle, toaster, and charger batteries, laptop, I also run a small 3 way fridge off propane

here are some pics, tried inserting in post and it didn't work for some reason:


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Postby bd354 » Wed Jun 29, 2011 8:08 pm

Hi everyone, I'm mostly a lurker on here as I don't own a CT yet. I worked many years in fab shops with steel and aluminum. It seems to me some trailer manuf. could come up with a rear door that would do both. I've seen them on suv's for several years now. It will open to the side or let down like a ramp. Of course it would have to be certified by an engineer before being sold to the public. It would be a little heavier(sp?) but wouldn't add much weight. Just thinking out loud.
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Postby pete42 » Thu Jun 30, 2011 7:14 am

bd354 wrote:Hi everyone, I'm mostly a lurker on here as I don't own a CT yet. I worked many years in fab shops with steel and aluminum. It seems to me some trailer manuf. could come up with a rear door that would do both. I've seen them on suv's for several years now. It will open to the side or let down like a ramp. Of course it would have to be certified by an engineer before being sold to the public. It would be a little heavier(sp?) but wouldn't add much weight. Just thinking out loud.


I first thought you were talking about an entrance door cut into the ramp wondered how it could support being driven over then I understood what you meant.
They make horse trailers like you said open wide or drop down so not all that strange for a CT.
first there has to be a need and with the stiff competition among builders it might give one an edge over others.
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Postby bd354 » Thu Jun 30, 2011 8:17 am

Pete, if one manuf. would build it the rest would eventually follow. I'm not an engineer but it seems it would be fairly simple for them to design one. Would add a little to the cost of the trailer but as an option everyone wouldn't need it. I think it could be built with just one barn door or two. As long as the latches and hinges were heavy duty enough on the barn doors it would stand the weight of driving the four wheeler Ect over them when loading.
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