Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

We've seen about a gazillion Cargo Trailers around here since our little weather incident ... All seem to be at least 6 +feet tall... and stick up a good bit behind the tow vehicles ... Passing by the Uhaul place yesterday , I couldn't resist stopping in and checking out their rental trailers ... (my trailer addiction)

I noticed the ones I saw were shorter than the standard CTs ... so I jumped inside to see about the space ... Pretty big in there ... couldn't stand up but there was lots of "living" room ... The space sorta ' reminded me of the old Van camping days ...
Now I'm wondering for towing purposes if a shorter (less tall) CT would work as a camper ... When I had my 6'X 12' X 5' tall TD (Ok , bigger than a TD ... TD+1/2) There was plenty of room in the 5 foot tall space to comfortably sit in a regular height chair ... and still have headroom .. and it seemed to tow just fine ...

Which all leads to the idea of using a less taller CT than the "usual"...
We camped for years in Vans , no problems , very comfortable ...but our idea of camping is being mostly Outside ...(weather permitting)
We'd really just want a space for sleeping , getting dressed , and relaxing ...
Shorter CT for me would be a tiny bit less weight , not stick up beyond the tow vehicle(less Drag) , easier access to the roof , for inspection /cleaning ,(perhaps a roof rack ? ) ... and easily fit in my garage or shed... Aside from a coffee maker and a toaster oven , we'd be cooking outside (or as the wife prefers eating out ) .. so no galley ,per se, would be necessary ...no reason really to have to be able to stand up inside ...

Any of you guys (or Ladies ) given this any thoughts ??? Less tall would be just fine with me ...

GPW wrote: Any of you guys (or Ladies ) given this any thoughts ??? Less tall would be just fine with me ...

Yeah, less tall....

I was at Home Depot Sunday and they had a 2010 5 X 8 that would fit under my garage door, inside height 60". It was marked down from $1975 to $999 so it followed me home. Not really sure what I am going to do with it yet but since I sold the gypsy trailer about 10 days ago I was having trailer withdrawal. I'm feeling much better now.

Steve, you sold the Gypsy trailer Aww Man, that was sooooo COOL !!!
Just get a comfy chair and sit in it for a while (couple cold ones help) ... bring a pencil and pad to draw some ideas out ... 5x8 sounds like an ideal TD size with much more headroom/space ... Bet it towed nice huh ? Can't wait to see what you're going to do with it !!!

I think less tall is great. I recently bought a creampuff 1995 Wells Cargo 5X8 with interior height about 4 1/2 ft. It has brakes, two tinted slide open screened windows. roof vent, ramp rear door and a side door w/ rv latch. People ask me what Im going to do with it since I already have a Motorhome and I say "Ijust like it" After all people buy paintings just to look at. Someday I may start using it as gas keeps going up. PS it fits in the garage and has new tires.

Sounds like a Good deal Arn !!!
I'm guessing these trailers are less bucks than the larger sizes ??? I wonder if they make 10 and 12 footers that are 60" tall... Guess they could build most anything for you ... for the right money !!!

A month or two ago I bought a 5x8,with rear barn doors,and a side door,its 5'3" high inside, I'm 5'10"so I have to duck abit,I love that it pulls behind my little S10 4x4 p/u very easily,I insulated it last saturday,and I decided not to install windows,but instead I'm going to have a rear wall with windows,and/or a small door,I washed and waxed it last week and was so glad it is smaller,,around here there is always lots of 6x10/12's for sale, but seldom a 5x8,I'm sure our small suv will also pull it with ease,this forum is awesome and helps alot.............JT

I think you're on to something. Even tho' I'm waiting for delivery of my 7 x 10 with 6' interior head room, I'm already thinking of a smaller, lighter traier with about 4' 10" head room..

That's plenty of room to sit up in. We rarely need to stand up in a trailer. The whole concept is about camping and staying outdoors most of the time, yet having a place to sit and relax in inclement weather, or to sleep securely at night.

My 5x8 is 5-ish feet tall inside. It is a yet-to-be-started project (that I will document here). I also have a pop-top from a 71 VW camper that SHOULD sit on top just right. Now that the weather is better I'm going to test fit it to get a better sense of how it'll work - the tape measure says it'll fit fine.

I too like the idea of the trailer being just about the same profile as my tow vehicle (a lifted 85 Toyota Land Cruiser). And the pop top will let me stand up once I settle into a campsite. If I need to sleep in it en route (stopped of course, just not setting up camp) I'll just leave the top closed.

Mark

Steve_Cox wrote:

GPW wrote: Any of you guys (or Ladies ) given this any thoughts ??? Less tall would be just fine with me ...

Yeah, less tall....

I was at Home Depot Sunday and they had a 2010 5 X 8 that would fit under my garage door, inside height 60". It was marked down from $1975 to $999 so it followed me home. Not really sure what I am going to do with it yet but since I sold the gypsy trailer about 10 days ago I was having trailer withdrawal. I'm feeling much better now.

yep, i'd have brought that home too for that price! what's the dry weight on it? seems to my small cargo trailers always have such a flipping high dvw...
thanks!
tam

I spent to many days camping in Van's I have owned two, that worked

15, 20 years ago now I'm to old to stoop altho I'm shorter that I once was

but if most like the TD's then a short Cargo trailer would do just fine.

pete

Did a test ... went out and sat inside my 4'X4'X8' CT... Brought some cushions... sat a while getting used to the space, thinking .. (glass of wine helped)
First thing obvious was the 4' wide , was not wide enough I'm 6'3" and was "crowded".... Wider is better !!! Thinking for my needs a 6' wide would be best ... and I can sleep sideways , taking up less floor space , requiring less overall cab length ...
The 4' height was not a problem (claustrophobia) , but I couldn't use a folding chair to sit up in ... 5' high , I can and still have headroom .. Most regular seating works too ...
Considering the length , the 8' seemed fine as long as the CT was Wide enough ...I guess if you needed more space , a 10' or 12' would be better ... Even 12' is not that big , but gives you 72 sq' ft. of floorspace... My 6X12 TD (60" H) was Very comfortable , presented a lower profile , and towed easily ...

Then I went out in our TT ... 6'8" tall inside Walked in , first thing I did was sit down ... In fact the only time I stood up was to move around the 20' length ... Kind of a big waste of space for camping really ... like towing a parachute !!!

Now I did a good bit of thought and measuring before I came up with the dimensions for my big TD ... It was just the right amount of room for everything we needed.... so a 6X12X5 CT is what I'm thinking about ... Just need the extra room so I can bring along the dumb dog and the cat ...

packerz4 wrote:

Steve_Cox wrote:

GPW wrote: Any of you guys (or Ladies ) given this any thoughts ??? Less tall would be just fine with me ...

Yeah, less tall....

I was at Home Depot Sunday and they had a 2010 5 X 8 that would fit under my garage door, inside height 60". It was marked down from $1975 to $999 so it followed me home. Not really sure what I am going to do with it yet but since I sold the gypsy trailer about 10 days ago I was having trailer withdrawal. I'm feeling much better now.

yep, i'd have brought that home too for that price! what's the dry weight on it? seems to my small cargo trailers always have such a flipping high dvw...
thanks!
tam

750 # for this Georgia built Pace 5X8 CT. They built it with as little amount of materials they could and still haul a load I think.

GPW as I'm sure you know a 6' wide trailer isn't 6' inside a 7' wide one is 6' 6" wide
if I ever get one it will be the 7' wide one I want to make two beds/couchs along the side walls
with enought space between them so I don't have to craw over to get up during the night

Seems clear there are 2 schools of thought on Cargo campers:

1. Small is good - like a hard shell tent.

2. I want a full size trailer that I can build to my specs.

I'm going for #1 as it suits my needs.

Seriously, We've been looking around for some time for a Bigger CT to come along .... at a good price ... I've had a good chance to study the Many CTs around here... Hooked up to a truck , they look Huge !!!
All stick up way over the TV profile ... too tall !!
Now that I have the Tiny CT , and had a chance to tow it and live with it ....I'm thinking the shorter CT would be much better (for me)...


And there was something "cozy" about my 5' tall TD...

Pete , yeah I know ... smaller inside ... Just have to scrunch up a bit ... hahaha
Bunks would be nice , I could get away from the old lady's snoring ...