Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello everyone.

Even though I'm still looking for a narrow track 7x16, this fiberglass United trailer caught my eye..

Has anyone ever seen one up close? I like how it would be resistant to leaking, but I remember when I borrowed a scamp once and took it off road. It had allot of stress cracks in the gel coat after we returned and I would punish this trailer even more.

This trailer was rarely used and sat in owners back yard its entire life..

Thanks!

More

rebar, Howdy;

Interesting trailer. What does it weigh? How much can ya carry in it?
How are the walls reinforced? How do ya get to the electrics? Just a few of the
questions that sorta popped up.

hank

hankaye wrote:rebar, Howdy;

Interesting trailer. What does it weigh? How much can ya carry in it?
How are the walls reinforced? How do ya get to the electrics? Just a few of the
questions that sorta popped up.

hank

what he said^

hankaye wrote:rebar, Howdy;

Interesting trailer. What does it weigh? How much can ya carry in it?
How are the walls reinforced? How do ya get to the electrics? Just a few of the
questions that sorta popped up.

hank

Good questions but unfortunately it's three hours away and the owner hasn't been very forthcoming. Five lugs means 3500# though.. And the wiring is exposed because it looks like there is no wall cavity?

I'm considering converting this trailer into a narrow track with 8 lug hubs/axles on leafs. And new wheel wells..

I presume you would need to install studs and ceiling joists if you wanted to build out the interior.

featherliteCT1 wrote:I presume you would need to install studs and ceiling joists if you wanted to build out the interior.

Yes you'd have to install studs and ceiling rafters. It would be a pain in the ass epoxying all the studs and rafters in straight. But it would never leak , says the guy who had leaks the entire time he owned a trailer.

But i wonder if United is so big, why haven't I ever seen one of these before?

rebar, Howdy;

rebar wrote:But i wonder if United is so big, why haven't I ever seen one of these before?

Best question yet.

hank

hankaye wrote:rebar, Howdy;

rebar wrote:But i wonder if United is so big, why haven't I ever seen one of these before?

Best question yet.

hank

My guess the reason you don't see them is the cost of fiberglass versus steel framing and aluminum skin.

aggie79 wrote:

hankaye wrote:rebar, Howdy;

rebar wrote:But i wonder if United is so big, why haven't I ever seen one of these before?

Best question yet.

hank

My guess the reason you don't see them is the cost of fiberglass versus steel framing and aluminum skin.

Yeah, Or the design was bad and they fell apart so United stopped making them. And this one survived because it sat in the owners back yard..

I know,, I'm a half empty type.

He wants 3000

FIbercore has been making fiberglass trailers for a long time, early 70's? But they aren't just laid up fiberglass like that guy. Having worked with fiberglass building and repairing boats that looks plenty strong, but probably does weigh a bit more. Production costs were probably too much to keep going. Looks like hand laid mat not shot into the mold chopped.

https://www.fibrecore.com/basic-trailers

dirtsailor2003 wrote:Having worked with fiberglass building and repairing boats that looks plenty strong, but probably does weigh a bit more. Production costs were probably too much to keep going. Looks like hand laid mat not shot into the mold chopped.

https://www.fibrecore.com/basic-trailers

Thanks..

I don't know much about fiberglass trailers except for the stress cracks on the scamp I borrowed for a week.. And the body repairs I did on a van with epoxy..

I'm still wondering if the fiberglass construction is a advantage over steel or not for rough potholed Colorado roads..

Gel coat stress cracks don't bother me much, But will the body survive rough roads? I imagine the wall studs I need to install might strengthen it if epoxied in.

rebar wrote:

dirtsailor2003 wrote:Having worked with fiberglass building and repairing boats that looks plenty strong, but probably does weigh a bit more. Production costs were probably too much to keep going. Looks like hand laid mat not shot into the mold chopped.

https://www.fibrecore.com/basic-trailers

Thanks..

I don't know anything about fiberglass trailers except for the stress cracks on the scamp I borrowed for a week..

I'm still wondering if the fiberglass construction is a advantage over steel or not for rough Colorado roads..

Gel coat stress cracks don't bother me much, But will the body survive rough roads? I imagine the wall studs I need to install might strengthen it if epoxied in.

I can’t say how that trailer would do versus a metal trailer. Even a metal trailer if not properly welded can come apart bouncing down the road. Thickness of the fiberglass, type of resin, type of mat and layup of the mat would need to known to determine how strong the trailer is.

Epoxy alone won’t form a structural bond unless you add fillers (silica or wood flour are two common ones). Then you’d need to add fillets of thickened epoxy at the joints or fillets and fiberglass over. Either way you’d be adding a bunch of weight. I don’t think what you’d gain structurally would be worth the time and expense.

Honestly if I was to build it out I wouldn’t go to the expense of that. I’d use C channel metal studs to save weight and fasten mechanically and with construction adhesive. You’d have to know the thickness of the fiberglass to know if this would work. If it’s too thin fasteners may not work. Which then you could epoxy fillet wood attachment blocks. Then attach metal studs to the blocks. Sounds like a lot of work and expense.

rebar, Howdy;

Gonna agree with dirt-swabby, fiberglass is good stuff, just difficult to modify once
it's been constructed to it's original purpose. I worked with the stuff on aircraft in the
military.There are 'things' out there to do the job but they are just not as common
and easy to find as 3 penny finish nails so much more expensive and harder to track down.
Just something to consider.

hank

dirtsailor2003 wrote:Sounds like a lot of work and expense.

If the wall studs went floor to ceiling, and the ceiling rafters were epoxied to the studs, they would increase the strength, but it would take forever to install..

On the other hand, I would never need to remove the silicone caulk from the roof because there's no seams anywhere except for what I install..