Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Would it be possible to design something like the compact with the lifting top, to mount on a 12x5 utility trailer? or even a truck type camper. I need the roof line low to hide behind my suv, yet give me head room to stand. I need sleeping for 4 and a portapotti/shower. No need for a true galley, thats easily worked around. I would like to have it so i could still use the last 5 feet to haul my atv. Possibly could the beds wing out. Is it possible to have a hardsided "popup" style camper like the old appaches? I know its a lot to work with, but this is the best site to start with.
Neil

Of course you can design and build whatever your imagination creates. If you're not that creative, give some thought to a factory-built pop-up mounted to your utility trailer. Removing the axle wouldn't be hard, nor would fastening it to the trailer. Of course, weight, stability, etc., would all have to be considered.

What you want could be done, but there are several things to think about:

- I presume you mean to permanently fix this to a utility trailer - what you describe would be hard to make strong enough to be removable.

- To get you ATV in means removing most or all the back and fitting a door(s). To get a pop-up roof means removing most or all of the roof. Now there's not much holding the trailer body together, so you will have to build carefully and rely on the trailer strength to hold the body together.

- I don't see a problem with the layout - reverse the Compact so the bunks are at the back and you're ready to go. Hinge-up beds are fine, though that's another bit of the internal structure you've chopped out!

- Full length bunks in a Compact are not so easy because there's only full headroom in the centre. A Compact is 57" high inside the fixed body and split into two that's 28.5". Take off 4" for mattress and you're left with 24.5" headroom for each bunk. That's just bearable - it's the three-bunks-in-standing-headroom that many navies use on their warships - but you have to put the bottom bunk on the floor to do it. So no more seating above the floor inside.

- A 5ft width is quite a big reduction on the Compact's 69". You now won't have any space between the bunks so all the sleepers will have to get in and out of their bunks via the ends. 5ft is quite enough for a toilet compartment and storage at the front end, but the galley does have to go.

Andrew

A general thought: If you're building, you can perhaps extend 6 inches over each side so you have 6 foot width. The design of the utility trailer would dictate that possibility.

Not much left to work with, is there?

Mike...

angib wrote:- A 5ft width is quite a big reduction on the Compact's 69". You now won't have any space between the bunks so all the sleepers will have to get in and out of their bunks via the ends. 5ft is quite enough for a toilet compartment and storage at the front end, but the galley does have to go.

Andrew

I saw this trailer at the boat and RV show last weekend. It's not exactly what you want but maybe it will give you some ideas. I think it is pretty cool.
You can haul your ATV, back it out, fold down the beds and sleep in it. It even has a kitchen in the front. All in a pretty small package.
If the bunks were wider (extending wall to wall) you could sleep 4 across. Provided your not too tall.
Exterior width:6'6" Interior length: 10'5" Interior height: 6'2"
This trailer just may be one of my future builds! The profile is not the most attractive but it is very functional.

thanks for the replys. I did some imaginative thinking. What i came up with is a removable body that is similar to the pickup style slide in bed campers. The beds would fold out from the front and one side. The body of the camper would be 7x7. which would leave 5 foot in the rear of the utility trailer for my atv. In side the camper would be a shower/porta potti room. the side opposite of the side bed gets a sounter top with a small sink and one eye gas burner. The beds that fold out i would like to be hard sided. But thats where i am running into a problem. any ideas? i hope you can understand my ideas.

Take a look at this: Look at the one called foldingtraveltrailer. I think it is what you are looking for. I am thinking of doing this for a 6'6" x 16' trailer and making the camper 10 ft long leaving 6' of the utility trailer for atv's.

http://www.salsaholics.com/trailerplans/


Lorn

that is just about pefect i woud ike to still have some type of fold out or slide out to have asei fo at lest 4.

Andrew, how do you raise the tops on those truck campers you have on your website?

kenfyoozed wrote:Andrew, how do you raise the tops on those truck campers you have on your website?

Now that's the sort of trick question that catch a fellow out.

I never really developed those designs to the point where they could be built, so I never worked out the detail. The sordid truth is out.

Andrew

well, now look what you've gone and done. What do you have to say for yourself Mister? Well it atleast it gets me going in the right direction , i think.

Endo wrote:I saw this trailer at the boat and RV show last weekend. It's not exactly what you want but maybe it will give you some ideas. I think it is pretty cool.
You can haul your ATV, back it out, fold down the beds and sleep in it. It even has a kitchen in the front. All in a pretty small package.
If the bunks were wider (extending wall to wall) you could sleep 4 across. Provided your not too tall.
Exterior width:6'6" Interior length: 10'5" Interior height: 6'2"
This trailer just may be one of my future builds! The profile is not the most attractive but it is very functional.

Thanks for the ideas. Did you get any contact info for the trailer, like www etc?

BTW Nice JP.....!

billpool wrote:Thanks for the ideas. Did you get any contact info for the trailer, like www etc?

BTW Nice JP.....!

Not too much info was available at the time. The dealer said it was a prototype trailer, some minor changes are planned for the production model. It is made by Hyperlite.

Hope that helps.