Modern Off-road Trailer Build

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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Wed Aug 10, 2022 3:02 pm

chopperwalker wrote:Nice looking build. Are you planning to use ACM for the exterior walls as well?

There are some very cool things you can do with ACM and v-bit in a router. It allows you to fold seems easily at corners or just general bends for design features. I'm guessing from your design that you might be aware of this and/or planning for it.


This was my initial plan. Unfortunately however a few of the panels would require larger than 4'x8' sheet dimensions to be able to get a single panel to cover the face, so I am going with a plywood + aluminum construction. I can get a 102" wide aluminum roof coil designed for semi trailers which I think should do the trick and minimize the number of points for water ingression.

I am thinking about using some of the ACM for the interior walls though.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby chopperwalker » Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:33 pm

I've hidden seems with folded returns on both pieces. Basically bending a tab inward on both you can VHB or even bolt through. Works well when there is already a "bend" at the locations since the seem hide along the edge. But I also appreciate having a fully sealed side. I look forward to seeing your build progress.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:37 pm

chopperwalker wrote:I've hidden seems with folded returns on both pieces. Basically bending a tab inward on both you can VHB or even bolt through. Works well when there is already a "bend" at the locations since the seem hide along the edge. But I also appreciate having a fully sealed side. I look forward to seeing your build progress.


That’s an interesting approach that I haven’t thought of, seems like it would work well for side walls. I think my main concern was for the roof which would have required at least one center seam on the roof. If I did that, I was considering a half-lap style joint to merge it together and then seal, but I was concerned that even that might have some leakage over time. Thanks for the info!
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby featherliteCT1 » Wed Aug 10, 2022 6:59 pm

This is an incredible build! Kudos! :applause:
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Thu Aug 11, 2022 6:03 am

Started working on securing the panels to the frame (at least initially) with the 3m VHB tape. I’m impressed by how strong this stuff is.

First, After aligning all 3 panels on the frame, I taped the seam between the front and rear panels so that I could fold back the panel and maintain the alignment while applying tape.
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Tape applied and pressed into the frame. This is not the ideal application of the tape for strength, but I’m effectively just using this to align and hold the panels until I get the floor structure built and bolted into the frame directly.
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Tape and ACM backing peeled and ready for application
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Will be repeating the process for the other panels and then moving on to the wood subfloor.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Thu Aug 11, 2022 1:20 pm

Spent some time putting together the plan for the fresh water system for the trailer today. I’m not an expert in this area so feel free to let me know if you have any feedback!

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And here is the first cut of the electrical loads

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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Mon Aug 15, 2022 6:52 pm

Was able to make a bit more progress over the weekend. First I finished mounting the ACM paneling to the frame with the VHB tape, and moved on to building the frame.

First I started with planing down the pine to 1” thick to match the thickness of the foam insulation. For those interested in vintage machinery, this is a 1950s parks planer that I restored a little while ago.
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Next, is the attachment method. I opted instead of having exterior hard mount points that I would drill and tap ~15-16 holes around the frame. The general order of operations from left to right in the image was forstner bit, 5/16” drill bit drill through the steel, then using a ⅜” impact driver speed tap to thread the holes, then applying loctite and securing the bolts.
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For joining the individual pieces of frame, I used my festool domino which a loose mortise and tenon type joint. Also, when securing the boards to the ACM paneling, I also added a thin layer of loctite premium construction adhesive as well.
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And finally, reached a stopping point for the weekend getting the back portion of the frame installed. I’m leaving a ¾” gap at the edge to leave room for the walls to attach to the base from the side.
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I’ll be finishing the base off and then getting the foam installed plus OSB sub floor after that.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby KCStudly » Tue Aug 16, 2022 9:59 am

Your ambitious build is looking good!

On the water system, instead of, or in addition to the check valve on the pressurized city water inlet, consider a back flow preventer.

This is very much like a check valve but does a better job of preventing back flow during moments of slack or reverse flow. This should really be installed at the hose bib (city water supply source) and is intended to prevent cross contamination of the water supply from pressurized systems... anywhere an air break does not exist.

If you use one, be sure to mount it outside... preferably under the trailer... as they tend to burp/vent a bit of water when working. Also, most common hose threaded types have a one way tamper proof thread locking feature... you virtually have to destroy it to remove. As I understand it, at least in installations requiring inspection, this is so once the inspector has approved the installation, they can be reasonably assured that it is not tampered with.

I would expect that most, if not all, camp grounds would already have this feature, but for hooking up at home, or friend's and family homes, would provide appropriate protection.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Tue Aug 16, 2022 11:01 am

KCStudly wrote:Your ambitious build is looking good!

On the water system, instead of, or in addition to the check valve on the pressurized city water inlet, consider a back flow preventer.

This is very much like a check valve but does a better job of preventing back flow during moments of slack or reverse flow. This should really be installed at the hose bib (city water supply source) and is intended to prevent cross contamination of the water supply from pressurized systems... anywhere an air break does not exist.

If you use one, be sure to mount it outside... preferably under the trailer... as they tend to burp/vent a bit of water when working. Also, most common hose threaded types have a one way tamper proof thread locking feature... you virtually have to destroy it to remove. As I understand it, at least in installations requiring inspection, this is so once the inspector has approved the installation, they can be reasonably assured that it is not tampered with.

I would expect that most, if not all, camp grounds would already have this feature, but for hooking up at home, or friend's and family homes, would provide appropriate protection.


Thanks for the kind words! I was not sure about the reliability of these smaller check valves, so I really appreciate the suggestion about the back flow preventer. I’m going to look into this and factor that into the water setup.

To the extent that is possible, I intend to have as much of the water piping outside the camper on the bottom and just have lines running up to the components to minimize the chance of leakage/water damage. Thanks for the reply!
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Tue Aug 16, 2022 11:09 am

Made a bit more progress on the frame last night, with a total of 15 anchor points scattered around the base. Tonight I’ll start cutting up the foam in preparation for the plywood top.

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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby Onajourney » Tue Aug 16, 2022 1:02 pm

Don't forget a vent line on the water tank.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Tue Aug 16, 2022 6:01 pm

Onajourney wrote:Don't forget a vent line on the water tank.


Thank you! I forgot to add it on the drawing but it will be included.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Tue Aug 16, 2022 6:09 pm

After creating a massive cloud of pink foam dust everywhere, I got the foam cut out using the track saw and all the panels inserted. I decided to use less wood framing than I originally planned for by offsetting the wood supports from the metal frame supports. The ACM paneling ended up being quite a bit more rigid than expected, and with the solid foam, once I add the OSB boards the base should be very solid.

Next still will be installing the plywood sheeting, then installing liquid flashing around all the edges for an extra layer of moisture protection before moving on with the walls.

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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby lfhoward » Tue Aug 16, 2022 8:09 pm

This is a really cool build! Also, love the vintage planer. :D

Will be following to see what’s next. :thumbsup:
My off-road camper build on an M116A3 military chassis:
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Tow vehicle: 2008 Jeep Liberty with a 4 inch lift.
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Re: Modern Off-road Trailer Build

Postby mhnudi » Wed Aug 17, 2022 6:54 pm

Made a bit more progress getting the floor in today. I decided to oversize the panels and then flush trim them to the base frame with a router. I’m using ½” OSB here for a total floor thickness of 1.5”, plus the 3mm ACM paneling below.

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In certain spots (like here in the picture) the oversize got a little large, so I went back through in these areas and trimmed the plywood back a bit with the track saw before proceeding with the flush cutting.
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Overall it came out pretty well. Up next I will be applying zip system liquid flashing around all of the edges, overlapping from the base of the acm on to the top of the plywood. Hopefully based on the other sealing for the walls water shouldn’t ever get to this point, but just in case it should be well sealed.
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