First Teardrop Build - Updated 8/11

[sabrown82]

For the past few years, I have been discussing buying a custom-made teardrop camper to make camping a bit easier. I have been a long-time tent camper. Biting the bullet to buy one has been a challenge. Seeing this, my dad decided around Christmas this past year to venture into making a teardrop for me (with my assistance and some of my money..haha!). So we are now navigating our way through the process...

The build started with a pop-up tent camper. The camper was stripped down to the frame. The picture below shows the modified frame with the water tank installed and the storage box installed.



The following pictures show the teardrop once we were able to cut out the shape. The flooring has been added with a wood patterned laminate and the door has been added to the storage compartment.







Door Cutouts:



Kitchen Area:



Interior with finished birch ply/luan and a shelf on the front end for storage:



Side shot with lights now in their proper positions:



Another shot of the kitchen area with some wiring running through the ceiling:




Hope you like what we've done so far! I'm open to any comments/questions/or suggestions!

[Woodbutcher]

Looks great! Enjoy the build process. It is a big part of the fun of teardrop camping. Make it your own ....

[George Taylor]

What are you going to put on the out side? What part of NH are you in?

[Junkboy999]

You guys are doing great. Is Dad gonna get a chance to take it out on his own some day?.


Keep the picture coming.

Humm wonder what it would look like with about 3 more inches added to the bottom of the side wall as a skirt to
hide the frame storage box??

[sabrown82]

George - I live just outside of Manchester. The build is actually happening in southern MA where my parents live, though. Doing a wood exterior would be my ideal situation because I love the look of it, but I think that's out of the question for now. I'm looking at possibly getting some retro aluminum siding from Hemet Valley RV with a plain aluminum roof and diamond plate on the front end. I figure the nice aluminum would just get pitted...hence the diamond plate. My brother really wants me to get black filon with an aluminum roof ...it's just so not my style. If the cost of the fun aluminum siding ends up really breaking the bank I may just go with aluminum sheeting on the whole thing. I honestly haven't priced any of it out yet, though. I'm open to suggestions.


Junkboy - Funny you should ask that! Dad and I were talking about that today. I think him and mom may take her out for a try if dad can convince her. She will tell you tent camping is her favorite type of camping, however; I think she has really gotten used to dad's 23 foot trailer.

Your point about a skirt is well taken. I'll have to talk this over with the master designer/carpenter/fabricator/dad.



More pictures coming in a bit! Lots of progress on the interior today!

[sabrown82]

This week's progress!!

A few shots of the exterior with the interior roofing installed - safely protected from the serious amount of rain we've been getting here under the pop-up canopy.





Me sitting inside with the new cupboards installed (and the dome light too!)



A better shot of the new cupboards:



A couple of pictures of the "headboard" end of the teardrop. A shelf above and a storage space with sliding doors below:





(don't pay attention to that not so well fitted piece of wood framing out the shelf! ....a little crack filler never hurt...oops!)

[George Taylor]

Looking good. I have use flat aluminum sheets on my first camper I did 4 years ago and it has held up great. I am going to be getting some more of it to finish the Scotty I am restoring. Therian roofing in Manchester has the 10' sheets I need and if I remember they were not that expensive. Hope you can get the camper done soon. The Tearjerkers Great north woods chapter is having a camp out next month in VT. We live 25 minutes from Manchester airport in New Boston.

[sabrown82]

Therian Roofing? I'll have to check it out. Our Teardrop is 4x10. Thanks for the tip!

That camping trip sounds like fun. I didn't realize there was a Great North Woods chapter!

Do you know much about registering a teardrop in NH? I'm going to call town hall on Tuesday but if you know the process, that would be helpful. I'm not really sure what I'm up against. The frame has no VIN and we have no title/paperwork.

[sabrown82]

Picked these up on eBay last night:



They aren't exactly what I was going for originally. What sold me on these was their price ($16.99/ea) and the location of the seller (USA). I was seriously considering a funkier gooseneck type reading light, but I could only find sellers based out of China for lights at a reasonable price. I likely wouldn't have the lights in my hands for at least a month as a result. All of the marine reading/chart lights are way out of my price range.

So these will have to do.


Starting to struggle with decoration concepts and feeling a little overwhelmed on that front. I want to make a folding foam mattress but I can't find any instructions online for that. I don't know what weight fabric I should use or even how to do basic upholstery.

[George Taylor]

We got our foam from a fabric shop. Was not the cheapest, but we were able to get a 4 inch thick piece of foam cot to the size we needed.

[sabrown82]

I was able to pickup a 3" thick memory foam mattress on Amazon yesterday for $50. It has good reviews, so I think that's probably the best deal I'm going to find. I'm still trying to work out exactly how to upholster it. I think a friend of mine may be able to help out. That may not happen until after July 4th, though. There's just not enough time in the week when we all work full time.

Dad was able to get the outer ply for the roof on yesterday after work with the help of his neighbor.





We've got a lot of work to do this coming weekend. We will be working on the cabinets in the galley, building the hatch, installing the fan, making doors.... oh boy. I'll also have to checkout those cutouts around the tongue part of the frame. Looks like some sort of sealing needs to be done there.

For the galley, we'll also probably take a trip to Ikea. Ikea has some nice laminate countertops. They also have these cool collapsible hooks that I intend on putting in the cabin for hanging coats, jewelry, and any other hangable items.

[George Taylor]

I like the hooks. Just goes to show you that not everything that goes into a camper has to come from a RV store. The latches I use for cabinets are window sash locks. The camper looks great.

[celticquetzel]

Ohhhhh. Lots of things I love. The headboad. The lights. The rims (very sexy). I'm a newbee here. But a mcguyver sewist. So... on the mattress cover... some thoughts. You could use cheap outdoor retail fabric. Would provide good protection. Easy to sew. And doesn't get exposed to UV so you don't need the brand name expensive stuff. Or I just picked up a drop cloth cheap. That would work and the new ones are waterproof too. Cut foam and cover each separately. Attach together parts together with velcro. Close with either velcro or zipper. Good instructions online (think pillow cover). Or, let me know what sewing level you are and I can provide details. Often dry cleaners have people that can sew stuff up. Especially cheap if you cut it out first. Just thinking out loud.

[sabrown82]

Did a little bit of work on the Teardrop this weekend. We started to shape out how we think the galley kitchen will look. We also cut down the laminate countertop to fit.



We also installed the fan and the new reading lights. All of the electrical was tested to make sure everything works.





On our Ikea trip yesterday, we found a 17"x15" stainless steel sink for $20. This will likely be positioned on the left side of the galley.




The extra laminate countertop is going to be used to make a table which will attach to the outside of our teardrop for extra counter space. My "to do" list for this week includes ordering windows, drip lines, and fenders... and trying to find cute, retro things to add for décor. Dad will be working on putting together the doors this week. Hopefully, we will finish the galley cabinets next weekend....

[Ron Dickey]

for a first builder it looks like you have done your home work

What other things do you have experience at boat building, carpentry, are you a contractor? looks very nice and well thought out.

Ron Dickey