Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[eaglesdare]

so my stepson lives with his friend, up on a major road (well major for us), and as i drove by i happened to look over to see if anyone was home. well i did not see any of their cars, but i did see a trailer. i am not sure, but it looked like a scotty (maybe). anyway, when i got home, the stepson was here. i asked him about the trailer, he said its used only for storage. so i asked him to find out about giving it to me.

so, please keep your fingers crossed. i would love to bring that camper home and work on that one.

[Wobbly Wheels]

Hey droid, what kind of boat are you using ?
If it's a tin boat, you'll need to really keep an eye on the weight. A jonboat or a Whaler, not so much.

The door I built is strong enough to stand on, but I wouldn't do it all the time. It's 1" foam and skinned with glass on one side and 1/8" on the other. If you have room for 2" foam, I'd go with that and 1/4" ply top and bottom, then epoxy and glass over the whole works. Hatches and the perimeter frame should be wood: red cedar is light weight, plentiful, and soaks up resin really well.

If you keep the deck down from the sheer by an inch or so it will let you feel the edge of the boat with your foot while focusing on keeping the hook set...

[GPW]

Eagle , as my wife the Psychologist would say .... we Need an intervention ... How many trailers do you have now ... ... I’ll be up to 5 again ... The wife is going to have a S**t fit ... She already knows I’m Crazy , but it’s good to have company right ?

Never give up , never surrender , never enough trailers ... This borders on Addiction , don’t ya’ know ...

[eaglesdare]

hmm, does an rv (my first purchase) count? if so, then working on 3. i would so love to have that tiny trailer though. i think that one would be tons of fun bringing it back to life. but i did tell him i wanted it for free. so we'll see. hey its always worse asking. the worst that can happen is they say no, and i haven't lost anything.

[droid_ca]

Hey droid, what kind of boat are you using ?
If it's a tin boat, you'll need to really keep an eye on the weight. A jonboat or a Whaler, not so much.

The door I built is strong enough to stand on, but I wouldn't do it all the time. It's 1" foam and skinned with glass on one side and 1/8" on the other. If you have room for 2" foam, I'd go with that and 1/4" ply top and bottom, then epoxy and glass over the whole works. Hatches and the perimeter frame should be wood: red cedar is light weight, plentiful, and soaks up resin really well.

If you keep the deck down from the sheer by an inch or so it will let you feel the edge of the boat with your foot while focusing on keeping the hook set...

It is a 12.5 footer but 'I'm welding on some beaver tails(float pods) on to the back to increase buoyancy as I have my dogs with me all the time I want to offer them a comfortable place to stay while on the boat and was thinking I could use it for some storage underneath plus a chair mount for when doing some fishing

[Wobbly Wheels]

Gotcha - so it'll be across the stern and over the outboard ?
I was picturing a bow deck like on a bass boat.

If you've got both pod sidewalls and the transom to support it, you could surely take the foam down to 1". If you're going to use the pods as a livewell, remember that'll change your bouyancy and trim while you're standing up there. Just a thought, but putting foam in the bottom of the pods before you line them might help with that, although the wells will be shallower.

[GPW]

Here’s a couple pics of the new Freebie trailer ... 5’X10’ , and possibly can go wider with a proper floor frame ... Foamie and all ... Low wider here we come ... I will have to lose some of that loooong tongue ... no problem ...

[swampjeep]

for any Det. Mi people, there's a free 16' boat trailer on CL, and cheap 2" foam in materials, look for "deckmate", the guy is selling some with nicks in it, 25 sheets for $60 (pick-up truck load) I keep wanting to go get a load, but I still don't see the time to build my trailer, and the wife will not like it sitting unused long.

oops, too late on the deckmate, add it's gone

found this 1" pink stuff fairly cheap

http://detroit.craigslist.org/okl/mat/3068361876.html

[GPW]

SJ, there’s plenty of really good deals out there , one only has to look for them ...

Speaking of ... Last night I picked the wife up at the airport and while we were driving into the drive way , she exclaimed “ What’s That ??? “ and gave me “the look”... Yep, she spotted it, the new trailer .... I forgot about the reflective tape on the back which glowed like a neon sign It was never mentioned anymore ...

Gee Whiz, wait till she sees the pile of Foam I’m intent on buying .... she’ll certainly know something’s up

[bonnie]

Here’s a couple pics of the new Freebie trailer ... 5’X10’ , and possibly can go wider with a proper floor frame ... Foamie and all ... Low wider here we come ... I will have to lose some of that loooong tongue ... no problem ...

Well done. When are you going to start building?

[GPW]

Now seems a good time .... Since yesterday I’ve been thinking how I really want to do this ... Lowwider seems the way to go ... Thinking of doing the cedar plank floor, no plywood ... a floor frame would lift it above the trailer frame , enough to clear some shallow fender wells inside ... and I’d really like to make it wider at least 72” inside , which would be 76” outside ... so that means a 6” overlap of the trailer frame on each side , which with a good floor frame is entirely possible , and will solve the attachment problem normally associated with a 2" thick wall .. as on my “toy Foamie” .. This way I can bolt it down like crazy and not interfere with the outer walls /skin ... The Lighter Foam construction shouldn’t stress the floor much if at all .... if I make it right ... Maybe some good Oak cross members underneath , like the old timers did ... Hmmm??? Much to think about ... I have the plans and the cut sheet , just gotta’ get the materials .... and I’ve been “saving” ...

The only thing that’s stopped me lately is the other trailer is only 54'' wide ,and just seemed too small for a comfortable sleeper .. When I saw this one , bells went off !!!

Anybody want a 54” wide trailer ??? That would make the wife Extremely happy , just bringing my trailer count down to Four ...

[atahoekid]

Sorry, can't help you with your frame addiction... But the build sounds interesting. Can't wait to see your progress. You will be having a build site won't you???? And lots of pictures to document your progresss!!!

[linuxmanxxx]

Glen as far south as you are, you should go 3/4" foam minimal stick frame and canvas the exterior. Be about tyre same weight and not have to go so wide or do go as wide and add 3" more interior width. The thinner foam is much cheaper.

[atahoekid]

Hey GPW!!!

Remember this? Seems like the perfect trailer frame for this build.... HMMM. Time to make it a reality??? I think it would be so cool...

[Augie]

This would be much more aerodynamic is towed backwards, might even improve mileage on a boxy TV