Finch Flock's Foamie

[FinchFlock]

Thank you all for all the great information. I appreciate all of you that have tested different things and given your experience for the rest of us to learn from.

I want to build a foamie!
My husband wants a camp trailer, but we don't want a bigger vehicle, and we are on a very tight budget. I had him pretty well convinced that foam was the way to go. We were looking for a good way to cover the foam when I stumbled across this place in one of my searches.
I made it through about 1/2 of the big thrifty thread, and all through gpw,s foam stream. Now my husband is fully convinced that foam is a good idea, and ready to build.

[GPW]

Certainly good reasons ... What do you have in mind ??? What kind of camping do you like to do ?

[KennethW]

Certainly good reasons ... What do you have in mind ??? What kind of camping do you like to do ?

Dido
With a little info we can steer you into a custom teardrop that works for you, your car and your budget.
PS: Canvas really does work!!
Size-
4x8 is the easier but really cozy 5x9 is nice ?
Galley-
I would not go with out?
Factory or homemade doors-
factory is spendy but homemade take more time and may leak ?
Trailer?
HF,custom,4x8,5x8 I have used HF 4x8 on a 5x9 TD and it has over 9000 miles on it
Window factory or homemade(wiley)http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=51721&p=953331?
Wiley window work great even in the rain.
Hybrid or all foam?
Mine is a hybrid canvas-foam-FRP(Bar room bathroom wall board) with no wood.

[GPW]

I personally inspected Ken’s trailer and it was very COOL !! Solar panel too, slide out awnings ... the "bees’ knees " FRP looks like an interesting material too ?... Our old buddy Texas Steve mentioned that a while back ... Seeing is believing ...

Fin , A Foamie is a Lot easier than most other trailers and you don’t need a lot of tools either ... Just take your time and make everything fit and it will be just what you need ... It’s really sorta’ like a big Crafters project ... just bigger bits to handle , not that difficult ...

[FinchFlock]

We started with a HF trailer, but it was impossible to assemble. The manager agreed that it was flawed and let us return it.
My husband found a trailer for sale near us. It is a boat trailer that looks a lot like the one GPW used for his foam stream. I look forward to seeing the completed drip edge. I may include one on mind, though it's not a high priority with what little rain we get around here.
How heavy is FRP? I may have to look at that. So far the plan is to canvas over foam with as little wood as possible. Any wood that we do use, I plan on treating with "the mix".
I need to find that post with the instructions on how to post pictures.

I want to be able to stand up inside,
I need 3 beds (1 queen, 2 single )
Must have a potty! I'm thinking urine diverting and composting. - No more taking the kids for potty runs in the middle of the night or at the crack of dawn!
Galley would be important to me as well
Anything beyond that is an appreciated upgrade from tent camping

Ken, did you mount your solar panels? And how?
At this point solar is a luxury thar may not happen for some time, but it doesn't hurt to dream or plan ahead by including some sort of mounting site and wiring for future use... right?

[GPW]

Fin, you probably got a lot better trailer than the HF ! Just as an exercise in visualization , try laying out all your “stuff” on the floor and mark out the space you think you need ( masking tape or chalk ) ... Then you can see how everything fits your needs , BEFORE building ...

[FinchFlock]

I like that idea. We have lots of chalk for the kids to use outside.
I've been using graph paper, but it would be nice to see it full size and be able to walk through the floor plan.

[GPW]

Be sure to put all your cooler , cooking ,clothes , etc,etc. in there too ... everything you plan on bringing/using ...

[FinchFlock]

I'm not great with computers. I usually rely on my husband to do all of the computer related things.
I read the directions for putting pictures in an album and thought I had followed them too, but I must have done something wrong , because I still don't have any pictures there .

[FinchFlock]

I hope this works... it's a bad picture of the rusty boat trailer that we started with. I will try to load a better one when I get a chance to.

[FinchFlock]

The kids picked a nice bright color to paint it once the rust was removed.

[FinchFlock]

Well, I can see the pictures . I hope you can too.
I put it all back together and moved the axle as far forward as the existing frame and holes would allow (about 1ft) to help ballance the weight of what I hope to build on it. I started wiring for the lights.





Just some ideas that I sketched, though the axle has moved since then, the rear section of the frame is 1 ft longer in reality, and after drawing it on the driveway with chalk (as GPW suggested ) it may be bigger than we need. I was afraid that it would be too cramped to fit all the beds, a potty, and a galley. It looks like I could squeeze a table in too , or just down size to save weight / materials / cost. (I guess I'd better consult the one funding this project before I move forward. )

[FinchFlock]

Clearly, I'm no engineer. I'm open to suggestions, and constructive criticism. I was trying to get an idea of how much space we would need, and how we could distribute the weight properly so that the toung doesn't carry too much of the weight.
Ideas are welcomed and appreciated.

[GPW]

Finch, thanks for the trailer pictures ... The trailer looks Good now ...!!! But be sure to check the bearings , they’re inexpensive and easily replaced ... Very Important !!!...

Are those all planned windows ???
A small fold down table works pretty good and is easy to make ... just an idea ...

[FinchFlock]

Bearings are a must. One shop tells me they think they could do it for $85(or more if there are any complications). At that price, I'm thinking that I should do it myself or at least shop around a bit.

Windows are nice, I'd like lots of them. I'm not sure how many we will end up with considering the cost , weight, and structural affect that many windows may have.

I like the fold down table. I'll have to wait to hear if my husband wants to add the luxury of a table, or down size to save $ and weight.

I like the ribs you made for structure, but they sound heavy and labor intensive (without a fancy precision computer guided cutting machine ). I'm looking for a lightweight alturnative that's a bit easier for 1 person to do.