First Teardrop Build - Updated 8/11

[celticquetzel]

So clean. Love the countertop. Can't wait to see what you do to the outside.

[sabrown82]

Thanks for the nice comments, Ron! I can't take much credit for this build. I just pick out items at the store, supply the money, and do what I'm told.

My dad is really running the show here. I give him a general idea of what I think will be useful to me and he runs with it. He's not a contractor but he's been working on various projects for as long as I've been alive. He's a pretty handy guy and a lot of that is showing through here. We definitely have to do a fair bit of problem solving together. We have made mistakes that we've had to go back and fix....we may have a few we have to fix right now as a matter of fact! But we're figuring it all out.

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

[sabrown82]

Thanks Celtic! It's only $79 at Ikea, which is on par with laminate countertop prices at Lowes/Home Depot. They have a few options that are multicolored! It was a fun pick up! I will admit it is a bit heavy, though.

The outside is anticipated to be 0.032 aluminum with a 3" break. The roof will be plain/flat aluminum sheet...all polished up. The front end will have some diamondplate. At some point I plan to take the teardrop to get painted. My hope is that I can make it look sort of like an old Shasta trailer. The top of the siding will be white, the bottom green, the roof will remain silver/aluminum.

So clean. Love the countertop. Can't wait to see what you do to the outside.

[George Taylor]

You think that it will be done for the tearjerkers meet in VT in 2 weeks?

[sabrown82]

Probably not, George. We are aiming for July 4th and I think even that is pushing it. I think that in order to get it done, we'll need every weekend second we can get between now and then.

You think that it will be done for the tearjerkers meet in VT in 2 weeks?

[Ron Dickey]

Thanks for the nice comments, Ron! I can't take much credit for this build. I just pick out items at the store, supply the money, and do what I'm told.

My dad is really running the show here. I give him a general idea of what I think will be useful to me and he runs with it. He's not a contractor but he's been working on various projects for as long as I've been alive. He's a pretty handy guy and a lot of that is showing through here. We definitely have to do a fair bit of problem solving together. We have made mistakes that we've had to go back and fix....we may have a few we have to fix right now as a matter of fact! But we're figuring it all out.

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

you Said " We have made mistakes that we've had to go back and fix....we may have a few we have to fix right now as a matter of fact! But we're figuring it all out."

that is part of the reason I joined this group this is the biggest thing I ever built and the forum helped me. Ask and we will see how we can help. also use the custom search at the top of the page. Design Resources at the top of this page and if you do not see answers or can not wait go to General and ask away. Most people look there first.

Ron

[sabrown82]

So I failed to take pictures of our progress this past weekend. I had to rush home from my parents house (1.5 hr drive) to make sure to catch the season finale of Game of Thrones!

I just thought I'd post a bit about what we accomplished.

1. Power Converter - It's installed and all of the wiring is hooked up. Everything is wonderfully functional!
2. Outlets - 12v and 110v outlets are installed in the cabin!
3. Galley - We made a good amount of progress on the base cabinets. None of us involved in this build would consider ourselves cabinet makers. I'll be working on the doors and drawer faces this week.
4. Epoxy sealed any cracks or holes

My big goal for the week is to track down my siding. This has been much harder than I thought it was going to be. I may have to sacrifice my siding concept and just go for flat aluminum sheeting with the hope of getting the whole thing painted at some point. I'm not really sure.

[Oldragbaggers]

Very nice!! The wood grain in your interior is interesting and very pretty. Your cabinets look great and I also like the countertop. I'm looking forward to seeing your aluminum exterior and paint job. You're really going to enjoy this teardrop. Dad done good.

[sabrown82]

Very nice!! The wood grain in your interior is interesting and very pretty. Your cabinets look great and I also like the countertop. I'm looking forward to seeing your aluminum exterior and paint job. You're really going to enjoy this teardrop. Dad done good.

Thanks Becky! I appreciate the nice comments! The interior is birch. It's even prettier in person! Dad is quite a handy guy and a great guy for taking on this project with/for me.

I've been following your build journal too! Your teardrop looks great!

[sabrown82]

Making more progress, though, the 7/4 deadline is looking a little unattainable at this point.

Dad made some interior improvements over the course of the past week. I spent part of the day today sitting in the teardrop making sure to put on a nice coat of polyurethane (pictures are pre-poly).

A pretty rail was added to the headboard shelving to make sure things stay where they are supposed to!



A shelf was added under the cabinet storage to serve as a charging station and to hold other miscellaneous items.



Cup/drink holders were added on either side of the cabin. I don't know about you, but I often wake up in the middle of the night looking for a sip of water. This will prove to be very convenient.



Part of the day was spent constructing these doors.



We secured the windows in place temporarily and then secured the doors in place temporarily so that we could get an idea of what it may look like when she's all done.



We also attached a tongue box to the frame and the battery will be located in a case just to the front of the tongue box.



And the fenders arrived! We also attached those just to get a feel of what the finished teardrop will look like.




The galley kitchen was also worked on a bit more but I don't have pictures of that yet. It's coming along!

[Oldragbaggers]

Coming along great!!

[George Taylor]

Looking good.

[KCStudly]

Test fitting things ahead of time is a great way to head off any fitment problems while there is still time to make corrections.

I like your wheels.

Have you tried out your door for size? I am a larger type person, so it looks just a tad small to me, but I suppose that is relative.

Looking good. Build on.

[sabrown82]

KCStudly - I never got around to answering your question. I apologize! We did test for size. It works well for me! Thanks for asking, though! I'm sure that could have proven to be a big mistake if it didn't work out right.

On to the update from this past weekend:

The hatch is coming together! Honestly, this is the piece that we have all been putting off. Reading about building this thing didn't really make anyone excited to give it a go. I think it came together pretty well! The first picture is while adding in some last bits of wood. The second is the hatch temporarily fitted on for a picture.





Siding went on today. There was a lot of help with this effort. A rented aluminum break/brake?, an uncle who knows how to use it, lots of hands, and a handy guide from Len which you can get at the following forum post made it all happen.

Forum post for siding guide: http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=55937&p=1014938&hilit=aluminum+siding#p1014938





I'd say - Not too shabby for our first try. Now to save some pennies to get her painted! Oh...and put the aluminum roof on, attach the doors, finish the galley kitchen....

[KCStudly]

Not too shabby for our first try.

Hell yeah! That looks great!