Hi, I'm Fotbr, and I have a problem

[fotbr]

Group: "Hi Fotbr!"

So, about me: early 30s software developer from the heartland, hobby woodworker, amateur machinist, and a fat guy who's getting tired of tent camping. Adding one and one and coming up with three is my specialty, so I figured what better way to indulge some of my hobbies and cure my tent problem than to build my own camper. I saw the first teardrop that I remember on a trip to Acadia National Park in the early 90s, and the design stuck with me, and after bit of consulting with the great oracle (google) I found myself here more and more often.

Now, about that problem. I can't decide what to build.

I like the idea of a basic teardrop. But being rather well fed, I'm not sure that a small teardrop is really for me. So while sorting through some of my childhood toys, I ran across my train set, and an idea popped into my head that I've never quite been able to shake: I can build a caboose scaled to fit nicely behind my Rav4 - room to sleep, room to sit, door on the side for me, door on the back for the galley. I first thought about all wood construction on a HF frame. Then I saw the post here that I cannot find back - Fred, I think was the guys name - formerly from Alaska, builds in steel, aluminum, blue foam, skinned with aluminum, and built a small one for a young lady from California -- in any case, I thought that would be within my abilities since most of a caboose structure will be straight and square corners.

My goal is to figure out what to build - either a larger traditional teardrop, or my mini-caboose, and start the build over the winter, with the hope of making a trip late next summer or early fall to Minnesota's north shore on Lake Superior.

So I'm here to continue to read a lot, post a little, and ask stupid questions when I can't figure something out on my own.

-F

[deleted]

Greetings Fotbr,

As Fred's (aka alaska teardrop's) #1 fan I'll send him the link to your thread so he doesn't miss it. Also, here's the link to his build photos on tnttt: http://www.tnttt.com/gallery/album.php?album_id=2014

BTW, he's THE BEST!

[fotbr]

It's the young lady from California! Your blog, specifically the story of glampette, was one of the many reasons I ended up here, and the construction really has me thinking about building in metal -- thank you.

[deleted]

LOL Young is a relative term. I'm older than I look Considerably older than you

Very glad to hear the blog was helpful in your finding your way to tnttt. It's a great and generous community.

[Shadow Catcher]

One thing to remember is that aerodynamics have a huge effect on MPG and a traditional tear design is more aerodynamic. Our grasshopper design is 6' Wide and light weight but MPG suffers towed behind a Subaru Outback, very similar to a RAV. Caboose = very bad aerodynamics, not a problem behind a train.

[fotbr]

I've thought about the fuel efficiency a bit -- I may be completely wrong, but here's my thoughts:

I figure that the mini-caboose idea, being basically a box, won't be that much worse than towing a box type cargo trailer; for one, not nearly as much of it will be extending beyond the car when viewed from the front - it won't be a standie - I want to keep the caboose roof near or at the car's roofline, the width no wider than the rav4's body, and while the cupola sticks up, it won't be sticking up as high as the cargo trailer did. Towing a cargo trailer (6x12, and about 6' interior height) knocked my gas mileage down to around 20 MPG (highway) from about 26-27 MPG (highway, no trailer), which is what I'm basing my rough estimates on. Even if it cuts my mileage down to what I was getting with the other car and no trailer (15 MPG), I'm no worse off fuel wise than my last long tent camping trip.

[atahoekid]

There is an entire section of foamie builds and though no one has done it, I gave considerable thought to an aluminum skin before settling on fiberglass. As far as needing to build in metal, foam (especially with an aluminum skin and a thin interior skin) makes a great SIP or composite panel. You won't need too much structure to get it to be strong. The only "structures" in my foamie build are a front cabinet and a cabinet between the sleeping quarters and galley (think of them as bulkheads). There is no other framing in the body except for the 2 side door openings and three spars in the roof. I built an oversize trailer by starting with a re-purposed tent trailer frame. My foamie is over 12' long and almost 7' wide. I restricted the height so I can park it in the garage during our Sierra winters but if I didn't have that restriction, I would've made it a standy too. Since you're going to use your RAV 4 as a TV, I would give lots of thought to an aerodynamic build and lots of thought to a foamie, since there is a huge weight savings over conventional builds. Just my (long winded) two cents. Welcome to the madness

[fotbr]

Oooooh....pure composites....

Why do I feel like I'm being lured down a rabbit hole?