DogCrate

[Gpike]

So we mostly tent, but dragging all the associated stuff for us and the dog make the Jeep bulge at the seams. The first plan was for a Chuck wagon for the grills and coolers, but that quickly escalated once we started searching for information and ran across this page.
The end game has now become a storage space for grills, ez-ups, collapsible chairs, and all the other stuff that used to get stuffed in the Jeep. It may also be the bedroom for the dogs. Nothing like having 80 lbs. worth of German Shorthair sitting on your chest in the morning, asking if it's time to go out yet.
Lastly I would like to use it as a base for some bird hunting expeditions in the fall with the boys and I.
Lets just say I want to keep the interior Spartan. I actually like sleeping in a tent. So after about 20 drawings and designs, here is the CAD drawing for what we came up with.

[Gpike]

I was given a trashed pop-up trailer to start with and stripped it down to the rails. I liked the look of the outside tires and fenders, so I ended up with a width of 58" and 130" long. The 10" wheels and tires are in great shape, so I kept them, but they may be replaced later if I can't stand the look. More to come.. This is not my shop. One of my great friends runs a fabrication shop, with all the goodies you can imagine. He was kind enough to volunteer his shop and help over the last weekend for this project. Anyway this is where it started Friday night.

[Gpike]

I cut out, painted and installed the floor while my friend cut out the sides in prep for polyurethane.


The sides and openings were cut out with a CNC router, the edges were broken, and then the poly applied.

If you look closely at the panels, you can see the relief cut into the side for attaching to the bottom.

[Gpike]

In the meantime James was cutting out the wall supports and ceiling beams on the router. I can't believe I didn't get a picture but....
Once they came off the Router table, I deburred while James ran the folding table.


The Ceiling beams and wall supports


We called it a night after recoating the pieces and taking stock of progress.

[Gpike]

Saturday morning came kinda early, but everything was dry and the sides needed to go on. The curbside

That's my buddies daughter, I harassed her into the photo so our wives could see we were making progress.

After a little cursing, we got both sides on. Breaking the edges of the channel and floor helped coax it into place. Not only is the floor attached to the sides with the recess, the sides hang over the frame and are attached from the side. So the floor is attached to the frame, and the sides are attached to the floor and the frame. Any vagaries in the frame sides are taken up with shims at the attachment point.

[Gpike]

Saturday morning came kinda early, but everything was dry and the sides needed to go on. The curbside

That's my buddies daughter, I harassed her into the photo so our wives could see we were making progress.

After a little cursing, we got both sides on. Breaking the edges of the channel and floor helped coax it into place. Not only is the floor attached to the sides with the recess, the sides hang over the frame and are attached from the side. So the floor is attached to the frame, and the sides are attached to the floor and the frame. Any vagaries in the frame sides are taken up with shims at the attachment point.

[Gpike]

after a ton of folding, the bulkhead and kitchen assembly came together.

From the front

Interior shelving and access panel

The outline for the galley

It was enough for one day. Lots of folding and riveting.

[Gpike]

Sunday was kind of clean up day. We got a later start, and just couldn't seem to get going. I blame myself on this one, James is an working machine. He was back at the folding table and Router, cutting parts and folding, while I got stuff cleaned up on the inside.

Eventually he brought me this, and I could start riveting again


Once the riveting was done, we rolled the hatch together, taped and screwed it in place so we could hang it off the back and take a look at what we had.

[Gpike]

Let me tell you about the mistake I made. Don't leave your teardrop up on horses this long. Light as it is, one end still weighs a ton! We didn't have the angle to grab it with a fork-truck anymore. Yours truly was dumb enough to volunteer to hold one end while the truck lowered the other. DUMB!

Once we had it on the ground, we were able to stuff it full of more pieces parts, and wheel it to another portion of the shop where it can sit untouched for the next week.

[pchast]

That's coming together quickly. You have a priceless friend there.

[mrwall1]

Wow! you are moving along quick!! looks great, Originally, the same idea here, was just looking to build a trailer to haul behind my XJ, to haul the camping equip... But the more I looked online, and found this site the more I wanted one to sleep in! It is great I get to use it for dual purpose... to haul things securely and take everything out set up and sleep!

[Gpike]

The CAD drawing and the CNC router make things SOOOOO much easier. That plus the guy to run it! It's the first time I have used the technology and its amazing how well everything comes together. Even the adhesive is accounted for in the bend, it's almost snap together.
The next big challenge is going to be bending on the roof. We did the hatch first, as it has the tightest radius. Hopefully gravity will work with us on the roof, as the .090 aluminum is kind of reluctant to yield at times. We are also trying to do it one piece, so its kind of heavy!

The tow vehicle for this will be a four door Wrangler, it has a real low GVWR, so we are trying to go light and use the structure to provide the strength. It's amazing how rigid the panels are with a little bend to them!

Quick picture of the kids

[noseoil]

Great build concept & execution! Looks like it's quite a shop to work in and you have access to all the right tools. The .090" skin seems like it's a bit on the thick side, but it should be strong enough. Beautiful job on the metal work.

[Gpike]

Most of the people here on the board seemed to be using a plywood layer under the aluminum for structure. Where the metal is being used as the structure on this one, .090 seemed prudent.
Throw some curve into it, and the snow buildup shouldn't be a concern!

[Gpike]

So we got back to it this weekend, with the first order of business cutting out, Folding and installing the forward section. I would have taken more pictures, but the router isn't that fascinating to watch without video, and we needed all hands for the flange fold. The fold was the largest one he has ever done in the shop, with 10' sticking out of the table. A couple of stiffeners were needed! The folds came out fine though and we were able to attach the back edge with rivets and start the installation.

We had done the hatch first because it had the tightest radius, and thought the weight of the panel would help on the forward bends. WRONG!
The Front radius, I think because it was so short, was the tough spot. Between tie straps and weight however, we finally got it to bond and the screws in the lateral supports.


Thankfully, the ratchet straps could just hook into the convenient holes on the laterals.


A quick shot of the interior so far.


From the back. Have some handprints. The galley hatch is fully installed at this point, I will try to find a detailed picture of the hinge.


Front view, Looks kind of stubby at this angle!


And the door...This was fun. We didn't have a roll, but thought the .090 would bend easy enough to hand form. It did, but it was far from easy. It is hinged from the top, and everything cleared fine. It did take us another 45 minutes though to remember how we were going to seal it! Hopefully the other side will go easier now that this one is done.


This is the best I could do at the moment to show the hinge. Will get some more detail later.


The more pictures I put in here, the more details I realized I missed. I anyone wants to see something specific, let me know and I will take a picture of it.