A woody tiny-trailer for my first build!

[drshoe]

Okay, so I already got started but I have time to catch you all up.

I decided on a simple non-curved design. Sorry, but for my first build I don't think bending the skins is worth the extra time/effort. The wife and I wanted an all-seasons camper that would fit a queen bed and would be comfortable to sit in during bad weather. I decided on building a 5x10 sandwich-wall type camper on a 5x8 NT IronTon trailer. After the wife's vetoes it will be 4'6" tall, extra work for me.

I ordered doors, windows, vent, vent cover and hurricane-hinge. We actually weren't concerned with appearances but while shopping for lumber I discovered the local box-store carries 1/4" 5-ply with eucalyptus core and white birch or red oak veneer weighing only 18# a sheet!!! So a woody it is! I opted for Select 1x2 pine after realizing their cedar would be worthless structurally. I loaded up on TB3, grabbed a few tubes of PL Premium and an obscene amount of PL300 Foamboard adhesive.

I do have a materials list and a plan I drew up the old fashioned way on graph-paper. I am updating the plan and trying to keep a cut list as I proceed in case anybody is interested.

[drshoe]

Here is the result of my first day's work. I cut the framing, glued and screwed it together with the help of some old fashioned squaring clamps. Next I glued the floor framing over 3 sheets of 1/4" luan and piled the rest of my plys on top of it for an hour or so. I uncovered the floor, cut out the foam (should've traced the cuts before gluing the framing down, won't make that mistake again) glued it in place and reburied the assembly under my reserve plys.

The following morning I trimmed off the excess and trimmed out an area where the A/C will go using a circle saw.

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[drshoe]

Did I mention it's been a while since I've done any wood-working? Oh and I'm building this in the Mother-in-Law's garage without 'my tools' just borrowed ones.

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[drshoe]

Day 2 I covered the Luan bottom with roofing tar. I used about 1.5 gallon cans, which was way too much judging by the dry time and amount of bubbling.

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When it was wet is was so shiny, it reflected the blue sky and looked like water. A couple dragonflies thought so too. Is this some kind of omen?

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The wife asked me what I was going to do with it. I replied "What do you mean? I'm going to leave it there, we'll have to name this thing the dragonfly-slayer."

Not a super productive day, but the brown truck dropped off a poplar tri-fold queen-size futon frame that I put together so I could start contemplating how to modify it for the trailer.

[drshoe]

Day 3

Like the floor, I glued and screwed the wall frames with square clamps then after tracing the frame onto foamboard I glued the frame to the white birch faced plys, trimming with a circle saw the following day.
I took the extra time to fit the plys together nicely. The door opening is the skin flush with studs, the plan is to mount the door in a 3/4" birch ply and then attach it to the rest of the wall - I imagine I'll be trimming the bottom board where it crosses the doorway.

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[drshoe]

Day 4

The Yellow Truck finally arrived and I spent the day building the trailer. The center cross member was a little squished at one end but I bent it back into shape after clamping on with vice-grips. I built the trailer with the axle in the default position 3.5' forward from the rear. I plan on having a heavy galley (A/C, 12v batteries and cooler) and building out over the a-frame to a total length of 10' so that puts the axle at the recommended 35%. I did modify the way the a-frame terminates to accommodate the typical tongue-reinforcement as soon as I find a reasonably priced 7' 2x2x3/8 square steel tube. I also flipped the front cross member around so the open part of the C-channel faces forward, this way I can add some extra support for the overhanging cabin.

Pictures will be attached soon.

[aggierandy]

Good progress! Throw up some pictures of the futon frame while you're at it.

[KCStudly]

+1, you are moving right along.

3/8 wall is hugely over sized for the tongue extension in your case and will only add unwanted weight.

You can look at angib's calculator, and I expect that you will find that 3/16 thick is more than adequate. Hmm, he used to post some guidelines for the Australian rules (because they are very conservative), but all I see now is his European calculator.

[drshoe]

3/8 wall is hugely over sized for the tongue extension in your case and will only add unwanted weight.

Yep, you're absolutely right - I did use the calculator and I meant 3/16, I was pretty tired when I was making those posts.

[KCStudly]

[rebapuck]

How about naming it just Dragonfly?

[drshoe]

Here's a picture of the trailer frame. I bolted a 2x4 to the a-frame then glued and screwed a 1x2 on top of that. Because I turned the first cross-member around I have the option of adding some 1x2s to tie the wood crossmember to the steel one but I haven't done so.

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This is what the project looked like at the end of Day 5. The inside floor is being glued to the deck.

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The first 5 days were done in a single stretch. I swear I have pictures of the actual wall frames somewhere, I'll put those up if I find them.

[drshoe]

Okay, after a productive week at work I got back at it.

Day 6

The floor was trimmed with the circle saw. I went for a 5 foot wide interior and wasn't thinking far enough ahead about attaching the floor to the trailer or I would have done it before I glued the interior floor on. Oh well, no big deal. I put two bolts through the crossmember at the very back and 2ft forward where the galley wall will be.

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I screwed through the floor into the front wooden crossmember in 5 places.

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These will always be covered by the futon as you can see in this picture of us getting a better idea of what we're heading towards.

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[drshoe]

Day 6 Continued

I cut some pieces of 1x6 down and bolted them to the side of the trailer frame butted up against the floor then I screwed down through the floor into them. The wood all got spray-painted black by the darling wife. We haven't thought about what we are going to use as a final coat on this thing but we're going to want something thick and clear. With the floor in place if I step on the front corner above the wood crossmember there is a little flex, but it clearly transfers mostly to the frame. I think once the walls are on additional support under the floor won't be necessary.

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I cut the board that ran across the door opening on each side then cut a piece of 3/4" birch ply to fit. I routed out the opening for the doorway. Actually, I routed the corners then connected them with the circle saw.

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And a little dry-fitting.

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[drshoe]

We covered the seams where the door panel will fit into the wall with masking tape.

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We finished off day 6 by gluing with PL premium and screwing through the frame into the door panel ply for one side of the trailer. While kneeling with one knee on the door panel and one knee on the wall frame I drilled each pilot hole. I kneeled similarly while screwing. I drilled, glued and screwed the door panel into the other wall on the morning of Day 7. Here is a picture of the door panel in place.I feel like we got a lot done even though the wife had us call it a day after 8 hours (we got cleaned up and went out for a steak dinner

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Day 7 will be up as soon as I get the pictures together.