1st Build, COMPLETING a 5'x8' Foamie Teardrop

[jseyfert3]

I finally had some time today and popped in to take a look at what you've done. Looking good!

Also I saw your comment on the OSB, and I now have pretty much decided to stop buying it. At the time, I had less money and more time than I do now. Now after using it for that and various shelves I've decided it's not worth the small savings over plywood, which I would use if I did this again.

...which may not be likely, given that (with the lack of time and all) we bought a cheap pop-up a few weeks back and the wife would like a hard sided camper at some future time. Buy a bigger vehicle and this is what happens (the opposite of the 25 MPG you got towing the teardrop!).

I'll be following this to see how it ends up!

[KCStudly]

Hey jseyfert3, Sounds like life is treating you well. Nice to hear you touch base.

A used pop up? Really? Okay, yeah you are camping, but... ? (Just kidding... sort of).

And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

[SummittDweller]

Greetings everyone. I've had lots of things get in the way of camping and teardrop construction lately, but I am back at the construction again in the last week or so.

Since my maiden voyage I have added a deep cycle battery and interior wiring for it. Today I completed installation of the interior LED lights and controls, and did some cleaning. I also got tired of tripping over the spare tire so I rigged a mount for it on the trailer tongue assembly.

Photos to follow...



The interior electrical controls include a master cut off switch on the left, individual LED lamp switches in the center, and a 12 V dimmer to control the LED intensity on the right.





Two of the LED fixtures are mounted on either side of the roof vent and the other is mounted forward of my headboard in the center of the trailer.





These photos show the assembly I created to bolt the spare tire to the trailer tongue.



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[SummittDweller]

Last evening's construction focused on installing a curtain rod above my large window. I fabricated it from three-quarter inch PVC, bored holes in the foam and glued the PVC stubs in place. The end product is shown in the photo below without a curtain.




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[SummittDweller]

Sorry it's been so long between posts... I have been camping a couple of times and the unit is performing nicely. I definitely have some catching up to do here so let's go...

Last weekend I installed the first of two gamma-seal openings into my rear storage area.



Above are the two covers each mounted in a 1/4" thick flange. Note that before gluing these in place I roughed up the surface of the plastic gamma-seal lids and drilled small holes for the glue to expand into.



The tools I used at first were my rotary drywall saw and the circle templates I used to cut my circles. These I made using a plunge router and circle jig.



So I mounted a slightly undersized template where the opening would be cut, and made a 3/4 depth cut around it and then down into the center. This made removing the material pretty easy using a hot knife to finish the perimeter cut.



Then I clamped my hole template around the opening and used an xacto knife and my hot knife to enlarge the opening for a tight fit.



I used a Dremel tool to carefully remove excess glue from around the gamma-seal.



Then I roughed up the canvas surface of the trailer around the opening and glued/clamped the flanged gamma-seal into place.



It worked great so I have since installed another on the opposite side, and I paneled shut most of the opening on the inside. I now have plenty of storage space for lawn chairs and much more.


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[SummittDweller]

I thought I had covered most of this earlier but no longer see the posts so I took more photos today, inside and out, and will post them here...



The above exterior shot shows the rear passenger side of the trailer with gamma-seal rear storage access, big window, re-built rear end, tail light and rear marker lamps, and my shore power connection.



The above shot shows more of the new rear end. The whole thing will one day be this gray color with a black and white granite pattern eventually applied.



Above is a look at the driver's side showing the marker light, storage opening, a new flush-fit door with its own gamma-seal window opening, and a louvered port up front where the air conditioner exhaust vent is.



The view above shows more of the same. And below is a view inside the rear storage.





The photo above shows the AC unit and my re-designed DC controls box.





And the photos above show the forward interior and curtains covering the big window.

The plan is to paint and finish the interior this winter.


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[Fiddlin'Billy]

Hello from Cyclone Country! I am waiting on a trailer modification and will then be starting my own foam filled adventure. It would be neat to see yours in person some time. I live north of Des Moines and will be building in Elkhart.

[SummittDweller]

Hello from Cyclone Country! I am waiting on a trailer modification and will then be starting my own foam filled adventure. It would be neat to see yours in person some time. I live north of Des Moines and will be building in Elkhart.

I was camping in Story City three weeks ago, headed to Lake Wapello next weekend and then planned to put it in storage for the winter. But I might end up camping at Saylorville the weekend of November 11 if the weather looks good. I will let you know if that happens.


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[SummittDweller]

Did a little interior work this week in the rain. It doesn’t look great yet but I think it’s a great functional addition. I fabricated and installed some cabinet doors. I made the lower door drop down with a mind to using them as fold-up shelves to support my laptop and similar devices. But my daughter got a new iPad so I inherited hers and found the perfect mount and place for it. See for yourself.






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[aggie79]

Well done! Very nice!

[pchast]

looks good.

[PatrickM]

Good to see this being used and the finishing touches -- I thing the rough finish look of the exterior canvas would go well with a camo paint job.
Cheers, Patrick