Lightweight removeable galley???

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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby DJ Davis » Thu Mar 16, 2023 11:18 pm

Thomas,

I'd say make yourself some kind of a chuck box that will slide in and bolt down where you want while traveling. Once you get to your destination, slide it out and set it up next to the trailer on some kind of collapsible legs to keep it off the ground. Cover it overnight with a tarp held in place with some bungee cords.
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Fri Mar 17, 2023 9:02 am

DJ Davis wrote:Thomas,

I'd say make yourself some kind of a chuck box that will slide in and bolt down where you want while traveling. Once you get to your destination, slide it out and set it up next to the trailer on some kind of collapsible legs to keep it off the ground. Cover it overnight with a tarp held in place with some bungee cords.


It's not a bad idea but I want something that looks good too and acts like a real teardrop galley for that whole teardrop experience so to speak
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby DJ Davis » Fri Mar 17, 2023 11:43 am

Well, first off, that slope of the rear of the tear is going to give you some problems. Your galley would have to slide forward towards the center of the trailer to allow the hatch to close, then slide to the rear to allow you to access the drawers, countertop, and such w/o beating your shins to death. That's why I suggested a removable chuck box/galley. My question is how tall and how wide?

Concept for "full sized" removable galley: Make a 1" x 4" frame for the bottom and another one to support the countertop. "Fill in" with 1"-bys for vertical and lateral supports. Use 1/8" plywood for the front, back, and sides or cut panels of 1" XPS (Extruded polystyrene foam) to fill in between the 1"-by supports. Use 1/4" plywood for the top and bottom. Glue/nail the 1/4" plywood to the top of each 1 x 4 frame. Leaving the "hollow" under the base will give you a place for some legs to swing down (like landing gear) and bolts w/wingnuts to hold them in-place when extended. A piece of Formica glued to the top should give enough strength for the countertop. PMF w/bed sheets/paint the sides for added strength. Use 1" XPS foam for your drawers to cut weight and PMF them w/bed sheets. Cut front to back cross braces into L-shapes to serve as drawer glides as well as support.

As for legs, you could opt for two and make a way for the galley to hang off of the camper's side on one edge and have the swing down legs for the other side. I'd say go w/4 legs. The way I'd build the base is the legs would have 4" wheels on them and when retracted the wheels would just stick out enough to be able to make the chuck box/galley roll forward and backward in the camper. Plus, when set up, you can carefully wheel it around to other locations at the campsite.

Another design would be to make a full width galley pull-out, but only 12" "tall" mounted on heavy duty drawer slides. That would give you enough height for drawers under the countertop and space to sleep under when pushed in for hatch closure. When you want the full space of the interior, remove the "galley" as you would remove a drawer from a dresser.

Yeah...I know. WAAAAY too much time on my hands! I am retired, ya know! Why not put that one last working brain cell to some use?
DJ

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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Fri Mar 17, 2023 12:09 pm

Yessir that ledge that my kitchen sits on would definitely mean I would do Not only a removable galley but a guy that was slide outwards 12 inches and then bolt in place there. my off-the-cuff thought would be to save width would be to use three-quarter inch plywood walls with a dado and then 1/2" back panel and inner panels. i've got a plan about how to do it just wondering if there's anything else I'm missing. Sounds like I just need to make some sawdust and post photo
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby DJ Davis » Fri Mar 17, 2023 2:31 pm

The only thing that I can say that you MIGHT be missing is considering just how much all the wood to construct the removable galley would be. Unless you're going to have a "2nd" with you to help you remove it at destination due to its weight, I'd caution you to carefully plan what everything will weigh upon completion. I designed/built a lovely chuck box back in my tent camping days and it's HEAVY! That's my main fault - I tend to OVER engineer a project, but I am learning to "dial it back a bit" as I've gotten older. I do have the peace of mind that my projects are structurally sound!

Either way you go, I/we look forward to the pics of the project. Lastly, it's almost ALWAYS time to make sawdust! :thumbsup:
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Fri Mar 17, 2023 3:12 pm

DJ Davis wrote:The only thing that I can say that you MIGHT be missing is considering just how much all the wood to construct the removable galley would be. Unless you're going to have a "2nd" with you to help you remove it at destination due to its weight, I'd caution you to carefully plan what everything will weigh upon completion. I designed/built a lovely chuck box back in my tent camping days and it's HEAVY! That's my main fault - I tend to OVER engineer a project, but I am learning to "dial it back a bit" as I've gotten older. I do have the peace of mind that my projects are structurally sound!

Either way you go, I/we look forward to the pics of the project. Lastly, it's almost ALWAYS time to make sawdust! :thumbsup:



I think I'm pretty good with weight distribution, with my two van interiors I built and that last vintage camper build weight was a primary concern and I think I was successful. I would over engineer things back when I started, these days I'll walk out to the garage, scribble a drawing on a piece of paper and then start getting after it LOL
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby TimC » Fri Mar 17, 2023 4:43 pm

It would look cool to duplicate your oak chest that is sitting on the table but in a larger version. I can envision a hinged top that matches the slope of the hatch and when open fits under the hatch hinge area and gives you a good deal of cubbies to hold small items like paper towels, spices, some bigger utensils, maybe a Bluetooth amp/speaker system, etc, etc, etc. Am I getting carried away?

Bluetooth stereo amp, 12-24V power required, and speakers of course...
https://www.parts-express.com/Dayton-Audio-KAB-215v2-2-x-15W-Class-D-Audio-Amplifier-Board-with-Bluetooth-5.0-325-500?quantity=1
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Fri Mar 17, 2023 4:55 pm

TimC wrote:It would look cool to duplicate your oak chest that is sitting on the table but in a larger version. I can envision a hinged top that matches the slope of the hatch and when open fits under the hatch hinge area and gives you a good deal of cubbies to hold small items like paper towels, spices, some bigger utensils, maybe a Bluetooth amp/speaker system, etc, etc, etc. Am I getting carried away?

Bluetooth stereo amp, 12-24V power required, and speakers of course...
https://www.parts-express.com/Dayton-Audio-KAB-215v2-2-x-15W-Class-D-Audio-Amplifier-Board-with-Bluetooth-5.0-325-500?quantity=1


Hmmm well that just confirmed my stain color, good idea! For some reason I had something like a rolltop desk in mind, I don't know why but it's kind of along those same lines you're envisioning... almost like a hatch within the hatch so the inner hatch would seal up the galley when not in use and would keep things in place Interesting! :thinking:
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Fri Mar 17, 2023 4:59 pm

I really hadn't thought about this consciously but maybe in the back of my mind I was also thinking if I ever needed to sell it I would like to have it as a fully outfitted teardrop camper, not just a storage Teardrop. Not that there's any hint of any consideration of ever selling this but I always try to keep every option and idea open for an unknown future.
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby pchast » Fri Mar 17, 2023 9:42 pm

Thinking outside the box.. :thinking:

You already have a low stand.
Just remove the hitch carrier and turn it over?
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby aggie79 » Mon Mar 20, 2023 6:26 pm

Thomas,
Okay, here’s a wild thought. I hope I can describe it. Cut a rectangular hole in one of the sidewalls and install a drop down hatch cover. Build a galley that will pull through the hatch. Add a ledger with rollers on the inside of and below the hatch that will allow the galley to bear weight and roll on. For the galley build a recessed leg that can swing down and be locked/screwed into place when the galley is extended to the outside. The inner side of the galley could have tabs that would keep you from over extending it when in use, but could be recessed to allow you to remove the galley.
Take care, Tom


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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Wed Mar 22, 2023 9:10 pm

Hey Tom,

I actually came up with a design yesterday along those lines except not cutting into the existing camper :o you know how much that scares me!! I spent all evening working it out but at this point all I have is a sheet of paper with the design and measurements and I'll save y'all the laughter and not post it but it will basically be a free standing galley set on drawer slides and will slide out flush with that extended ledge. I have some really small RV entry step leveling stands that I can put under each end also. It will slide out 22" total but only extend past the main shell by 12".

Pretty basic design with full walls and a counter top with an upper shelf at the rear and a lower shelf in the front both only being 8" deep, this way when it is retracted at night if for some reason I actually need to use it as a camper I can, but I mainly will still use if for cargo and sleep in the van, I just want every possibility covered in case I sell my big camper and crash the van LOL :oops:

I'll start a build thread once I make sawdust, I made my cut list today and can build the whole thing with two 4x8 sheets of plywood. I would build it this weekend but I am going camping! Going to be great weather!

More to come!
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby 2bits » Wed Mar 22, 2023 9:36 pm

Tom, just to touch on your "over extending" thought, I initially thought about simple bolt locks but that would only lock it in place so I'll still do that but as I was designing I realized the back wall sits flush on the spar that hangs down 2" at the hatch hinge and will slide forward and leave a gap behind the galley, so I will extend the walls back just near the top and use the walls to hold in a "plate" just under that bulkhead with a stopper at the end so the bulkhead will ride between the front and rear stoppers.

OK shoot haha I just drew up something halfway presentable to post
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Re: Lightweight removeable galley???

Postby aggie79 » Thu Mar 23, 2023 4:56 pm

Cool!


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