another southern Indiana teardrop build

[Mark72]

Hello all, I've been cruising the board for a while now. Having made my mind up on which design i am going to build and starting on it today I thought it was time to introduce myself. My name is Mark and i have chosen to build the 9.5 ft version of the jim dandy sporstman in a 6 ft. wide version. This will surely compound the chalenge of keeping the weight down up front, But what can i say the profile and advantages of the front galley kept gravitating me back to it. The clincher that sealed the deal for me was when i found the longer version, that set the hook! So today after work i cut to size the existing frame that i will be useing.
Mark

[Miriam C.]

Welcome Mark,
I guess you know whats coming so

Let us see how it is going and it sounds like you know where you are going since you cut the frame down.

GitRdun

[angib]

Mark,

The one thing you have to watch out for with the Jim Dandy (apart from bashing your shins on the tongue) is the wheel to door clearance and the resulting fender to door clearance.

Because the weight of the galley is at the front, the wheels need to be further forward than on other teardrops (unless you have a big truck) and the doors get squeezed between the galley bulkhead and the fenders. If you say to yourself "I'll worry about this later", you may find that the fenders, or the wheels, stop the door from opening! The drawings show a 205/75R15 tyre (27" diameter), so at least you shouldn't need to go bigger than that, but they also show a very tight fitting (34" diameter) semi-circular fender.

There's nothing wrong with chamfering the back bottom corner of the door if the fit is tight - though clearly you want to know about that before you cut the door opening!

With the Jim Dandy it is obviously useful to have a removable tongue and that's shown in the Mk 2 version that I had forgotten to upload to the web site until just now.

Andrew

[dwgriff1]

I am curious.

what is the advantage of that design? I can see it as a fine experiment, but then I lose contact.

Tell me, I have an open mind (nothing in it).

dave

[Mark72]

Thanks all for the hearty welcome.
Miriam, I know.. I will try to get in the habit of taking the camera with me. The pictures are one of my favorite parts too!
Andrew, I am glad to hear from you so quickly! Especialy because this is one of your upsized vintage designs. To address some of the concerns associated with the front galley/weight distribution, First and foremost, My tow vehicle i plan on using is a 93 jeep grand cherokee 4X4 with a 4.0 liter 6 cyl. engine. It will handle a little more tounge weight than a smaller vehicle. For the wheel clearance, Your plan with a 27" tire puts the lower edge of the body at 15.5" . My frame and chassis with the same diameter tire sits level at 17.5" thus the same size wheel well can be dropped the corresponding 2" and maintain the same clearance. For bonus tire to wheel well clearance use a lower profile tire such as a 195/65r15 which has a diameter of 25" The lower wheel well should allow the door to be widened an inch or two if so desired. As for the tounge weight, All aspects of the galley should be designed with conservative weight design. As total weight is not a absolute factor some ballast can be designed int the rear portion such as a fresh and grey water tanks mounted aft of the rear axle. A 20 gallon fresh tank holds 166 lbs of water by its self! and what about a 4" tubular rear bumper to store items like your folding tripod for the D.O. For the tounge being in the way at the galley.. Stay tuned for a design that allows the receiver and all to slide completly back into the front of the tear.
Dave, What can i say, I just like the shape of the profile. With its swoopy fast back style and the rounded under posterior, while not imposible it is not a freindly design for a rear galley. The advantages of a full height galley lets your upper cabinet (or shelf) remain in comfortable reach and at eye level. Not to mention if it gets to be dinner time while traveling in a remote area both the hatch on the jeep and tear can be opened to prepare a quick meal and be protected from a light to moderate rain as long as the wind isn't blowing too hard!
I am sorry for such a long post!
Mark

[Jst83]

Welcome Mark, From another Hoosier
Love to see more Indiana people on here. Don't apologize for the long post we love to hear the details, at least until you have pictures. helps to see it in our mind. I'm still having trouble with the front galley also, does this mean you'd have to straddle the tongue to cook. wouldn't that get old.
Do you have a picture of the Jim Dandy that your modeling from?

Edit: I just saw a picture of the Jimdandy. What if you turned it around low in the front and high in the back. How much drag would that create when pulling? Just a thought. I couldn't get past the tongue thought. But hey everybody is individual that's what makes this forum so great. Build what you like.

Again welcome to the fun, Scott