My first post. - The Snow Chaser

[Generalcuz]

Hey Everyone

Well, I have finally signed onto this forum since my curiosity and needs have gotten the best of me recently with teardrop campers. Well, perhaps small campers to say the least for now due to my limited time constraints, needs, and most certainly funds.

I am a recent college grad who lives in Colorado but can't afford a posh pad in Breckenridge or Aspen to skirt off to in the weekends. Not that I want that anyway or some monstrosity rv/motorhome. For my busy life and weekend furlows throughout this great state, I required something mobil that could provide me a place to sleep which is warm and not too heavy for my 1996 Jeep Cherokee to pull behind. At first I started looking for a vintage camper that was 10-12 feet long or a lightweight scamper of some sort. Then, I stumbled upon this website and was really impressed with the idea of building your own camper. Thus, the first chapter of my first tiny trailer begins here on a Saturday night in July.

For starters, please give me any advice you can with my buildup. I believe I am not taking the normal approach (although I would like to) for now.

I work at a company which produces railroad ties here in Denver. Recently we have been cleaning up the plant and I stumbled upon an old trailer that measures 75 inches wide by 89 or so inches long. It has been beefed up to carry machine parts in the past but I am going to burn and cut the excess baggage off soon. It looks like the trailer has not been used in years so I am going to assume that it will require new tires, wiring, and the bearings be repacked, not to mention titling it for the road.
My overall goal is to build a small camper which I can use to camp in the mountains during snowboard season which has room for a six foot person to sleep, study and do paperwork, and stay warm of course. Additional goals include insuring that the camper is not too obvious for the sake of sleeping out in ski resort parking lots. (They don't like that too much these days) So basically a bed, desk, and refrigerator are all I require in terms of amenities. Like I said, it needs to be lite since I will be pulling it up and down switch backs that have claimed more than one or two people in life.

So stay tuned as I begin my journey to hopefully have a tiny trailer on the road by late September.

[Roly Nelson]

Generalcuz, welcome to the forum. You have found the right place to get any info you need regarding the building of a teardrop or tiny trailer. You mentioned that the trailer frame you aquired is quite wide, and I wonder if it will suit your needs if you are trying become practically invisable in ski area parking lots.

Good luck on your alteration plans for the old trailer you aquired. This board has folks that have built awesome off-road teardrops. Listen to the posts that are sure to follow, and check out some of the off-road builder's sites. The Out Back site is good for starters.

You sure live in a beautiful part of the US. I spent 18 months at Fort Carson many years ago, as a guest of Uncle Sam. Explored as much of the area that I could afford to spend gas on. Do take pics of your build, and be sure to post them for all of us to enjoy.

Cpl Roly Nelson, US 5525 1626......(sure glad that is over)

[RPH]

Welcome to the forum,
It may be that we have a lot in common. I also live in Colorado and built a small trailer to use in winter for skiing. I did, however, set it up to use electrical power for heating and cooking. It is well insulated, has good air circulation (to prevent condensation), places to hang damp gear and a place for ski storage. It weighs in at about 1200lbs and can be towed by a Toyota RAV4. It has had no problems at 10,000ft elevation.
Check out my album. I can add some winter pictures if you like. Don't hesitate to ask questions of me or anyone else on the forum.
Ron

[Juneaudave]

General...Welcome to the Board!!!! Post some pics of that trailer...Can you tell the axle rating??? Good luck with the build!!!

[Miriam C.]

to the playground Generalcuz. My frame is 76" wide but the wheels are under it so not too wide. It did allow me to put the the bed across the front and have more room.

There are lots of designs on the board so spend some time looking. Member designs and nontraditional designs are great places to start.

Remember to keep the bubble oil level and take lots of

Enjoy

[49er Teardrop]

My advice... give yourself a good area for a chair and desk/workspace. If you're gonna be sitting, reading and computing a lot... make it easy on your back! Good luck on the project! --49er Vic

[Generalcuz]

Okay, so I am beginning my trailer this evening.

My rationale is that I am going to cut as much metal off the trailer as possible. It was a free trailer that was used for snowmobiles and quads a while back so the former owner strengthened the hell out of it in terms of putting some type of heavy 1/4 steel on the floor of it. I am going to torch a lot of this off while still retaining the structural integrity of the trailer.

Tomorrow I plan to order new tires and repack the bearings on the trailer.

I also am interested in ideas for anchoring my foundation to the trailer. What have you all used to attach the camper part to the trailer? I would like to keep a pocket of air between the metal and the wood for insulation reasons so I was thinking of sandwiching 2x4's in between.

Oh yeah, and I am moving this post over to another subcategory after this round of questions.

[Ira]

Get the term "2 by 4" totally out of your vocabularly. It's too heavy and it's overkill when it comes to TDs:

For the wood frame that sits on top of the trailer, 2 by 2's are more than enough with sufficient ply above it that won't sag. That 2-by framing material also gives you 1 1/2" of space for your insulation underneath, which means you can double-up 3/4" stuff. However, remember that for the floor, your foam mattress ALSO acts as insulation, so you may not need that. But in COlorado, you may still want it. Rigid foam insulation is so cheap and easy to install anyway, plus it's so light, you may think, "Why not?"

What a lot of us do is simply make a wood frame out of 2 by 2's, tack the ply onto that, insulate and coat the underside, then just bolt it to the trailer.

[angib]

For the wood frame that sits on top of the trailer, 2 by 2's are more than enough.....

Ira,
Get the term "2 by 2" totally out of your vocabularly. It's too heavy and it's overkill when it comes to TDs.

Andrew

[Ira]

Get the term "2 by 2" totally out of your vocabularly. It's too heavy and it's overkill when it comes to TDs.

Okay:

When you build something out of 1 by 1s, if there IS such a thing, I'll believe you.

In the meantime, I'll guess you're just busting my balls.

Because who the hell uses 2 by 4s in a TD?