Coleman Laramie Popup Conversion

[daveleb55]

A little cardboard, hot glue, and -, um well it's crude but you get the general idea. Our new avatar looks a lot more like a teardrop, too.
I'm now working on more detailed plans, now that I have the Coleman almost completely stripped.


Dave & Kathleen

[angib]

CAD (Cardboard Aided Design) - the best and original!

Andrew

[Miriam C.]

If you can make it in cardboard, you can make it in wood.

[daveleb55]

Here's the latest, wanted to make sure it actually fits before building the bed platform. It's a queen size Aerobed knockoff we got from overstock.com, the only downside is that it requires 110volts to run the pump to inflate it.



You can see on the right I have made a mockup of the wall support and the door. We are re-using the original popup door, I just have to shorten it a bit. Right now the proposed ceiling height is 4'6" (inside), just tall enough to sit at a table if it gets cold or rainy.

Dave & Kathleen

[daveleb55]

Here's some more CAD mockups, this time lifesize. (Carboard aided Design)


Trying to lay out storage and the galley, making sure everything fits. the location of the mattress dictates where everything else goes, and how big the cooler can be. Under bed storage for pots & pans & stuff accessible from the galley, it's only six inches high (the height of the wheel wells). Additonal under bed storage accessible from the front will be taken up by folding couch contraption. Many trailers have a couch that folds out into a bed, we're going to have a bed that transforms into a couch. More on that later...

Here's the backend profile:



Dave & Kathleen

[Joanne]

Hey Dave,

You have reached the point I call the love/hate stage. So many ideas that it's difficult to sort through them. Then finding out your favorite idea just isn't going to work out. Arrgggg. Still, this is a very creative part of the build as you "CAD" your ideas and start to visualize the end result. (I wonder if Lowes or HD has any cardboard boxes that refrigerators were shipped in. It might make the CAD design a bit easier).

I smile when I look at some of my early pictures where I was trying to layout the space. Ice chests, water tanks, storage containers all strewn about the trailer floor. In looking at the trailer now I'm really surprised how close my initial designs and layouts came to be.

Oh, I dropped by last Sunday but everything was closed up and your truck wasn't there. I'm off to a Dutch Oven Gathering down in LA this weekend so I won't get to drop by and check out the progress.


Taker care,
Joanne

[daveleb55]

I feel like we're finally making some headway. One of the things that everything else is contingent upon is the Queen size bed - the whole rest of the design revolves around that. Here's some pics of the new floor tiles, insulation, and the bedframe installation:







Dave & Kathleen

[Joanne]

Dave,

It's starting to look like a real build! Glue, sawhorses and cut up plywood all are symptoms of teardropitis.

Keep up the build!
Joanne

I feel like we're finally making some headway. One of the things that everything else is contingent upon is the Queen size bed - the whole rest of the design revolves around that. Here's some pics of the new floor tiles, insulation, and the bedframe installation:

Dave & Kathleen

[Miriam C.]

Amazing how CAD works. Looking good Dave.

[Mike C.]

Dave,

Looking real good.

Doesn't it feel good to make progress after all the planning and design?

Look forward to future updates.

[daveleb55]

located the piano hinge and put in a few screws to "test-fit", it works! No binding, I just got to add a couple legs for support in the middle and build the fold away bench.




Dave & Kathleen

[daveleb55]

I've got a new power tool!!
Kathleen found this biscuit jointer on eBay for cheap.


So naturally we made some fresh biscuits to try it out....


We also got another waffle iron to replace the broken one, made a test batch today!

It's a no-name cast iron with wire handles. The only marking says "PAT'D SEP'T 15 1925" on both halves, nothing else on it. Makes good waffles though, and it fits the 8" ring from the broken one.



yum!!

Dave & Kathleen

[Miriam C.]

Ok enough fun and food. Back to work. I am sorry we missed during your trip over here. Next time for sure!

[Joanne]

I've got a new power tool!!
Kathleen found this biscuit jointer on eBay for cheap.


So naturally we made some fresh biscuits to try it out....


We also got another waffle iron to replace the broken one, made a test batch today!

It's a no-name cast iron with wire handles. The only marking says "PAT'D SEP'T 15 1925" on both halves, nothing else on it. Makes good waffles though, and it fits the 8" ring from the broken one.



yum!!

Dave & Kathleen

Dave! You were a little late getting that biscuit joiner. If you would have gotten it earlier I could have used it on my build.

Glad to see that you got the new iron. I'm wondering how well we will be going up the hills with the three of us, the Dawg, and all that iron

See ya tomorrow,
Joanne

[daveleb55]

Joanne,
we just need to fill the dawg with helium to counteract the weight of the iron.

better start packing now....

Dave & Kathleen