Another 5x8

[SteveB]

After much lurking and looking around I decided that a mini cargo style trailer would fit my needs. First I decided that I was not going to build a miniture travel trailer with all the good stuff. I want to go minimal. This is where you all start laughing. Anyway, I wanted a trailer I could go into if the wheather got bad. It needed to be long enough that I could sleep comfortably. I'm 6'5" and my tallest son is 6'10". I wanted it to be tall enough that I could sit comfortably on a flushing porta potti. (probably too much information) I wanted a basic galley. I plan to use it frequently as a base camp for off roading. That is, drive down easy and fairly smooth dirt roads, park and then go exploring with my Jeep and FJ friends. I hope to do a lot of state park type camping too.

I bought this on new years eve of 08. I usually buy all my hobby stuff used. However, being month end and year end a local manufacturer was really dealing.

Here are some pics. Next I need to add 3 windows and a roof vent.

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[traildemon]

thats not bad...
im curious to know what the weight of that trailer was...

[bobhenry]

I know you said minimalistic but you are gonna hate yourself.

I see no inside electrical either 120 v or 12 v dc.

Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it !

It is a big plus for resale some day far down the road too.

[SteveB]

Weight? Paperwork says 600 lbs. That seems too light to me. I really do not know for sure. There must 150 lbs of pressed board. The front box and spare must be another 75 or so lbs. I probably added another 200 lbs. with the modification.

Electrical, yes, I might regret going simple. Right now, it feels like large living since I am currently camping out of my car with a 4 season tent and zero degree bag. Eventually, I will have dual batteries in my car and a Engle refrigerator.

Steve

[John Boeckstiegel]

It looks great Steve. I see you put in insulation... great!!!
I like Bob think you should go more than less. It is much harder to add stuff afterwards.
You wont be sorry. I may have went overboard with mine but love it now.

Still have to put in the a/c but it is coming very soon. It is on the floor in the house just begging to be put in. Are you going to A/C yours?

Keep the pics coming.... John

[SteveB]

John, the top and all four sides are insulated. Not too sure yet about the floor. I'm hoping that the sleeping pads will be enough. Steve

[John Boeckstiegel]

I raised the floor for storage. That made it not need insulation.

A very small heater did the trick at a 30 degree camp out 3 weeks ago.

[edcasey]

Looks great Steve.
Looking forward to watching your progress.

[SteveB]

I totally forgot to seal the underside of my trailer. What a pain! So far I have 2 coats of primer. I hope to put 2 coats of exterior paint on this weekend. Then I will caulk with silicone between the frame and the wood. The last thing I want is this to rot from the bottom.

[SteveB]

I've done a few things since my last update: painted and sealed the underside (royal pain) and installed 3 windows. The last two projects I have are in the galley. I'm going to mount my stove on the left rear door. My plan is to have it fold up during travel. When in the down position I will still be able to close the door. The other project involves mounting my water jug and bar sink above the counter top. The drain will take up minimal space. I do not want to lose any under counter leg space. I've never seen anyone do this but I think it will work out really well.

On a side note, I went to Lake Perris Sunday and looked at about 60 Tear Drops. There were 123 total, by the time I got there half of them had already headed out. This event was limited to classic style only so there were no cargo conversions to check out. I really got motivated to finish mine. Most of the owners were really friendly and happy to share ideas.

[kevin57]

Looking real good there Steve. Keep up the good work and have fun camping.

[mike honcho]

Very nice. Keep the pics coming.

[Prem]

Nice trailer!

After I saw your photos I drove past the smallest cargo trailer I've ever seen. It's a 3ft x 5ft.

Very clean lines on yours. Congrats.

Prem

[SteveB]

Here are a few pics from our first trip out last weekend with the new trailer. Everything worked great. Compared to packing and unpacking my car, this really is simple. The one thing I was wondering about before the trip was how to hold the rear doors open in the correct position if the wind came up. As it turned out, there was a light wind the whole trip. I improvised with tie downs. I'm going to attach a door closure to each door. I can back the valve screw all the way out so it does not try to close and lock it in place with the little sliding bracket.

I'm going to move the licence plate to the rear door and add a vent to the galley. I'm hoping to find a low profile roof vent, <2.5". Otherwise, I'll try to do without becasue I really like keeping the trailer in the garage.

That is it for now. Time to enjoy.

[S. Heisley]

Gosh, Steve! That really turned out nice!

Thanks for sharing the pics and info!