I am building something

[perche]

Oh, oh, oh!

I think you have done yourself proud and completely out of the newbie department.

Enjoy yourself silly....looks like a fantastic day for a maiden voyage....

[julesap]

What a pleasure it was to follow your progress! Hope you had a good weekend camping....

[StoneMill]

Just read all the posts. Amazing.

[NorthernMN]

Just wanted to post a quick update on the maiden voyage for my trailer. Everything went perfectly! I shouldn't sound so surprised but I am. I mean I was putting hubs, bearing, and wheels on this thing on Thursday night at 10:30 pm and I had never pulled it down the road to test it.

So Friday afternoon we loaded it all up. I hooked it up and tested the trailer lights for the first time that were installed the day before. Lights all worked. I said a small prayer and we headed out.

We traveled about 100 miles to Marshall County Park. We were camping with a few of my in-laws who were already there. The drive went fine but I spent a lot of time looking behind me. Thankfully the trailer followed me the whole way.

I found my spot and pulled in. I wasn't even unhooked before people were stopping by.



This fella had worked at a boat build factory for many years and was very interested to hear all about how I build went, details of the construction, and materials used. He talked my ear off for quite a while.

I know compared to most of you my rig is HUGE. However, in the land of giant motor coaches and 30 foot travel trailers I still felt pretty small.



I walked around the campground and I don't remember seeing anyone with something smaller than mine with the exception of a couple popup campers that are still bigger when setup.

The weather was hot but we managed to stay cool enough during the day. In the evening it cooled off nicely.



The camper was a big hit. My wife and I both enjoyed it and of course the dog approved. All my electrical, plumbing, and propane worked perfectly. I am going to have to figure out some kind of awning or something for shade so I will put some thought into that.



I will take some time this weekend and get some shots of the inside for all of you who are interested.

[Cliffmeister2000]

It is beautiful in its natural surroundings! Great job!

Very anxious to see the inside.

[sdakotadoug]

Just a lurker but your build is beautiful and I learned alot. Was thinking about the Integraply for both a small sailboat and a teardrop. I'm inspired. Me two on the shop envy. Doug

[parnold]

Very nicely done!

Grats on your first successful trip. I think we all spend most of our time watching the rearview mirror on our maiden voyage.

Oh.. I'm envious of the size too!

[atahoekid]

I hope that my first trip down the road goes as smoothly as yours. Congrats on a job well done. It'll be a next year about this time at the earliest. Way too many things on the honey-do list before I can build, but I did get her highness to concede that once I get the current list completed I can then work on my TD

[NorthernMN]

I should start by apologizing for taking so long to get to this update. I ended up having to go to Nicaragua for my job for over a month. I am now back and have been trying to do some archery hunting in my free time. I was getting the trailer loaded up last night for my trip out to the North Dakota Badlands and I remembered that I had totally forgotten to update this thread with pics from inside my build. Well here they come.

First picture is standing just inside the door looking to the rear. Pedestal table in the center with seating all the way around.



Here the table is folded down and the entire area becomes a king size bed. It is about 80" wide and 81" long. That is a king size Walmart memory foam mattress cut up and slid into cushions. I had a nice lady at a local clothing store sew the cushions for me. She only charged me $55 which I thought was more than fair. My boss/wife picked the fabric cause I really didn't care. I think it looks nice.



The last picture is my inside kitchen area. Pretty compact but highly functional.




The trailer is what I consider 99% at this point. I spent about an hour yesterday at the license bureau and managed to walk out with a new plate anyway. The lady was very nice and made several calls to the State officials to make sure she was doing it all correctly. We worked out that since I used the existing frame from my 73 Pathfinder I should be able to get the title changed to reflect a rebuild/restoration. I will need to have it inspected some time down the road but for now I have legal license.

Last week I took it down to the local coop. My brother works there and we put it on the scale. 2400 pounds exactly. 400 pounds of tongue weight which isn't surprising since I have 2 series 27 lead acid batteries and 2, 20 pound propane tanks on the tongue.

Tomorrow morning I am heading out to the Little Missouri Grasslands in North Dakota for two weeks of spot and stalk archery hunting. I have really been looking forward to this trip and excited to spend a couple more weeks in my trailer.

Again, sorry for the big lag in my update for anyone who was waiting.
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[Cliffmeister2000]

Very nice!

[doris s.]

The inside is as nice as the outside. Now that your back home you'll have to get out and camp some more.

Doris

[julesap]

So happy to see the pics of the inside. Doris is right, it is as nice on the inside as it is on the outside. Happy Hunting!!

[atahoekid]

Great Job! You have a lot to be proud of. I love your interior. I like the way you got your dining table to turn into your king size bed. That's got me thinking...

Anyway, go out and have some fun!

[S. Heisley]

I like the speaker/shelves. They add a nice touch. You did good! It looks very servicable and comfortable.