Deryk's lil Vardo

[parnold]

Very cool!

I'll be anxiously watching this build.

[aggie79]

Very cool!

I'll be anxiously watching this build.

+1 Me too!

[Blotto Bros]

Hey, great work and wow your cranking it out! I will be very interested in your roof build..if it's half as cool as the rest of the work you've done it will be GREAT!

[John Ayers]

Awesome!

[Deryk the Pirate]

Didnt get as far as I wanted this week do to the weather (rained today and my friend was feeling "under" the weather lol) Cut the template out...

I used the template to trace out thecurve on the wood Im useing for the curved part of the roof...it a 2x6 piece of cedar. Need to router them out useing the template to get them all the same size. He wasnt feelin up to it this morning but will get it done for me by tuesday so I can attach them to the trailer and start putting on the roof. Cant wait!

[bve]

Deryk, good to see your build taking shape, the Vardo is a great choice for a pirate that likes to act medieval.

Looking forward to seeing some more progress.

[Deryk the Pirate]

Thanks everyone for the words of encouragement...this is my first big carpentry project Ive done...

Well we sanded down the 3 top bowed pieces...

Got them to fit with a few shims


I did the glue and screw thing, adding some plated to help hold it while its drying.



The day went by too fast it was nice we hit upper 70's and I wish the day could have lasted a few more hours lol. I forgot to take a pic of the two 10" angle iron's I got for the middle bowed roof piece for supports. Will be back down there to work on it probably wednesday or thursday, whenever the weather is clear. Im hopein to get the roof on it so I can start workin on the door for it and get it weighed.




Im really likein her profile, its starting to take shape.

deryk

[S. Heisley]

Yup! She's starting to look like a Vardo!

[Steve_Cox]

Deryk,

Just seeing the top arched supports in place made all the difference between looking like a box and looking like a gypsy caravan. Sure has me itching to build another vardo. You better be careful, little campers can turn you into a land pirate before you know it.

[Deryk the Pirate]

Thanks Steve. I wasnt happy with the way it was looking till I put the roof arches on. Now its not looking like a box (which was closer to what I originally thought of building http://www.bobsteardrop.com/TinyTrailer/RT3THome.htm based on my limited carpentry skill after looking at the way you built yours. Then my friend Connor started giving me some ideas of how else it could be built) I really wanted something more "period". One of the nice things about SCA events are that usually the site fee's for the whole weekend are around $20 dollars and often times include a dinner on saturday nite... how much of a cheaper weekend can ya have! Theres 4 or 5 weekend events this summer that my friends are throwing who own some land so those are only going to cost the price of food and booze (last year at Pennsic 2 of my friends who are brothers had 13 kegs of home brewed beer includeing one that had bacon soaked in Jameson's in it...yum)


The paulownia and red cedar are nice to work with, and light weight. Im planning on adding insulation and after I weigh it i will figure how Im going to do the inside. One thought if the weight was getting too high would be to use a funky upholstery fabric and mouldings to hold it in place to cover the foam.

Yeah I have a feeling the vardo is gonna see alot of use this summer. Dont get me wrong the boat is fun, but camping out at events opens up to getting to meet new people. Im sure with most camping in tents Im gonna have lots of people coming around to wanting to see it.

[Steve_Cox]

Deryk,

Leave it to a boat guy to know his wood.

I've been reading about the Paulownia lumber you are using in your build. 1/3 the weight of oak, 1/2 the weight of pine. It has good workability and is strong for its weight. I need to find a source.

[Deryk the Pirate]

Deryk,

Leave it to a boat guy to know his wood.

I've been reading about the Paulownia lumber you are using in your build. 1/3 the weight of oak, 1/2 the weight of pine. It has good workability and is strong for its weight. I need to find a source.

Lol, yeah i was talking to my friend and discussing the way people use epoxy to seal the plywood and he took me out back and showed me the playhouse he built for his daughter 8 or 9 years ago out of cedar and untreated its still rock solid. So he sent me over to a place near him that deals in cedar. I was honest with the guy that being unemployed Im on a budget and he had some leftover stock of the paulownia and i got a good price on it. I had to have him order a few more boards at close to its normal price off how many I rough calculated I was going to need for the build. Im still gonna have enough leftover for the shelves I plan on adding at the front and back of the trailer.

I have to admit the vardo really stiffened up when I put the 3 arch pieces in and Im sure its only gonna get better when the roof goes on.

I decided to not seal the wood with epoxy like I would have with pine and plywood(the floor does have 2 heavy coats of roofing tar). I am planning on 2 or 3 coats of http://www.tractorsupply.com/agricultur ... l--3449570 Havent decided the trim colour yet... time for that after the primary paint is on.

For the roof, I am useing the tongue and groove paulownia, but Im thinking of adding a layer of half inch foam and then useing a vinyl covered aluminum that they sell at HD. Its a 2'x50' roll for about $80 some dollars. I would need to get the screws with the little gaskets on them to seal it. Any thoughts? Im planning an overhang on the front and back of the trailer of about 6 inches and maybe 2 or 3 inches on the port and starboard er left and right lol. I want a little protection for the door and windows.

I do plan on pickin up some sunbrella and making an awning I can roll out since the trailer is a little over 6 feet from the ground to the roof( I need to measure it) Im 5'10 so I might have to duck just a little as I climb in but thats fine. The opening on the back is going to be for an air conditioner. Most of the places Im planning on camping it wont come with me because there is no ac hookups. So I will get a piece of plexi for a window. But Im planning on crashing in it when I go down that way to visit my friends.

deryk

[Deryk the Pirate]

Well got a little done today!

The wooden roof is on.

Im not putting the metal roof on till after its painted. I need to pick up two more cedar 1x2x10' and trim it down to 9 feet to go on either long ends of the trailer. Gives it a little sharper look to it.




Well tomorrow as long as we dont get a downpour with heavy winds I want to take it over and get it weighed. I still have to stick on my break lights but not a big deal to do that.


I took it for a drive around my friends property and barely knew it was there till i backed up lol. I really need to practice since Ive only towed with a trailer once before and it was over 10 years ago. I understand the idea of turning in the opposite direction that i want the back end to go...but I need to start cuttin the wheel the opposite way while Im doin it... It will take some time.... anyway I prefer going forward lol

[Blotto Bros]

It looks great, and you should be VERY proud of it!

[toolman]

Deryk,

Here's an old way of backing a trailer. It will make life a lot easier for you. Put one hand on the bottom of the steering wheel and turn the trailer the same direction as you want the trailer to go. Take if from an old trailer puller . . . it works!

Jerry