A little (more) progress...Finished? Update 7/9

[jdaan]

I'm finally posting a little progress. Being mostly a lurker, I've only made a few posts in the past, in other sections. For the sake of creating a build journal, I'll re-post a few pics here and start a new thread.


Frame


outer framing on the sidewalls


One of the shots I took to remember where I ran the wires

Justin

[jdaan]

Some progress today.


Inner skin glued on, finally have the walls glued to the floor and galley.


View of the galley, with it all put together.


View of the interior, after the sides were put up.


Side profile. It's the ultralight profile with a slightly different door shape.

Justin

[jdaan]

And now for a question...

I'm planning to have the hatch start from the counter top up to the top of the cabinets, leaving the section below the counter covered. However, I'm also planning to have the fuse block and all the wiring terminate in the section under the counter, so I need occasional access. I was thinking about a second hatch covering the bottom section, but wasn't sure how to go about it. Has anyone done something like this? Any tips?


A repeat of the above pic, showing what I'm talking about.

Justin

[mvperini]

I can not answer your question but your teardrop looks very nice and the weather is starting to change for the good i an sure tired of the rain...
the wife and i live in lafayette , oregon only 30 miles from portland. we are going to south beach state park on april 22 next weekend to a vintage trailer rally, come down for the day


Mike and Zel

[jdaan]

Hi Mike. A little sun for a change is very welcome. My wife and I live in McMinnville and actually met you at your place to look at your Kenskill a few years ago. I'll do my best to make it to the rally this weekend.

Justin

[LDK]

And now for a question...

I'm planning to have the hatch start from the counter top up to the top of the cabinets, leaving the section below the counter covered. However, I'm also planning to have the fuse block and all the wiring terminate in the section under the counter, so I need occasional access. I was thinking about a second hatch covering the bottom section, but wasn't sure how to go about it. Has anyone done something like this? Any tips?


A repeat of the above pic, showing what I'm talking about.

Justin

I'm sure someone on here has done something similar. It seems to me that you might just hinge the counter or part of it or you could hinge the lower half so it could drop away from the counter. I'm sure you'll come up with something. BTW your teardrop is looking real nice.

[aggie79]

Justin,

Your teardrop is looking great! And the build quality is amazing.

I know I've seen a two-part hatch on this board, but can't seem to remember who did it. I do remember one example, though. My teadrop design is heavily based upon three teardrops built simultaneously at the "Three Texas Teadrop Trailers" blog:

http://romeonovember.blogspot.com/2006_04_01_archive.html

The third of the three - "Charlie" - had a drop down lower hatch. This is a picture of it.



These guys built some amazing teardrops.

Take care,
Tom

[jdaan]

Tom - That's a great blog. Thanks for the tip, and for the compliment. I've been following your build and it's very inspiring.

I'm a little reluctant to cut into the counter top to put in a hinge, or hatch, for a space that I hope to only need to access a few times. I've been thinking I might want to hinge the lower panel at the top, under the counter, and have it open upward. It seems easier to figure out how to seal it up that way, and look and act like a fixed panel when I don't need to open it.

Justin

[Miriam C.]

You have a great start to a really Beautiful TD.... You can lift the counter for access or you can always make a hatch on the bottom and hinge it! Have the top hatch go over the bottom or meet it. You could also make sliding drawers from the side. Lots of ways to do this.

[jdaan]

I got some work done this weekend. Bought a bunch of 5x5 baltic birch for the ceiling and roof skins. I was a little worried about bending around the profile after reading some stories here, but it went just fine.

I had to throw in an extra spar where the two sheets met, so the spacing is a little odd. It'll all be hidden soon.

Interior front. I pre-finished the birch plywood before installing, figuring it would be easier to apply to a flat sheet rather than above my head. The lower, unfinished sheet in the photo is where I goofed and cut the finished sheet across the grain, rather than with it. After 20 minutes of trying to bend it smoothly around the radius, I realized my mistake. The next sheet with the horizontal grain worked much better.

Looking front, with the cut-out for the fan.

[jdaan]

Final shot of the top, making sure the wires running up the sides were long enough to reach the fan and overhead light. After reading the ongoing debates on splicing wires, I want to make sure any splices are accessible after everything is closed up.


Next is insulating and installing the roof skin. I've also started cutting the spars for the hatch, but I'm waiting on my hinge to arrive before getting too far with that.

Justin

[jdarkoregon]

Justin

Total Quality in your craftsmanship, great looking project you have there,

its exciting to see this kind of quality

John

[jdaan]

Time for a small update. Insulated the top, added a spar to bulk up the hinge spar, and installed framing for the vent. I also spent some some time ordering parts and picking up some things. "Better than hurricane hinge", aluminum trim, door hardware, and louvered "Serro Scotty" windows from Vintage Technologies. I decided to go with mirror polish anodized aluminum for the exterior, and picked up 4 sheets from a local sign supply company. After researching aluminum polishing on this forum, I decided it might be worth the extra $ to have something that won't need that much upkeep. The aluminum trim is all mill finish, and I was considering polishing it before installation, maybe coating it with Sharkhide as well. Any thoughts? I'm not sure it's really worth the effort, but it does look a little dull next to the mirror polish sheet. Nothing too interesting for pics, but here's a few:



Justin

[CliffinGA]

Great job Justin on your tear. I personally like the mirror finish but don't want to be blinded every time I look at the tear . I plan on doing the mill finish on mine, plus its half the price of the mirror finish. Keep up the good work bud.

Cliff

[aggie79]

Justin,

I really like the design of your teardrop and your craftsmanship. You ought to be very proud of your work.

I decided to go with mirror polish anodized aluminum for the exterior, and picked up 4 sheets from a local sign supply company. After researching aluminum polishing on this forum, I decided it might be worth the extra $ to have something that won't need that much upkeep. The aluminum trim is all mill finish, and I was considering polishing it before installation, maybe coating it with Sharkhide as well. Any thoughts? I'm not sure it's really worth the effort, but it does look a little dull next to the mirror polish sheet.

Justin

As you can gather from my response to your other thread, I installed the same polished aluminum. So, I may be biased, but I think the polished look is classic and not having to maintain the look with the anodized aluminum is icing on the cake.

I was going to polish out my trim, but ran out of time trying to ge my teardrop campable in time for a gathering. After seeing the trim installed in the "not polished" stage, I like the contrast and will leave it as is (other than to clean the mill stains and sealant.)



If you do polish the trim after it is installed, you'll need to protect the aluminum skin so you don't polish out the anodizing.

Take care,
Tom