Removeable Teardrops

[DogStar]

In my proposed design my Teardrop unit must be removable from the trailer frame and needs to be self contained and structurally sound when not bolted to the trailer frame.

Has anyone else done something like this? So far I have not found any such builds.

My trailer will need to do triple duty, sometimes a utility trailer, sometimes a motorcycle trailer and of course sometimes a Teardrop trailer.

Thanks!
Eric
Happy T-day again....

[DogStar]

Replying to myself...

I actually asked this question so many months ago when I first joined (duh I had forgotten). It seems a couple of people have done this and the overall consensus is it should be fine if built with this consideration.

None-the-less if anyone else wants to chime in I am all ears!

Expecting my trailer Redtrailer, 5x8, in about 10 days.

Eric

(I spent nearly the whole day and much of last night cruising this site. THANKS AGAIN!)

[Gage]

This is not mine but just shows that a nice removable Teardrop can be built.

[Kursac]

I was also giving this some thought for a couple of reasons. I was considering 2 different chassis for 2 completely different vehicles and kinds of camping. I am thinking about and off road Chassis for my 4x4 pickup and 1 for my convertible bug. There are 2 issues, Lift points and attach points to the chassis. I guess the best thing to do would be add a Box tube frame to the Teardrop body with the front & rear tubes open to use as receiver points for lifting as well as a fasten points. In a case like the trailer Gage posted I would have set the body on top of the box tubes rather than inside to make use of the extra space and to minimize damaging the body mounting the tear. I have done a lot of work with overseas shipping containers & chassis fasteners are very simple dogs & T locks but the options are endless. Simple is better.

Lifting Your Teardrop body is the other issue. You can't drop, twist, or tweak it in any way or it will break all its seals and the hatch and door alignments will be off. You can use some kind of Chain-fall assuming you have someplace high enough to use it. I happen to have a tractor with a loader or you could use a set of jacks mounted on receiver tubes.

The possibility are endless as to what you can do with a trailer chassis once you develop a fastening / lift system you want to use. Not just your Teardrop body but any kind of specialized body you might want to make. You can have a closed cargo box that you can use as a storage shed when not on the chassis, a open stake body. You could also use the same system on a cab and chassis on a pickup. Most pickups these days have double decking ability but then the higher the lift the greater the challenge.

My Thoughts
Charlie

[angib]

I see three issues:

- Body strength. The body must be able to withstand being manhandled on and off the chassis and I can see two ways of doing this: (a) stick a separate steel frame under the body, which can then be built any old how, but this is heavy and plain wasteful, or (b) make sure there are strong joints where all the pieces of ply of an ordinary teardrop body meet each other, and that will be quite strong enough too.

- Abrasion. Unless it's going to be picked up by skyhooks and stored on a velvet cushion, the bottom of the body is going to get some abrasion. So make sure there are some plain timber pieces right at the bottom. We're not talking about anything huge - I would regard an oak 2x2 running the length of each side as quite sufficient, plus nothing else and particularly not any plywood edges in the bottom inch. That way if that bottom inch gets scraped or chewed up, nothing else will suffer. To be obsessional, those timber pieces could be replacable, but I think that is going over the top.

- Lifting. You can either be dead clever and build some sort of lift, or go the other way and just manhandle the body off the trailer. My preference would be to use a crowbar (= prybar in US?) to lift one end a bit and then put a couple of lengths of 1-2" steel pipe between the body and frame, Egyptian style. That would be good for a body up to several hundred pounds.

[Judeyramone]

How about those jacks used for slide in truck bed campers? My uncle used to lift off his camper with them every Sunday to go to church... left his camper on the campsite, suspended 4' above the ground until he got back from mass.

You could also use a tilt-bed trailer & install rollers on the bottom of the camper shell... unlock the camper, tilt the bed, and let gravity unload it for you.


... not really sure how you'd get it back onto the trailer.

[Kursac]

I think it is a lot simpler than that. I refer to the slide in camper technique that uses a tripod jacking system. If you use box tubing on the perimeter of your floor frame you have a sturdy base to work from as well as a good anchor location. You can recess your cross lumber into your box frame so your plywood bottom is flush or recessed into the box tubing perimeter. You can get away with 1/4 inch laminate as well to recover some wt because the box tubing will add considerable integrity to the structure. The end cross tubes will be 2 receiver points for jacking. You can locate the 3rd in the center either as a cross tube or a stub receiver point in front of the wheel. Now all you do is weld receiver tubes to 3 jacks, slide them into the box tubing that is the perimeter of your base. You only need about an inch or so of lift to slide your trailer in or out. Will it add wt. yes but it will also add structural integrity to the tear that will be required for a modular unit. To be honest the additional wt. is minor compared to the convenience depending on your circumstances.

Now you can recover most of the wt. you gain by keeping your trailer chassis a naked frame with no deck structure, just fenders and lighting. You build a flat bed stake body the same as the base floor you made for your tear and anchor it the same way. A flat deck can lean against the wall of any structure as well as the stake sides.

Why not also build a cargo box as well. Set your tear down on some blocks and take your jacks over to your cargo box and lift it off the blocks and roll you chassis under it. U don't even have to unload it when your done, lift it off loaded and set it on blocks. Keep your ATV, Motor Bike, Lawn tractor or what ever ready to lift mount and go

Most people do not have the ability to keep multiple trailers around. Modular options can work for many people if it crossed there minds and they have the ability to create these modules. The overseas container industry is the greatest example of this concept, The trucking industry uses modular cubes. Pods is another operation that has great success with this concept. Roll off containers & the list goes on. The concept is very simple & very doable. I am surprised with all the creativity I have seen in this forum that there are very few example's. Perhaps it is simply my mindset.

My Thoughts
Charlie

[Kursac]

How about those jacks used for slide in truck bed campers? My uncle used to lift off his camper with them every Sunday to go to church... left his camper on the campsite, suspended 4' above the ground until he got back from mass.

You could also use a tilt-bed trailer & install rollers on the bottom of the camper shell... unlock the camper, tilt the bed, and let gravity unload it for you.


... not really sure how you'd get it back onto the trailer.

LOL you posted my thoughts as I was composing. There are semi trailers used in the Airline industry that use live floors. Airline cargo cubes are designed in the shape of a plane to maximize space. What they do in the semi trailers is mount rollers into the floor that can be recessed into the floor during transport. When the load gets to where it is going the roller lift from the floor to allow the cubes to be rolled to the rear. They are usually lifted by air but I have seen them hydraulic as well.

Charlie

[angib]

The thing with the short-of-space issue is that you still have to have the space to store whatever you take off the trailer. Replacing a utility trailer plus a (fixed) teardrop trailer with a trailer and removable body really saves you one tongue - you still need space for 1-3/4 trailers.

[urban5]

My tear is removable. I have a 1/2" treated plywood floor attached to the trailer that is permanent.

The tear- 1/2" untreated ply as a floor, with 2x4's laid flat around the parameter (ply is screwed to this). All 4 walls are then attached to the 2x4's. I put in 4 - 2x4's in the walls turned so that the walls are only 2 inches thick, 2 on each side, in the side walls. So one side wall has two 2x4's in it, one is positioned in front, and one in back. 2x2 spars make up the studding in the trailer.

I bought some of those pickup camper jacks from a junkyard. Each one is a tripod mounted jack that has a 4 in by 5/8" ( I think, I can't remember for sure) rod that is meant to go through the wall of a pickup camper. Sort of like this http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/rv-jacks/truck-camper-jacks.htm except instead of the little platforms mine has a steel dowel.

I went inside the camper before interior was finished, and using and an auger bit I drilled a nice hole from the inside out (through the 2x4's).
There are 6 carriage bolts that hold the tear to the frame rails of the trailer. When I need to remove the tear, I remove the 6 bolts, and using the jacks (dowels stuck through the holes) I lift the tear up, push the trailer out from under it, then I roll the storage box under it.

Storage box- Literally a box made from 2x4's and painted plywood, that is built to the same dimensions of the trailer, and about 2' tall. This box is mounted on heavy duty casters. So that the box rolls easily with or with out a load.

When the tear is off the trailer, the box rolls under it, and then the tear is lowered onto it. This puts the load on the tear frame, and allows me to roll it around in the driveway if I need too. When the tear sits on the box, or on the trailer, the jacks are removed. This leaves 4 decent sized holes in the side of the tear, these I fill with those boat drain plugs,

Do I remove it often? No, it is a pain to take offf , but easier than any other design I have seen. It allows me to use the trailer as a utility trailer if I need to, but my tear is also very utilitarian, and not a finely finished one like most on here.

Good luck with it.

[Kursac]

The thing with the short-of-space issue is that you still have to have the space to store whatever you take off the trailer. Replacing a utility trailer plus a (fixed) teardrop trailer with a trailer and removable body really saves you one tongue - you still need space for 1-3/4 trailers.

You are correct, modules do take up space. It depends on the needs of the person. The OP in this thread is looking for ideas on doing exactly this. I for one have been giving this some thought before the OP started this thread. I want a tear to pull with my beetle primarily. I do however would like to be able to pull it my 4x4 in off road applications. I don't want multiple tears. I do like the Idea of 2 chassis though. This will give me the ability to build 2 chassis for 2 very different applications & let me build 1 tear.

The OP is also looking to build a modular tear for a different application. so he can use his trailer for multiple uses. I have no idea what skills the OP has but finding someone to weld 5 pieces of box tubing together is not difficult. The idea is very valid and obtainable. It will require a little bit more expense but still cheaper than another trailer.

I only wish to validate the OPs thoughts and ideas as possible and to take it a step further to inspire others that stumble across this thread to the potential of modular thinking. The possibilities are endless as to what you can do.

I have thoughts
Charlie

[Wimperdink]

Check out Wazat by microlite trailers. http://www.microlitetrailer.com/downloads/wazat1-2.pdf

I had one but never took the body off the trailer as I already have a utility trailer. I loved mine.

[DogStar]

Truly loving all the input.
What a resource!

My abilities... I have not done any welding but certainly can get some done if needed. (Would love to learn but not on an actual first build.) But I was a builder and woodworker before getting into dogs.

My father was an architect and designer and my mother an artist and photographer, so I tend to be kind of handy and artistic (sort of). And I have drafting skills (not CAD).

I can't wait to get this all started. Unfortunately I live in the northeast and my garage is unheated and uninsulated so work beyond trailer assembly and utility set-up (meaning the Tear construction) will have to wait for Spring 2011.

(But I have cleared out 1 bay of a 2 car garage so that I can get the trailer assembled in utility mode and am ready for warmer seasons. And I am in the process of clearing out the 2nd bay to efficient store a motorcycle and a scooter as well as some power equipment.)

But that gives me plenty of time for initial concept and design etc.

Keep the modular ideas coming, I will no doubt be asking for some clarifications as I move along.

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving,
Eric

[Kursac]

I am also old school when it comes to technical drawing, I have a sweet desktop drafting board I do all my drawing on. I suppose I could learn CAD but I have never had the need. I was also trained as a Sign Painter before computer graphics killed off the trade, I do have all my quills though. I still sit at a drawing board with scales, triangles & protractors.

I still stick weld because that is what I have always done, wire feed Migs are all the rage these days. Welding just takes practice, I rarely weld light metal so I never invested in a mig but if I was gonna buy a welder today that is what I would do. Welding is a very handy thing to know how to do and recommend anyone with the mindset to just do it. Metal is just another material same as wood. You cut it miter it and weld it.

It is good to take your time to think this out before your start your build. I am also in the North East and it is starting to get cold, It was snowing in Portland Maine today so it will not be long now. My tear is also on the drawing board now, I have to finish off some projects before I start this one. Perhaps I will share my drawings of my modular concept when they are presentable.

My Thoughts
Charlie

[Kursac]

I was in Home Dumbo and I just happened across 2 kinds of trailer jacks. They were rated at 2000 lbs each, more than enough for any tear. All that would be needed is to weld a piece of flat plate to a 2" receiver tube what ever length you desire to clear your wheels & fenders. It would require using 2 1/2 inch stock on the perimeter of your base construction. You would also have the added convenience of being able to attach anything you can mount on a receiver tube to the side of your camper. Bike racks, counter space, awnings, solar panels, dish anything you can think of.