New Member, San Diego CA

[Bad-Dawg]

Hi All,

I am Bad-Dawg and new to the list. No I didn't just pick the name, I earned it the old fashioned way 8^D

So... I am a 43 year old married father of 3. One boy is now out of the house, my Daughter is 17 and soon to follow, and my youngest boy is 8.

We love camping and exploring and have been doing it for years in many ways. First tenting, then a very simple tent trailer, then a mini Winnie and even a 64 Covered wagon trailer. We sold off all the rolling stock over the summer though and have been looking at little travel trailers of late. I like them but many of the ones I like(or can afford) tend to either be cheap POS', or need so much restoration due to rot that I just don't really want to go there. Not only that, but i tend to boondock and most of the older cool little ones don't look like they could really handle the dirt roads in the deserts around here, or Baja.

So I think I will build! I have lot's of woodworking experience having been in construction and engineering for years, and I have built a few boats along the way.

What I want to build would be a TTT that will sleep 3 comfortably, 4 in a pinch, have room inside for a portapotty and I will probably go with an outside Galley. I am thinking I will go for an outside size of 7'x12' and make it a tear with a popup roof. I am kind of toying with the idea of ripping a poptop out of a junked westfalia...

So Where do I like to camp? Beaches of Baja, The Anza Borrego desert, High country Sierras, and Burning Man. Why did I get rid of the Motorhome? Too much Fuel, and we really don't need all the interior space.

B-D

[Miriam C.]

: to the playground BD. Three words---Side tents. Oh that's only two, now where is my third word....Oh yes

Seriously I can see building a teardrop large enough for the 8 year old. The daughter might not like a tent but beyond that you are looking at something big. There are some bigger Tears being made and mine will fit 4 as it sits without the galley. It is 6' 4" wide and 9 of the 10 feet are used in length. 12' would give you a galley and bunks but you need a tent for the loo.

[halfdome, Danny]

Welcome to the forum Bad-Dawg. You mentioned one of my old favorite places to camp, Anza Borrego, use to camp @ Coyote Creek many years ago, dry, hot & cold with pretty flowers in the Spring. Did you check out the Design Library at the top of the page? Danny, a transplanted San Diego native.

[Ira]

With your want list, save yourself time and aggravation and just build 48Rob's cabin car:

http://tnttt.com/album_ ... er_id=1964

It couldn't have taken him more than 2 weekends to build the whole thing.

HAH!!!!!!!

[neal b]

welcome aboard bad-dawg alot of great builders here iam sure you fine it is a friendly place also once again howdy from missouri

neal b

[Mike C.]

Welcome Bad Dawg,

There are several larger trailers on here. Cruise thru the "Hall of Fame "
in the upper left corner of each page.
Hope you have fun here and post lots of of your build when you start.

See you around.

[Roly Nelson]

BD, welcome to the forum, this is the place to get ideas and answers. I see that we are almost neighbors........well kinda, since I live just north of Temecula, up the I-15 fwy. As a former life-long construction worker, I understand your comfort level of being able to build the trailer of your liking. There are a number of "off-road" style trailers here, and you might check em out for ideas. As far as I know, no one has come up with the idea of using a Westfalia lift up top. Sounds interesting.

There is a teardrop and tiny trailer gathering in Oceanside at Guajame, called The Spamboree, on Oct 13th. You are welcome to walk in and check out the many rigs, and perhaps enjoy some of the wacky Spam creations at the dinner. There should be a bunch of trailers there, as all of the sites have been sold-out for some time. At any rate, hope your build goes well, and if you are up this way sometime, swing on by, the coffee is always on.

Roly Nelson, just an ol' woodie builder in Wildomar

[mikeschn]

Welcome to the forum BD. You could build an ET but with bunks in the front!

Mike...

[Bad-Dawg]

WOW... I am surprised by all the friendly and constructive comments! Makes me feel welcome. Thanks. Since I have been thrown off a board or two over the years... I feel pretty good right now. So, What's an ET? I like the cabin car, Btw, But I think I want to go a little taller. Also, my main tow vehicle is a 2004 Nissan Quest minivan. I put a 6K hitch on it but it's only supposed to tow 3500#s. I did tow a 12' double axle carhauler to burning man and back recently. It was completely loaded and had 105 gallons of water on it too. Towed great in the bad heat of the high desert and just screamed up the passes on I 395. I was very happy with the 18MPG i got too. I think I can this work well with a small TT or large Teardrop.

[Miriam C.]

One ET coming up.
http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=16958

[The Teardrop Nanny]

Welcome to the forum, BD.
Is that a picture of you by chance??
If you like camping in the redwoods check out the link below for an International Gathering scheduled in the far north of California for next summer, hopefully the last week of July 2008.

Have fun with your build. I've seen some TD's that will hold children, but many people opt to have a pop-up attachment or side by side tent to accomodate more than 3. At the Mendo Gathering there was a great add-on for kids that was a pop-up (sometimes called EZ-up) with sides added on that was placed right next to the TD. That way the kids have a play room area as well as a sleeping area.

Joanie
The Teardrop Nanny

[Bad-Dawg]

Yup... That's me. An alter ego known as Stony the Klown. Stony works as a fire safety for a fire performance troop called Unifier. Check them out here:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... rch=Search

Yes, crazy friends...

I have several tents and "could" keep the larvae in that but really want to have a way for them to sleep inside for those times when it's not easy to setup a tent, such as rest stops, A friend's driveway, Etc. It's all about the options you know... Normally I will be installing them in the Eureka, but I need the option for 4, with a common occurance of 3 sleeping inside.