Here is my plan.

[Highwayrydr]

My name is eric. I am new to the forum and this is my first post. I am attending college at the university of maine, majoring in surveying engineering on a freshmen level right now and have been viewing this site for a long time. I decided to build a trailer for me and my girl to go camping in. I want more then a tent but i have a chevy colorado with a four cylinder 5-speed in it so i needed something light. Here are my designs and plans as they stand now. I plan to start around mid may to early june





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A few simple changes to the deal

[G-force]

Unique shape, I like it! Personaly, I would run the tongue to at least the second, perhaps the 3rd crossmember otherwise it is not taking much of the vertical load, its just trying to rotate the front crossmember. Also, you may want to think about narrowing it down an inch or two. Since material comes in 5" wide sheets, it would be smart to leave yourself a little extra overhang so you can trim it to size instead of relying on their 5' width...which may not always be a perfect 5' (or your building skills, material warpage, etc may lead to a less than perfect 5' trailer.) For the record, a full size mattress is 54" x 75", it would be wise to make your floorplan fit a standard size mattress. Your frame looks very similar to mine, my "box" is 58" wide and 108" long with a 46" tongue.

[mikeschn]

Very unique shape... Welcome to the forum, and be sure to take pictures of your build!



Mike...

[mary and bob]

Hi Eric: our son teaches at University of Maine, Orono, in the Math and Statistics dept. We have been up there a few times, helped him move into his new house last year. good luck with your build.

[Highwayrydr]

Very unique shape... Welcome to the forum, and be sure to take pictures of your build!



Mike...

Thanks for the compliments guys. As i wont be actually building it for nearly two months i will be laying out designs. I have worked this one for a month or so. after thinking about it the frame will have to be a bit narrower. The bed area i was hoping to have at least 58 inches but it looks like it might be a sqeeze at 56 inches wide. I also plan for a 7 foot give or take length for the bed floor. Where it is slanted in the back there will be a small galley. i was hoping to add a sink. The triangle behind the wheels (on the bottom) will house a fiberglass water tank. i was wondering if you could pressurize the tank with air via tire valve stem to deliver water. Has anyone done anything like this? i am confused as to how you all get water to your sinks.

[Highwayrydr]

Hi Eric: our son teaches at University of Maine, Orono, in the Math and Statistics dept. We have been up there a few times, helped him move into his new house last year. good luck with your build.

I might now him. I have taken 6 math based classes so far. it is nice to know that there are some people in the Maine area that have similar interests etc. We often feel left out up here.

[Miriam C.]

to the playground Eric. I like the sharp lines. I don't think you are going to get a lot of cabinet space though.

Enjoy and Keeps the bubble oil level.

[CAJUN LADY]

Hi Eric and Welcome Aboard! My camper was built by another person so it didn't have a built in sink. I choose to build my own cheap version and it works great. I use a Coleman Hot Water on Demand for my water needs. It is nice to have warm or hot water when needed. The last picture is a new dishwashing table I am almost finished with. I didn't have enough room on the back of the old one for the CHWoD so I cut the bucket holes long ways and now it will fit nicely.

[Mike C.]

Hi Eric,


Welcome to the forum. Very interesting design. Take lots of pictures as you build so we can watch it come together.


See you around.

[Dean_A]

Eric,
A lot of the sinks are supplied with water via a 12V pump.

[bobhenry]

I had every intention of pressurizing 4" pvc storage tanks for my on board water but I tripped over a yard sale where I picked up a 12 volt and a 120 volt on demand pump. Got both for $5.00. That 50 - 60 dollar price tag was why I was going to use air pressure. Yes it could be very easily done.

[mary and bob]

Eric,
I private messaged you with my sons name , your at Orno right, he asked someone, one of his students who was named eric today but the guy said nope it isnt me. Dave is 38 years old or should I say young.
mary and bob

[Trackstriper]

Eric, welcome aboard!

I liked the Sketchup drawing that you added, what a great design tool. I noticed some things that you might want to consider.

1) You will need to turn your axle around so that the axle spindles are behind the axle's cross-tube, this should not affect anything that I see on your design...it's just a technicality that you should be aware of.

2) Also note in G-Force's photos how his tongue members go under the main components of the frame. It appears that you are going to be using 2" tubing for the frame and placing the tongue below the frame will be stronger unless you are an extremely good welder, or you use some gussets in the right place, which might also be a good option.

3) Since you are going for a relatively light design, My opinion is that you probably don't need the frame kick-up in the back. I would think that the sides should support most any load that you're going to put back there...just something to think about.

It will be fun to see how your project progresses.

J.B.

[jworster]

Hi Eric :D Are you at UMO or UMPI? My hubby and I both went to UMO ages ago (we graduated in '00, but it seems like forever!). Very cool to find another Mainer building a teardrop. I like your shape! We're going with the more traditional round front and pointed back (because that's the first teardrop trailer I ever saw, so it "has" to look like that! Lol!). Good luck with your build! I'm looking forward to seeing pictures as you go along :D

Jen

[Highwayrydr]

Hi Eric Are you at UMO or UMPI? My hubby and I both went to UMO ages ago (we graduated in '00, but it seems like forever!). Very cool to find another Mainer building a teardrop. I like your shape! We're going with the more traditional round front and pointed back (because that's the first teardrop trailer I ever saw, so it "has" to look like that! Lol!). Good luck with your build! I'm looking forward to seeing pictures as you go along

Jen

Jen i am attending the UMO campus. I live in Smyrna, small town south of Houlton. I am Majoring in Surveying and it is a sweet experience for sure.