Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

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Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby jnkdad » Fri Nov 18, 2016 10:36 am

Hi folks. Thanks for the add and greetings from Central Texas! I've been researching teardrop builds for several weeks now and have started my own design similar to the "Rascal" shape. My design goals are to build one that is long enough for my 6' body to stretch out while staying under 500lbs. Want to have the option to pull it with my little Hyundai Sonata or my BMW motorcycle. So, I'm planning an all aluminum frame starting with the Northern Tools 4x8 aluminum trailer. Will end up cutting a foot or so off the length of the trailer. Also thinking about adding a two stage swamp cooler. Here's my AutoCAD model:

4X8 Teardrop - Section.PNG
4X8 Teardrop - Section.PNG (129.95 KiB) Viewed 1031 times

4X8 Teardrop - Right Rear.PNG
4X8 Teardrop - Right Rear.PNG (583.69 KiB) Viewed 1031 times

4X8 Teardrop - Left Rear.PNG
4X8 Teardrop - Left Rear.PNG (486.35 KiB) Viewed 1031 times


Wish me luck!

Jerrold
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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby AZ_Desert_Rat » Fri Nov 18, 2016 12:56 pm

Howdy Jerrold... Welcome to the Forum and to the world of tiny trailers... :thumbsup:

You are developing some great looking plans and the trailer, under 500#, will be watched by many... :applause:

Good luck with your build and I hope you keep us supplied with pics :pictures: :pictures:
Happy Camping & Building,
John (JC)


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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby jnkdad » Fri Nov 18, 2016 1:00 pm

Thanks John. Will be glad to post progress pics if you like!

BTW, more than happy to accept suggestions if anyone would like!

Jerrold
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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby AZ_Desert_Rat » Fri Nov 18, 2016 1:40 pm

Hi Jerrold,
Have you checked out Design Resources and in that thread, The Perfect TD and Rich's List... There is some great info here... :thumbsup:

You can also search on a specific item that may help as there is literally a ton of info here... ;)

BTW, you are building a light TD that you hope to pull with a small car and cycle... I never got into anything that small and find it interesting... :thinking: I would think that trying to tow a TD behind a bike would be like towing a sail and a gust of wind from the side or losing the wind in a tunnel/underpass/hill would create one heck of a side rush... :?

Good luck and there are a couple threads in this Forum on build bike-pull and/or small auto-pull TD's... and Yes, I first like the Cad drawings and hope to see pics and even access to your build book if available... :)
Your idea is intriguing (Once the design is done, actual size often becomes second to scale); thus, allowing an individual to scale your plans up or down... :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Happy Camping & Building,
John (JC)


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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby brx017 » Fri Nov 18, 2016 2:56 pm

The design looks good. I would double check your clearances for your shins and/or knees, or at least consider rounding or softening that cabinet corner.

To keep it lightweight you may want to check out the foamie section as well.

Is this a one person or two person camper? If it's just for one, I could see the advantage of narrowing it for motorcycle towing.

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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby jnkdad » Fri Nov 18, 2016 3:34 pm

I am planning to put the rigid foam insulation between the struts to insulate. Also planning to shorten the trailer to eliminate the shin buster in the back. I want this to be wide enough for two, so going with 48" for now; granted a "cozy" two sleeper, but then I like that! :)
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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby brx017 » Sun Nov 20, 2016 4:19 pm

I was referring to the interior cabinet as the shin buster... But now I see what you were talking about in your drawings. As much as my wife and I toss around at night, we'd both be bruised by morning.

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Re: Greetings from Texas! About to take the dive..

Postby jnkdad » Sun Nov 20, 2016 4:32 pm

brx017 wrote:I was referring to the interior cabinet as the shin buster... But now I see what you were talking about in your drawings. As much as my wife and I toss around at night, we'd both be bruised by morning.

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Oh, I see what you mean. Yes I thought about that too, so I was thinking maybe I would upholster some foam rubber to cushion the bottom edge of the cabinet.

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