not a teardrop

[james worley]

I was not going to call it a teardrop because it did not havea rear hatch.
It will have two doors with shelves.

[james worley]

Mike does it need something under the frpfor strength?

[mikeschn]

Mike does it need something under the frpfor strength?

I always thought FRP was brittle. A sharp stone kicked up from the car or truck tires could puncture it easily if it didn't have a substrate. It wouldn't need much to back it up. A piece of 1/8" plywood, or even masonite.

Larry talks about Filon (FRP) on his website...
http://www.outbackteardrop.com/body4.html

Of course, someone can always come along and tell me I'm all wet.

Mike...

[james worley]

Thanks mike i will check into it.

[Cliffmeister2000]

Mike does it need something under the frpfor strength?

I always thought FRP was brittle. A sharp stone kicked up from the car or truck tires could puncture it easily if it didn't have a substrate. It wouldn't need much to back it up. A piece of 1/8" plywood, or even masonite.

Larry talks about Filon (FRP) on his website...
http://www.outbackteardrop.com/body4.html

Of course, someone can always come along and tell me I'm all wet.

Mike...

regarding substrate, bender board, maybe?

Larry's site says the frp has a maximum bend radius of 7" or greater. How tight is that back bend?

[brian_bp]

I see that it has a Bulldog forged coupler - presumably a 2B8L. These Bulldogs have a reputation for reliability, but it's a 15-lb monster with 5000 lb trailer capacity, and when I tried one of these briefly I didn't find the mechanism easy to use at all. May I ask why this coupler?

[starleen2]

James - glad to see ya building somethin'. Looks good - sure do miss deep east texas. Can't wait to see it finished (have to come to lufkin in sept. may stop by)

[brian_bp]

I was not going to call it a teardrop because it did not have a rear hatch...

I think that's still the teardrop layout. I assumed it was "not a teardrop" because the profile is not teardrop-shaped... the tail doesn't taper down. With the tapered tail, a hatch is pretty much the only choice.

[brian_bp]

Mike does it need something under the frpfor strength?

I always thought FRP was brittle. A sharp stone kicked up from the car or truck tires could puncture it easily if it didn't have a substrate. It wouldn't need much to back it up. A piece of 1/8" plywood, or even masonite.

Larry talks about Filon (FRP) on his website...
http://www.outbackteardrop.com/body4.html ...

I think the only reason for this to be a concern is the thickness of the material. Moulded fiberglass trailer bodies are the same material, just formed in a mould instead of extruded as a sheet... but my Boler's shell is about 1/8" thick, or twice the larger of the two thicknesses (0.04" and 0.06") listed on Larry's site.

Yes, at 0.06" or less, maybe it makes sense to have a continuous support backing.

On the other hand, the same company makes Noble CTEC, which is a thick (thicker than my Boler shell) sidewall panel that would not need the backer... but I assume it wouldn't make the rear radius.

[brian_bp]

Larry's site says the frp has a maximum bend radius of 7" or greater. How tight is that back bend?

I wondered about that, too. The minimum bend radius is not 7" for all FRP sheet, or even all Filon - it depends on the specific material and thickness. With all that structure and a backer panel, I suppose that a very thin (and flexible) FRP sheet could be used.

Kemlite is now Crane Composites. Some of their roofingmaterial (rather than sidewall material) bends to a 4" radius with a gelcoat (tighter without, but my guess is that most people would want the smooth finish on their teardrop).

[james worley]

Hey brian! Yes it is over kill i'm sure,i'm just used to using them . I have
them on all of my trailers.On the radius cliff,it is around 9".I'm not 100%
sure what i'm going to do yet.Hello Scott!hope everythings going well with your move. If you come to lufkin give me a call,we can go to lunch.

[cccamper]

James,
Are you bringing the new trailer to LCGIII???? Would be great to see it in person. I like it!


e .. .. .. ..

[james worley]

Thank you! I will have it ready for LCGIII

[james worley]

New picks

[Cliffmeister2000]

It's looking great! My wife appreciates what you did with the pre-made plastic drawers! We both appreciate the tile work! Have you ever done that before? I'm wondering how well the tile will hold up on the road?