reduce, recycle, reuse: ideas for inexpensive trailer shells

[cwm]

I love the idea of taking old discarded things and turning them into something useful again. Basically I come from a long line of rusty nail saving, do-it-your self rancher types, and I can't stand to throw anything away. So I'm trying to think of different already manufactured structures that could be repurposed as a travel trailer. This is mostly a creative exercise, I'm not sure that I will actually do this.

Here are a couple things that I thought of off the top of my head:

The abandoned shell of a VW beetle
A garden shed
A 600 gallon water tank
A section of light aircraft fuselage

Does anyone have any other ideas?

[sjptak]

Not that you'd be able to find an abundant supply in SoCal, but I've often looked at my next door neighbor's snowmobile trailer and thought about how easy it would be to make it into a camper. A friend of mine did make a camper out of oil tank, at least he started to. He died just before Christmas. He had a radical 32 Ford hotrod that he travelled in. Always talked about a motor home. He took a modle T truck body and was building his "oil truck". The tank was hinged so that he could use it to sleep in.

[dwgriff1]

This thread suggests some wonderful ideas.

Don't have to worry about how it would work, or how to design the frame, shucks, just doodle.

Once built a whole series of model out houses. Maybe that is how I should revise that idea?

dave

[cwm]

Not that you'd be able to find an abundant supply in SoCal, but I've often looked at my next door neighbor's snowmobile trailer and thought about how easy it would be to make it into a camper. A friend of mine did make a camper out of oil tank, at least he started to. He died just before Christmas. He had a radical 32 Ford hotrod that he travelled in. Always talked about a motor home. He took a modle T truck body and was building his "oil truck". The tank was hinged so that he could use it to sleep in.

Stan, I had the same idea about snow mobile trailers when I was in northern Michigan during the winter and saw a bunch of them. The oil truck sounds like a cool idea to

Charles

[Podunkfla]

I love the idea of taking old discarded things and turning them into something useful again....
Here are a couple things that I thought of off the top of my head:

The abandoned shell of a VW beetle
A garden shed
A 600 gallon water tank
A section of light aircraft fuselage

Does anyone have any other ideas?

These Scandanavian folks made a pretty cool Sauna out of a Saab!

[cwm]

I love the idea of taking old discarded things and turning them into something useful again....
Here are a couple things that I thought of off the top of my head:

The abandoned shell of a VW beetle
A garden shed
A 600 gallon water tank
A section of light aircraft fuselage

Does anyone have any other ideas?

These Scandanavian folks made a pretty cool Sauna out of a Saab!

Now that's what I'm talkin about! I'm inspired now. Good show.

[sjptak]

That is just way too cool. I mean HOT! You can even take it with you as its on a trailer.

[dwgriff1]

Good adapting of available resources!!!

In housing it's called "vernacular."

dave

[cwm]

Ok everyone... I was at the wrecking yard today and I had a moment of inspiration. I give you, Hippie Airstream.

I wonder how much cantelevered weight you would need to have off the back to make it towable. I figure that if you put batteries, water etc. in back it could work.

http://tnttt.com/album_ ... c_id=17065

[Gage]

Aw, just do a little body work and move the axle forward.

[dwgriff1]

I like it. Shucks, make molds and cast it in fiberglass, then you could play with axle placement,

Or, move the axle and do a bit of bodywork to move the wheel openng.

Bet it woulnd't be light, but it would be an eyecatcher.

dave

[Arne]

Problem with most ideas is they are heavy, and not insulated. It's great to recycle, but the end result has to be light, towable, and liveable. The reason we build what we do is to achieve and end result that serves a very specific purpose.

[JunkMan]

Aw, just do a little body work and move the axle forward.

A van would give you plenty of room, but considering that the van is a unibody and how a VW suspension is made, that would be a MAJOR modification. A Bug would be easier, since the body unbolts from the floor pan.

I've looked at a Bug body several times, and tried to figure out a way to make something out of one (or a couple) of those, but just can't come up with anything that would look good and be functional.

[cwm]

Basically what I'm trying to do here is play with different existing shapes to get my mind working. I'm very visual, so I need to actually see something to figure out how to best use the space. I have come to the conclusion that one could build something like the dimensions and design of a VW camer bus on a 5x10 trailer frame.

A 5x10 trailer with a pop top is a very liveable space.

[dwgriff1]

The joy of this kind of thinking is the totally impracitality of it all.

It is a design exercize, not a reality show. Red Green would make it work, for a hundred feet, but the rest of us just dream.

dave