Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Piefoot, good looking trailer! How wide is it now? Hope to see some more photos soon. Good luck on the build. Txbum

The trailer measures 5 feet wide outside to outside. I can go 8 or 9 feet long but Backwoods Guy's tent set up fits great and he went 8 feet long so I will likely do the same. I am restricted with money being a retired postal worker so my build will be extended through the winter most likely. I do want to have it ready to camp by next spring and summer though. I'd like to get the frame finished and painted so I can start on the bed in the garage during the winter. Were you able to get started over Memorial Day Weekend?

Piefoot, no, I did not get started. I have been really busy at work. Just took inventory of all things needed. I am debating building six wide by 8 foot long. Guess I will have to take the plunge on building the box first and drop onto the trailer for trial fit. If six feet wide is too much , then I will reduce the width to five foot. I have two sheets 4x8 foor .040" aluminium , I plan on building 2 foot tall perimeter walls cutting the sheets to fit. There will be a couple of pieces left over, probably use those pieces as corner re-inforcement. I am thinking about making rounded corners to reduce the possibility of the canvas tearing at the corners. For sure this Friday I am welding some angle iron ( 2") from the second cross member to the tounge to form an "A" frame. This should give the trailer some much needed support. I will definitely post photos of the build and provide a link. Tx bum

Sounds good Txbum. I'll be watching for your update. Good luck.

Piefoot,

I've been reading through this thread and wanted to mention something to you... When I looked at the Kodiak truck tent link, it mentioned that it is a "tailgate down" design. This tells me that you need 8ft plus the average pick-up bed length, or are you planning to do a tailgate on your trailer.

Mike in FL

I'll build a tailgate on the trailer just like Backwoods Guy did on his build.

I also got an idea from a teardrop trailer I saw. The owner welded a receiver on the trailer frame behind the back wheels on each side. He uses them to mount steel arms and small tables and sets his small barbecue on one side and a Dutch Oven on the other. My trailer is a boat trailer. In removing the bunks and rollers, I ended up with two pieces that will work for that same thing. The picture below shows one of these pieces bolted on to the frame near the rear.



I tested these pieces in the 2" receiver on my SUV and they were a perfect fit. I'll have some fabricating and welding to do once I decide how I want to use them. Probably won't be for a barbecue or Dutch Oven as I really don't want to have burning coals that close to my canvas tent, but they will play a part in my camp set up.

GUY would you explain tailgate build? What type hinges used? Is the box lifted higher using a 2x4 on tailgate end?

Does anyone have actual measurements of the SummitHaus tent? Several years ago I bought a trailer that is similar to the LittleGiant, in that it has two wing-like sides that fold out. It was actually made to take a pop up tent (Jumping Jack) but they stopped making the size tent to fit it long before I bought the trailer. I've contemplated having a custom tent made, but don't want to drop that much cash. The SummitHaus looks like it might work.

Backwoods Guy - I love your idea and design & would run with something similar if I had a bit larger trailer. As it is, I need a little more room. With the wings open on my trailer it's 8' wide and the bed end to end is 7' long, if I'm just using the bed it's only 4'x7'.

If anone has info you could offer about actual size of the SummitHaus, that would be very useful for me.

Thanks!!

There are some specs on this page along with a PDF for the tent
http://www.discount-trailers.com/tent-c ... ailers.htm

Hope this helps

Neat idea

Hi all,
First post here and Bumping an old thread all in one go

I have been thinking of building a tent like the OP has here.
It seems to be the closest I can find on the web to what id like mine.

So 8 years have passed and rather than copying the OPs design with my own few mods, im here to ask if there any obvious Improvements that I should consider.

EG… Is there a much better tent unit now available etc.??

I don’t have a trailer to build it on just yet.

Incidentally I did build my own trailer about 5 years ago for long haul trips to France (im in Ireland).

Ill try get a few photos of it here.

Marty.

Hi, can you update me on how this worked out over the years, and also did you use a 4x8 trailer. Thank you so much!

I'm only on page 2 of this, and I have to stop and tell you that I LOVE THIS!

I've been planning a foamie build forever, and have ordered a trailer - BACKORDERED and they don't sell XPS foam in California, so I've placed an order back east - BACKORDERED, and I'm just sitting her waiting and I see your amazing setup.

I will 90% hot weather camp (100-115F), and that's why I want the insulation of the foamie, but I see no reason I can't add a portable AC setup to this, just as I would a foamie, and get temps to a livable (weekend-campable) level. A foamie can get to refrigerator levels, but I think this can easily be made comfortable. Any thoughts or experience you wantg to share or set me straight on regarding that?

Thanks for the inspiration! And I need to make this decision soon so I can cancel my foam order! The foam alone is 1.5x the cost of this high quality tent!

Reubal-
You'd probably like the Sylvan Sport Go trailer. Pricey but very cool. And at a show they talked about heating and cooling. Roomy and flexible.

QueticoBill wrote:Reubal-
You'd probably like the Sylvan Sport Go trailer. Pricey but very cool. And at a show they talked about heating and cooling. Roomy and flexible.

Thanks for the heads up. I was pretty sure I was out at "pricey", but then when I looked it up and saw that "pricey" is $11,000, I am definitely out.

I've canceled my XPS foam order and have ordered this Kodiak tent, so I am now planning this build out. Once I'm done with everything, I think I'll be in around $4000 including 2500Wh battery, and 400w solar.

That Sylvan DOES look slick, and I agree maybe even that it is $11k slick, but I'm excited to end up with something that works for me at almost 1/3 the price. I really do appreciate you pointing it out, though. It's amazing to me with all the research I've done that there are still things out there I haven't seen yet!