Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

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Added a Sliding Shelf to the Cabin

Postby Dusty Mark » Wed Sep 07, 2016 11:58 am

We've spent a total of 17 nights in our teardrop so far this season and continue to customize it for our uses. We're traveling to Ely, MN for a week soon and the lows at night will be in the thirties. I built a small slide-out shelf to hold a portable ceramic space heater.

Image

The tray is constructed from 3/8" thick Baltic birch plywood with 1/4" spacers under the drawer slides to give 1/2" screws something to bite into. The outer edges of the tray are 3/4" Baltic birch plywood to hide the drawer slides when stowed. The shelf has a clean look that fits with the rest of the interior build features whether stowed or in use. It only reduces clearance under the bulkhead by 1 1/8" over the width of the shelf.

Image

The drawer slides are mounted sideways. They're not meant for this, but I got the idea from the 500# drawer slides I used in the galley. They're rated for about 1/4 of normal capacity when mounted on their sides. This is sturdy enough for the little weight that we'll place on the shelf.

Image

The lightweight ceramic heater rests on the shelf perfectly. This is a great way to keep the heater off of our bedding and also keep it away from clothing hung on our coat hooks on the walls.

Image

The tray is sized to hold our MacBook Air for watching movies. Yes...we're planning to eventually replace the teardrop with an Airstream Flying Cloud 20. We'll get lots of use out of the teardrop before we go over to the "dark" side of stand-up campers.
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby KCStudly » Wed Sep 07, 2016 12:44 pm

Nice addition. :thumbsup:

I'm curious about a couple of minor safety concerns: Does the heater have a 'tip over' safety feature that shuts it off should it inadvertently be knocked onto your bedding? Even if so, might you consider adding some sort of hold down device to prevent that from being a possibility? I ask these questions not so much to be a nanny, but because I have zero experience using one of these little heaters, especially in tight quarters, and tend to be overly cautious about the well being of others. From the skill that you have exhibited designing and building your camper, I trust your opinion.
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby Dusty Mark » Wed Sep 07, 2016 1:24 pm

Yes, it has a tip-over switch. I chose this one because it is very stable, being rather short for its width. It would be easy enough to rig something up to secure it better, but I want to keep it simple for letting the dog in and out of his kennel. I used these a bunch in NC to heat our kid's rooms where we should have had multiple zones and they were quite stable and safe.
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby KCStudly » Wed Sep 07, 2016 2:11 pm

:thumbsup: Thanks.
KC
My Build: The Poet Creek Express Hybrid Foamie

Poet Creek Or Bust
Engineering the TLAR way - "That Looks About Right"
TnTTT ORIGINAL 200A LANTERN CLUB = "The 200A Gang"
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Ceramic Heater Worked Well

Postby Dusty Mark » Sun Sep 18, 2016 9:45 pm

We used the ceramic heater a couple of nights last week in Ely, MN when the temps dipped down to the mid-thirties and it worked well. I bumped the shelf occasionally when I rolled over, but the heater remained stable on the shelf. This is a great way to heat the teardrop if you have 110-volt power available.
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Propane Regulator Quit

Postby Dusty Mark » Sun Sep 18, 2016 9:52 pm

Our Camco two-stage vertical propane regulator quit on the second day of a six-day trip. We cooked in Mary's cousins' lodge after that, so it wasn't a trip wrecker. However, it surely doesn't inspire confidence in the regulator. Some of the negative reviews on Amazon described what likely happened to mine, the safety stop got stuck and won't allow the propane to flow. I ordered a Mr. Heater brand to replace it. If it works well, I'll buy a spare to keep our oven/stove in operation on all of our trips. I'm also adding a small section of hose under the regulator to make swapping the regulator easier.
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby bbrider » Mon Oct 03, 2016 7:43 pm

I like your sliding tray design and will be doing something like it in my Wee-Go. Thanks for sharing.


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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby Dusty Mark » Wed Oct 05, 2016 7:28 pm

Thanks, it's a cheap add-on since you'll probably have plywood scraps that size.
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Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby bbrider » Wed Oct 05, 2016 7:46 pm

Your right about that. Just the cost of the drawer slides and some time. Here is mine. I put the drawer slides under the shelf.
Image


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Storage Upgrade

Postby Dusty Mark » Thu Jul 06, 2017 10:34 pm

Image

The front storage module of our teardrop is our "master closet."

Image

The top shelf is where we store socks, underwear, and t-shirts. However, these items don't stack well on the shelf.

Image

I made four small boxes of Baltic birch plywood that work like drawers, except there are no drawer slides. The backs are curved to match the shape of the compartment using 1/8" plywood leftover from the roof and ceiling. The sides are 3/8" plywood leftover from a boat project I never did. The fronts and bottoms are 1/4" plywood. I stapled and glued the boxes together. (No fancy joinery here!) In fact, the prototype box isn't even glued...we'll see how long the staples alone hold on that one.

Image

They fit well on the shelf and we can fit a lot of clothes in these boxes!

Image

One of my wife's criteria was that we be able to pull each box out individually. This required me to size them a bit smaller due to some overhangs in the sliding door assembly.

Image

Mission accomplished...both of the boxes slide out individually.

We've used the teardrop a year now and these little improvements really personalize our little camper.
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby KCStudly » Fri Jul 07, 2017 6:45 am

Very nicely done! :thumbsup: :applause:
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My Build: The Poet Creek Express Hybrid Foamie

Poet Creek Or Bust
Engineering the TLAR way - "That Looks About Right"
TnTTT ORIGINAL 200A LANTERN CLUB = "The 200A Gang"
Green Lantern Corpsmen
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby Dusty Mark » Fri Jul 07, 2017 10:22 pm

Thanks KC! Good vibes your way to keep plodding along on your build, it will be so nice to put your well-designed camper to use!
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Re: Dusty Mark's 5 x 10 Build

Postby Tim C. » Sun Nov 19, 2017 5:02 pm

Hi, Nice Build.
If I understand your 3 piece mattress, it is sewn into a 1 piece affair with the 'hinge' on opposite sides so that the back is actually 2 of the cushions leaning against the wall?
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Always Improving the Build

Postby Dusty Mark » Sun Mar 31, 2019 9:42 pm

One of the things about having built your teardrop is that you feel a certain freedom to keep improving it to suit your evolving camping style. It’s about impossible to anticipate all of your “needs” in your initial plan/build. Thankfully, many improvements can be made long after the build is complete. Here’s some of the major mods I’ve made since my last posts to this build journal.

1) After our first season, we became convinced of our need for a galley tent. Unfortunately, there are no large ones available commercially. I designed and sewed one prior to our second season. I blogged this as a separate build journal called “The Ultimate Galley Tent.” Our 9’ x11’ galley tent eliminated our urge to get a full-size trailer. It’s extra work to set up, but most of our trips are 3-4 night stays at a site, so it’s worth it.

2) We started out with Galley Hatch Support Springs from Oregon Trail'r, but midway through our second season we replaced them with hydraulic struts. I must not have mounted the passenger side spring correctly, because if you even brushed against it, the whole lid came crashing down. One hit to the head was enough for me to make the order! :x

3) I overlooked the value of trailer brakes when designing the trailer. Before our third season, I installed a new Dexter torsion axle with electric drum brakes. (I got $100 for the old axle on Craigslist.) We opted for the Autow Brake controller that stays with the trailer. Any vehicle with a 4-prong plug can activate the brakes. It’s an awesome controller. We’re definitely safer towing with brakes.

4) As we approach our fourth season, we decided to replace our Yeti 65 cooler with an ARB 63, 12-volt cooler. Thankfully, the ARB fits in the cooler compartment in the galley. I just finished building a longer tray so the lid has room to stay open. We’re looking forward to the convenience of not using ice. This cooler is 6 quarts bigger (the Yeti 65 is only 57 quarts) and all the interior volume is usable since we don’t need to pack ice. I’ll post pictures of the install once it’ complete...

5) Next season we may redo the cushions and go from 4” to 6” thick. We’ll continue the quest for that ever-elusive mattress perfection. We shouldn’t have any trouble selling the old set!
Last edited by Dusty Mark on Mon Apr 01, 2019 8:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Added a Sliding Shelf to the Cabin

Postby tony.latham » Mon Apr 01, 2019 9:37 am

Dusty Mark wrote:We've spent a total of 17 nights in our teardrop so far this season and continue to customize it for our uses. We're traveling to Ely, MN for a week soon and the lows at night will be in the thirties. I built a small slide-out shelf to hold a portable ceramic space heater.

Image

The tray is constructed from 3/8" thick Baltic birch plywood with 1/4" spacers under the drawer slides to give 1/2" screws something to bite into. The outer edges of the tray are 3/4" Baltic birch plywood to hide the drawer slides when stowed. The shelf has a clean look that fits with the rest of the interior build features whether stowed or in use. It only reduces clearance under the bulkhead by 1 1/8" over the width of the shelf.

Image

The drawer slides are mounted sideways. They're not meant for this, but I got the idea from the 500# drawer slides I used in the galley. They're rated for about 1/4 of normal capacity when mounted on their sides. This is sturdy enough for the little weight that we'll place on the shelf.

Image

The lightweight ceramic heater rests on the shelf perfectly. This is a great way to keep the heater off of our bedding and also keep it away from clothing hung on our coat hooks on the walls.

Image

The tray is sized to hold our MacBook Air for watching movies. Yes...we're planning to eventually replace the teardrop with an Airstream Flying Cloud 20. We'll get lots of use out of the teardrop before we go over to the "dark" side of stand-up campers.


Great job.

Have you figured out a way to lock the shelf in position while it's nested? I'm wondering how to do that on my next build.

I'm thinking a sliding bolt like you're using on your cabinets but vertical.

Tony
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