# Want to build a teardrop trailer?



## Sawduster (Dec 30, 2008)

I was just given an old pop up trailer which I'm stripping down to the frame. It has a very substantial frame, twelve inch tires and surge brakes. Thinking about what I might do with it, I started thinking about a teardrop trailer so I did some googling and was I amazed! It never occurred to me that something like that could be an art form. Here are a couple of links to illustrate what I mean.

http://www.mikenchell.com/halloffame.html

http://gages-56.com/roly.html


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## slatron25 (Dec 18, 2007)

I've run across that first page before. ( I have no idea how). It looks like it would be a fun project.


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## deck99 (Apr 9, 2007)

A tear drop is on my build list. I would love to build an old cabin car or as some say a "woodie".

Deck


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## dbhost (Jan 28, 2008)

You forgot about www.teardrops.net

Yeah that would be an interesting project. For a family with kids though... A teardrop might not be the best solution, then again, a wider / longer one like 7' wide x 12' or so, would keep parents and a couple of kids close by...


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## Gerry KIERNAN (Apr 20, 2007)

Almost looks like a cult. Very cute rigs, but I am thinking a little claustrophobic.

Gerry


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

I built a teardrop camper a few years back and we really enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun to build but very time consuming. I had 384 hours in the build and over couple thousand dollars. The little camper was light enough that it could be pulled with a VW Prius. It was 5 feet wide and 8 feet long and had an 8 inch memory foam queen size bed. There was a galley in back and the cabinets were made out of cherry. If anyone wants, I will post a couple of pictures of it.


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## Sawduster (Dec 30, 2008)

I'd love to see pictures and anything else you can tell me.


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

Sawduster, I hope I am posting the pictures correctly.

Here are a few more facts about the little camper. It has 1 1/2 inches of ridged insulation in the walls, ceiling and floor. The floor is fully water proofed. It is wired for 110 electric with a breaker box in the cabin. The electrical has a floating common with a dedicated ground which grounds the frame back to the power source so you cannot get shocked incase the power source is wired wrong.


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

Here is one more of the inside.


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## Sawduster (Dec 30, 2008)

Very nice! Is the aluminum skin attached directly to the foam or is there plywood in between? And where did you get that nifty glass door?


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## Handyman (Jan 2, 2008)

jiju1943 Thats a nice little camper. The first one I every saw was in north CA. Well I saw quite a few up there. That is one project I have wanted to do since seeing my first one. I want to know what size bed will fit inside yours and about how much do you think it weighs, The trailer, not the bed.


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

Sawdust, the aluminum is over 1/8 inch plywood on the walls and 1/4 on the roof. I used formica glue to install the aluminum but the glue will turn loose when the sun hits it which is OK as the aluminum isn't dependent on the glue to hold it permanently in place. Some folks do place the aluminum over the foam but I chose the 1/8 inch plywood because I wanted a little more rigidity. Actually the two doors are from a conversion van side windows (with sliding window and screens) that we bought at a auto junk yard and I made the lock catching mechanism.

Handyman, the little camper weighs around 700 pounds. Some folks just use one thickness of 3/4 plywood for the sides which lessens the weight some. We framed ours with 2X2s and rigid styrofoam sandwiched between 1/4 plywood inside and 1/8 inch outside then the aluminum. The insulation is well worth the extra trouble and weight. We put an 8 inch queen size memory foam bed in ours. You can build them for any size you want, but we stayed with a 5 foot wide because the aluminum was higher the wider it goes.


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## Handyman (Jan 2, 2008)

Ok yall sould have not posted all the pics and info. Now I have a fever for building one. I have a 17ft Star Craft popup that is in bad need of a make over. It would make a good frame to build off of. I think it's going to take quite a few $$$ to make this fever go away. Thanks


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## Sawduster (Dec 30, 2008)

If it weren't for the fact that the love of my life is waiting for a new kitchen and laundry room, guess what I'd be doing.:yes:


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

Handyman, there is a guy that lives down your way that is a master at building the little Teardrop campers, his screen name is Madjack and is on the website http://www.mikenchell.com/forums/
If you check it out tell him Jim Marshall sent you. You can find out more than you need to make your build easy and help you choose the style and size you want to build.


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