Anyone built a teardrop trailer/camper?

[dwminnich]

I've got it in my mind to build a teardrop camper (google it and you'll find lots of homemade examples). Has anyone on this site done so before and have any wisdom to share? Also, I'm interested in finding a source of the pop-up hardware such as used in the attached image. Any pointers?

Thanks, folks.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Chris C]

No suggestion .....but that thing is awesome. If you do build it take lots of pics because I'd like to see that work in progress.

 

[ehpoole]

I do not know whether you will or will not find such hardware ready made for that purpose as such is pretty specialized and may be too niche. I suspect that it is more a case of them adapting, repurposing, and, where necessary, creating that hardware as needed to accomplish the task. But you may wish to scour the web for groups interested in such campers to see if they can get you in contact with those whom have actually built such themselves.

But also keep in mind that today we have materials like UHMW PolyEthylene that you can incorporate between sliding surfaces where needed to create heavy duty DIY sliders as it is self lubricating with very low wear between surfaces. You may well find that securing such to certain high wear rubbing/sliding surfaces allows you to build your own sliders out of a mix of wood/metal and UHMW. To assist in lifting heavy structures you can either use balanced springs to reduce the apparent weight or gas lifting cylinders, either can greatly reduce the force needed to lift a heavy wooden structure. Though you will need to engineer things overall to reduce weight as much as possible and to keep the weight properly balanced between front and rear, and that engineering alone may allow you to keep the weight down enough that lifting is relatively easy without added assistance. Essentially a limited but strong frame and lots of 1/4" plywood in between could really help to keep weight down and still maintain good strength.

But I second the request for plenty of photos so that you may keep us posted with regular progress updates and how you handled certain challenges!

 

[Berta]

We looked at a teardrop when we went camping this past summer. If we are going to haul a camper, I want a bathroom!

 

[Danny Batchelor]

Boats use 5 gal buckets.

 

[Berta]

Boats use 5 gal buckets.

umm...NO

 

[golfdad]

All good campgrounds have bathrooms................ just saying

 

[FredP]

All good campgrounds have bathrooms................ just saying

that's all fine and good until it's 2am and pouring down rain.:wink_smil

 

[CrealBilly]

 

[ehpoole]

View attachment 21819

Sometimes after a serious hurricane that is precisely what one has to do to improvise a makeshift bathroom and bag the solid waste for proper disposal afterwards. Made a little more inconvenient in that you do not want the liquid waste captured in the bag, so you do what you must when nature calls. But such is still preferable as it at least allows one to setup some privacy while you do your business and you can seal with the lid afterwards. Growing up in Florida I always had a few 5 gallon buckets on hand for just that very reason.

 

[dwminnich]

And now, back to our regularly scheduled original topic...



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[JimD]

View attachment 21819

View attachment 21820

LOL One advantage of a lake house is you can just go home when nature calls. Guys usually won't but gals normally want to.

 

[CrealBilly]

LOL One advantage of a lake house is you can just go home when nature calls. Guys usually won't but gals normally want to.

Same as living in the country - i have lots of outdoor batrooms but aint a one of them that flush.

 

[Raymond]

Dave, I have never built one but my wife and I tried one out for a short vacation once. That was the end of that - just once (three days and two nights). She said "NO GO" to anything less than something that had most of the amenities of home. So that last time we rented a 40 RV. Huge improvement on the "Happy Wife" factor.

 

[Jeff]

And now, back to our regularly scheduled original topic...

I have not built one, tried to crawl in one, or tried to sleep in one (6' tall, 186 lbs). How do you and your partner envision using it instead of a tent and sleeping bags? There may be some helpful tips/tricks, etc in these snippets to whet your appetite.

http://makezine.com/2015/09/23/teardrop-trailer-builds/

http://www.golittleguy.com

I was curious about the concept and started nosing around to find more info.

 

[junquecol]

We looked at a teardrop when we went camping this past summer. If we are going to haul a camper, I want a bathroom!

The motels we camp in have bathrooms right within the room area. Usually only a couple steps and a door away from the bed. So convenient!

 

[dwminnich]

Yeah, well this won't ever get used when my wife is along... Nope, not gonna happen. Another of my hobbies is birding, and having recently retired I anticipate having plenty of time for some birding trips, maybe a week at a time. When the location is interesting, my wife will go along and we'll call it a "vacation", and stay someplace with full facilities. But I can justify to myself a lot more of the solo jaunts if I don't have to stay at a hotel, and have the ability to cook most meals for myself. My younger self was happy tent camping, but I've gotten spoiled over the years and would like, at least, a mattress and pillow.

Something light that I can pull behind even a small car without significantly affecting the gas mileage seems just the ticket.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[CrealBilly]

Yeah, well this won't ever get used when my wife is along... Nope, not gonna happen. Another of my hobbies is birding, and having recently retired I anticipate having plenty of time for some birding trips, maybe a week at a time. When the location is interesting, my wife will go along and we'll call it a "vacation", and stay someplace with full facilities. But I can justify to myself a lot more of the solo jaunts if I don't have to stay at a hotel, and have the ability to cook most meals for myself. My younger self was happy tent camping, but I've gotten spoiled over the years and would like, at least, a mattress and pillow.

Something light that I can pull behind even a small car without significantly affecting the gas mileage seems just the ticket.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I like the looks of it - you could think of it as a mini portable base camp couldn't you?

 

[dwminnich]

I like the looks of it - you could think of it as a mini portable base camp couldn't you?

Yeah. And with this particular version, you could use it as a portable bird blind... Put a camping chair in there and observe through the upper windows.

This is just one example of some really cool trailers folks have built, and I can come up with some possible ways to rig the pop up, but anything I do has to be useable by one person.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Jeff]

I like the looks of it - you could think of it as a mini portable base camp couldn't you?

Here's a slightly different take on the idea that'll guarantee good gas mileage. Some will way that's for the birds!

http://www.riverearth.com/news/unc-tv-and-our-state-mule-rider-program

http://video.unctv.org/video/2365088766/