Trailer Build - Project Start - October 9, 2016

*THIS BUILD IS IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, SO UPDATES ARE AT THE BOTTOM UNDER OLDER POSTS!*

I am venturing into a teardrop trailer build this winter and decided to share my build progression with others.  I pulled all my ideas for the chassis, body style, materials and accessories from the web, along with helpful advise and tips from other builders.  I appreciated all the info and advise from other peoples posts that I wanted to do the same in the hope that my build will help some other trailer build adventurist along the way.

By no means am I a professional at this kind of stuff, and only dabble in home improvement from time to time; but I do have an attitude that if I am going to build something on my own, the end product cant look like it was home made.

Price tags for off road teardrops can range from $10K, pretty basic to $30+K fully loaded with roof top tents, etc.  I did a rough estimate on my anticipated project cost with most bells and whistles except the roof top tent and figure it will cost me approx $6,500.  My goal is to get the trailer road and camp worthy for about $3,500 to $4K and add some of the luxury creature comforts later.  The build will be wired and structurally outfitted to receive the add-ons but the bulk of the costs will surround the chassis, suspension, wheels & tires and doors/windows.


Below are 2 photographs of the completed trailer on our first outing to Taylor Falls, MN on the St. Croix River, August 2017.  It towed great at 75 MPH and even got a few inquiries and thumbs-up along the way.

Completed Trailer - Drivers Side

Completed Trailer - Passenger Side

I modeled my build around the Oregon Trail'R due to the fact I liked the rugged look and did not have the complex compound radii on the back hatch as other teardrops do.  This is where I recognize my skill set limitations and went with an easier shape, while maintaining most curves in the profile.  I did not have access to one of their trailers to get dimensions, so I proportioned many of the features I liked off this photograph.  I have very limited CADD skills so I plugged what I could into a drawing and came up with this:

Oregon Trail'R Model Used

Oregon only makes 8 ft long trailers and I am 6'-1" so I'm making the trailer 5 ft wide X 9 ft long and will actually fit a true queen size mattress.  I will be building the trailer out of my garage in which I have heat which will come in handy in a couple months.  One suggestion I got from the web is to build a rolling workbench to help with the build and assembly, Cost $80.  Since my workshop is in my basement, I figured this would be a good idea since most of my tools would be moved into the garage.

Project Work Bench

I purchased the chassis steel pre-cut for the base frame yesterday, I did not purchase the tongue steel as I wanted to make sure I was ordering the correct length with proper angle cuts.  The frame steel you see in the picture below is 2 x 2 x 3/16th square tube, Cost $180.  I considered 2 X 3 framing material but I am weight conscious and the 2 X 2 saved 40 lbs.   I also purchased 3 collared receiver hitch tubes, 24" long at a K-Bid auction for $27.  One will be used as part of the tongue for an interchangeable hitch arrangement, the other for the rear to carry a receiver mounted bicycle rack.

Frame Steel

I beveled all the tubing ends with a grinder so I was assured I could get a full penetration weld throughout for the off road stress introduced to the frame. (tack welded for initial assembly).

Tack Weld Joints

Other advice I got online was to make sure the frame is completely level for welding, don't lay on the garage floor as that surface is most likely uneven.  I used jack stands to support the work while I squared up and leveled the outside frame rails.

Exterior Frame Assembly

That's it for today.

Trailer Build - Week One - October 16, 2016

I got the cross frames installed and all welded up this week.  Once the welding was completed on the side to receive the plywood deck, I ground the welds flush with the square tubing so the plywood would sit completely level with the frame when I get to that stage of the build.

 I flipped the frame over and finished some cleanup welds and installed a receiver hitch to the back end of the trailer frame so a receiver hitch styled bike rack can be attached.  The 24 inch long receivers I purchased were not long enough to be carried by 2 frame members and accommodate the 9-1/2 inch projection I needed, so I cut 10 inches off one of the spares and butt welded them together.  I projected the receiver out 9-1/2 inches beyond the frame as the back of the trailer has a 9 inch radii that begins at the end of the trailer frame; this way the hitch will be almost flush with the back of the camper once its finished. I also beveled the receiver on the leading edge to prevent it from getting hung-up on rocks when we take it off road; still need to box in the end.  I doubt hangups will happen since I will have almost 20 inches of ground clearance per my design, but its easier to do it now rather than later!

I also added some fold up leveling leg frame supports to the back end of the trailer from some scrap plate I was able to get my hands on.  The stuff was pretty rusty but with a little grinder and twisted wire brush time on a disc grinder, it cleaned up decently.

I got the dimensions for the telescoping leveling legs from the supplier on-line so I could make the support plates in advance of the legs arriving.  It was difficult to find fold-up legs that could accommodate 20+ inches of ground clearance; I found some that had 23 inch extension, so I may need to carry some blocking for the real uneven ground.  I will give you a better idea what I am talking about once the legs arrive and I get them installed.

I will post more after this weekends installation of the A-frame tongue assembly.

Trailer Build - Week Two - October 23, 2016

I purchased 2.5 X 2.5 X 3/16 steel for the A-frame tongue.  I figured a larger section for the tongue would be prudent since it will see the brunt of the loading from the trailer when taking it off-road.  In addition, the receiver hitch that I am using to have interchangeable connection options is made from 2.5 X 2.5 square tubing so there will be no offset of steel members at the receivers end.

I got the best deal on stock lengths of 2.5 X 2.5, 8 ft long without the bevel cuts; and no supplier wanted to take on the 158 degree cut.  I laid the steel out on the base frame and rested the tongue on jack stands, aligned and marked the pieces, measuring multiple times.  I was impressed at how well the metal cutting wheel cut through the 3/16" steel, only took 2 discs for all 4 cuts.

Below are the angle cuts I manged to get with the cutting wheel.

Things were not perfect with the cuts once I laid out everything out, but not too bad; a little fillet welding and all is good!

To assure everything was square to the world with the tongue, I contemplated purchasing another 2x2 piece of square tubing to run between the receiver hitch at the back and the tongue, but I didn't want to purchase a 13 ft long piece that I had no further use for in the project, so I borrowed a laser level from my neighbor which worked perfectly.

Once everything was tacked together and measured from tip to each rear corner (1/16" off), I welded the balance of the A-frame together.

The leveling legs I ordered came in on Saturday so I got those installed along with the angle tabs that will be used to hold the plywood deck to the frame.

A lot of people were attaching the plywood flooring directly thru into the tube steel members which leaves little opportunity to remove the camper from the frame if the need ever arises.  With the tabs in place, threaded t-washers can be used in the plywood flooring to bolt the floor to the frame and can be removed by undoing the bolts from underneath.  I will show more on this once I start building the trailer house.

I have a small set back on the build as the Timbren suspension I ordered, which should have been here this week, will not be showing up now until early November.  Below is a picture of what I will be installing when it arrives.  It is a completely independent suspension with no axle and is suppose to be a great setup for off road. This model has longer spindles to accommodate larger off road tires.  It costs more than a torsion axle but I think its worth the extra $$.

http://timbren.com/products-page/1-ton/asr1thds02/

So while I wait for the suspension to arrive, I will box in some of the frame ends and cleanup some welds; until then!!!!!!

Trailer Build - Week Three - October 30, 2016

I got around to cleaning up may things over the week and weekend along with a surprise of the suspension being delivered Friday evening, so I got after it on Saturday.

Receiver Hitch Back-end Boxed-in 

Trailer Tongue Ends Boxed-in

So when I started building the frame, I had not decided on what type of suspension to purchase.  I did not want a leaf spring setup as the main axle hangs too low and impacts from potholes transfer to the other wheel and makes for a rougher ride on the trailer.  I looked at torsion axles but if the torsion springs ever wear out, you have to replace the entire axle so I went with the Timbren axle-less suspension.  I figured there would probably be a conflict in which the bolt holes landed on one of the x-frames.  I moved the axle center-line 3.75 inches closer to the tongue to avoid the conflict, and since the bulk of the suspension weight is towards the front, I figured I would not be ass-heavy.

Cross Frame Conflict with Bolt Side Bolt Holes

3.75 Inch Re-position of  Axle Centerline

To make sure I did not have any conflicts with doors or fenders, I re-laid out the axle and wheel location on the CADD drawing and all is good.

Original Axle Location

New Timbren Axle Location

I had to grind the x-frame member weld smooth and also needed to take a little material from the x-member because I did not weld this particular x-frame member flush with the perimeter frame.

Leveling of x-frame with perimeter frame; took approx 1/32 off the x-frame

You have 2 options with Timbren; add a support plate and bolt through the side frame and up through the support plate or you can bolt through the side of the frame only and run a 2x2 square tube support piece between both suspension units that have built-in sockets to receive the tube (shown below on right) I moved forward with the gusseted plate to keep the clearance as high as possible, plus I have a x-frame within 3 inches of where Timbren wants the added support.  I figure I can always add the support tube later if needed.

Support plate tack welded

Location of receivers for x-member

Support plate welded, ground and drilled

In order to assure everything is perfect so the trailer runs straight and excessive tire wear is limited, the axle centers cannot be off more than 1/8 inch from the center of the tongue.  Since I'm working alone and this measurement is taken multiple times, I tack welded a nail on the center of the tongue receiver so I could re-measure from side to side with ease.

16d nail tack welded to tongue for hooking the tape measure onto the head

I made all measurements from the nail head to the center of the grease zerk centered in the axle.

Left side measured to center of grease zerk

Right side measured to center of grease zerk

I am pleased to say, even after checking these dimensions 10+ times as I initially set the suspension, drilled the holes, bolted it up, taking the suspension on and off several times, it came out perfectly!

All Bolted up and ready to go!

.

As long as the trailer frame is upside down, I added a couple last items before I flip it over.  Installed the hubs, safety chain connection and the tongue jack.

I have been deliberating on the wheel and tire style for awhile now but I finally made my decision now that the axle is installed and am sure which offset I want for the trailer wheels.  Time to order the wheels and tires this week, take the trailer on a test run and clean up the frame for paint.

Trailer Build - Week Four - November 6, 2016

Coming to an end with the metal work, for the most part.  I painted the trailer in the garage with Rust-Oleum primer and gloss black paint.  My original and ultimately the final plan will be to paint the frame with bed-liner.  I will need to do some minor welding to the frame in the future for the fenders and I didn't want to mess with the bed-liner melting off with the localized welding, to include the frame most likely getting a little banged up over the course of the build.  At least I got the metal painted to prevent rust over the build and got paint in the areas getting covered by the cab. 

One word of advise - Making a 5 x 9 trailer adds several more steps and a bit more waste in lumber.  As you can see here, 2 ea. 4x8 sheet needed to be cut into 5 ft lengths to cover the trailer width and for the length.  I joined my trailer floor with biscuits at one of the x-members to provide some support for the joint.

Once the joint was glued and set, I coated the bottom of the cab floor with a roll-on bed liner product to protect the joint and bottom of the trailer from moisture rot; I also covered all 4 edges

.

Once the coating dried, I attached the deck to the frame.  I used T-nuts through the top side of the deck which I recessed approx. 1/16 inch so the deck is flush for whatever finish flooring is.  The T-nuts were aligned with the tabs I previously welded to the frame so I can easily take the cab off the trailer if ever required in the future.

Recess for T-nut

Flush mount to finish deck

Attached to tabs welded to frame

I could not find any veneered plywood sheets, locally, that were 4 x 10 to cover the 9 foot length of the trailer side walls, so I had to splice 1 ft onto the 4 x 8 sheets I purchased.  I started by biscuit jointing the ends together,  The splice will be located in the galley area, which I have an a idea how to cover the the seam.  I was concerned with the strength of the joint so I did some research and decided to fiberglass the joint on both sides.

9 ft plywood board spliced

Prep to route joint

I routed 3/32nd inch out of the surface, 5 inches wide to receive 2 layers of fiberglass and resin.

5 inch wide X 3/32nd deep groove at joint

Glass and Resin in Groove

Bondo Infill Flush

I will repeat this process on the other side of this panel and again for the other wall panel needed to build the trailer box.

I know this process will not work for those who want a wood facade on the exterior, but my plan will have the exterior clad in a mill finish aluminum.  I have read that other people have had some issues with imperfections and seams reflecting through on the aluminum cladding, that's why I am dong this same fiberglass strip on the exterior in hopes the seam will not reflect thru on the aluminum.

As far as addressing the galley area where this seam could be seen, I plan of covering this portion of the wall with another 3/4 inch thick veneered plywood that will be set slightly lower than the hatch profile so the hatch can rest and seal up against this plywood piece,  All is good in theory, I will get into the details of this later on in the build.

Tires and wheels have been ordered and should be here later in the week.  Most of the big $$ have been spent on frame steel, suspension, wheels & tires, doors & windows and the majority of the lumber, (approximately 80% of my budget or $2,700 to date).  I will share my cost spreadsheet later as I get closer to the end, but I will most likely exceed my $3,500 budget.  Biggest bust to budget were the wheels and tires (couldn't help myself).  Looking forward to the getting the cab taking shape.

Until next time!!!!!!!!!!!!