So, This is Long Overdue

 By: Ryan

     In the weeks leading up to our departure date our primary concern was getting everything prepared to go, not the least of which was a hectic final push on getting the camper ready for the road. The busy and chaotic preparations left precious little time for blogging, so the second half of the build is missing from the blog.  Now that our journey has passed the half way mark and the little trailer has about 6,000 miles on her, it is long past time to run down how she got on the road in the first place. For the sake of simplicity, I will let the pictures do the majority of the talking. Also due to the harried pace of the end of the build, there are some things that I simply neglected to document.

Third time's a charm.  After buying custom cut mangled aluminum from a local metal shop and rejecting the first shipment from an online metal supplier (also mangled), this well packaged shipment looks good enough.

This picture shows the sub skin on the front end of the camper ready for the aluminum skin. The aluminum stock is laid out on the bench.

The galley hinge has been siliconed and tacked down to the roof .  A bead of silicone has been smoothed along the seam and a bead of construction adhesive has been laid down just ahead of it.

A bead of construction adhesive is smoothed along each of the framing spars (every 6-8").  

Working from aft forward, the skin is smoothed down onto the glue and tacked down every 3" along it's edges.

The top is weighted down with water bottles and the middle of the front clamped while the glue dries for 24 hours.

Now that the roof is tacked down and the glue has had a chance to set, it's time to skin the hatch.  Here the skin is taped into position so that I can hold it in the right place and still get under the leading edge to put down glue and silicone.

The hinge has been tacked down to the top hatch spar and the leading edge of the skin lifted and ready for silicone and glue.

The leading edge is pressed down and screwed to the hatch spar through the hinge.  You can see the silicone squeezing out.  It will be cut and peeled off (as much as possible) after it dries.

     At this point I feel obligated to warn anyone who my have happened upon this blog and is looking for pointers on their own teardrop build.  This is how I built my galley hatch, but I would not suggest anyone copy this method.  My hatch has been leaking around the ends of the hinge.  I did a bit of a  band aid repair when we were in San Diego to try to mitigate the damage.  It does help, but heavy rain is still a problem.  When we settle back into our regular lives at home, I will have to come up with a more permanent and effective solution.

Because there is nothing to tack it down to around the edges (the hatch sub skin is only 1/4" thick), the hatch skin must be glued and clamped all along the edges.

The sheet aluminum is finally on the camper.  Exhale.

Next is the strapping process.  Here the straps are cut to length, drilled and cleaned of scuffs and burrs.

This picture shows the neoprene weather seal that has been applied to the top edge of the side trim and the butyl tape applied to the edge of the aluminum, covering the nails where it is tacked down.  

The strap is bent around the edge and screwed into place.  Again, working back to front, the screws are dipped in silicone and driven 2 x 2.  Once both sides are applied, a strap is cut to fit crosswise at the bottom front of the camper.  When the fit is good it, too is screwed into place.

Roof straps are done.

     Ok, so here is one of those places where I sort of forgot to take pictures.  Strapping the galley hatch is a bit different. There is only one line of screws instead of the pairs that you see along the roof because the strap is going to close against the neoprene seal, not attach to it.  Also, because the sub skin is only 1/4" thick you have to use these things called t-nuts which are a machine screw on the outside and a threaded insert on the inside.  At any rate, the idea is the same:  butyl tape between the strap and the sheet aluminum, and compress the trim seal with the outer edge of the strap.  Again, once the edge straps are in place, one is cut and installed to finish off the bottom edge of the hatch.

Galley hatch strapped.

This picture shows the fan hole cut flush to the framing, the fan wired, and screw holes drilled.  Butyl tape is applied and the fan is screwed down.

   Now that the roof and hatch are all skinned and strapped,  we are ready to finish up the electrical system.  A pair of 20W solar panels will be mounted on the roof and a battery box containing the solar charge regulator and deep cycle battery will be installed in the tongue basket. Once again, I called on my brother-in-law, Sam to oversee the installation.

This picture shows the camper outfitted with the solar panels, battery and cooler.  

     From start to finish, Sam has been the "Little Trailer Project's" electrical engineer.  I have done my best to follow all his advise whether I understood it or not, and after living in the trailer for awhile I can say that everything is working beautifully.  We do find ourselves in campgrounds with electrical hookups from time to time, which is nice  for using the 120v plugs, but we really don't need them.  The solar panels have been plenty to keep the battery topped up.  We are able to use the porch lights as  needed, run the vent fan, sometimes all night, use the interior lights, and charge the phones while we sleep, all without draining the battery more than a couple hours sun will take care of.  It really has turned out to be a pretty sweet and convenient little system.  Thanks again, Sam, for all the help.

   At this point in the build, I was glad to be done with the projects that I was less sure about, and to be able to focus on the parts that were more familiar to me.  All that was left to build was the galley and the doors for the cabinets in the sleeping cabin.  Time was getting pretty short, but at least now I could see my way through to the end.

This is the basic puzzle; stovetop, electrical box, and sink have to fit in the galley base cabinets.  These three components pretty much define the size and shape of the galley.  Everything else will have to fit in the space that remains.

The base cabinet partitions, drawers, and pullout cooktop are in.  The bump out below the top drawers is necessary to gain enough depth for the cooktop.

Cutting the sink hole.

Here the galley upper cabinet is ready to have the face frame applied.

The cabinets are in. Now they need doors and drawer faces.

     This is one of those times when I forgot to take pictures, so the transition here will be a bit abrupt.  I do have pictures of making the doors for the sleeping cabin, so I'll put those in here.  I used sapele panels and white oak frames for the galley doors and drawer faces and maple for the doors in the sleeping cabin.  The process was the same for both sets of doors.  Both have book matched panels made from a single board and are built using frame and panel construction.

Rough lengths are cut and the boards are split across their width.

A set of book matched panels.

Book matching means that the board has been opened like a book revealing a mirror image grain.

Panels with frame parts.

Glued up.

Sanded, ready to be trimmed to fit, finished, and hung.

Over foot cabinet doors installed.

Over head cabinet doors installed.

The galley all done and outfitted.

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     One thing remains before we can close the book on the trailer build.  She needs a name.  You may be able to make out "Claudine" on the bottom rear corner. Claudine was my grandmother's name, I had mentioned to Kat that I wanted to name the trailer after her, and she had the emblems made up for me for Father's Day.  Despite the fact that Nanny never cared for the name, I always liked it and she was the the only Claudine I ever knew.  

     There are a few reasons I wanted to name my little trailer after Nanny.  She and Papa really enjoyed their lives together, and that is how I try to remember her.  Late in her life,  it was difficult for her to find pleasure in her own life, but she always delighted in hearing about mine.  If we talked about my work, she would always want to know the details of what we were building.  If we talked about a recent vacation, she'd want to hear about who we spent it with.  She was always focused on what I was doing and who I shared those experiences with.  I know that she missed me a lot after I moved away because she told me as much, but she always added that it made her happy to know that I was living a life that I enjoyed. She would never have wanted to do a trip like the one we are doing now.  She made long trips when she felt it was important, like a family reunion or my college graduation. Sometimes these trips would require a bit of "apple juice" at a rest stop. Nanny was a worrier and she would have agonized over the prospect of my little family living on the road, but I know she would be glad we were doing it. "Claudine" is a reminder to do what is important to you while you can.

     If anyone out there is wondering how it is that a teacher and a cabinet maker can afford to do a trip like this, the answer is that we can't. When Nanny died, she left me some money. When considering what to do with it, my dad had suggested taking a special trip that we might not otherwise do. It had been a dream of Kat and mine for some time to do a trip like this together with the girls. I know Nanny would love to know that she was helping to make this dream a reality and to make the experiences we are sharing into lifelong memories.

    The last reason is one of aesthetics. Nanny was, in her time,a classic beauty. I tried to design my teardrop in a way that recalls that era. Thank you Nanny, for everything. As we travel,we will carry you not only in name, but also in spirit.