Metzican's Dream off-road Teardrop Trailer

[metzican]

So today I got wood!!!! LOL

I picked up 16 sheets of plywood for my trailer it was quite the bill. I kinda expected it having to get 4'x8'. I also sprayed down my storage unit as it is quite the spider haven and I want it remotely spider free when I start working. Does not need to be perfect. I sprayed it down enough that it was like getting peppered sprayed. I could not breath, noise was running non stop. So I forgot to take a picture. I did see a bunch of random spider but 1 brown recluse it was hanging out on the back of the roll up door!!!

Oh and another thing. I am going to have to switch my walls ceiling to have 1/4" outside and inside. The only 1/8" I could of gotten is very cheap Asian ply will gaps all within it. I am currently designing a scarf joint jig to use with my circular saw. Ohh and the fun begins.

 

[metzican]

So I just stopped by my welders the frame is completely mocked up with spot welded and squared up. He should have it done with axle mount by the end of the day. Tomorrow morning I will be gong there to talk over the fender design and spare mount!!! and at the end of the day pick it up and start priming it and painting it this weekend so when I go offshore it will not rust up.

 

[J Everett]

Sweet!

 

[metzican]

So today I got this in the mail, This will help me out will all those small little angles you can't figure out.

So I went and picked up this trailer. I have to same damn. I payed cash and can't disclose anything about that. Lets just say I have not carried that much cash on me since I use to buy QP's.

Here it is overall, I'm going to Clean with soap and water, Sand, Clean with alcohol then prime it tonight/tomorrow. Before I have to leave it for two weeks and the rust builds up more.

So here is the back corner. You can see the rear receiver and the corner jack mount to level/repairs if needed.

Picture of the fender

There not line up in the pictures but the fenders are bolted on this way they can be removed while I build the body. Also the fender piece slides below so the fenders slide in and out they don't lift directly out. Also you can see the nice fill work on the ends to make everything appear smooth.

How the tongue works. This thing is beefy no issue here.

The tabs mounted all the way around to mount the floor frame to this way I don't need to drill into the tubing witch is sealed.

What it looks like in the storage unit. The plywood behind it and a pallet of some stuff under. Tight working area but it will work and be fun. I have about 6" front to back space.

 

[jmnielsen]

Looks great!

 

[Pro-2X]

2nd that.
Sent from my Lumia 1520 using Tapatalk

 

[drbandkgb]

Yeah buddy

 

[metzican]

Thanks guys,

So today I woke up early to beat the heat and humidity. So I got the whole trailer cleaned, sanded, then wiped down with alcohol and a good staring coat of primer on it. This evening I will add another as my plans for tomorrow have been changed due to work. I also got the top sides of the fenders cleaned, sanded and primed. Tonight I hope to do the same to the bottom. This way when I return from offshore all I have to do is lightly sand everything and clean it up then paint it.

Getting this storage shelf really did help in cleaning up the storage unit. Defiantly a space saver.

 

[metzican]

So I have 3 coats of primer on the trailer frame and 2 on each side of the fenders. Man this stuff is nasty that i'm using. It burns when you get it on your skin.

You can see that the primer looks smoother and more full cover.

The underside of the fender.

 

[Airmapper]

Very cool, It's coming together nicely. Looks like the fabricator did a good job as well.

 

[metzican]

Very cool, It's coming together nicely. Looks like the fabricator did a good job as well.

Thanks, yes he did. Most of it was my design but he added a few little touches that he has learned over the years with building boat trailers. The tongue design was his with all the extra support and he added a few gussets to strengthen the tongue too. I told him what I wanted for the fenders to be bolted on. He designed it so they can only slide out just in case the bolts loosen up. I also don't think I have ever seen fenders this strong before which is great since the spare will be on one of them. Still need to get a U cradle or L bracket made for the spare which is held in place with a ratchet strap.

 

[Dephep]

Looking great, I like the jack mounts on the corners. Where did you find the long through tongue jack and what are the measurementS of it? Thanks and looking forward to the body build.

 

[metzican]

Looking great, I like the jack mounts on the corners. Where did you find the long through tongue jack and what are the measurementS of it? Thanks and looking forward to the body build.

For the jacks the brand is Bulldog
part number (BULL-158151)

Specs:

• Sidewind Tubular Swivel Jack
• Weld-on tubular mount
• 9/16 in. pin
• 15.0 in. travel
• 14.5 in. retracted
• 29.5 in. extended
• 12.2 in. clearance
• 2,000 lb. lift capacity
• Foot plate included
• Male mating mount included

I got them at http://trailerpartssource.com/Bulldog-158151

It was the cheapest place to buy them, since I got 3 it was free shipping too. I just kept scanning through tongue jacks for a tall longer one with side winding. Make sure you get the side winded one's, top crank will piss you off if its near a body. I also did not want a crazy heavy duty one. I still have to figure out how to mount them when not on the trailer. I saw one build where the guy made extra mounts on the body of his trailer to attach them too.

If anyone else has any questions as where I got something or what it is just ask i'm keeping a pretty detailed list of almost everything.

 

[Dephep]

Thanks buddy, I thought about using the large quick fists to store the Jacks and or levelers.

 

[metzican]

That is a good idea. I might look into that.

 

[Maxterra]

Coming along very nicely. Making me anxious to start one myself.

 

[metzican]

Coming along very nicely. Making me anxious to start one myself.

Just let me finish before you start your awesome design and show me up.

 

[dhyde79]

lookin good man, can't wait to see the progress as it happens!

 

[granitex]

Glad that you ran the receiver the length of the trailer, makes it a whole lot stronger when someone has to hook onto it to pull it , or you pull them out of something.

 

[metzican]

lookin good man, can't wait to see the progress as it happens!

Thanks, I'm going to try to take picture every step of the way but it may be hard with only me doing everything. Progress will be slow the next two months. Only 1 week a month to work on it. In the fall everything will speed up since it will cool down and the work days will get longer.

Glad that you ran the receiver the length of the trailer, makes it a whole lot stronger when someone has to hook onto it to pull it , or you pull them out of something.

The whole point of the rear receiver was for a rear winch/recovery so I figured I make it strong.

 

[Maxterra]

Just let me finish before you start your awesome design and show me up.

Actually will end up very similar to what you have on your frame already. Very well done!

One if my first jobs for several yrs was building semi-trailers, so I have a lot of experience and surplus materials still available to construct the body from an all aluminum riveted design exterior.
That will allow me to lighten up the frame a lot as the shell provides much of the strength and rigidity.
Will be boxier and more squared than the wood or laminates, but I'm ok with that.

Still going to be a spendy project though as you well know. All the little things add up so quickly.

I didn't re-read the entire thread, but did you find wheel adapters for the trailer axle to 6x4.5 Nissan wheels ? Def want common wheels/tires.

 

[brett]

Thanks for taking the time to post all of the photos and for documenting your progress. It's really fun to follow your build.

 

[metzican]

Actually will end up very similar to what you have on your frame already. Very well done!

One if my first jobs for several yrs was building semi-trailers, so I have a lot of experience and surplus materials still available to construct the body from an all aluminum riveted design exterior.
That will allow me to lighten up the frame a lot as the shell provides much of the strength and rigidity.
Will be boxier and more squared than the wood or laminates, but I'm ok with that.

Still going to be a spendy project though as you well know. All the little things add up so quickly.

I didn't re-read the entire thread, but did you find wheel adapters for the trailer axle to 6x4.5 Nissan wheels ? Def want common wheels/tires.

I defiantly looked at doing a full aluminium frame and body beside the inside but I don't have the capability with my current tools to do it easy. The one's I've seen with a rivet design turn out awesome. (a lot of holes to seal though) Thanks for the compliment on the design of the frame it means a lot since I've seen your work. I take great pride in my design work just trying to get my fab work up to the same standards.

For the trailer axle. I went with the common Hub of 6x5.5 then I went with 1.5" wheel adapters to 6x4.5. There are a few sites that sell these adapters, they are lug ?centric? if that matters to you. I calculated the wheel adapters into my axle width so my tires don't stick out to much. When I get a different tow vehicle I will just buy another set of wheel adapters or just buy a new axle that is wider since they are really cheap and I can transfer the brakes over. Would cost about the same to do either one ~100 dollars. I am running the same rims and tires on both the trailer and vehicle. I will have to figure out some weird tire rotation with 6 tires now...

 

[metzican]

Good sealant for running wires through the trailer.

 

[metzican]

Wow what happened to my post yesterday....

Anyways yesterday I did this.

First coat of Paint

Then today I put on the second and third coat. These pictures where after the second coat.

Then tomorrow I will paint the top sides of the fenders and lay down the 1" x 4" foundation. Going to do a lot of measuring and hopefully very few cutting. Making it square and the right size will be my first test.

 

[metzican]

I put the final coats on the other side of the fenders tonight. I also started drilling holes in the trailer to run all the wires.

 

[metzican]

I am so sad I have not worked on this thing for over 2 weeks and it will be another month before I can get back to it. I did though build a scarf joint jig while i was on vacation in wisconsin in my friends garage/wood working shop. To bad the one week I have free this time in will be spent getting the X ready for WENT. hmm oil filter change, need to mount skid plate, evaluate rear diff cover leak, hook up front locker switch, get co2 air, relocate duel battery switch, and get my DVR working again and all my camera's hopefully and hopefully this year I don't crack one on my drive shaft again!!

 

[metzican]

So I realized I did not update any of my drawings I'm going off of. As of right now I have been drilling holes and running wires not to much to take a picture of.

So here is my designs

 

[Airmapper]

What version of AutoCAD is that? R.01? I'm just kidding, that is awesome work with a pencil.

 

[J Everett]

Old School engineering. Me gusta. So, after you finish this one and decide to sell it so you can build a second one with all the improvements you should have done to the first one...dibs.

 

[metzican]

Old School engineering. Me gusta. So, after you finish this one and decide to sell it so you can build a second one with all the improvements you should have done to the first one...dibs.

Get ready to sell your X to pay for it!!!!

 

[J Everett]

Yeah, yeah...

 

[metzican]

Yeah, yeah...

I mean that this thing is only going up and up in price and your X is going down so you might want to sell it now so you can gain some interest back on it!!!

 

[metzican]

I mounted all the running lights today. What a pain in the ass. I also went and picked up all the wiring. Matching color for the 7 pin wiring harness. I also started running all the holders for the wires. Keep in mind this is just for the trailer. Have not touched the wiring for the teardrop itself. I have two amber lights for each side that can be seen from the front and side. I also have 1 red light on the rear for the wide fenders for clearance. Have not decided if I will do two dead center on the back too.

horrible picture

Better picture

 

[metzican]

So I finished up my wiring today of the trailer. Not the body. I did not wire the blinkers or brake lights yet as I still am figuring out how to mount them. I spent a lot of money and time doing it right as far as I see.

These little ****ers are a pain in the ass to tape up correct.

 

[brett]

I've seen a lot of RV frames, you definitely have a heavy duty one. You got a nice job on that one.

In your plans, I noticed that you didn't include a sink/pump, but you have what looks like a water tank. Also, no built in propane stove.
In the teardrop community, this is sometimes a debate about keeping more storage and not wasting the back counter space with items that most of us already own (portable stoves). Most folks that just overnight, or enjoy them on the weekends have the built in units - they are probably not as concerned with long term camping storage.

For me, I wouldn't want the heat or cooking splashes in the back. I'd rather have the stove setup externally. The sink, I'm not sure it would be large enough to be useful - by useful I mean washing dishes. Lots of external alternatives for washing, etc. Especially if you have to heat your water externally - I mean I don't see the feasibility of an on board hot water heater.

I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the stove and sink.... or if you even considered them. Good work so far, enjoying your thread.

 

[metzican]

Thanks on the frame. I designed it so this frame would last a life time and I guarantee I could park my X on it without it giving at all.

Sink: There is no point in having a built in sink. It takes a lot of space. From having on board grey water or having to worry about pluming a hose else wear so you don't make your camp site a swamp. To very little counter space already. Along with this most sinks that are installed are big enough to wash a tea cup. I'm going with the true and tried plastic wash bin. You can carry your wash water to wear you need to dispose of it and only use counter top as needed. I do have a on board water tank and will have a water pump with it. I will just have a detachable spray nozzle for filling pots with water/washing dishes along with this I will have a inline hot water heater that I can also hook up to take showers.

Stove: I like the idea of the built in stove. Most do a counter top stove that is built in. I think this waste a lot of space also. The built in stoves I like are on pull out drawers. As I don't want to invest in designing/building a drawer for this my stove will sit on the counter when traveling. When cooking it will either be used in the back on the counter, side mountable table, or other area like a picnic table away from the trailer.

These are my thoughts and yes I have put a lot of thoughts into this. As I'm planning on living out of this thing for 4+ months in a row.

 

[RATTFINK]

If someone could send me a burnt copy of AUTOCAD, I could draw this up for you in 3D and extract details from it.

Sent from a Galaxy S4
FAR, FAR AWAY!!
Instagram: BriarFiend_rattfink

 

[metzican]

I can do the same. If I wanted to get a copy of any 3D modeling software. I have used 5 different ones over the years. It is just not worth the effort.

 

[J Everett]

Sketchup is free. I use it for small parts pretty often. It's not as powerful as, say, Inventor, but it is pretty useful nonetheless.