Teardrop Trailer Sides
Making the sides my way
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According to
the plans...
The Kuffel Creek plans build the camper body by starting with
the outer plywood shell, and then build inward. Frame members
are attached to the inside of the plywood shell, and then the
paneling is attached to the framing. Of course, the wiring and
wall insulation have to be secured in place before the paneling
is finally attached to the framing. The flooring material is
also installed inside the cabin after the walls are up. Now,
this is the way a house is built - from the outside inward, and
then finishing with the trim and cabinets and flooring. A house
has more room to move around in, though. The paneling has to be
cut to shape, and then installed, while you are on your hands
and knees. The ceiling is even worse, as you are still on your
hands and knees, but trying to work overhead. |
A
better way
Over 30 years ago I worked at a lumberyard, mainly building
pickup truck toppers. I helped build over 300 wood-framed
toppers, and our methods were much different, simpler and more
efficient. We framed the sides on a big flat table and then
paneled them. Using a router and paneling bit we then cut the
window openings and trimmed the outer edges and curves of the
sides. The roof was made the same way.My method of framing the sides and roof depend on an accurate layout of the side, (as does the method in the plans). I could only get eight foot plywood and not the ten foot plywood suggested in the plans. I was going to design the layout of the sides so there would not be a straight seam in the outer plywood shell, for better strength and stability. Please bear with me a little. |
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Plotting
three lines
I use the trailer floor as my layout and clamping/gluing jig,
and general workbench. It will clean up easily enough, when it
is time to lay down the flooring. In making the sides I did use
a separate sheet of plywood which was laid on top of the trailer
floor.I laid out the top curve for one side, following the plans, as much as would fit on one sheet of plywood, starting from the front. When I finally produced a "fair curve" through the plotted points, I'd hunker down low and sight along the line to see how it looked, making sure that there were no sudden little dips or bumps in the curve along its length. When I was satisfied with my curve, I marked it in with a black fine point Sharpie® permanent marker. Now it was fussy time. My roof was going to be 1 1/2" thick including the thickness of the paneling I used (3/16"). The curved top limb of my interior side panel frames was going to be 7/8" thick. I plotted and marked a second curve 1 1/2" inside my first curve. I then plotted and marked a third curve 7/8" inside the second curve. In round numbers this top curve representing the outer surface of the trailer is a line a little less than ten feet long. If Mr. Hauser planned this, my hat is off to him for his foresight! This dimension proved to be very convenient for me in later stages! The third curve I plotted is a guide for the gluing and clamping blocks I will use for making a laminated curved top limb for the sides. The gluing blocks were tacked and glued in place every few inches along the third curve. I used a polyurethane glue (a common brand name is Gorilla Glue™ but there are others, also) to secure these blocks in place. |
 the clamping blocks follow the third curve, 7/8" inside the second curve the blocks are 1 1/2" tall |
| The top limb is laminated in order to
form the top curve without using steaming equipment. I used a
bandsaw to slice select clear pine into strips about 3/16" thick
and 1 3/16" wide. You will want to pick and choose the nicest
boards you can find for this. I used standard 3/4" thick lumber,
and ripped the boards to 1 3/16" wide and cut them to 11 feet
long. My bandsaw is pretty decent and I can make rip fence cuts
with it, so I could rip two cuts to make three pieces about
3/16" thick from each 1 3/16" wide board. This is not terribly
critical, as you will be using four strips glued together to
make a single curved piece, at least 3/4" thick or slightly
thicker. I allowed for a thickness of 7/8" when I laid out the
third curve. I laid out blue painter's masking tape on my gluing jig, so I would not glue my handiwork to it. I did a dry-run rehearsal of my moves, so there would not be so many surprises during the real thing. By this, I mean that I took a bundle of four strips taped together in three places and wrapped the bundle around the curve, clamping the bundle to the clamping blocks. I could then see how the bundle of wood acts, and how to handle it without breaking it or having it fly apart. Polyurethane glue is a wonderful invention and is the perfect glue for this project. It needs moisture in the wood, in order to work. It reacts with the moisture to foam slightly and expand wonderfully to fill in the odd little irregularities in the wood surfaces. This is a perfect glue for bandsawed surfaces. The glue joint is very strong and is highly moisture resistant when it sets up. |
 blue
painter's tape is applied to the table surface and the face of
the clamping blocks, to prevent the glued limb from becoming
glued to the table or the blocks
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| I gathered up my materials - wet sponge,
pan of water to re-moisten the sponge as needed, more blue tape
to temporarily hold my bundle of strips together, every clamp I
could find or borrow, my glue and a spatula to spread it evenly,
and some acetone for later cleanup of my hands. I'm also
recognizing my inner klutz by wearing coveralls to keep the glue
off of my clothing. Moisten strip #1 on one side and then run a bead of glue the full length of the moistened side. Spread the glue in an even layer the full width of the strip, and set the strip aside. Moisten both sides of strip #2, spread glue on one side of this strip the same manner as the first strip. Lay strip #2 on top of strip #1. Prepare strip #3 the same as strip #2 and then lay it on top of strip #2. Moisten strip #4 the same as strip #1 but do not apply any glue to it and then lay it on top of strip #3, the moistened side to the glue. Using the blue tape, I strapped the bundle together in three places, to keep it orderly as I wrap and clamp it around the curved gluing jig. I started clamping from the middle of the jig towards both ends, always checking the bundle to make sure it was bending nicely and conforming to the shape of the jig, with no voids or gaps between layers. The curved limb was ready to remove from the clamps the next day. I made both limbs before framing the sides. It was a simple matter to knock off the gluing blocks from my jig (the plywood sheet) and clean up the surface of the plywood. When released from the clamps, the limb will spring back a little bit, but that is okay. Clean off the extruded glue with plane, chisel or knife, being careful not to nick the wood or reduce the width of the limb. A trace of glue residue is fine. I drew a layout of the framework for the sides, directly on the sheet of plywood. This way I can see where the door will be, and where the seam will be for the paneling joint. There will also be framework to fasten the jog in the outer plywood shell, and this will be easier to visualize when working directly upon an 8 foot sheet of plywood. |
 the laminated curved top limb is glued up and clamped to the jig this limb will not be trimmed to length until the framework for the trailer side is made |
| I assembled the frame using screws and
polyurethane glue. I made sure the contour of the frame
matched line #2. Again, the framework is made from
split 2x4s, chosen for best quality. The next stage was to glue and nail the paneling to the frame. I used yellow carpenter's glue for this stage. Any excess glue can and must be cleaned up promptly and thoroughly with a damp rag. It is very important to get the paneling really clean, so it will stain evenly. The outer hardwood veneer is very thin, so any sanding must be done with a very light touch! I used regular (colored) paneling nails instead of a nail gun for this work. This is not a high speed production job. After the paneling is fastened down I used a router with a spiral paneling cutter to cut the door opening and trim the paneling around the outside edges. This cutter is a pretty neat deal. It is carbide, so it will stay razor sharp. The spiral is designed to make a downward slicing cut, so the cut edge is flawless with no splinters. The router bit has a "safe edge" on the end, so it guides from the framework under the paneling. If you are careful and make a target close to the edge of the door opening, the cut-out piece will work just fine for your door when you make it. Inside the door opening, move your router clockwise around the framed opening, and the bit will hug the inside edge nicely. When trimming the outside edge, move your router around the frame in a counter-clockwise direction. Again, the bit will hug the outer edge of the frame. The next day, inspect your sides and tidy them up as you see fit, then stain and varnish them with the finishes of your choice. My wife, Micky, used oil base stain and water soluble clear poly the next day on top of the stain. She used three coats of poly, sanding lightly between coats. |
 this is what the framework for the side looks like when erected on the trailer floor - the roof has been wrapped around the sides, in this picture - that will actually come later in the project, but you can see how the parts will relate to each other here  Micky holding one of the sides she has stained and finished |
first page the frame the floor the sides plywood sides the roof the flooring the shell wiring and insulation sheet metal molding hatch lid doors fenders light fixtures cabin cabinets solar panel tanks galley other stuff some lessons learned some sources