What this blog is about

This is where Steve and Chris (feveredSteve and ChessQueen) will share the ups and downs of 2011's fun project: building a teardrop trailer.
We'll try and include all the detail we can, along with photos, so that you will know what worked and what didn't.

Thursday 8 September 2011

Its that 80:20 thing ...

If 80% of the work takes 20% of the time then you can see why its taking us a while to finish the job. Here are some pics showing some of the things done last week and there are a few more to follow.

First picture shows the back view with the number plate section up


Rather than wrestling the fridge out from under the worksurface we now have it on a customised ikea keyboard shelf (an ikeahack).


Then we have some work on the inside. Picture here shows the lights which work off the battery and the cupboard at the front. The shelf lifts up so we'll store the bedding in there during the day and the cushions in there during the night.


While at the foot end of the bed we have the start of the cupboards that will hold clothing etc. Note that its got a pull out tray for the portable DVD, for that home cinema effect!


We are not finished yet.

Of course there are plenty on the tcgb forums who would say that we will never be finished. In fact we have caught an addiction and this will lead to more and more trailer-building. Its not that bad a prospect.

Monday 22 August 2011

Is it ready to camp in ... yes it is!

Well the teardrop was ready to camp in and undeterred by still working on it -4 hours after we were supposed to be setting out we went and pitched the teardop in the dark with an awning that we had never pitched before in an unfamiliar field in North Notts for Wadfest.

We had some _very_ helpful neighbours. Thanks to Jodie, Jordan and Jake for their help. Here are some pics.



It all looks quite sane here but Wadfest is not usually known for sanity.

Chris

Thursday 18 August 2011

Quite a lot of work in quite a short time ...

When it comes to decorating rooms in the house then inviting people to come and visit is a good prompt to progress. When it comes to building a teardrop it seems that having a camping trip planned when you need to use it is an equally good prompt. Not exactly, completely finished, but definitely useable. And fantastic progress in just a couple of weeks.



Really looking forward to using it soon.

Chris

Wednesday 3 August 2011

Teardrop-builders' gift horse or a big hint from on high?

Our house is in the middle of nowhere, but also near to some main roads. Our drive is long and overgrown and not overlooked. This makes it the ideal place for ... fly tippers. Two or three times a year things are dumped and we get the pleasant task or sorting through the mess. As a pair of natural scavengers we occasionally reuse some of the stuff that is dumped, or at least clean it up and send it to a charity shop. Occasionally, but not for a while, the dumping is of a vehicle. Back in May when we had not done ANYTHING on the teardrop since the February pictures (good reasons) we ended up with a caravan dumped.

Now I am sure the neighbours thought that this was a damned nuisance and an eyesore. But of course Steve saw it as another teardrop in the making.

So when we finally cleared some time to start again on the project (last week) he started asset stripping the asset. Here are some pics of that activity in progress.



The alumnimum will be the roof of our Mk#1 trailer, and a few other bits and peices too. As you will see. Because progress is finally being made ...

Chris

Friday 11 February 2011

Rolling along

Sadly, somebody at some point had driven off without lifting the jockey wheel, so the plastic wheel was "proper wrecked" as they say, and wouldn't roll anywhere.


Also, and this is my fault, as the jockey wheel was off the chassis, I didn't check that the little lever that clamps the thing in place was tightened up properly and it shook loose somewhere between Stratford and our house. Learning point there.

Through luck and good scavenging, I already had a nice little wheel with a pneumatic tyre that I found in a skip about a decade ago. It had stayed inflated for a couple of days, so I don't think I need the puncture repair kit just yet.


So, I've joined those together with a random selection of washers and it all turns quite nicely. The wheel has proper bearings and all. I've bent an M12 coach bolt to replace the lever - I've just got to add a "stop" for it to operate the clamp properly (hole, washer, split pin, I think) and we have a nicely rolling chassis.

Saturday 5 February 2011

Starting at the bottom ...

Which in the case of any teardrop trailer is the chassis innit?

We've gone the route of getting a caravan chassis via ebay. A nice specimen currently resides in our yard (which is not the yard in the picture). This is the for sale picture and it looks like this ...



Those that are interested in prices it cost £82 in Jan 2011. We're sure you could find better for less money ... or on the other hand worse for more money. Patience as with anything on eBay helps. But we've waited long enough to get started. Time for ACTION.

The action will of course be all Steve. I will be more of the planning-for-action, writing-about-action girl ;-)

Chris

Starting out

What do you need before you start building your own teardrop? A blog of course. Okay, priorities may be skewed here, but having an online diarry builds the performance pressure. We'll add some links to influences to the sidebar when we have one sorted and supply blow by blow accounts of how our (first?) teardrop gets built.

Will aim to get something up here once a week and if this is not inpirational enough (remember we are beginners at this game) then look at the Teardrop Hall of Fame for inspiration - lots of inspiration.

Not got comments allowed on this blog because we are too busy building the trailer (aren't we). But if you want to talk you'll find us as feveredSteve and ChessQueen in the excellent Teardrop Caravans of Great Britain forums. A fantastic find for any would-be-builders based in the UK.

You're best off asking questions of people in there anyway, because they are the EXPERIENCED guys with fantsastic trailers to prove it.

One day that could be us. Early days yet ...

Chris and Steve