Teardrop Camper Layout Design

[motas]

pentagon with one section taken out

yes nasty connotations that

but good coverage, very quick to set up, robust design

Good coverage except over the kitchen where it is needed the most

I am quite liking this new layout though. Added the bed base and double drop down tables, so one door is still usable. With adjustable hinges the tables turn into a single bed. The main bed base lifts up for storage access.

I'd like to reverse the whole thing again for aesthetics. But everything substantial is in front of the wheels at the moment so it might mess with the weight distribution a bit. Putting the spare tyre, gas and water on the A frame might even it up enough. Unfortunately the wheels are stuck between the two doors, and I can't make the body shorter either.



Alternatively I could chop the back off, put the door on the back and have the shortest camper ever:

 

[Daz7]

My design thought process was to have instant access to a made up bed, instant access to fridge/food storage and food prep without having a table (side of the road lunches or overnight stops) and as much storage as possible in the camper shell. Then, extending that space with a 270deg awning and adding walls to that awning for longer stays/inclement weather. So if the weather got bad you could put one of the off the shelf walls on the awning around the back of the camper and enclose the kitchen for instance.

On all of these types of campers there are compromises. I listed the 'need to haves' then the nice to haves and went from there because we all want something different. I'd also suggest doing a mockup in ply too, its cheap and there's nothing like seeing the design in the flesh before you commit to composite construction.

As they also say racing (or in this case camping) improves the breed, I know my next camper will be better than the one I'm currently building. Oh, that flat section at the front of the camper box in your design is space wasted, whats the thought about using that area?

From my build I'm seeing that you can be quite fluid with design and weight distribution, need some more tongue weight, add it with a battery or a water tank, loads of options.

 

[billiebob]

I'd also suggest doing a mockup in ply

I started with this, the mock up is now the finished product.

 

[motas]

My design thought process was to have instant access to a made up bed, instant access to fridge/food storage and food prep without having a table (side of the road lunches or overnight stops) and as much storage as possible in the camper shell. Then, extending that space with a 270deg awning and adding walls to that awning for longer stays/inclement weather. So if the weather got bad you could put one of the off the shelf walls on the awning around the back of the camper and enclose the kitchen for instance.

On all of these types of campers there are compromises. I listed the 'need to haves' then the nice to haves and went from there because we all want something different. I'd also suggest doing a mockup in ply too, its cheap and there's nothing like seeing the design in the flesh before you commit to composite construction.

As they also say racing (or in this case camping) improves the breed, I know my next camper will be better than the one I'm currently building. Oh, that flat section at the front of the camper box in your design is space wasted, whats the thought about using that area?

From my build I'm seeing that you can be quite fluid with design and weight distribution, need some more tongue weight, add it with a battery or a water tank, loads of options.

Cool trailer you're building. How much did you pay for the military trailer? I wouldn't mind getting one but the ones I've seen are so expensive compared to the US ones.

You make a good point, and I think the priorities for me are:

• Instant bed
• Instant fridge and kitchen
• Close to instant shelter
• Small size

My nice to haves are:

• Somewhere to sit and eat
• No canvas

Storage probably isn't as important to me, because we will have a decent sized car as well. Some storage for clothes and cooking stuff would be most of what would go in there. All our outdoor gear will go in the car so we can pack appropriately for the trip we are going on.

As for storage at the front, I'm just thinking an A frame storage box and maybe putting the spare tyre there. Nothing exciting and it's just easier to keep it hidden in CAD. Something like this:

 

[motas]

Just for interest I drew up the mini camper concept. This has a body length of only 2m, although that could be less especially with smaller wheels. It still has room for the Dometic kitchen, a drawer fridge and a queen bed. The A frame is a step to comfortably get in and out. A 270 degree awning mounted to the front would cover the door and kitchen. There is internal storage shelves behind the bed, and some outdoor storage beneath the bed. It is still a tiny bit wider than a Jeep, but should match the height.

I actually kind of like it, especially as a tiny, and cheap minimalist introduction to teardrop campers.

 

[john61ct]

The doors on each side should be placed so no squatting/kneeling's needed, just sit up unlatch, swing the legs rotating the butt and stand up.

Everything else is optional but not that, until you get to a much bigger size.

 

[motas]

The doors on each side should be placed so no squatting/kneeling's needed, just sit up unlatch, swing the legs rotating the butt and stand up.

Everything else is optional but not that, until you get to a much bigger size.

Having a door straight to the bed would actually make the layout a bit easier, and save some length, but it would mean the door is very high if it has ~33" tyres, would definitely need some variety of fold down step, preferably right where the wheel is.

Maybe something like this:


Or a custom shaped door which brings the length down to 2.4m (8ft).


The mini one is already straight onto the bed from the A frame.

 

[Teardropper]

We keep a fitted sheet on our queen-sized mattress. It's an easy strip and replacement with the two of us working from both sides.

I'm wondering how you will do it with a rear door or just one door? Maybe this shouldn't be a consideration, but it's a thought.

Tony

 

[motas]

We keep a fitted sheet on our queen-sized mattress. It's an easy strip and replacement with the two of us working from both sides.

I'm wondering how you will do it with a rear door or just one door? Maybe this shouldn't be a consideration, but it's a thought.

Tony

There are two doors on the larger one, just from head to toe on the rather than side to side. I think I've switched to this on the little one too.

We do the same in the swag though mostly from a single door with one person and it's not terribly hard to do, just have to crawl around a bit. It's easier with a lighter mattress too because we can bend the corners up while sitting on it.