Teardrop: Set a Test Drive Date
With the wiring and painting done, we were close enough to a test drive that I set a deadline of August 30, 2020. We still had to skin it, trim it, and seal it before I could take it for a drive, but I felt we were close enough that this was a realistic deadline without killing myself or my helper, and… I always find that I achieve more if I have a schedule set in my mind.
At this point, the test drive was just that. To make sure that it would pull without skewing one way or the other, or that it wouldn’t fall apart at the first sign of a pot hole.
I have to admit, skinning the exterior was both exciting and scary at the same time. Exciting because it was mostly repetitive work and it started to look great. Exactly as I’d imagined in my mind. Scary, because of the proximity of the screws holding the aluminium on to some of the wiring. If I were to do this again, I’d have planned the wiring a little better with a view to where there were going to be screws holding the exterior and interior.
Installation of the Galley Cabinetry Doors
So, I thought I’d start with something a little easier. putting the doors in the galley. I used two ‘U’ shaped aluminium channels, 1/4″ wide since the door were going to be made of 1/8″ plywood. They could slide by each other when complete and could be easily locked into place by using a dowel through the overlap, or the same kind of lock that you see on glass cases.
The top channel was glued into place whilst the bottom had to have screw holes countersunk so the doors wouldn’t stick on them when running over the screw heads. This way, if I needed to, I could remove the doors by unscrewing the bottom channel. The pictures detail the process and what the final product looks like.
Covering the Black-Spash and Counter Top
At this point I also covered the back-splash with Formica as well as the top counter. The fuse panel door is held in place with four rare-earth magnets instead of the hinge that I used before. this give greater access to the area when necessary and eliminated the need for accuracy in putting the Formica on the door as well.
Trimming the Door Frames
Next was the door trim. I sealed all the exposed wood with several coats of epoxy. I used the West system, which is widely used in boat building. It’s more expensive than polyester resin, but it has the advantage of better wear and tear and virtually no smell, whereas you’ll get high on the fumes of the polyester resin if you don’t take precautions for ventilation.
The door frames are trimmed in the same ‘L’ shaped aluminium trim used on the rest of the trailer. First it’s ‘coerced’ into the correct shape using a rubber mallet and a series — read LOTS — of clamps. Then, it’s removed, glue is applied and screwed in with countersunk screws. The result if a fantastic finish, inside and out.
Skinning the Exterior
At this point I’m ready to install the roof. Examining the insulation, it was proud of the frame so instead of hoping that the screws would compress it to shape, I decided to sand it with my belt-sander. It was a messy job, but I’m glad that I did it. First I cut the wiring access panel hole in the roof sheeting at the back and test fit it.
Then starting at the front, my helper and I put the sheeting on using the screws to bend it to shape to ensure that it was flat against the frame. This was no easy chore. I used 0.064″ 5250 aluminium (about 1/16″) for all the exterior sheeting with the exception of the hatch. This weight and alloy of aluminium will provide good protection from the elements. Butyl was used on all the joints as well as sealing with silicone caulking.
The hatch was sheeted in 0.034″ 3003 H14 (about 1/32″) because the 5250 was just too rigid to take the curves and I was less concerned about stone chips and such.
In all cases, the sheeting extended past the walls so it could be routered flush with the walls prior to being trimmed with the same ‘L’ trim.
How to trim the hatch became an interested question since there’s no frame beneath the lip of the hatch. I opted to use leather working rivets and made a trial sample that you can see in the photos. These rivets come in a variety of lengths and I used the shortest possible, which as luck would have it, worked perfectly as you can see.
With the exterior sheeting complete, I installed the galley gasket, fan and skylight. Now we’re ready for a test drive!
