Update on "Toybox" trailer project
- Thread starter barry2952
- Start date
The stark white color's all the way through the panel. The material's about 1/8" thick and super strong. It has a shiny pebble finish, Very scratch resistant. It's used in commercial kitchens.
The tanker started off as a joke and now my wife wants one. I'm thinking something streamlined from the '50s with a shiny stainless tank.
The tanker started off as a joke and now my wife wants one. I'm thinking something streamlined from the '50s with a shiny stainless tank.
4-21-2006
Paneling completed.
After installing the paneling into the rear curved molding a little heat was applied and the molding nicley conformed without any waves.
This material cuts very cleanly and easily.
I'm planning on framing the windows in polished diamond plate aluminum.
Looking back through one of the front access hatches
The base luan paneling will start to go in the lounge tomorrow.
Paneling completed.
After installing the paneling into the rear curved molding a little heat was applied and the molding nicley conformed without any waves.
This material cuts very cleanly and easily.
I'm planning on framing the windows in polished diamond plate aluminum.
Looking back through one of the front access hatches
The base luan paneling will start to go in the lounge tomorrow.
HyeLifeLS
Dedicated LVC Member
That is a great work.. Looks very nice.
4-23-2006
Today the trailer went for a ride. I attached it to the hi-lo fork and pushed it out into the parking lot.
Starting to look finished, but it's not.
Plenty of light in the garage area.
The lights in my shop are off center, on purpose. I turned the trailer around so I could see better to finish polishing.
This picture is to show that the trailer is self-supporting without any lift assist other than the air suspension. FYI, it is 18 feet from the ball to the center of the front axle.
With the air bags emptied the front end will drop to the ground with about 1200 lbs of tongue weight.
With the airbags filled to 80 lbs. I can stand on the tongue and make it drop about a foot. The extra weight is offset by the automatic ride height valves and it will lift the trailer level again with my added weight. (275 lbs). Hop off the tongue and the nose will bounce up about a foot and will immediately return to level. I can adjust the tongue weight infinitely by adjusting the air suspension to match the load, rather than matching the load to the trailer.
Turned nicely without too much tire scuffing. The side-slip bare side treads on the RST tires seems to help the treads break loose in turning.
After spending half a day cleaning the shop we brought the trailer back in, facing the opposite way.
The foam in the front cabin required some serious trimming to fit the arc of the new roof paneling. A 4" cup wire wheel made short work of the foam removal but static electricity made the foam chips stick to everything.
The most flexible material we could find was inexpensive paneling made of high density particle board. Installed groove up it will provide a form and attachment surface for a veneer finish. The center joint was bridged by aluminum strips to ensure a stable joint.
The true curve of the ceiling is now evident.
I started installing some of the 1/4" luan wall paneling and ran out of staples. Time to go home.
Today the trailer went for a ride. I attached it to the hi-lo fork and pushed it out into the parking lot.
Starting to look finished, but it's not.
Plenty of light in the garage area.
The lights in my shop are off center, on purpose. I turned the trailer around so I could see better to finish polishing.
This picture is to show that the trailer is self-supporting without any lift assist other than the air suspension. FYI, it is 18 feet from the ball to the center of the front axle.
With the air bags emptied the front end will drop to the ground with about 1200 lbs of tongue weight.
With the airbags filled to 80 lbs. I can stand on the tongue and make it drop about a foot. The extra weight is offset by the automatic ride height valves and it will lift the trailer level again with my added weight. (275 lbs). Hop off the tongue and the nose will bounce up about a foot and will immediately return to level. I can adjust the tongue weight infinitely by adjusting the air suspension to match the load, rather than matching the load to the trailer.
Turned nicely without too much tire scuffing. The side-slip bare side treads on the RST tires seems to help the treads break loose in turning.
After spending half a day cleaning the shop we brought the trailer back in, facing the opposite way.
The foam in the front cabin required some serious trimming to fit the arc of the new roof paneling. A 4" cup wire wheel made short work of the foam removal but static electricity made the foam chips stick to everything.
The most flexible material we could find was inexpensive paneling made of high density particle board. Installed groove up it will provide a form and attachment surface for a veneer finish. The center joint was bridged by aluminum strips to ensure a stable joint.
The true curve of the ceiling is now evident.
I started installing some of the 1/4" luan wall paneling and ran out of staples. Time to go home.
Frat-man-du
Dedicated LVC Member
Super cool - great work. Kinda like watching a child grow up!
Thans, that's cool.
I've made my final selection for the interior of the cabin. I've decided to go eco friendly and use prefinished bamboo flooring for all of the interior finishes.
The 4" wide planks woud run the width of the cabin, starting at the ceiling of the back wall and running all the way forward following the gentle curve of the ceiling. The sam planking would run in the same direction on the floor.
The floor and ceiling would use vertical cut bamboo that is milled into rectangles and laminated to look like plywood that is all one color and grain direction.
The walls would get horizontally cut bamboo that shows the "knuckle" feature of the material.
It's harder than oak and more dimentionally stable. Quasi-treehugger that I am I feel good that the planks are made of a renewable and plentiful material source.
I've made my final selection for the interior of the cabin. I've decided to go eco friendly and use prefinished bamboo flooring for all of the interior finishes.
The 4" wide planks woud run the width of the cabin, starting at the ceiling of the back wall and running all the way forward following the gentle curve of the ceiling. The sam planking would run in the same direction on the floor.
The floor and ceiling would use vertical cut bamboo that is milled into rectangles and laminated to look like plywood that is all one color and grain direction.
The walls would get horizontally cut bamboo that shows the "knuckle" feature of the material.
It's harder than oak and more dimentionally stable. Quasi-treehugger that I am I feel good that the planks are made of a renewable and plentiful material source.
Normally I don't particularly care for Avacado anything, but this seems to go so well with the bamboo.
The polished aluminum should fit right in.
This Miller lamp has been hanging around my shop for years, looking for a new home
This the table that will be fixed to the floor hatch
The polished aluminum should fit right in.
This Miller lamp has been hanging around my shop for years, looking for a new home
This the table that will be fixed to the floor hatch
5-3-2006 Progress
I hired two artists to aid in finishing this thing off right.
The 55 year old trailer wasn't exactly straight but the new interior material is. The framing you see in the window took about 20 hours for Bill to create. Name every woodworking operation you know of. It was performed on this assembly. The window opening will be a work of art by itself.
BTW, Bill told me it would cost less money if I didn't help.
I hired another artist to replicate the original Royal Spartanette logo, almost twice the original size. Nothing about this project is understated. The logo won't be either. Originally, there was only one logo, on the curb side by the door. An obverse image will go on the street side.
Nick started off by making a template off of some drawings I got off a CD that a gentleman from Germany sells. The template was applied after he thoroughly cleaned the surface with alcohol. He applied the vinyl template and squeegee'd out the air bubbles. He rolled on one coat of "One Coat" white sign paint, let it dry for about 15 minutes and peeled of the resist. He did it while the paint was wet to ensure an undisturbed edge.
He's going to let this dry for 2 days and then apply another resist to roll on red paint, followed two days later by black paint. The lettering will all be done by hand. He told me that people prefer vinyl for modern trailers but he wanted to add some artistry to my project. He said that he had to rejuvinate his brushes because he hadn't used them in a while.
I hired two artists to aid in finishing this thing off right.
The 55 year old trailer wasn't exactly straight but the new interior material is. The framing you see in the window took about 20 hours for Bill to create. Name every woodworking operation you know of. It was performed on this assembly. The window opening will be a work of art by itself.
BTW, Bill told me it would cost less money if I didn't help.
I hired another artist to replicate the original Royal Spartanette logo, almost twice the original size. Nothing about this project is understated. The logo won't be either. Originally, there was only one logo, on the curb side by the door. An obverse image will go on the street side.
Nick started off by making a template off of some drawings I got off a CD that a gentleman from Germany sells. The template was applied after he thoroughly cleaned the surface with alcohol. He applied the vinyl template and squeegee'd out the air bubbles. He rolled on one coat of "One Coat" white sign paint, let it dry for about 15 minutes and peeled of the resist. He did it while the paint was wet to ensure an undisturbed edge.
He's going to let this dry for 2 days and then apply another resist to roll on red paint, followed two days later by black paint. The lettering will all be done by hand. He told me that people prefer vinyl for modern trailers but he wanted to add some artistry to my project. He said that he had to rejuvinate his brushes because he hadn't used them in a while.
Frat-man-du
Dedicated LVC Member
Wow...
5-5-2006
Preparation for installation of finish surface. The walls are lined with 1/4" luan to provide a smooth surface to attach the bamboo to. The ceiling is covered with 1/8" high density paneling. 1/4" luan wouldn't bend to the radius.
Detail of the front window area.
Bill told me it wouldn't cost any extra if I completed the installation of the nailer strips that the bamboo will be attached to on the ceiling. These are glued and screwed to the roof rafters.
The last 8" of the strips needed to be tapered for a perfect fit.
Preparation for installation of finish surface. The walls are lined with 1/4" luan to provide a smooth surface to attach the bamboo to. The ceiling is covered with 1/8" high density paneling. 1/4" luan wouldn't bend to the radius.
Detail of the front window area.
Bill told me it wouldn't cost any extra if I completed the installation of the nailer strips that the bamboo will be attached to on the ceiling. These are glued and screwed to the roof rafters.
The last 8" of the strips needed to be tapered for a perfect fit.
94m5
Dmaup's Daddy
fantastic barry. from a old steamfitter,welder,hotrodder,aircraft mech. it is a super looking rig. might have mike look into making one for the 95. good to see the sweat and tears finally comning to life. take care jd
I take that as high praise. Thank you!
6-6-2006
The sign painter, Nick, of "Nick of Time", showed up with all the templates and paints necessary to finish the logo.
The overlay templates went on and lined up nicely with the white base.
Black paint was applied.
And then red.
And then disaster struck. Apparently the white paint never stuck to the polished aluminum. As the top resist was peeled off it pulled the white paint with it, ruining the piece.
After much discussion I decided that everything would be replaced with vinyl, instead of paint. Nick was very proud of his work and was very disappointed when the paint peeled off.
6-6-2006
The sign painter, Nick, of "Nick of Time", showed up with all the templates and paints necessary to finish the logo.
The overlay templates went on and lined up nicely with the white base.
Black paint was applied.
And then red.
And then disaster struck. Apparently the white paint never stuck to the polished aluminum. As the top resist was peeled off it pulled the white paint with it, ruining the piece.
After much discussion I decided that everything would be replaced with vinyl, instead of paint. Nick was very proud of his work and was very disappointed when the paint peeled off.
Bill showed up around 4:00 and started fitting pieces around the window.
Once these pieces were done we filled in the wall space below the window.
The strips are pin nailed and glued with dollops of adhesive to the luan strips.
That's exactly what I envisioned.
Once these pieces were done we filled in the wall space below the window.
The strips are pin nailed and glued with dollops of adhesive to the luan strips.
That's exactly what I envisioned.
4-7-2006
Had a visitor today that hadn't seen the project since the trailer body was hanging from the rafters. He asked to see the suspension I described to him two years ago.
I fired up the compressor and the system filled with air. The trailer developed a nose down attitude due to the 800 pounds of wood flooring added to the cabin area.
I had kept the system pressure at 80 psi. I bumped the pressure up to 100 psi and the nose came off the ground. I adjusted the ride height valve on the front axle and the trailer leveled out, even with the new weight in the cabin. I sat on the tongue and the trailer nose dropped about a foot and then slowly rose level again proving that the system still has some untapped capacity. I was very happy.
Worked by myself today and got a lot accomplished. I was able to complete the ceiling installation in about four hours. This material is incredibly straight and consistant in size.
I found an aluminum trim at a carpet supply shop that is quite flexible. It's installation on the curved ceiling and walls will allow me to leave a gap for expansion and nicely trim the curve.
The rest are just progress and detail pictures.
Had a visitor today that hadn't seen the project since the trailer body was hanging from the rafters. He asked to see the suspension I described to him two years ago.
I fired up the compressor and the system filled with air. The trailer developed a nose down attitude due to the 800 pounds of wood flooring added to the cabin area.
I had kept the system pressure at 80 psi. I bumped the pressure up to 100 psi and the nose came off the ground. I adjusted the ride height valve on the front axle and the trailer leveled out, even with the new weight in the cabin. I sat on the tongue and the trailer nose dropped about a foot and then slowly rose level again proving that the system still has some untapped capacity. I was very happy.
Worked by myself today and got a lot accomplished. I was able to complete the ceiling installation in about four hours. This material is incredibly straight and consistant in size.
I found an aluminum trim at a carpet supply shop that is quite flexible. It's installation on the curved ceiling and walls will allow me to leave a gap for expansion and nicely trim the curve.
The rest are just progress and detail pictures.
Sergmark
Dedicated LVC Member
Wow Looks great Barry........... Find any tailights yet ??