Lozenge camper

[keeflester]

Not strictly a Demountable camper, but the techniques involved in building the lozenge are transferrable to any style of body. I'm building in plywood over softwood frames because that's what I know and can achieve. I'm still struggling to figure out how to post pictures on this forum since I don't use a pc and the various options for iPad are not very intuitive to use, or downright useless. So just for now until we can figure out a better way, I've started a thread on our Facebook page.







add these in here for now Keith;

[keeflester]

First picture shows the 12mm marine ply subfloor on a sub chassis made from treated 2x2. I painted it with bituminous paint before turning it over and bolting it down to the trailer chassis.

The height of the door created difficulties since the original idea was to use a single sheet of ply for the wall. To make enough room for its frame I added a valance of 12mm marine ply. This meant that I had to cut steps into the vertical frame members.

Once the frame was built I used ratchet straps to pull it all square and screwed in temporary braces.

The first side is the most fiddly, two apertures to cut. I fitted the sheet dry with screws. Once all the skins are on and they fit ok, I'll glue them in to get the monocoque strength. The screws will not show, I placed them close to the edges so they will be sealed under the corner trims.

Thanks to Zildjian and Andy for hosting the pictures.

[zildjian]

Would it have been viable to take door below floor level with a locker underneath only accessible with door open,
then use standard width ply up to roofline?
might have been a handy place for the less popular stuff, out of the way

[keeflester]

Would it have been viable to take door below floor level with a locker underneath only accessible with door open,
then use standard width ply up to roofline?
might have been a handy place for the less popular stuff, out of the way

We discussed that but Jackie wants a simple job, no frills and the lowest height possible (for mpg). Also, the weight of her previous teardrop camper was an issue for manoeuvring on her gravel driveway. I propose to run the cabling in the floor void, so underfloor storage would rob sitting up room.

[keeflester]

Sides and back are on. I trimmed the edges flush and overlapped each sheet over the edge of the previous sheet.

[zildjian]

Is there a trim to go over those as well, like awning rail or something

[keeflester]

Is there a trim to go over those as well, like awning rail or something

Yes, I'm using CT1 to stick a corner moulding over every exposed bit of end grain. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get the smooth rounded over corner mouldings I wanted, so I'm using squared corner beads. I'll take the arris off each piece before I use them and then sand the corner to a soft profile. CT1 has the double properties needed, it's a good waterproofing seal, and it takes paint once it's properly dry. Silicone sealers just don't take paint.

[zildjian]

does that allow any movement of the wood below it like a silicone bead

[keeflester]

does that allow any movement of the wood below it like a silicone bead

Yes, it's a flexible product and I've used it extensively in my work. It's advertised as the single solution to all your sealing jobs. It costs about 5 times as much as regular mastic, and it is worth it.

[zildjian]

Could you (when you get to it) do one or more close-ups of exactly how you typically fit that