That One Guy
Adventurer
I'd like to understand it right now... I wouldn't mind a Man Unicat in the future.
C5500 TopKick 4x4 Crew Cab Build
- Thread starter NeverEnough
- Start date
I'd like to understand it right now... I wouldn't mind a Man Unicat in the future.
Ford Prefect
Expedition Leader
I could then, and still can understand the value of Math, but it does not mean that it makes enough sense to me to afford a Unicat. (never thought that math was very logical)
sigh
NeverEnough
Adventurer
Travel has interrupted the pace during the past week, but things are still moving along with the trailer body:
All of the inside joints got glassed. My brother is a "glass master".
Then the rear ramp door opening and top corners had the pultrusions applied. While they add some support to the box, their primary purpose is to provide a means of supporting point loads that the panel material is not well-suited for: ramp door, roof rack, camper jacks, etc.
I made some desing tweeks which delayed cutting out the wheel wells, but that should happen today or tomorrow. And since all the windows arrived yesterday, we can do the cutouts for doors and windows as well.
All of the inside joints got glassed. My brother is a "glass master".
Then the rear ramp door opening and top corners had the pultrusions applied. While they add some support to the box, their primary purpose is to provide a means of supporting point loads that the panel material is not well-suited for: ramp door, roof rack, camper jacks, etc.
I made some desing tweeks which delayed cutting out the wheel wells, but that should happen today or tomorrow. And since all the windows arrived yesterday, we can do the cutouts for doors and windows as well.
jesusgatos
Explorer
Oh, that looks great!
NeverEnough
Adventurer
Thanks! I stopped by today to check out the "dry fit" of the box to the trailer chassis. It's 11' to the top, as designed (1' shorter than the RV). The V-nose is flattened to accommodate the door that marries up to the back door of the RV. Bad photo, sorry:
We wanted to make sure eveything fit before finishing the wheel wells and corner pultrusions. Luckily everything is on the money.
We're going to push hard to get the "test" build out of the way so the real fun can start. The inside will be pretty spartan, so it won't take long.
NeverEnough
Adventurer
So practical! We need you in the Utah State Legislature!
YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
Still enjoying your build thread and wanted to say thanks for taking the time to post.
Jerry
Jerry
That One Guy
Adventurer
That has got to be the largest amount of clamps I have ever seen at one time in my life.
What is that, 35?
You should see my step dads garage back in michigan, he's got one large cabinet just full of clamps. There are half dozen of each size of the spring loaders, then a nice selection of those sliding bar clamps, etc.
Point on the story? I wish I had ready access to that shop still and it wasn't 2000mi away...
That One Guy
Adventurer
It's always nice to have a few clamps around, but I've never needed more than 4 at one time. But there's a first time for everything so why be undersupplied when that time comes, I guess.
Sorry to push the thread a little farther along a bunny trail, but in case someone runs across this thread looking for clamping ideas:
Someone on here (sorry, don't remember who, so can't give credit) did a build thread and used 6" or 8" PVC pipe, cut in ~2" lengths then split longitudinally, for clamps.
Also, on a boat building site, I saw where they were joining flat panels by drilling holes and pulling 'em together with cable ties. The joints were first glued, then fiberglassed over, so as soon as the glue dried they could cut the cable ties, and the fiberglas filled/covered the holes.
Someone on here (sorry, don't remember who, so can't give credit) did a build thread and used 6" or 8" PVC pipe, cut in ~2" lengths then split longitudinally, for clamps.
Also, on a boat building site, I saw where they were joining flat panels by drilling holes and pulling 'em together with cable ties. The joints were first glued, then fiberglassed over, so as soon as the glue dried they could cut the cable ties, and the fiberglas filled/covered the holes.
ThrottleHappy
New member
Wow. Can I recommend pulling the chrome accent pieces off above the headlights and painting them black?
K2ZJ
Explorer
Any fab shop will have dozens of varying sizes. At my old shop I built 8 custom stands for clamps. Each could hold at least 30, not counting the under the table storage.
Most home shop projects may only use 4 at a time, but how many different ones do you need? Four 6" c-clamps might not cut it for every project.
On topic: I love this thread and look here everyday to see if there are updates! Thanks for posting NE!
NeverEnough
Adventurer
I'll look into that, but it will have to wait a bit!
I wish it was going faster, but I'm glad you're enjoying it.
Not nearly as bad as a pile of others on this board. I'm also very pleased with the PPE honeycomb panels. It's really fun to see how strong material is even during construction. I can't wait to try and break the stuff outside!
I never posted any information about the trailer, so here's an early sketch of the floorplan. The box is 15' long and 8' wide. It's got a ramp rear door, a passenger side door, and a "nose" door that marries up with the rear door of the camper. It will easily carry 6 240-450cc bikes, perhaps 7. In reality, I'm usually hauling 3 full-size bikes and 3 to 4 smaller machines (but each year the the bikes get bigger, just like the boys!).
It's basically the same size as my Wells Cargo, but taller, by design. The height let me do four things: 1) build a bathroom and galley in the front (all the mechanicals are beneath the forward "poop deck"; 2) allow enough height to accomodate comfortable fold-down bunks on each side; 3) hang bikes from the ceiling and not hit the motorcycles; and 4) give me an opportunity to test an idea I've had for years: a "motorcycle dolly".
The dolly is a custom cart that rolls in and out of the trailer with all the bikes already anchored. Then I can roll the whole pile around in my garage with ease, as well as load up for trips (and unload when returning) much faster and easier. And if we need the trailer's sleeping space mid-jouney, it's easy to just roll the whole pile of bikes out of the rig for camp, and easily back in to break camp. In addition, it has enough space underneath to store sailboards, sails, masts, etc. There are other theoretical benefits, like a lower platform for loading, and a deck for spraying down the bikes before loading, but it might turn out to be a really bad idea.
It raises the CG of the rig by 10" (the height of the pneumatic casters), and I need to mount a winch to assist with getting it in and out of the trailer. I also have to anchor it while in transport (shouldn't be an issue), and it might be a pain when faced with limited space for unloading, or unloading in soft sand. So hopefully I find out in a few weeks!
I'll be going over in the morning to check out the progress. It's scheduled for external coating on Thursday!