jmnielsen
Tinkerer
Thought I might share this here to get some feedback and maybe some ideas from people. I started this about a year and a half ago, and while it is still a work in progress it is now campable. The frame is 2" square tubing, 1/8" thick. The cross members are 1"x2" that is also 1/8" thick.
It all started when I found this axle on craigslist. It's a 2000lb torsion axle that someone was selling. Grabbed it for $20 and other than being rusty, it was in good shape.
Then with some help I built the trailer frame. It's a 5x8 trailer, I wanted something small yet large enough to be comfortable to sleep in with my wife.
I was given a nice Bulldog coupler, so we used some of the 1x2 and 2x2 tubing to make it work.
A friend of a friend sandblasted the axle for me and put on a couple coats of primer, then I painted it with some underbody paint. Here it is mounted up, I was putting primer on the trailer.
The gussets were added for bolting the camper to the trailer. If I want, I can removed some bolts and have a blank trailer.
Here it is all painted up with the lights wired
Here is the floor of the camper. I used 3/4" birch plywood with 1x2s. I don't have pictures but the underside was then coated with roofing tar and insulation was cut to fit.
This was my initial design
I liked to profile so I mocked up a wall with some OSB I had left over from another project. I wanted to make sure I like the profile full size.
I liked the profile so that I what I was sticking with. I didn't get pictures of this process either (difficult to do all by myself), but I got the walls cut, and the door cutout and then put the walls up.
I got cabinets built and installed, a divider installed, and some other small things that I didn't get pictures of. Then I skinned the interior with hardboard. Admittedly not the best choice, but it was cheap and that's what I was going for.
Then I used some foam insulation boards that I cut to fit, and then covered with 1/4 luan. After that I covered all the seams and screws with some waterproof wood filler.
It all started when I found this axle on craigslist. It's a 2000lb torsion axle that someone was selling. Grabbed it for $20 and other than being rusty, it was in good shape.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/C9E31E2D-605D-4218-B88D-6B0E16F6EBA0_zpsv8vdjjvd.jpg)
Then with some help I built the trailer frame. It's a 5x8 trailer, I wanted something small yet large enough to be comfortable to sleep in with my wife.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/B2D7B802-312B-48C6-855B-7662F3102B14_zpsc0lehxp2.jpg)
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/6EA94003-999A-4058-859F-DB5C06CEADFA_zpsdzkaint9.jpg)
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/A456624B-97A7-4D2A-91F8-5EDCE791C1C0_zps2fegzmt0.jpg)
I was given a nice Bulldog coupler, so we used some of the 1x2 and 2x2 tubing to make it work.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/73362F96-8CC4-4F60-9260-2AD171CEC17B_zpsbvnyhjij.jpg)
A friend of a friend sandblasted the axle for me and put on a couple coats of primer, then I painted it with some underbody paint. Here it is mounted up, I was putting primer on the trailer.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/5F0B738E-5CC9-48AB-A28B-4061314D6853_zpssarjnn9w.jpg)
The gussets were added for bolting the camper to the trailer. If I want, I can removed some bolts and have a blank trailer.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/A7A496A1-7823-4D18-BB71-61FA456B1A87_zps2lroa4px.jpg)
Here it is all painted up with the lights wired
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/C2D4CB66-4DEC-483B-8C26-3CB063904D7D_zpspsciyi7h.jpg)
Here is the floor of the camper. I used 3/4" birch plywood with 1x2s. I don't have pictures but the underside was then coated with roofing tar and insulation was cut to fit.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/94899215-6F78-4C45-AE8A-28348C3E726A_zpsrvalmdy2.jpg)
This was my initial design
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/7531DC18-4823-4352-8979-09FE73D5914A_zpseua6f1wo.jpg)
I liked to profile so I mocked up a wall with some OSB I had left over from another project. I wanted to make sure I like the profile full size.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/946B9304-D854-4403-938B-6409C2B63BD1_zpsvdurg2ft.jpg)
I liked the profile so that I what I was sticking with. I didn't get pictures of this process either (difficult to do all by myself), but I got the walls cut, and the door cutout and then put the walls up.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/2014-07/FA023A94-ECAD-43D5-A639-A2436F1C5F1E_zpssczofyrn.jpg)
I got cabinets built and installed, a divider installed, and some other small things that I didn't get pictures of. Then I skinned the interior with hardboard. Admittedly not the best choice, but it was cheap and that's what I was going for.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/Mobile%20Uploads/2014-04/3A58276D-E931-4801-A9D4-C162F167A969_zpsekfvefpc.jpg)
Then I used some foam insulation boards that I cut to fit, and then covered with 1/4 luan. After that I covered all the seams and screws with some waterproof wood filler.
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/Mobile%20Uploads/2014-04/21CCB4BD-DF54-4646-B05C-1A606EB3DBAB_zpsuzzsrwne.jpg)
![](http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa464/jmnielsen1/Mobile%20Uploads/2014-04/4B917538-0D7C-4EA1-B329-A8AE20A925F2_zpsfhv3h14h.jpg)