A modular quick connect camper. I like the sound of that!! Do you have any plans yet? Start a build thread.
Stainless steel is better than not because obviously it doesn't rust and every nut, bolt and screw used to hold other things to my camper is stainless. But it's still metal and therefore gets condensation on it which can lead to rot unless the hole it's in is coated in epoxy first. And I've got maybe 20 in mine whereas to screw every joint I would have used many 100's just to hold the box together. No worth it or needed. And just think of all those old caravans and campers with 'glued and stapled' frames that are all completely rotted out and fall apart like matchsticks if you remove the panel holding it all together. And that's because of the metal nails and screws completely rusted and the wood all rotted out. What a mess.
Big wooden power boats and yachts need some kind of fasteners because of the construction methods required to build a boat to handle the forces evolved in pounding across the ocean or under full sail. They also weigh a whole lot more than any camper ever will and use some big solid timbers in there construction, not lightweight plywood like our campers. So they still use silicon bronze nails and screws and now composite brad nail fasteners (
http://raptornails.com/) that can be cut, sanded and stained and never rust. I've never looked but I would imagine these aren't cheap but it is still the building following the traditional methods. Many, many more boats are built without any fasteners at all and where not even building boats. Any camper we are likely to build would never require that kind of construction and more closely aligns with the small boat and canoe/kayak style of building like 'stitch and glue'. The strength is gained by creating a lightweight torsion box using thin materials and stiffness through sandwich composite construction (ie epoxy and glass over plywood). The famous teardrop build mantra is 'Think like an airplane, not a house!'
In my opinion, no fasteners, no condensation, no rot. I've beaten mine up over all kinds of roads, tracks and trails, I've dropped it fully loaded on the ground once (probably should say that if I'm trying to sell it) and it hasn't budged an inch. Solid as a rock but only 240kgs (530lbs) dry. Fasteners simply aren't needed to hold an epoxy built camper together.
