"TrailTop" modular trailer topper building components

[screwball48]

I could see the Trail Dog kit being priced in the $2500-3500 range.


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I could see that too but I wouldn't pay that for it. It is just parts and requires a lot of work to make a trailer.

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I agree that they are just parts and do require a fair amount of work to assemble. One thing to keep in mind would be the retail price of a complete and rolling Trail Dog. I could easily see it topping $10,000.


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[jscherb]

I’ll admit that I really don’t have a clue how much the trail dog kit would sell for.

I’ve never been good at pricing my labor or items I’ve made so I’m sure I would set the amount too low for a company to make money.

If you wanted to build a Trail Dog (as an example), how much would you be willing to pay for the kit of TrailTop parts needed to build one? That's what I'm trying to learn - what people building a camper/trailer would be willing to pay for a kit of parts. And also what people building something of their own design would be willing to pay for individual TrailTop components, no one has commented on individual parts yet.

I just don't want to waste anyone's time letting one of the parties move ahead and put the parts in production if they're not going to be able to sell enough to have a viable business.

 

[opp]

For what I have been quoted for most railing is $6.50 US to 8.03 US per running foot I have received citations sur 12 places. With $7.00 at most

 

[ITTOG]

For what I have been quoted for most railing is $6.50 US to 8.03 US per running foot I have received citations sur 12 places. With $7.00 at most

Soooooo, what would you pay?

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[opp]

What J sell for is his deal . So just letting them know what is being charged out there. They would have too add to the price cutting ,shipping, bundling Dog food .

 

[ITTOG]

I just don't want to waste anyone's time letting one of the parties move ahead and put the parts in production if they're not going to be able to sell enough to have a viable business.

Why do you care if the resellers make money? If it is truly just a hobby for you this wouldn't matter.

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[jscherb]

What J sell for is his deal ...

I wouldn't be selling anything, I don't sell anything, I'm just a hobbyist/designer. What the TrailTop parts would sell for would be the decision of the company that brings them to market, not me.

 

[jscherb]

Why do you care if the resellers make money? If it is truly just a hobby for you this wouldn't matter.

I care because there's work involved for me, I wouldn't just throw the mold masters over the fence and wish the company good luck, they'll need my help and guidance to get things right. And in my last conversation with one of the parties they asked me to mold them a set of parts so they can test them and work out final pricing - molding a set of parts is a lot of work for me because I do hand layup in my home garage and I've got lots of other projects going on right now, including getting a few designs (and my Jeep) ready to be on display at the SEMA Show in a few weeks. If the price people are willing to pay is not high enough for the company to have a successful business, it doesn't make sense for me to put more work into this or for a company to put work and investment into it.

 

[screwball48]

I could see prices for the individual components around $200 each. An example would be the Chuckwagon design. A kit would require 4 corners along with 4 straight sections. Lets say the straights are priced $200 each and the corners $250 each. This would place the total of parts at $1800. A kit could then be offered with a slight savings and priced around the $1600 mark.


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[jscherb]

I could see prices for the individual components around $200 each. An example would be the Chuckwagon design. A kit would require 4 corners along with 4 straight sections. Lets say the straights are priced $200 each and the corners $250 each. This would place the total of parts at $1800. A kit could then be offered with a slight savings and priced around the $1600 mark.

If by chuck wagon you mean something like this, the number of 8' straight pieces you'd need depends on how large you plan to make it. A small one like this could be made with 3 straight pieces, especially if it's a topper on a Jeep-tub trailer like this one. Larger ones would of course need more length of straights.

The design above uses these small radius corners, and they should be less expensive than a straight section because being small they use less material to mold and take less time.

 

[ottsville]

I could see prices for the individual components around $200 each. An example would be the Chuckwagon design. A kit would require 4 corners along with 4 straight sections. Lets say the straights are priced $200 each and the corners $250 each. This would place the total of parts at $1800. A kit could then be offered with a slight savings and priced around the $1600 mark.


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$1600 for the edges alone in a box design? You can buy a 5'x8' cargo trailer for $2000.

But that doesn't answer Jscherb's question. I could see about $35-55 a corner and $6-8/foot for lengths.

I'm guessing whoever manufacturers this is going to lay them up with a chopper gun?

 

[jscherb]

I'm guessing whoever manufacturers this is going to lay them up with a chopper gun?

To be cost-effective, I will recommend the layup be done with a chopper gun.

 

[ITTOG]

Why do you care if the resellers make money? If it is truly just a hobby for you this wouldn't matter.

I care because there's work involved for me, I wouldn't just throw the mold masters over the fence and wish the company good luck, they'll need my help and guidance to get things right. And in my last conversation with one of the parties they asked me to mold them a set of parts so they can test them and work out final pricing - molding a set of parts is a lot of work for me because I do hand layup in my home garage and I've got lots of other projects going on right now, including getting a few designs (and my Jeep) ready to be on display at the SEMA Show in a few weeks. If the price people are willing to pay is not high enough for the company to have a successful business, it doesn't make sense for me to put more work into this or for a company to put work and investment into it.

I forgot you previously mentioned you would still have work to do. That definitely changes things.

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[opp]

The price that Ottsville posted is the going price for what is out there. That's for hand laired Most that are building these are doing hand laired.

 

[jscherb]

One of my trailers at work, it's moving day for Robert. His new apartment is 5 blocks from the White House. We're about to begin unloading...

It turns out the pop-top is really handy for handling large cargo, opening the top allowed me to stand inside the trailer to maneuver a couch out the back door. At home it took both of us to load the couch through the back door of the trailer but with me standing inside I was able to unload it by myself while Robert was hauling other stuff up to his apartment.

Normally when I pop the top I'd roll down the canvas panels like in the photo below but in the photo above they're stowed up against the inside of the roof.