Dinette Redesign

Sometimes you just have to start over.....and since I wasn't happy with the way the dinette was turning out, I did just that.  The benches were scraping on their mid-cabin supports (this week's rain made this rather obvious) and due to their width, they couldn't be opened more than about half way before they'd run into the front wall of the trailer.  These problems along with the need to fit out the table resulted in Friday night's "dinette demolition"!

Out came both benches.....

....and the front wall support sturcture

Prior to this much measuring took place, both for clearances and for redesign.  I found if I were to decrease the width of the bench from 36 inches to 32 inches and then placed a 4-inch trimmer the width of the trailer at the front wall, this would allow me to use the current table material I had for the bed platform.  The only real change was the size of the support piece which changed from a 2x2 to a 2x6.  The following photos tell the story...

New bench configuration

The cushions will still be 36 inches wide

The benches can now open all the way up, even with the table in place!

The table came next.  After carefully trimming it to accommodate the edging and cutting the chamfer relief for easier access to the streetside bench, the initial test fitting revealed things were going to turn out alright.

The corner  was retained will be attached to the table with piano hinge

The bed was also tested and will easily support an adult

Removing the platform and rotating it 180 degrees allows it to be converted into the dinette table.  The rotation is necessary to allow a stiffener to be placed under the platform.  This also locates the "triangle" to  an orientation which gives it much more support and less stress when in the bed position.  Additionally, the hardware necessary to connect the table to the front wall of the trailer requires this rotation (refer to the preceding photos and the ones below).

The trailer only came with the wall channel, the table channel was missing

Hinges and 5/16" rod will duplicate the function of the missing channel

A single support leg holds things up adequately

I still need to get the rod welded into the hinge plates and then trim to length.  I plan on glass bead blasting the support channel and the bench trim pieces next week to remove old paint and scale.  I also will be attaching the triangle with piano hinge and locking it into either the retracted or extended positions with a drawbolt.  The support leg gets a drawbolt, too, to secure it out of the way when necessary.  All in all, I think today's efforts will pay off handsomely in the end.

It's beginning to look like fall might be near....but I'm not ready!

Reduce, Recycle, Reuse!

As an old friend of mine recently surrendered his long-held title of the "King of Scrounge" to me, I feel I should continue to demonstrate my highly-developed recycling skills.  Today was a beautiful day and so I made good use of it. I have been pondering how to store the bed platform under the gaucho.  Suddenly, the 25-watt bulb bulb flickered over my head and I knew how I was going to pull off my plan.  First, let's review the situation....

When the bed is put away it should look like this...

...and when the bed is out it will look like this...

...and I need it to store in here without a lot of ruckus.

I noted that the longerons (that's fancy airplane design talk for ribs running lengthwise) are in just the right place to support some sort of glides to store the bed platform.  I guess I could have bought some aluminum but since funding is limited I had to come up with suitable angle material.  I looked over my supply of stuff in the corner of the garage and I found the solution!  I knew I had saved this for a reason!

These stiffeners came from some packaging....and will work well here.

 Cut to length and some door stop moulding to beef up the installation.  Where does this get us?

Glued and clamped...

...on both sides...

...let's get the air compressor fired up...

...and just like that, problem solved!

I need to pick up some recessed pull rings to raise the gaucho platform and drawbolts to secure it open but the following series of photos shows how well my solution tuned out:

Putting the bed platform away is now as easy as ONE...

...TWO...

...THREE!!

Close the lid and it's stowed away

A view from underneath showing how it all nests neatly

I felt so good after this that I spent the remainder of the day wrestling materials to close in the under-gaucho storage area.  I plan on using the area directly aft of the wheelwells for more industrial stuff (leveling jacks, chocks, shore power cords, etc.) and so to keep the "outdoor" items separate from the "indoor" stuff, some dividers were needed.

First some additional strengthening of the gaucho support across the back

Recycling leftover luan helps keep the budget down

After things are settled under the gaucho (read glued dried and dust settled) I'll seal up the wood with a nice coat of exterior paint like all the rest of the wood.  At some point I should work on getting my vinyl cut and laid.  I know many folks put down the vinyl before anything goes down but in order to maximize my $20 remnant, I'll be installing it later.....but soon.  I want to get it done; it'll definitely make a difference!  My next dilemma is to find a solution of how to have an adequate dinette table and still be able to get seated past the galley cabinet.  This required some time for quiet reflection...and with some help from the cricket in the side yard (he needs to invite his friends - I love crickets!) I think I have come up with just the plan.

I think I'm getting somewhere with this project...

...and who knows?  It may turn back into a Scotty Sportsman someday!

The Scotty makes my other trailer seem tiny in comparison!

Today's total budgetary outlay:  $0

 Next installment:  Dinette dietary solutions for the full-figured guy!

Summertime, summertime, sum-sum-summertime.......

Well, since the project ran out of funds a month or more ago, progress has ground to a halt.  That and yard work has stepped in to consume any extra hours of light in the day.  I have made minimal progress but until I can come up with more funding....you know.

Testing out new sprinkler lines before trenching

Experimenting with drip irrigation of some flower pots

 Meanwhile, in quiet repose in the garage.....

Here's the new sink with its new faucet next to the stove

It should be just about right....and if not, there is a 6" spout, too

Cutting slots for the laterals, or rafters if you prefer

Test fitting

The top four laterals stapled in place (only three shown)

Next on the list is to get the remaining four laterals in place and clean up a couple of stray staple legs which went askew when they went in.  After that, I suppose I need to work on refurbishing the door frame so I can cut out the bracing in the doorway.  I will temporarily install the frame to maintain the structural integrity of the curbside wall.  Currently I've been gaining access to the trailer through the front of the dinette but as soon as the last of the laterals are in, that way will be blocked.  Then if I can get the roof in place so things can be tightened up that would be extra good.  It might begin to look suspiciously like a trailer at that point!

And there has been some camping taking place, too.....in case you were worried.

This photo cannot convey the impressive majesty of this cloud formation

Scotty Bed and Breakfast.....under construction!

Well, the last of the money has been spent....and we have a bed platform and dinette table and benches to show for it in addition to floor, walls, repaired and painted frame, a new tongue jack, a stainless steel sink, a new faucet, and single burner stove.  But no roof yet - that will come after I recycle the aluminum to fund that part of the project.  I'm pleased with how far I've been able to get and excited to keep moving towards completion.

So this last weekend, I needed to pick up two more sheets of plywood for the bed platform and removable section, the dinette benches, and the table.  A trip over to Greg's for the precision cuts followed by quite a bit of time and patience to install the piano hinge under bed and seats was the bulk of the afternoon.  This part turned out rather nicely and was a nice way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Streetside bench with nesting lip for the dinette table

The same over on the curbside

Gaucho in day mode - hinged for ease of entry

Streetside with hinge installed

Full bed platform in place

The view from the door

Scotty Bed and Breakfast under construction!

My next step: make the last of the necessary measurements to position the front and rear windows and then recycle the aluminum prior to buying the necessary wood to create the roof ribs.  I'm researching the use of "bendable plywood" (the grain of all the plies oriented the same way) for the roof but don't have all the details I need yet.  My new faucet should arrive soon so it'll be time to get that in place while I continue to ponder the roof.  So much thinking to do......maybe I should set up my air mattress on the platform to make it easy on myself!

Earth, Air, Water, Fire

The sink arrived yesterday and immediate action was taken!  First I had to see if there was anything left of the sink as the box it was shipped in had seen better days.  Fortunately, the hardware, plumbing fixtures and the sink were all OK!  <insert huge sigh of relief here>  So, out came the rulers and compasses and pencils for it was time to create the galley countertop.  Less than an hour later things were pretty much finished except for how the stove will be affixed and what will the countertop finish be?  Tile?  Laminate?  Granite?   It's not much of an update but it's a step in the right direction.

I'm glad none of the hardware fell out!

Still a long way to go but it's getting there!

The stove will need to be raised up slightly and perhaps some tile placed about it to keep the heat from the laminate surface.  I also have figure out the valve handle situation - shouldn't be too difficult.  Now I am on a quest for the right faucet.  I'll know it when I see it but I've got to find it first!  One things for sure:  I have not seen what I want at the box stores....

Late breaking update:  found it and at a good price, too!  What do you think?

I think this will do the trick

Homemade biscuits!

A lot has taken place in the last week or so....so let's catch up!

With spring break and a nearby nephew, and a granddaughter's birthday in another state, I found myself "bach-ing" this week.  There were some projects that needed attention so I got going on those right away.  In between allowing coats of paint to dry, I started figuring out the cabinetry to enclose the wheel wells and the forward portion of the gaucho.  Since I'm incorporating a full size mattress and with the original wood in this part of the trailer being badly warped and rotted, I'm having to rely on the photo-documentation from a year ago while trying to make improvements on the original design without adding complexity.  I could only get so far in this step until I have the sides in place in order to set the trailing edge of the bed.

Boxing in the gaucho

I have in mind where I'm going but it's still kind of a design-build

That looks pretty good for now

I had some more thoughts on the flooring and went out looking for something that would work both price-wise and achieving the look I want.  I think I lucked into this remnant - 6+ yards for only $20!

And, yes, it's a very heavyweight material

Well it's time to get those walls built up.  This required biscuiting the 5'x5' panels I picked up two weeks ago  which in turn required some nice, large, flat, dry, warm areas to do this.  Now, remember, there were things to be done while I am on my own this week and cleaning the carpets in the living room was one of those honey-do's.  This meant moving of the furniture to the dining room and kitchen.  This left a large, dry, heated, flat space available for a day or two before Mike from Big Green Steam Clean came to perform miracles.  My friend Rob brought over his tools to do the job.....and after a brief discussion, we loaded the panels into the empty living room.  Unless I should cause unnecessary worry, plastic was laid down to ensure no carpets were harmed in the making of the walls.

Surely it will be OK to use the living room with weather like this

"Quit taking photos - we'll get in so much trouble if anyone finds out!"

In 24 hours, no one will know.....

While the glue continued to set up the next day, I proceeded to finish making the rough cuts in the galley cabinet.  Since I need to use a CPAP at night, I have made a provision for it in my overall plan.  By the end of the afternoon, the cabinet had the necessary cuts made to it and the cubby for the CPAP was complete.  As soon as my 'new' sink arrives, the counter top will be cut to accommodate it as well as the stove.  I hope the man with the big brown truck will be visiting my doorstep shortly!

This way it's handy and out of the way

Looks like it will work out just right

A few cuts later and it's done - drawer fronts and doors come later

It almost looks like I knew what I was doing!

It was now time to move the wall panels from the living room to the garage.  Thanks to Cody and his sons Cameron and Nathan for some much needed muscle willingly and cheerfully provided.  With the panels resting on the $60,000 sawhorses, Lance and I drove over to retrieve the aluminum from storage.

Why is it these projects always seem to involve late nights?

It's a big day for this project; it's time that the walls go up.  All that has to happen is the aluminum to be laid out, traced, cut, and screwed into place.  That's all.  No big deal.....

All three pieces of the curbside aluminum assembled for tracing

I could use one of  those large French curves from high school shop class now

Traced, drilled, ready to cut..........I said, it's ready to cut.......

OK - I did it.  I hope I did it right

Now how will I lift this up into place?  (The door is only partially cut open)

Hey, that wasn't too hard......and it fit right up!

It might be good to mention the original trailer measured 118 inches across the widest section of the sidewall.  As I need the extra space for the larger full-size bed, and where the panels are 120" in length, I am "stretching" the trailer those two inches.  All profiles were referenced from the front of the trailer with the exception of the rear curve which was referenced from the trailing edge of the panel.  Overlaying the streetside aluminum over the curbside tracings matched within 1/16-inch overall.

No, I'm not copying the ragged opening for an aftermarket heater

Hal returned to help get this wall up and secured

Now the walls aren't secured permanently yet but will be after a few minor fitment issues are taken care of.  It's beginning to look like the finished product but there is still a long ways to go.  I'm excited for the next phase:  finishing out the interior in order to add a roof!  Here's a few additional photos in the driveway:

Wood?  What wood?  No wood around here....just clean carpet!