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I’d suggest that you email Dillon at CLC and ask him about the feasibility of adding a window. he built both of CLC’s teardrop prototypes and is as familiar with them as anyone.
dillon at CLCboats dot com
(sorry–I didn’t see mike’s reply above before replying–and mike found a much better deal on the springs than I did!)
I encountered this problem earlier in the fall, when we got the first blast of cold weather. thanks to the ideal gas law, we know that the pressure of a fixed volume of gas decreases with temperature.
the gas springs that CLC provides with the TD kit have 20lb of force. I had an email exchange with Dillon at CLC who said their testing on the prototype determined that 2 20lb springs were sufficient.
I bought 2 30lb springs, and started by replacing one of the 20’s with a 30. that provided sufficient opening force in my situation, so I didn’t replace the other one.
I would recommend you try the same thing. IIRC, I bought it from amazon for a reasonable price. they are made by Attwood, and the model number you want is SL34-30-5.
the trick to removing the spring is to find the small plastic c-clip at each end of the arm. they are about 3/8″ wide. use a screwdriver to gently pry the clip outward while pulling the spring gently away from its mounting pin. when you have the clip pried out enough the spring will disconnect.
ken
in the “normal” build, once two abutting panels are installed in the mold, you apply a strip of 3″ fiberglass tape then epoxy, to hold the panels together until the “big” fiberglassing job is completed on the outside. what are you planning on doing to hold the cedar strips together? narrower strips of fiberglass at each joint, or waiting until all the cedar strips are installed and stitched together, then use a wider sheet of fiberglass?
the TD is certainly unique. when you’re camping, stopping for gas, etc. you will be amazed at how many comments and questions you get. I was filling with gas at Costco on eclipse day before hitting the road, and the attendant kept me there easily 10 extra minutes asking questions an marveling at it.
it’s about 96″. following friz’s lead, I positioned the TD so that the front edge (the outside edge, the corner where panel 2 meets panels 3 and 4) at the front corner of the frame. I then cut the rear of the frame so the end is under the rear corners of the TD. that positioning resulted in a tongue weight (unloaded) of about 50lb, or roughly 10% of the total weight. I have since built a tongue box which has increased the tongue weight a bit, with no adverse effects on trailering. the location of the battery as recommended by CLC is right over the axle so that doesn’t affect tongue weight. some folks have mounted the battery under the camper, but that is another discussion.
ken
I second rovineye’s comments. there are no sharp curves anywhere in the build. the plywood is plenty flexible.
I brew beer, and the mantra of home brewers is “relax–don’t worry–have a home brew” so the same applies here!!
I’d spend the extra bucks and buy the northern tool 5×8 aluminum trailer. there are several threads here with various builders’ experiences with the NT trailer.
unless you have a buyer lined up for your first build, I would say that you can build it right the first time, IF you:
take your time
read the entire manual stem to stern twice before you start anything
take your time
make sure your workshop temperature is between 65-75 F (others may say a wider range is do-able but that’s my experience)–this may lead you to spend a few more dollars on a heater for the spring and fall seasons, and an AC for the summer
take your time
make liberal use of emails to Dillon at CLC who is incredibly responsive to all questions.
yes, I have a few “birthmarks” on my TD that only I can see, but not nearly enough to want to find a buyer.
if you haven’t made the purchase yet, buy the digital version of the manual for $15. you will find it incredibly detailed, full of photos, and will greatly boost your confidence in taking on the project.
good luck
ken
my not-so-short answer is I have the northern tools 5×8 aluminum trailer. the TD fits nicely just inside the wheels. the TD is shorter than the NT frame, so following the lead of friz, the northern tools trailer pioneer, I cut several inches off the rear part of the frame, giving me the balance and tongue weight I was desiring.
as for the speed ratings–I have seen too many 12-inch-wheeled trailers sitting in the breakdown lane on interstates over the years, so I decided to go with 15″ wheels. there are decent deals online. IIRC I paid about $100 for each wheel/tire set, and they came already mounted. I also bought a set of NT’s “high speed hubs” (not having any idea as to the RPM rating) because they were fairly cheap.
but as we know, no good deed goes unpunished. since the 15’s are significantly wider than the 12’s, the tires rubbed against the frame. I decided against mounting the wheels inside-out, so I bought a pair of spacers, milled out of a billet of aluminum. I went with 1 1/4 inch spacers, since I wanted to minimize the lateral loading on the bearings that they weren’t designed to carry. the tires clear the frame by about 1/4 inch. I didn’t think the small fenders would fit with the 15’s, so I bought a pair of enclosed-back fenders from a local trailer company. in hindsight, I think the stock fenders would have fit (with modification of the mounting brackets) but the closed backs on the fenders will keep the TD clean and free from stone chips.
when I put the 15’s on, I was anxious about the resulting height of the trailer bed, but once I had the TD mounted, I determined that it puts the galley at a comfortable working height (I’m about 5’10”) and the extra height also makes it a bit easier to get into and out of the TD cabin.
I’m very pleased with the result, I have no concerns about the speed rating of the 15’s, and I would do the same thing again.
I bought the gear several months ago, and IIRC, the 5×8 trailer was on sale for 649/free shipping, the replacement hubs were about 35 each, the wheel/tire combos were about 100 each, and the spacers were 65 each. and the best part of the aluminum trailer (other than the weight) is you can cut and drill the frame members to your heart’s content with normal power tools.
ken
there definitely must be one and only one “magic angle” at which to insert the flat so no trimming is needed. my experience was the same as yours–took 1/8 off each edge and ended up with gaps. I filleted top and bottom and after a few thousand miles, no issues.
my experience was about 3 months ago, so my memory is a bit foggy. when I first tried to install the flat, I thought it was just plain-ol too wide. so I took about 1/8 inch off each outside edge of the flat. it was still a tight fit, but after several tries, putting it in at different angles, it finally dropped right into place. then I discovered that I had trimmed off too much, but a thick bead of epoxy putty on top and bottom of both edge joints covered up the slot caused by the excess trimming.
because of the way the sides of the hull are angled, I think there is just one “magic angle” that you need to position the flat in, relative to the floor of your workshop, at which it slides right in without much force being applied.
if you can’t find any angle at which it slides in, get out your block plane and shave a little bit off each outside edge and try again.
