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Here’s a pretty good front side. It still has some wrinkles/bubbles in it. They won’t come out completely and tend to show up more when the piece is installed (because it ends up concave) but it will be okay. This piece goes around the fan and did have to be cut to fit.
jb, I made small wooden shelves for right below my portholes but didn’t install them because it was one more thing to cut the headliner around and the circle was hard enough, especially while covering the piece with fabric. Plus I didn’t factor in the headliner thickness when making the shelves so they would have almost been too narrow to be useful. I might try attaching them to the fabric somehow so they can fold up when needed but for now I’ll use the porthole door.
Mine open like a couple of others I saw on this forum but to me it makes sense that they open from the inside and can be opened more or less (while you’re inside) depending on rain, temperature, etc. Also, I wouldn’t want someone outside to be able to open a window to the camper, even if it’s a small one.
Both lights were found on Amazon. The gooseneck is from ‘Obeaming’. Here’s the full description – ’12 Volt LED Reading Light, Dimmable Bedside Reading Lamp for RV Boat Camper Van Travel Trailer Truck Cabin, 12V Flexible Gooseneck Spotlight with Push Switch & USB Charger Port, 12-24V (Matte Black)’.
The other is – ‘LED Camping Lantern Rechargeable, 280LM, 3 Light Modes, 3000mAh Power Bank, Waterproof, Perfect Mini Flashlight with Magnetic Base for Hurricane Emergency, Outdoor, Hiking, Home and Car by LE’
I like both, each for its own purpose. The lanterns have rechargeable batteries and can conveniently recharge from the USB port on the gooseneck lights, which run off my 12 volt batteries.
Porthole windows look great on this teardrop and I like your contrasting red. All my trim has been black – safer but not as bold. I’m glad someone came up with and shared the idea for portholes a while back. I went with ones that open. Mine (like yours) are a little above head level (while sleeping) and allow a nice cross breeze, especially with the overhead fan going.
Thanks, I like how they turned out. My 4″ mattress came recently and here’s the clearance I have with it in place so I think the drawer will work with my small feet.
I also installed LED gooseneck lights at each door. They’re dimmable and have a USB outlet on the bottom. Hanging from each is another Amazon find – an ‘LED camping lantern’. The on-off button is on the top and they recharge by USB so this is a good place to usually keep them. They light up the entire cabin whereas the gooseneck is more of a spotlight.
I’m not sure if it will work yet but the porthole ‘door’ might serve as a small shelf at night for holding a phone, watch, etc. – when it’s horizontal of course.
I had seen your galley pictures before. It looks like it will serve the purpose which should be the goal with whatever you put back there. That’s a handy little coffee maker/oven/griddle combo. Do you like it? I have a 2200 watt inverter so I could run it and the online reviews are generally good. It would possibly save taking two or even three separate things. Also, does the white cabinet stay in place while driving or is it attached in some way you can’t see? My paper towel holder hangs between the lid supports. The left side has a slip knot that makes replacing a roll easier than untying.
I considered the CLC galley module and also designing my own but since my electrical takes up the left side of the galley and there’s a pass through window in the middle, anything I made or bought couldn’t be very big. I’ll use a propane camp stove and electric coffee maker but that’s about it so here’s what I made for some storage. The ‘drawers’ are bamboo drawer organizers from Costco and the cubby is designed to fit them. The drawers are 12, 9 or 6 inches long. One of the ten drawers in the set was longer and had to be cut and reglued but that worked fine. There’s room for lots of smaller items in the drawers plus the empty spaces for plates, etc. and I know I’ll need some way for those items not to slide out. The drawers should stay in place because of very thin strips (about 1/32 inch thick) glued in front of where they sit. Rocks from previous vacations are the knobs. A long velcro strap will hold the whole thing in place while driving. It’s not much but I think it, along with a plastic tub or two, will suit my modest cooking (storage) needs.
Below is a bracket bolted to two that came with the trailer. It’s aluminum and has a rotating piece that the square aluminum arm fits snugly over. A quick release pin keeps the arm at the correct angle. Again, the T-track let me easily slide the bracket back and forth to find just the right spot to support the bike frame.
The total cost of parts was under $25 – all but the tie-downs were bought at a local surplus store called Skycraft. If you’re ever in the Orlando area, I recommend stopping by. It’s hard to describe but it’s not like any other store you’ve ever been in.
The T-track makes it very easy to move things a little bit one way or another. It’s easier than using trial and error while you clamp parts temporarily to test fit and much better than drilling holes (say in a different trailer) only wish the hole was in another spot. You just loosen the bolt and slide it a little.
This reply has two purposes, to show an idea for a bike rack but also to share another plus for the Trailex trailer – the T-track on all sides of the main trailer parts. Extra nuts and bolts (a few came with the trailer and you can order more from Trailex) with the track make it easy to attach any number of things. For example, I’m working on a bike rack and having the T-track means small adjustments to where things go are easy to make. Here it is still in the idea phase but close to finished. The bike tires sit in a piece of steel channel bolted to the trailer. The ‘arm’ holding the frame is two pieces of square aluminum riveted together with another aluminum piece supporting the bottom part of the frame. Velcro holds the frame and tires tight and keeps the bike from trying to roll but I might find some short ratcheting straps to go around the tires instead. Ratcheting straps will also replace the kayak tie-downs pictured which work but don’t have the same pulling force as ones that ratchet tight.
And here they are pushed back into place. They go pretty much to the transom board so each is quite long. I thought about one or two shorter drawers that could better stay out of the way of feet but decided instead to just make one long one. I’m waiting on delivery of a 4″ mattress so can’t really test it out yet. However, it can go on either side of the table so if it’s in the way of one person’s feet, the drawer (or the person) can move to the other side of the camper. There’s a reasonable amount of room under it but if it’s in the way of both people’s, then I’m not sure what they’ll do – remove the drawer completely maybe but that defeats the purpose. By the way, a little bees wax or something similar makes them slide much easier.
Here is the table extended about as far as it can go and still support a plate of food, game board or something of moderate weight. The drawer can also extend that far out and still be supported underneath by the runners attached to the galley flat.
Here is one drawer and the shelf. Each is about 14 inches wide and 30 inches long and both can extend a little farther than in the picture. The drawer is 1 and 3/4 inches deep (inside) and has room for lots of smaller items – snacks, playing cards or travel games, small flashlight, etc. They’re made of baltic birch plywood trimmed with padauk (I had a scrap piece left over) to make things look nicer but mainly to have the supporting/sliding parts be hardwood.
