Thread: Looking to build a camper

[QUOTE=Dizza;1914890]I have always been a big fan of camping out of a four wheel drive. I love the prospect of pulling up to a camp sight, rolling out a swag and cooking over a fire.
There are a few disadvantages to this though....

1. You cant really do it all that comfortably in the winter
2. It means that you need to fit all of your equipment in the car (an interesting challenge in a Disco 1)
3. The girlfriend is never as keen on it as I am (she has been caravanning with her family her whole life)

So i began thinking about alternatives. And came up with a couple ideas.

1. Pick up a second hand camper
2. Get a cheap caravan (had one available at the time)
3. Build something

Now naturally neither option 1 or 2 are really feasible for taking off road however option 3 got me thinking. After a quick bit of research i found an interesting concept. A teardrop camper.

A teardrop camper is like a very compact caravan (you sleep indoors - Happy girlfriend ) with an outdoor cooking space.
Building it myself means i can build it as big as i want, with whatever features i want and match it to my Disco in width, clearance and height.

The most attractive advantage of a teardrop camper is probably the weight. If built carefully they usually come in at well below 500kg (usually closer to 350) Which means its a little more likely to follow my disco to those great little camp sites off the beaten track.

So i relearned bits of sketchup for the 10th time and threw this together. Just looking for any advice or suggestions. Obviously it isn't finished but having some more eyes give it a once over will be helpful.




Love your spirit Dizza, and keeping the girlfriend comfortable is the most important also. If you get stuck with the lady for a few more years unfortunately you will have to update to something more prestige.
It costs money and lots of it as they get older.

Have a gander on this Aussie camper site, lots of home built campers and lots of different suspension setups.
My Camper Trailer Build

mighty helpful with ideas, some rippers ones built.
cheers, Mario

Depending on how heavy duty you want to make it you will need to work some serious mojo to keep it under 400kg if it has fridges, battery, kitchen, gas and sleeping area.

If it is simply dirt road capable you could lighten the chassis and suspension up to shed kilos.
300kg is seriously light for a full offroad chassis/ box before you even put one item in it?

But the fun thing is trying! Best of luck.

S

Spare tyre?

Small window somewhere, eg light/ventilation, or even porthole in door?

battery with trickle charge via trailer plug, LED lighting in and out

water tank and tap? maybe even small sink?

rear bumper set back at least 4" from rear door in case of bumps etc, so door can still open etc...

very interested to see how it comes out..

Originally Posted by roverrescue

Depending on how heavy duty you want to make it you will need to work some serious mojo to keep it under 400kg if it has fridges, battery, kitchen, gas and sleeping area.

If it is simply dirt road capable you could lighten the chassis and suspension up to shed kilos.
300kg is seriously light for a full offroad chassis/ box before you even put one item in it?

But the fun thing is trying! Best of luck.

S

It definitely wont come in that light loaded but the aim is to get it at least below 500 unloaded
The construction of the actual shell is all really lightweight, it's primarily sandwiched ply, foam insulation and fiberglass.

Thanks for the feedback

Originally Posted by digger

Spare tyre?

Small window somewhere, eg light/ventilation, or even porthole in door?

battery with trickle charge via trailer plug, LED lighting in and out

water tank and tap? maybe even small sink?

rear bumper set back at least 4" from rear door in case of bumps etc, so door can still open etc...

very interested to see how it comes out..

There will be wind out windows on each door and a long narrow one at the draw bar end.
It'll be running a 100AH deep cycle in the trailer with an anderson to hook it up to the Disco, led lights inside and out and a water tank mounted underneath above the axle with a simple hand pump (less to go wrong) mounted in the kitchen are.
I'm probably going to put the spare on the draw bar. If there's room if not on the roof or maybe on a swing out carrier.

Thanks for the feedback, keep it coming
Dillan

Hi. If you are getting a trailer mob to make it, get them to use a square rear axle, and fit it up with stud pattern to match your Disco. Most of them use AlCo for axles, springs etc. Make sure they take the drawbar 'A' frame right back to the front spring hangers if using leaf springs. I noticed you are keeping your body inside the wheels... This then makes the arches a good place to carry a spare wheel and a Jerry Can... Good luck with the build.

Originally Posted by Sitec

Hi. If you are getting a trailer mob to make it, get them to use a square rear axle, and fit it up with stud pattern to match your Disco. Most of them use AlCo for axles, springs etc. Make sure they take the drawbar 'A' frame right back to the front spring hangers if using leaf springs. I noticed you are keeping your body inside the wheels... This then makes the arches a good place to carry a spare wheel and a Jerry Can... Good luck with the build.

Thats the plan, same width and stud pattern as the old girl (anyone have 3 spare Disco 1 alloys going cheap? ) I hope to be able to tow (drag) it anywhere i can take the truck (within reason) so a matched trailer is a must.

I assume the A frame back to the spring hangers is a strength thing?

Yeah that's the plan for a couple of jerry cans, though I hadn't considered the spare wheel. Thanks!

I am definitely set on building it. Just gotta come to some agreement with the old man about using his shed

You will want the drawbar long enough so you can fully open the rear door of the Disco and possibly long enough to jack-knife without hitting the drawbar/camper. Ask the trailer builder to keep the angle between the 2 drawbar rails as close together as possible, a good example is the drawbars on "Lifestyle Campers", or even a single pipe bar as in the army trailers and a means of recovery from the rear.
You need to consider, when taking a trailer off road is how you are going to get "it' out of a bog or off a very steep ascent/descent and how well it tracks behind on bends, Regards Frank.