Finishing Frame Fabrication and more! | Off Road Teardrop Trailer Build 6
Total time: 8-16hrs
Difficulty: Novice
Cost: $300
TOOLS USED
- Dewalt reciprocating saw
- Dewalt Grinder w/ Klingspor grinding wheels
- Hobart 140 Welder
- Metal cutting saw
MATERIALS USED
- 3/4 Plywood for jig
- Reclaimed metal from previous teardrop video
- Fender washers
- Thetford Topline series #162
Building a slide-out for my Teardrop Trailer to cook on
Continuing from the last part of the build, I wanted to add a slideout out the side of the teardrop for the Thetford Topline series #162 cook top.
The very first thing was to try to get this trailer inside, but to do that, we had to cut off the fender flares and take off the wheels. This will lower down enough to be able to roll through the shop garage door, barely.
Once inside, we tool measurements for the main rear cross beam aka the bumper. Using a ratchet strap we pulled the sides into place and welded up the beam. I didn't know a ratchet strap could do that.. too cool!
Now that we have a structure in place, we could start on building the frame around the slideout. To make it more simple, we attached the 36in full extension drawer slides to the existing frame that I built in the last video and set that in place to get the measurements we wanted. I took lots of measurements but the main one is that I wanted to make sure we had at least 2in gap around the slider so that I can add a exterior door in the future.
We used a piece of scrap plywood as our Depth gauge for what will end up being the countertop. I want the top to inset so this worked out perfect!
After all that was tacked up, Josh went through and welded up every seam and added 23 gussets in total to strengthen the frame. As we was welding one side, I was grinding down the previous welds with my Klingspor grinding kit. Between him and I, we had 5 grinders so we set them up all different from wire wheels to flat wheels to grinding wheels. It was great!
Onto my favorite part! Paint.. haha. In total we used 4 cans of hammer tough black paint to seal up the trailer. Before we did that, we disassembled the sliders and drawer. Painting it just made it feel finished. This was a pivotal moment in the build, the moment when all the metal fabrication is done. Could we have done more in metal? Maybe, but the parts that are missing will be handled with wood from here on out. Metal is heavy but is useful for structural areas of the build. I am excited to get started on the next phase!
