Re-Thinking Plans and Inspiration

When my wife and I decided to purchase and renovate the 1947 Tourette, my mind shifted immediately into 'trip mode.'  I started thinking about being able to travel, but sadly I sort of thought of those trips as being just 'two people' trips.  By that I mean that the teardrop really only fits 'two' people.  Of course, we 'could' always bring a tent along and the kids could sleep in there, but not having to set up and, more importantly, wait for it to dry before putting it away, was one of the big draws for us to buy the teardrop.  I started to dream and plan a trip for next summer with my daughter.  I was excited to think of having that time with her as she will only be around a few more summers before college.  I was hoping to make some substantial memories.

It was quite early into that planning that my wife voiced something that I had been knocking around in my head a lot; why is only Grace getting to have this awesome trip?  Shouldn't we 'all' get to have this incredible experience?

The answer, of course, is an emphatic yes!

With this in mind, I started to think differently.

I am a huge fan of family home movies.  I don't have any of these movies of my own youth, but I've found the Prelinger Archives to be full of family movies that kind of fill that gap for me.  It was one such exploration of the archives, a free resource of all sorts of historic and archival movies, books, and much more, that lead me to the two films you see below.  The two films tell of the Barstow Family of Connecticut.  They set out over three summers to visit every state in the United States (48 at the time).  The film must have been a huge undertaking when it was created given the technological challenges.  The original 8mm film was converted to VHS and the VHS tape was then edited and titles and a voice over by the father many years after the trip was added.

I found the films to be mesmerizing in a very interesting way.  The family 'hams' it up for the camera from the very beginning.  They are such terrific sports, from the initial scenes where they come out to the station wagon with their 'sacks' in which they brought their books, games, and puzzles, to the cheesy posed segments in front of the landmarks that help identify many of the states on their quest.  Their road trips across the country lasted nearly a month.  They

My favorite part of the film is actually seeing how they evolved as a 'camping' family.  They started out in one big and pretty elaborate tent.  The next summer, the parents slept in a much simpler (and quicker set up) pop up tent.  The kids, and this is the brilliant part to me, slept in the station wagon.  If you watch the video, you can see that the father created a platform for the back of their station wagon.  It had three compartments for each of the children's suitcases and when the seat was put down, it became a platform on which the two oldest children were able to put their inflatable mattress.  The youngest child was comfy and cozy on the front bench seat.  The father created all sorts of little customizations from the screen he used when the station wagon's windows were open to the chuck wagon box and the ingenious single wheel trailer with the rotating wheel.  This got me thinking.

Obviously my wife and are sleeping in the teardrop, but what about the kids?  I'm thinking that we might be able to do something similar to the Barstow Family.  For those camping times and locations where time is critical might allow us to simply fold the seats in our CRV down and inflate a mattress for the kids.  I could see this option being ideal if it were raining too.  We purchased a EZ Up to give us an area of shelter in which to cook, etc.  This could be put over the CRV's hatch back as well and give shelter the kids from bad rain, etc.  When there is more time and or space, we could easily set up one of our smaller tents for the kids.  And that settles it.  Now we can start planning and mapping our route.  If  you have some time, you would probably really enjoy watching this family's journeys, I know I sure did.

Change of Plans...

Well, the best laid plans of mice and men...we ended up with some problems this morning.  We went out to check on the teardrop's cabin.  It had rained seriously hard overnight and was down pouring  as we ate breakfast.  Unfortunately, the caulk had reacted with the intense humidity and heat.  The caulk, which is pretty thick, began to liquify and was not solidifying like we had hoped it would.  We knew we would not be able to put the mattress in as it was.  We tried backing up the CRV and putting the teardrop in the garage, but it was just way too tough to maneuver with the basket on the front of the teardrop; it impacted the turning radius in a big way.  We gave up after a few minutes of trying and being completely soaked by the rain while we tried.

We decided to go ahead and take the kids to my parents to visit and we would stop at Harbor Freight on the way back and get some of the things we would need.  The first thing we bought was a 12" extension to the trailer tongue.  After buying a coupler lock, a new pin and a few other supplies we headed back to Powell.

Putting the extension on the tongue made a HUGE difference!  I was able, with some support from Erica, to back the teardrop into the garage quite easily.  I can't believe I didn't buy that thing before!  After getting the teardrop in the garage, we plugged in two fans and started airing the interior out and charging the batteries.

Installing the extension was simple; just insert a new coupler pin.  

Drying out in Powell.

Two fans drying the caulk.

We've decided that we would stay the night here while the cabin dries out and the caulk cures.  We hopefully will be able to load up in the morning and head to Athens.

Just an aside, I noticed some water in the galley area too.  I'm not sure what the cause of that is, but it has to be partly due to the poor seal and fit of the hatch.  That's not nearly as important to me as the cabin is, but it will have to be addressed when we get home.  For now, we wait and pray for no rain.

How to Read Schematics; For the Non-Electrician and More Electrical Designs

So last night I started placing the fuse panel and outlets in the galley.  I marked everything and then started fiddling with the fuse panel.  I turned it over and saw this:

And this:

And this:

 

And this:

 

I had literally no idea of how to begin connecting my wires to this.  There were only tiny solder points to 'connect' to, or so it seamed to me at first look.  My logical brain said that there is a + and a - side.  The middle must be a ground.  Then I started wondering how in the heck you connect to this when the green circuit board is covering the 'inputs.'  So, I did what I've done in the past, I decided to ask for guidance on the Teardrops and Tiny Travel Trailer Forum.   Within the hour, I had several responses from kind folks who helped me understand the PDF that is on the West Marine website:

 It turns out that the two silver screws are where the 'main' lines to the battery go; slight caveat, I will be adding a buss bar to the negative line as a ground.  The center pole on the fuse panel is actually where the + wire from each circuit's load goes.  After several, very patient, posts, I now understand that this is really pretty simple, but it looked quite complicated to me when I started.  

Once again, I am so grateful to the kindness of others on the Teardrops and Tiny Travel Trailer Forum.  Their combined wisdom helped me through a pickle!

I measured things out last night and it seems that I will be able to put a 'pass through' in the cabin where all the wires will come through.  Thankfully, and by dumb luck, this will all pass below the 'counter top' in the galley.  So, everything will be clean and obstruction free.

You can see from the image above how the main feed from the cabin will enter the cabinet.  I'll run the wires then to the fuse panel, buss bar (ground) and then over to the battery.  I sketched in the 'super simple 120 volt' circuit as well.  This is so that if we have shore power, we can plug in and 'charge up' batteries, or even run appliances directly on the 120 volt current.  I will be putting one 120 volt power outlet in the cabin too.

So far I like the way this is starting to look.  It will be a fairly 'clean' look, while balancing the need to use power when you need it.  The only conflict I can see is that the cooler will not be able to be pulled out when the power ports are being used.  I think that should be fine as generally we will have the cooler out on the ground when in 'camp.'  Having a power port right in that area would allow for a possible 12 volt cooler at some point if we decide that is what we want.  

Here is what the cabinets and electrical receptacles will look like on the inside:

 

I didn't have a good picture of the inside of the cabin.  You can see, I'll have two large cupboards connected by a small shelving section.  The shelf will be wide enough to fit an iPad for those nights when a campfire isn't possible.

I'm going to use the aluminum shelf to create a 'false' bottom for the cabinets.  By doing this, I'll be able to 'hide' the hole to the power center and disguise the electrical connections for the two 12 volt outlets and the one 120 volt outlet.  The advantage of planning ahead like this is that I am going to provide an access panel to the wiring under the cabinet in case I have to make any 'future' additions or changes.  Also, as you can see from the drawing above, there will be one switch in the center to turn on the 'porch' lights.  

After a lot of research, I decided that it is way too complicated for me to try to have the side marker lights turn on with the porch lights.  It would have been cool, but way too advanced an electrical install for me.   Super Bright LED's was just the place to find four small, cheap LED fixtures.  These four fixtures will be placed, one on each corner of the teardrop, just under the frame.  I can envision how it will look when I turn them on; it's going to be way cool!

 You can see from the images above that they are really tiny, yet very bright.  They also have the added benefit of being able to be a 'replacement' bolt.  That will make the install simple.

The 'porch lights,' which I've shared before, will be really neat when added to this system.

Again, you can see that they are quite small, but very bright.  Again, the ones I'll be using will be red to protect night vision.

I researched the "Super Simple 120 volt Power System" on the TTNT forum and found this excellent, and very simple design:

When combined, the system looks like this:

Or like this:

Mine will be essentially like the one above.  Instead of simply 'terminating' at the three plug input, I will 'daisy chain' the three boxes from the surge protected power cord.

For now, I'm pretty happy with the design.  It will allow us to connect to shore power when we have the opportunity and when we are at home this will prevent me from having to take 'out' the battery in order to charge it.

Electrical Design; Special Thanks Again to Fellow Blogger: "Desert Dog!"

I've said it before, but the internet is an amazing thing!  I've noted Desert Dog's fantastic website, where she has chronicled the build and experiences of her teardrop, before, but I owe her another bit of gratitude.  Electricity is not my forte.  Thanks to Desert Dog, Joanne, I have a very clear picture of what I need to do in order to get my electrical system in place.

By picture, I literally mean a picture!  She sketched out for me how to lay out my electrical system.  For me, a visual learner, this was so incredibly helpful!  I am very grateful for her help and guidance.

I was having some trouble with my set up because my circuit board did not have a buss strip for the ground.  She sketched me a quick layout which helped me tremendously!

Here is her sketch of how to set up the various circuits:

With this simple diagram, I was able to layout my entire electrical system, basing it all off the two circuits she helped me visualize.  Here is my first crack at designing an electrical schematic.  I downloaded the free app called Schematics Light.  I must confess that I basically used it as a drawing tool; I had no idea what I was doing.  I'm sure that this design is full of schematic no-no's!  I think its helped me figure out how to do the wiring and I guess that's what is important, right?

The way it is designed at this point, I will have the reading lights, galley lights and dome lights all on one circuit.  I'll take a trick out of Joanne's tool box here and use a connector bar to bring those lines together before going to the fuse panel.  The four 12 volt outlets will have a similar breaker bar.

I think I will be able to drill a hole in the bulkhead panel at the bottom of the shelf area and pull the wires through there into the small compartment in the galley.  I'm hoping I can run it this way so I don't have to create something to 'hide' the wires coming into the battery compartment.

After I replace the hinge and seal up the fan, I'll be able to start pulling some wires.

Saturday

My Wingman, Jim Tingey was back for a status update today.  He helped me jack up the teardrop in order to anchor the edges of the plywood floor which needed to be bolted together.  We also completed the bulkhead installation of the green treated board.

Next, I measured and cut the first piece of headliner for the floor.  Simply placing it on the floor of the teardrop immediately made a huge difference!  The whole space was more 'finished' and pleasant.  Unfortunately, I had to remove the storage boxes and start over with the aluminum trim.  I was too eager to have the floor boxes in place and realized that with the headliner on the floor, I would need to re-do the aluminum edging.  Nonetheless, it looks much, much better.  I didn't use any contact cement yet.  It's too cold and I'm weighing the benefits of the material I have.  I may end up returning the gallon of contact cement and going with a spray adhesive from 3M.  I'm researching that for a later date.

In addition to 're-doing' the trim, I decided to anchor the boxes to the frame with some of the left over aluminum angle material that was left over from removing the galley.  I screwed the angle to the frame and then screwed the boxes to it.  This is a much more secure way to do the floor boxes anyway.  I should have done it that way in the first place. Well, I should say, I tried to do this.  I need to invest in some jacks to get the trailer up in the air, even a few inches will greatly increase my ability to work on it.  I plan on picking a set up from Harbor Freight tomorrow.

I showed the door hardware and the ventilation fan to Jim.  He was impressed with the fan!  One thing I discovered, kinda by accident, is that the fan's blades are clear which allows you to be able to 'see' the stars through the vent!  I'm thinking about where to place the vent in order to take advantage of this awesome design feature.

I may go ahead and cut the opening for the ventilation fan tomorrow.  It would be nice to have the additional light in the cabin while I'm working on it; plus this would motivate me to get the other electrical work started.


I started measuring the cabin for the foam that I plan to install.  I turned to Sketchup again to help me with figuring out my materials.  The end result is pretty cool, take a look:

Above you can see the 4 x 8 sheets with all the individual sections marked out.  My plan, at this point is to install the headliner on the individual pieces of foam and then install the pieces.  By doing this, I should eliminate the need for large sheets of headliner to be installed.  That's the plan at this point.

I'm getting ahead of myself.  The galley needs to be at least roughed in completely before I can start installing the electric.  

To Do List

Okay, so I'm realizing that I'm attacking this project in a bit of a scatter-brained fashion.  There is 'so much' that I want to do that I have kind of been doing a little of this, and a little of that.  Another reason for my disorganized approach is that there just is not time during the work week to get much done.  In my defense, I have been waiting for parts and materials to arrive in order to accomplish many major tasks.  I thought it would be a good idea to reorganize and make a rational list of projects in the order I hope to accomplish them.

Here we go:

1.  The windows have arrived, so I need to VERY carefully measure, mark and cut the aluminum to prepare them for the fitting of the window.  This makes me very anxious!  Slow and deliberate are the words I need to be constantly remembering.  After cutting the holes, I will be able to install the windows and re-mount the doors.

2.  I need to caulk and mount the green treated board in the bulkhead: (this is going to require a third set of hands.)  At this point, the cabin will be 100% sealed and water-tight.

3.  I need to firm up the galley plan.  I don't want to glue it all in just yet, but I need to have a pretty certain layout of the design so that I can begin moving forward on the electrical work.  Right now I'm leaning towards having the electrical panel and all connections at the top of the galley behind a fold down shelf.  This will greatly simplify the wire runs (I hope!)

4.  Once the galley is planned, I need to layout the interior cabinets; these again need to be in place before I can finalize the wiring.

5.  I'll rough in the wiring.

6.  With both cabinet sections planned, I can stain and seal the wood and finally install it.

7.  The next step will be to finalize wiring and install the insulation.

8.  Next will be the installing of the headliner over the insulation.  At this point, I'm still not sure if I'll install the headliner directly on top of the insulation or if I'll add a think layer of Luan plywood.

9.  Final fitting of all interior light fixtures, etc.

10.  Clean and buff the aluminum skin.

Now, there's an organized list.  I am going to try to stick to it as I move forward on the project. 

Ripping Out the Galley

Today was a productive day!  I started by drilling out all the rivets on the hinge; all 60 of them!  This is what my drill bit looked like when I was done!  You can see the 'head's of the rivets on the drill bit.  The drill bit 'pops' off the rivet head and then you finish drilling it out to 'open' up the hole.

 Once the hinge was removed, I was able to take the hatch off.  Putting the hatch aside, I was then able to start drilling out the rivets that held the cabinetry in place.  I decided to take all the rivets out that were attached to the aluminum skin of the sides of the teardrop.

Then, I got Medieval on the cabinets.  My five pound sledge provided just the right amount of persuasion.  What needed additional persuasion was soon tamed by my reciprocating saws demolition blade. 

Thankfully, I managed to 'pop' a lot of the rivets and thus I didn't have to drill out all of the ones in the 'back' of the galley.

After deep cleaning the aluminum, I was able to spray the hatch and galley with the same paint as inside the cabin.

Hatch before:

Hatch After:

My wingman, Jim Tingey, came by today.  We spent most of our time talking through different design ideas.  I wanted to cover the front of the teardrop (the 2' above where the teardrop meets the frame) with diamond plate.  The reason for this would be to fix up some cosmetic concerns.  We figured out that the teardrop was installed on the present trailer frame and in doing so had to be retrofitted; hence the need to cover up some cosmetic issues.  The diamond plate was going to cost quite a bit; I had several estimates from local manufacturers and one from Pittsburgh, PA.  Jim's idea was to try something slightly out of the ordinary.  He suggested that I try looking at other materials; plastic or rubber.  I've contacted a good friend who's company makes just such a product.  Additionally, we talked about putting the battery on the trailer tongue.

After talking through a variety of designs and ideas, Jim suggested putting the battery, fuse box, etc. in the galley rather than putting it in a tongue box.  I had been looking at one of those cargo racks that you can use in combination with your tow hitch.  I saw some pictures online of a way to 'customize' a Harbor Freight rack to fit on the tongue of the trailer.

This would be an excellent way to have additional storage and maximize the aerodynamic boost of the design of the teardrop.  I put some of the most essential items in the newly painted galley and started working with some ideas.  Now, its time to study pictures of other people's galleys and begin designing my own.

While showing Jim the cabin, he wondered aloud if the 'shelf' could double as a bunk for my 11 year old.  We had him climb up into it and guess what?  He fits!  However, we'll end up adding some sort of storage cabinets there so the bunk idea is out of the question.  

We talked through adding insulation to the cabin and possibly a solution for how to add the same on the doors.  I'll probably end up adding the insulation and wood paneling to the doors in 'compartments,' rather than as one large piece.  It felt good to share ideas and solve some of the problems together.

My plans for tomorrow are to get the cabin water tight.  I am planning to remove the old caulk and install the bolts that hold the cabin to the plywood flooring.  After that, I'll put the other door on and install the weather stripping.  I may attempt to add the floor storage box tomorrow too.  My door and galley locks as well as the galley hinge will arrive next week.  I won't install them until after I have the window installation finalized.  I'm hanging on to the screen windows I've made until after I've decided if the sliding windows are going to meet my needs.

Taking Stock

The past couple of days have been a chance for me to take stock of where things stand with the teardrop.  The first thing I did was clean the interior.  I went through about 10 buckets of hot soapy water cleaning the aluminum.  It was really dirty inside.  However, there were no signs of critters living in the inside.  The hatch had a boatload of caulking from various applications over the decades.  I applied a chemical that broke down the bond of the caulk and helped it peel away.

The windows were a nightmare.  The wood frames were rotten and the screen was completely rusted.  (You can see the sagging seal and the rusted screen in the image below. )  The aluminum 'cover' of the window is supposed to be hinged.  This one was completely missing, (we later found it in the cabin.)  The one on the other side had been caulked in place.  I removed all of the rotten seals as well.  I took one window frame out and left one in for reference as I begin to rebuild the wooden frame.  I will treat the 'new' frame with polyurethane to help it last a few more decades.  I considered buying a plastic framed window, but unfortunately, they are a unique size and will probably need to be specially made.  I have a window company that I would like to at least have an estimate from so that I can make an informed decision.  If it's not too terribly expensive, I think it would be worth it to have a sliding screen window.  I'd like to be able to have the light inside the cabin from windows. 

Later today, I was able to remove all of the trim along the bottom of the trailer.  I plan to replace this badly worn and broken trim with a slightly larger trim piece.  I'm looking forward to learning how to use a rivet tool.  It was a lot easier than I thought it would be to drill out the old rivets. 

You can see in this picture the old wood frame and the larger wooden frame that is used to seat the door.  I plan on rebuilding these pieces soon. 

This is the naked door with all the wood and hardware removed.

You can see by my wooden mallet all of the hardware that I removed today.  Each of those are going to be replaced by replica hardware that I've been able to find online.  It's time to start shopping for all those replacement parts!

Making Your Bed

Larry, my friend in Ohio who is also a 1947 Teardrop owner, sent me a drawing of the 'floor.'  I have been thinking about how I was going to 'fit' my mattress into the teardrop.  I have two mattresses to choose from.

One is from our 'old' futon and the other is from our 'old' couch.  I don't think either of them are going to be 'perfect,' but I'm hoping to be able to fit one of them into it for the trip home.  I might end up having to 'carve' out a custom mattress.  I heard that Wal Mart has a mattress that might be able to 'customized.' My hope is to be able to spend one night on the way home somewhere.  The kids have been kidding me that I'll be sleeping in it out on the back porch.  Depending on how the mattress 'fits' and how well things 'seal,' I might choose to 'camp' somewhere.  I might bring it home, fix it up a bit and then go out for a night or two.

Project Breakdown

Here are the steps I came up with in the last post.  I am going to break each of the steps down and include as many of the details as I can.  I will add specifics if I can, which I hope will make the process of completing each step easier for me in the long run.

1. Install hitch
• The best deal is our local U-Haul.  Using their hitch installation estimator,  I am looking at approximately $350

     2.  Take ownership of the Teardrop/bring it home

• I will need to drive to Cookeville, TN This is about ten hours.  
• When I get there, I'll need to fix the trailer lights and inspect the axle and wheel bearings.  If the lights don't work, I may need to use a magnetic set of lights for the short term.
• Will I bring Jack with me?
• Will I stop and visit with Larry, who lives just north of Dayton?

     3.  Clean and perform 'basic' structural and cosmetic repairs to Teardrop and trailer

• Once I get the Teardrop home, I will carefully clean the interior and exterior.  
• When the interior is clean and dry, I will inspect the underside of the trailer and floor.  Hopefully, they will be in satisfactory condition and the floor will not need to be replaced.  If it does, that sets in motion an entirely different set of circumstances.  For the sake of argument, let's say it DOES need to be replaced:
• I will need to unbolt each of the bolts which go through the floor and through the steel frame of the trailer.  
• Somehow, the cabin will need to be lifted off of the chassis.  
• The floor will need to be replaced with a suitable plywood sheet.
• The plywood sheet will need to be weather proofed using roofing tar.  (This might need to be done even if it is not replaced as a way of weatherproofing the bottom.)
• If the cabin is removed, it is conceivably possible to 'finish' the interior of the cabin with 'large' sheet goods.  If this is the case, the entire electrical plan would have to be implemented before the cabin could be rejoined to the chassis.
• Lastly, the cabin would be re-attached to the trailer chassis. 

• The frame and tongue will need to be cleaned with a wire brush and treated with several coats of Rustoleum black spray paint.
• The inside of the cabin and floor will be completely painted with high gloss exterior house paint.  This should change the aesthetics of the interior greatly.

     4.   Add 'temporary'  lighting elements to cabin and galley

• I will install temporary lighting in the interior and galley.  I have several battery operated LED lights that should work quite well for this application.

     5.  Electrical plan

• This is going to be one of the most challenging elements for me.  I will need to solve several problems.
• First I will need to decide whether or not I will integrate AC and DC power into the design. 
• Next I will need to think about the 'need' of AC devices like air conditioners, etc.  Their inclusion opens up many design obstacles such as ventilation, security and most importantly infrastructure of the electrical system.
• Once I've decided on the above elements, I will need to layout the design.  Thankfully, I've been able to study the schematics of many builds on the forum.  At this moment I am leaning toward both an AC and DC system; albeit a simple design.  I do not think that I will include the AC unit in my design.  Here's why:

• I prefer camping in 'primitive' sites; these often do not have power.  
• I don't have anything against other campers, but when I 'camp' I prefer to be away from others where I can enjoy the out of doors.
• I don't want to have to use a generator (which is often not allowed in campsites).
• I plan to add the Fantastic Fan to the Teardrop.  This works as both a vent and a fan.  I am pretty sure that with the addition of a secondary fan in the cabin, I can create enough of a breeze to keep us cool in most conditions. 
• Planovet developed an innovative 'power center' that I really like.  I want to integrate his ideas into my electrical plan
• I would like to plan ahead for adding a solar panel.  I need to research this so that when I do add the solar panel I won't have to undo any of my earlier work.  If there is a way to 'add' the cable ahead of time, I would like to do that. 

• What specific electrical fixtures will I install?




• Reading lights in the cabin
• Dome light with both red and white LED's
• Porch lights: small colored LED's
• License plate light
• New tail lights
• Marker lights on top of the hatch and along the sides
• Galley Light with both red and white LED's 
• Fantastic Fan/Vent; thermostat controlled, rain sensor, etc.

     6.  Cabin and galley design

• As briefly mentioned above, the cabin and galley will be insulated.  The design elements will also need to include the cabinetry.  Again, the forum has been incredibly useful in developing a series of 'must haves' that I want to include in my designs.  
• I hope to be able to create the galley cabinets out of birch plywood that I will varnish in order to preserve its gorgeous qualities; in my perfect world, I would have used the same finish for the interior.  Due to the constraints of the door width, however, I will probably not be able to finish the interior in large sheets of birch.  Instead I'll use regular BCX plywood; in 1/2 or 1/4 inch thickness.  This will add about 1 1/2 inches to the interior.
• I am considering adding a layer to the floor too.  Not sure if this is a good idea or not. 

     7.  Install electrical system

• Once the electrical design is in place, I will need to install wooden furring strips.  These will be adhered to the aluminum with a special adhesive tape. 

     8.  Insulation of cabin and hatch

• The furring strips will then be the ribs that will hold the insulation panels (at least 1" of extruded styrofoam).  On top of the foam will be a thin skin of plywood panels.  The panels will be attached to the ribs via screws.   

     9.  Interior skin/hull liner installation

• For the cabin, I plan to use a hull liner for the walls.  From what I've seen, the marine hull liners will be perfect.  It will conform to shapes and will 'cover' any imperfections in either the aluminum or the plywood skin.  I am thinking of using a light charcoal colored hull liner.

     10.  Installation of cabin cabinets

• I am planning on painting the interior cabinets glossy black.  I think the contrast between the gray hull liner and the black cabinets will look wonderful. 

     11.  Installation of galley cabinets

• The galley cabinets will be varnished birch plywood with silver polished hardware.

     12.  Repair aluminum skin

• Replace rivets with smooth covered rivets
• Replace edge and other moldings
• Add drip gutter above doors
• Add diamond plate to front of Teardrop
• Install additional exterior lighting
• Replace hatch handle

     13.  Lubricate axles and bearings

• Research how to 'pack' the trailer's bearings
• If needed, repair the bearings 

     14.  Add trailer elements

• Weld/bolt stabilizers to rear of trailer
• Weld additional support and diamond plate to the front of the tongue
• Add 'rails' to the side of the tongue diamond plated area
• Add a tongue box

     15.  Polish aluminum skin

• Sand with 200/400/800 grit
• Polish with yellow and then white pads (see Youtube video on how to do this)