Here is the new standie pop up salvage

   OK here is a pic of what i had to work with.

before any work

striped ready to work on

back quarter panel and upright support



front panel and top radius



almost finished

Well there it is.It is water tight and painted.I still have a little caulking to do and silicon on the seams.I will be taking it on a 50 mile trip on the 8th just to see how it pulls .When i bought it i was going to make a 5 wide teardrop but i couldn't see wasting a salvageable little trailer.All total i have 150 in the trailer + 143 in rebuilding supplies so for 293$ I have a nice tiny trailer or a man cave for the backyard:}

Full house of kids/dogs

    Sorry i haven't posted any more of the trailer build but i have had a full house.My step daughter and her dog have been staying with us my son drifted back home and everyone we know has come by to visit for a day here and there.Today we had 4 of our daughters my son ,my mother and 4 dogs and the grand son here!!
    The trailer is fully blacked in and dry.I have lots of pics to get on here as soon as i have time.It has turned out nice but i have yet to pull it down the road to see if it will pull OK.If it pulls OK it is a camper if it doesn't it will go to the back yard as my man cave/ prepping storage.Last few weeks i have noticed a lot of stuff i had put up scattered around the house.I have to regather up my flashlights DVD player,lanterns and a few other odds and ends the kids have borrowed plus get some batteries to replace the raided ones.
     I guess its my fault for having the stuff handy.I need to put some of it in the basement no one but me goes down there.It,s a shame that i have to hide it to have it when its needed.And no borrowing my flashlight because you cant find yours isn't a good reason CLEAN YOUR ROOMS i have gave you 3 already.
       After the last 2 weeks i still love our kids but i am tired of their company!!! I know prepping is about family but some times it feels like DARWIN is telling me I'm wasting effort.As soon as the 4th of july weekend is done im going to the beach i need it i deserve it and NO kids!!!!

Laying out my new standy camper.

      Ok when i start anything like this i have to sit and stare at what i have to work with and where i want to end up. First is structural strength so it wont fall apart going down the road.Second is utility,It has to work for what we need camping.Third is i want it to be aerodynamic so it pulls good and gets decent gas milage.
     I began the work day with a POT of coffee staring at the stripped pop up running differant layouts and ideas through my mind.The sun was out and hadnt got hot yet so i was moving slow.I decided that the main component was going to be the walls and roof supported by 2x3s as cornner posts.

roof on bent supports

    The frount of the roof will have to be cut off the rods replaced with 2x3s and the windows/walls reattached.The heigth of the roof will be about 3 inches lower but i will be able to stand with ease.



got to save the door and windows

   If i can save the sides and most the roof this is not going to cost 500 total. As the first pic shows i have the sides down  then i took the roof off and cut it off about a foot.
      Ok 2 trips to lowes and six hours of sweat later i had the walls plum to the cornner 2x3s with 1/4 inch bolts in 4 places for strength.My daughter helped me set the roof back on, it was big but lite.It was screwed in with 8 self tapping screws along a strong aluminum seam.

My teardrop build took a U turn

      The last post i did was me telling you i had a old pop up trailer.I got the trailer to do a 5 wide teardrop.This pop up was a storm victim a large branch landed on it during some straight line winds the tree smashed flattened a brand new Z300 parked beside it.Since it had been 6 weeks i stop ed and knocked to find out if they wanted to sell the camper.All i was looking for was the frame and axle,the man told me insurance had totaled it and he was going to scrap it.I asked if i could make an offer instead.he asked how much?I wanted it so i offered 150$ .He wrote the bill of sale found me the spare all the owner manuals and helped me get it hitched in 15 minutes i had it home.

slides removed

    The picture doesn't show but its leaning a foot to the right from bent lift struts{it was up when hit}.The roof only has about a foot of damage.The inside is in good shape a little water damage, the wall panel's and door is perfect.So instead of a teardrop I'm going to build a lite standy.I have a sink a fridge an ice chest stove and a place for a potty already.I will only have to redo the nose and rear and cut out the crushed part of the roof and support the walls.So i am now building a standie!!!!!!                                                    PS it will wieght 1300 lb or less

Grandkids and the new camper

    Sorry for not posting for a week but i have been playing paw paw with  our grand son this week.I have found there is a slight energy differance between a 2 year old and a 50 year old.The little fellow can run the energizer bunny out of steam.Noah can take a 30 minate nap and is recharged and paw{thats me} has hardly caught his breath.The wife and me have to take turns watching and playing with him so we can keep up.
    

a hellion with a cute smile

      I have a bounce house from back when i sold funnel cakes so i set it up for him to play in.noah even helped kinda

helping paw

       The bounce house and the wife kept him ocuppied for a while so i was able to get some work done on the new camper.As you can see it is a pop up that a tree branch fell on.

smashed the roof and warped the struts

      This is what it looked like when i had cut the canvas part loose.

A build is in the works

I stumbled into a great deal on a little camper sunday.It needs a lot of work it was crushed by a small tree.But for what i have in it i think i can make it work .Will post pic,s latter this week

A great weekend done

     Well the long weekend is now done. I way underestimated what i would sell.I run through 38 Boston butts 15 slabs of ribs and 12 chickens.Not to bad for a fat man on the side of the road.Over 4 days i worked 25 hours and was set up maybe 20 of them.the 4th of July this year is on a Thursday so it will be a 4 day weekend for most folks.I will not be caught short on a holiday again by not having enough.I even had 2 hours i had to get my wife to help me i was crushed with people.
      Good food at a fair price = lots of customers and i like all 3 . I want 1 more year of loafing and travel before i open a restaurant.A lot of folks have said your good at it we need it . I just want to have fun and recharge my batteries before i go at it again.I know this will be my last rodeo in business so i am not going to rush in to it. It may be for life ,I may give it to the kids and take a monthly salary, it may just be sold off .Chasing a dollar isn't as high a priority as  i get older.I much prefer camping, a cold coke and playing slap and tickle with the wife.Maybe my priorities are off but i do enjoy them!