I was introduced to teardrops when my friend Brooke purchased a 1950's classic. She lost it in a custody battle and started looking to build her own. In the process of running ideas by me, she got me hooked. Just recently, she regained custody of her trailer and our construction project died - I was really looking forward to building one. What the hell...I'll build one anyway, it's only money, right? After looking at many great sites with tons of photos, I settled on the plans of Desert Tear Drops. I really liked their "woody" design and was definately sold on the combined "woody" aluminum look. Construction started July 5th with hopes of being mostly completed by the time my scheduled road trip to the four-corners area rolls around at the end of September. I had plans to use a bolt together 4' x 8' utility trailer that was given to me and weld the major seams. But after I started to prepare the surfaces, I became increasingly unhappy with the way the trailer was put together. I have now decided to build the trailer myself. In the end, I will be much happier with this decision.

I will be posting photo updates as the project progresses. I am using my little webcam, so I apologize for the poor quality of the photos. As I get into the detail work, I will use a better quality camaera. Until that time, enjoy...

PHASE 1 - July 5, 1999

	I have just cut out both sides for my new tear. I am using 3/4" marine grade plywood. I decided that it was worth the added expense for a better surface, better glue, and no voids.
	I found that four 5-gallon paint buckets made a better working platform that standard saw horses. They are at just the right level for jigsawing and sanding - though sanding out the sides was a bit of a knee breaker.

PHASE 2 - July 31, 1999

I have started the long process of finishing the sides (photos to come). Over the course of a few days, I was able to get 7 coats on the outside surfaces and edges. My plans are to have about 20 exterior coats when all is complete. I am using Varathane Elite Diamond Outdoor Finish (satin). The last few coats will be semi-gloss. I am hoping to have this mostly complete by the weekend of August 8th. The interior surfaces will have a few coats put on once I have the ribs in place - I want to make sure I have good surfaces for the construction adhesive. August 8,1999 Coat number 17 has just been applied. Still no new pictures - it still looks like the above, only varnished.

As for the trailer base, I have just put out for bid on having it custom built. While I have done some welding in the past, I have since sold my welder and am weighing the costs of having it custom build vs. doing it myself. More on this once I receive the bids.

September 20, 1999 Finalized the contruction of my trailer frame. I contacted Dick Williams of Poliform in Watsonville to inquire about his very cool fenders and ended up contracting with him not only to purchase my new fenders, but also to weld my frame. It should be ready for me to pick up on the 25th. Then, the real fun starts! I also bought a new Kodak DC265 so the picture quality should improve from this point on. I will try to have a larger detail picture if it makes sense.

September 25, 1999

	Yeah...I have my new frame AND 2 really cool new fenders. All I can say about the fenders is that they are 100% classic teardrop - beautiful. For now, these get put into storage until the trailer is ready for them.
	Dick did a fantastic job with the frame. While I was concerned with the first bolt together frame I aquired in the beginning, I must say that this frame is rather bullet-proof for the small trailer I am putting together. Dick, thanks for the great work!

I have finished priming and painting the frame, so it will get moved to my friend's garage sometime this week. The first order of business will be to get the floor in and the bottom plastered with spray-on rubber stuff - what you use for the inside of wheel wells. This should give the bottom of the frame and floor some added chip protection against flying rocks while on the road. I will also be looking to add some diamond plate along the bottom front and rear to protect against scraping. I am not sure how this will be secured, but I will post once I figure it out. I am hoping that by this coming Sunday, I will be in good shape to attach the sides. More to come...

October 2, 1999

	Here is a good look at our building environment. Just a little tight... Brooke trailer (white with black stripe) is on the right. Notice the slight slant of the floor.
	I am precoating the bottom of the floor. Once I have everything bolted together, I will spray the bottom again and include the frame. This should add additional waterproofing as well protecting the frame and floor from rocks and other road debris. I am using a spray on rubber coating material used for tool handles, outdoor furniture, etc.
	I was trying to think of a way to reduce road noise in my Jeep as well as provide a layer of protection between the frame and the floor. When I was moving the frame and sides to this garage, I noticed that there was a little paint that was worn off from the movement of the wood. I am hoping that this ample amount of silicon will do the trick. I was also looking at using weather strip material, but I did not think it was dense enough to last more than a few days.
	The only washers I could find for the 3/8" hardened bolts were rather small. I found these square monsters that I used for the inside so I could really torque down on the bolts without having to worry about putting a 1" hole through the bottom. Before I tightened everything down, I applied an ample amount of silicon to the underside bolt head and shaft as well as the washers and drilled hole. It will take some serious weather to get through this barrier. I also figure that I shouldn't have to worry about the bolts loosening. I will trim the bolts down later.
	Cool...first side is bolted and glued. I used a ton of liquid nails as well as 2 1/2" deck screws. The original plans called for a narrower sub-frame with the wood for securing the sides hanging down from the floor. In thinking about this design, I thought that there would be too much stress on the wood hanging off the floor. Instead, I made the metal sub-frame wider and have 2" x 4" resting on top of the floor and sub-frame. Lots of liquid nails and screws were used to secure these boards to the floor. The 2" x 4"s would give me lots of wood to secure the sides to. I will go back later and trim the screw ends off as they were about 1/4" too long (you can't see them in this shot). The extra width of the 2" x 4"s will also give me space to insulate and since I plan on using a very thick piece of foam for my bed, I am not worried about the anchor bolts, either.
	Notice that I ran 2 lines of screws down the side. I plan on covering these up somehow...I am not sure how, though. More on this later.
	The second side is now ON! Wow, it is starting to look like a teardrop. The weekend is over, time to pack it in for the day.

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