Building the Fold-Down Bed | DIY Cargo Trailer Camper Conversion
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- čas přidán 6. 09. 2024
- Part 16 More progress on the DIY overland, cargo trailer build! The bed is a two fold down joining in the middle. This bed is a full size, which can accommodate two people comfortably! I find out the walls of my trailer are skewed! I build the bed "tray" with 3/4" pure bond maple finish plywood and 3/4" solid oak. The foam is a 3" bamboo mattress topper.
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Thank you everyone for the continued support.
I love that there is tape on the bottom of your shoe as you celebrate the bed working successfully.
We kept finding we needed a folding table. This is so easy to store. czcams.com/users/postUgkxStL0QRChBju4aQlnTrRgBZvafFog0KU3 Opening and closing is easy as well. It has a great handle for carrying around the house. Its pretty lightweight and slides around easy. We bought it for our daughter’s first sleepover. Breakfast was a blur - but 12 7-8 year olds fit at the table with room to spare. We used it at thanksgiving and 6 adults fit comfortably on each side plus 2 on either end for a total of 8. Super easy to clean up afterwards as well.
To anyone here looking for advice, drop a chalk line down the center of the trailer floor square in the middle of the opening. Then take measurements to the walls along this squared center line. You will find where the head of the trailer (near the hitch point) and the rear of the trailer are out of square to each other. From there, plan accordingly.
Right on! Great idea
Joel...When cargo trailers are manufactured, exact measurements are not taken into account and they are not exactly squared. Although they are put together in my opinion better than class A's & C's...they are still clapped together fairly quickly & they are not designed for camping or living in. So it's not you. I measured my bed framing exactly the same on both ends and came out cockeyed by 1/2" on one side...as if my trailer is 1/2" shorter on one side 🙃 Just something you have to deal with doing a cargo trailer conversion. Looking good...have fun!!
Yeah not a fun discovery!
Nope!!
You gotta show this off on the Facebook group Cargo Trailer Conversion and Cargo Trailer Campers! I would be very proud that is very well built!
Didn't know such a group existed! I'll look into it. Thank you
I’m in those groups!
I came for the cedar ceiling and stayed for the bed. I will be honest that bed looks flimsy especially the legs. I have lived in mine full time for 5 years and the one thing that has not been an issue (the only thing) is my bed. It is set in a casement. Cupboards underneath and above. 8" mattress. 4x2s for a frame. 1/2" ply for bed. With some work the entire thing comes out in one go. Sprung gate bolts hold it up. The legs are made from plates of 1/2" ply glue to double up. Large locking Long Release Arm rated at 550 pounds to lock them in place.
Router. Oh lookie there, you have one! Turned an hour into a minute.
I believe this issue you are running into is due to the trailer not being perfectly square and true. The assumption that it is will probably cause a few issues down the road. I would custom measure for everything, and even template first.
Great build!
You would be correct here. Lesson learned!
@@JoelTremblayCA isn’t that part of the fun? Haha
Question; what part of the country are you in? I ask because I’m guessing near Canada. Maybe Maine or a mid west state?
@@garylantz3322 Of course!
I'm in Northern Ontario, Canada.
@@JoelTremblayCA oh wow! I thought with your accent and sayings you were near CA, but in it makes even more sense. I‘ve visited southern Ontario, can’t imagine northern. Must be cold now! I’ll have to look back at the build to see how you insulated the trailer
May I suggest you use 2x2 for the legs instead of the 3/4" lumber as you have! Moving around on the mattress will cause the 3/4" legs to fail over time especially if you have two people in bed.
Thanks! I do have some ideas on how to improve the legs. Stay tuned!
Nice job! Way to stick with it and work it out. Part of the experience that makes it yours.
Thank you!
"best laid plans" I converted s shuttle but 4 years ago and now converting an 8 x 16 V-nose cargo trailer and have learned I have to build to the opening...sometimes plumb is not plumb and level is not level...Im in the middle of my build... my murphy bed is dual purpose... I have a murphy work table on the bottom of it... so table down, work, table up and bed down, sleep :)
Great build Joel, and Congrats on your academic thesis!!
Thank you!
I solved the hinge problem with piano hinges.
Do you have a framing square to see if you have 90° walls and corners? I am guessing that your two walls are not mating up at 90° corners They only have to be off by 2° and you would be off as much as 3/4" of an inch over 7 or 8 foot wide wall opening?
You would be correct on that assumption. The corners are slightly off from the factory. C'est la vie.
Use an off set butt hinge and life will be easier, mount the bed frame above the hinge so it bears the weight, not below where the weight hangs from the hinge. :)
That's a good idea!
So glad you got it to work love your bed design
Thank you!
Awsome job! I'm doing something similar but with walking room underneath and an insert I can place in between like a table leaf if needed
Thank you! Sounds wicked. Good luck with your build.
My guess being a shop teacher. You measured from the same end, but on opposite pieces. This is a common mistake when making right and left pieces. Again just a guess from seeing hundreds of high school students make similar mistakes. Basically I think you had them positioned with the hinge side toward you on the workbench, then measured from same end. That is where the minute motion turned into a major miscalculation. Once you flipped one of the sides around to install, the mistake became apparent. Curious to know if this might be the case. Let me know.
I'm not quite sure I totally follow, but the issue that I came to realize is that the trailer walls are slightly skewed. Imagine a cardboard box and pushing one side out making all the corners slightly off 90°. Thanks for watching and the suggestion! I'll keep it in mind next time!
@@JoelTremblayCA did you square the walls? you can use a bar to do it. and, when set, you install single top bars. takes time to unwarp the square.
I guess I didn't consider the trailer itself might not be square. I was so shocked it didnt align considering how meticulous you've been with your measuring. (Also, i would consider using a thicker piece of wood for the legs, maybe 2x2. The 3/4 is fine in an ideal world of not movingbwhen you sleep.)
I like ur walls, nice pattern n color
Thank you!
Why would you worry about that 1/8th inch gap between the bed enough to do all that unnecessary work mortaring out the hinges?
@@dale7758 maybe unnecessary from your perspective but I wanted something clean, tight lines with no gaps!
@@JoelTremblayCA on the back side of a bunk that’s stays folded up 75% of the time? Ok. But it’s yours and I understand you wanted more content so I can’t say you are wrong!
Dude! Sharpen that chisel!
Really appreciate your talents would you possibly give a list of parts and where you were able to get them. Your machinist mind is awesome and would love to make one of these. Again I would love to get the parts and if you would possibly make a video of constructing the bed platform as you make it. Again thanks for sharing, Do you think a lock in set up one the bed is up? Thanks John Erickson
Hi John, thanks for watching. Glad you've found the video helpful! Most of the components were picked up from Home Depot. The locking mechanism to hold the bed up were from Amazon. I believe I have links to those in the description of this video! Thanks again, hope all is well. Stay safe and happy travels!
Hey there! Thanks for sharing your bed idea, and way to go on showing that trailer who’s boss. Hey, I was wondering what you used as a mattress? And how thick is the plywood that you used for the base?
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it. I got a 3" memory foam mattress from Amazon. I'd suggest getting something with more support! Mine is too soft and I can feel the 3/4" plywood base.
You never use self tappers on wood. They’ll hold but you just don’t do that.
3 years later, they're still holding strong. 🤷
10:32 you say this screws not strong and too little and going for big one becuse this is to ticklish?
Joel I noticed a vertical window would you do a video on how you installed that and were you got the window.
Hi John, I have a full video playlist library of every step-by-step I did for this build. There is a video on the window. Click the Link below to the playlist: czcams.com/play/PLdXc3OXiqH6av1COdPFZspyGoF-URFkZn.html
Why not use piano hinge for the beds?
I used what I had at the time, so far the hinges I used are working fine. Perhaps the next bed I build Ill consider piano hinges!
You are very talented, but the legs don’t seem sturdy enough? What keeps them from folding under and ripping the bed off the wall?
Thanks for the support David! And yes I ended up updating the legs on the bed with locking hinges as you have suggested. Can see how I did it in one of my newer videos.
Hi!!! Loved your video and am especially excited because I had been visualizing something very similar to this. but didn't know how to make it happen. However, I still can't figure out where you put the mattress while it's folded against the wall.
The mattress stays in the tray! That's the whole point of the design. Thanks for watching
Skewed is a good word for that…
Haha yep!
In vest in a router
I get tired just watching you work with a couple of saw horses and sheet of ply as table
when you build in place... never assume anything is square ... pick a reference line in the center and measure off it... it's not just your trailer that had "skewed" you over, this'll happen in houses, basements etc... get a square and USE it... same with floors being level... they're NOT (most of the time)... good job though guy :)
Thanks man! Yes I learned the hard way on this one. It's ironic being in architecture where plans are always exact down to the mm. This was a good lesson to learn that tolerances are always needed in the real world.
@@JoelTremblayCA everything is built a "hair out of square" ;) I've done machining that was measurable to .00005" though ;)
How have you planned to lock the bed halves when they are in the up position?
I've installed some spring loaded gate latches to do this.
www.amazon.ca/dp/B07WVVG94Y?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
"bang on now!".
Thank you!
where did you get the faster for the walls
I'm assuming you are wondering about the self tapping screws? I got them at a local hardware store!
How high is the Bottom of the bed frame to the floor? thanks oh, how thick of a mattress would fit in your design when up against the wall?
Top of floor to underside of the bed is 14-15" can't remember exactly. The bedframe is build out of 1*3 oak (nominal size is 2 1/2" deep) I purchased a 3" memory foam mattress (leaving 1/2" proud of the bed frame). Thanks for watching!
@@JoelTremblayCA Thanks for the prompt reply!
i washed this at 0.5 speed to see how long it really took :)
I dried it at 0.5 speed and... Nothing. Bummer
Cargo trailers are built crappy nothing square, measure everything and don’t beat yourself up, building a cargo camper it will not be perfect! Good job!
Thank you! Yeah learning as I go 😅
@@JoelTremblayCA yea me too! Building a 8.5x20 mine is terrible out of square every where.
That is the craziest looking chisel job I ever seen for a hinge lol it’s really not that hard
A router definitely makes the job a lot quicker when working with solid hard maple! Thanks for watching haha.