Fiberglass campers for dummies? Fiberglass 101?

[LurkerDan]

Ok, here is a "for dummies" question (#2 below is the real question, the rest is background).

I want to be able to stake out a tarp as an awning (I don't have the pre-installed railing). I figure if I had a few tie down points on the camper, I could stake out a pretty good rain cover and sun shade next to the camper. The camper has a few little "eye hole" things screwed/bolted in to the camper, but not in the right places (you can see two of them along the left side of this large picture, it's what the bungee cord is hooked to). So I am thinking of putting in 3 of them somewhere along the door side roof line. Questions are:

1) Is this a bad idea?

2) If not, how do you bolt stuff to the fiberglass body so that it is reasonably sturdy and waterproof? Doesn't have to be the "best" way, just a way that a dummy with little skills can do it and have it work.

As always, any advice (on this or other camper stuff) appreciated.

[honda03842]

We're planning to add a simple, lightweight awning to our trailer. In the last few days I've added some pictures of a trial run of it on Preparing a Scamp 16, in the Modification thread.

The pictures show it attached where our clothes line mounts. It's simply a couple of pieces of plastic pipe that slide into a c clamp and are tied back, in the trial run, to the Vent. In the trial the top is covered with an old striped sheet.

In the final unit that mounts on the side the plan is to use super suction cups to hold the pipes and to tie the top of the pipes to two suction cups or the far side edge of the trailer.

For awning material I was planning to use waterproof Nylon, no sew material used in making storage kayak bags. Depending on thickness it weighs 6-12 oz/ square yard.

The poles are 10' long and could easily mount under the trailer.

another idea for you,

Material Source:
http://www.seattlefabrics.com/nylons...sealableoxford


Norm

[LurkerDan]

Originally Posted by Scott H

Houston we may have an infestation; 3 maggots, run for the hills! Welcome Bondo. Will you guys be up and running for this- Stage 2 | USA Pro Cycling Challenge
Be nice to see a collection of glass-on-the-pass TDF stylie.

Scott, who are you on there?

[Scott H]

Dan, I'm mostly a TGR lurker, I think my handle is rtsideup. I post a little more on TTips. Basicly I think TGR is full of a bunch of teenage skier wannabees posting from their parents basements in Ohio; and TTips is a bunch of aging, cubicle dwelling, weekend warrior, Bay area nerd wannabees. I'd rather just watch, and ski, lots. I'm also the production Mgr. for Wagner Custom. Sorry for the digression folks, back to your regular scheduled programing.

[OldschoolSA]

Originally Posted by Frederick L. Simson

OK, that's a good start. There is so much there that I'll have to work offline and post blocks of information as I complete the write-up. This will take some time. In the mean time, I'm sure many members will add advice to this thread. I hope to monitor this to incorporate the information into a "Fiberglass Campers for Dummies" course.

I retired from the US Navy 17 years ago. One of my assignments was a 4 year stint as an Instructor at a Service School. I had to learn how to be an Instructor, and that experience serves me well to this day. My training was for writing lesson plans assuming the student knows nothing about the subject; exactly what you are looking for.

Here is a link to a project I completed some time ago:
Setting Up a Trailer in a Campsite
Checklist 8.0

"8.0" means that I re-wrote it 8 times. It is written specifically for my Fiber Stream trailer, but can be modified to be appropriate for any trailer.

It's 6 color-coded pages are designed to be printed out, and assembled as 3 "Recipe Cards"

1. Boondocking
   • Arriving on the Front
   • Departing on the Back
2. Full Hook-Ups
   • Arriving on the Front
   • Departing on the Back
3. Storage
   • Arriving on the Front
   • Departing on the Back

These are all the tasks associated with the 3 types of places you will put your trailer. "Arriving" starts with you all hitched-up and pulling into a campsite (or a storage yard), and ends with with you unhitched and the trailer ready to camp in (or be stored). "Departing" starts with you set-up in a Campsite (or storage yard) and ends with you hitched-up ready to hit the road. Just select the card in which circumstance you find yourself in, and follow the 1 page step-by-step instructions that apply to that circumstance. I have personally tested them by arriving at a campsite with an inexperienced newbie friend of mine, handing him the appropriate card, and sitting back with a cold drink while HE set up camp.

by the time youre done with this list, the weekend is over.....

[Gardnpondr]

Originally Posted by BigMike

"My problem is that I am so overwhelmed with the whole thing."
You are not alone. I feel that way about every other day with my Scamp project.

I just keep telling myself that a journey of a thousand begins with one step.
(Confucius? I don't know for sure)

There is so much I want to do to mine that I get distracted. I am working on choosing one project and seeing it to completion and before I know it, it'll be finished..._________

Leaving a blank space for the wise acre comments

me to on the overwhelmed. So nuch to learn and this stuff with the inverter/power/ac/dc/ and how that all operates.....oh dear and the generator, does mine even have one of those in it? I have no clue. Do you just plug it in to power and it does it's own thing or you click something? yep overwhelming indeed.

[Gardnpondr]

Originally Posted by Scott H

Houston we may have an infestation; 3 maggots, run for the hills! Welcome Bondo. Will you guys be up and running for this- Stage 2 | USA Pro Cycling Challenge
Be nice to see a collection of glass-on-the-pass TDF stylie.

another one, they're coming out of the woodwork.