Who has used wood to skin there expedition trailer and floor also?
- Thread starter lacofdfireman
- Start date
ex m38a1er
Adventurer
Μaybe you would like to check my signature....
lacofdfireman
Adventurer
UHMW.. cut it with a skill saw. tough as nails, but fairly expensive.
Might check with a local fab shop to see if they could sheer your steel for you. That would be the easiest way. Or take this as a opportunity to buy a plasma cutter
Ya I wouldn't know where to source that or how to even work with it. I'd love to learn how to fiberglass someday. Also a Plasm Cutter is out of my budget. Don't get me wrong I'd love to have one but I don't have an extra grand to drop on a plasma cutter. And that's probably a cheap one as I've never even looked into them.
lacofdfireman
Adventurer
At $800 a sheet I'll have to take my chances with Baltic Birch. Looks cool but that's some pricy stuff. I'll have to look into the Plasma cutter. Which model do you have?
lacofdfireman
Adventurer
Here's another one skinned with plywood. It's not completed, the next step is to paint the shell with and acrylic coating like the Olympic Rescue IT I used for the tilt-up camper I posted earlier in the thread.
That trailer is fiberglass isn't it. Sure looks like it. I'm talking finished with wood then painted. I'd really like to finish mine with a spray on or roll on rubber type bed liner product over the wood. So to me the finish quality do the wood isn't that important to me as you will not see the grain etc. But being able to seal the wood would be. I'd think that would seal it up pretty well. Never used it on wood though so I'm not positive.
IdaSHO
IDACAMPER
The best way to seal and finish plywood by far is with epoxy, and a top coat.
These are the steps I take to seal the plywood of wood framed, plywood skinned campers.
Hit me up with any questions you may have on the process. Its takes time, but the results stand for themselves.
One heck of a finish that stands the test of time.
CPES by Rot Doctor
AeroMarine 300/21 epoxy.
Cover Stain by Zinsser for primer
Rustoleum Professional oil enamel for topcoats, in a tint-base for colormatch to roof coat
And gaco-roof silicone roof coating for the roof
These are the steps I take to seal the plywood of wood framed, plywood skinned campers.
Hit me up with any questions you may have on the process. Its takes time, but the results stand for themselves.
One heck of a finish that stands the test of time.
CPES by Rot Doctor
AeroMarine 300/21 epoxy.
Cover Stain by Zinsser for primer
Rustoleum Professional oil enamel for topcoats, in a tint-base for colormatch to roof coat
And gaco-roof silicone roof coating for the roof
jscherb
Expedition Leader
The yellow tub is metal, half is from an LJ and half is from a YJ. The teardrop top is plywood framed with fiberglass, the whiter parts are fiberglass and the sides/ends/top/curved hatch are plywood - inexpensive 1/4" pre-primed underlayment from Lowes. This shot shows the fiberglass parts, everything else that's part of the teardrop top in the prior photos is plywood:
(The tub in the photo above is fiberglass, it's not the yellow trailer tub, it's a spare fiberglass tub I've got here that I set up in the workshop because I couldn't get the yellow trailer into the basement
).Bed liner works well, can't go wrong with that.
Products like acrylic coatings for decks work really well and are less expensive than bed liner; they roll on well. Some have sand in them to form a non skid surface but there are "light" versions that are a bit smoother.
I seal the wood first with epoxy primer applied with a roller, and then apply the top coat, either bed liner applied by spraying or deck coating applied with a roller.
herecomestony
Observer
That looks nice!
IdaSHO
IDACAMPER
Your welcome.
Ive found may will say that the CPES is enough and painting right over it will do you fine.
However in my experience the CPES is thinned so much that the epoxy within the CPES cannot build, and it still leaves the wood fibers exposed to a degree.
So I always top coat the CPES with a very thin layer of full-bodied epoxy.
Running a layer, regardless of just how thin/thick also allows you some ability to sand/smooth the surface prior to painting, without worry of exposing the wood fibers that you just tied to seal up
Ive found may will say that the CPES is enough and painting right over it will do you fine.
However in my experience the CPES is thinned so much that the epoxy within the CPES cannot build, and it still leaves the wood fibers exposed to a degree.
So I always top coat the CPES with a very thin layer of full-bodied epoxy.
Running a layer, regardless of just how thin/thick also allows you some ability to sand/smooth the surface prior to painting, without worry of exposing the wood fibers that you just tied to seal up
dstock
Explorer
Your welcome.
Ive found may will say that the CPES is enough and painting right over it will do you fine.
However in my experience the CPES is thinned so much that the epoxy within the CPES cannot build, and it still leaves the wood fibers exposed to a degree.
So I always top coat the CPES with a very thin layer of full-bodied epoxy.
Running a layer, regardless of just how thin/thick also allows you some ability to sand/smooth the surface prior to painting, without worry of exposing the wood fibers that you just tied to seal up
How do you get such nice looking corners? I've got to build a lid for my M101A1, just trying to weigh all the options in terms of materials.
IdaSHO
IDACAMPER
Well before any epoxy, the corners are all rounded with a round-over bit and a router.
Then it is a matter of glassing the joints/corners, and fairing them with epoxy.
And sand...sand....sand....sand....etc :coffeedrink:
Eventually you have a surface that is presentable enough to paint.
Then it is a matter of glassing the joints/corners, and fairing them with epoxy.
And sand...sand....sand....sand....etc :coffeedrink:
Eventually you have a surface that is presentable enough to paint.