Moving Day!

The frame was straight and I was FINALLY ready to start construction on the walls. There was an anticipated problem, the camper height is 9'10 or so and my garage door height is only 7' tall. My garage itself if I removed the ceiling-mounted storage racks is maybe 8'10" tall if that.

My original plan was to build the lower 2/3'rds of the walls and then add extensions and the roof on later outside. This seemed like the best bad option I had but getting closer to the start I decided this was not the best idea, it may have worked but it's MUCH easier to get the main box square or/cubed but welding outside presents challenges and keeping bystanders protected from arc flash in my neighborhood is much harder when I'm outside.

I looked at renting a commercial garage space for a few months but the cost was very prohibitive. I eventually found a website that is designed for people to rent out storge space. I found someone in Post Falls who had a garage with a 9' tall door AND he'd be willing to let me work in the garage and had 240v for the welder already. Technically working in the rented storage space is prohibited per the app but I worked it out with the owner which was super nice!

The first step was to get the doubler plates installed and the axles more permanently mounted, Timbren (who makes the axle-less axles) calls out that a reinforcement plate is needed if the frame isn't stiff enough. I wasn't sure about that so I decided to add the reinforcement plates anyway. I took 1/4" thick steel bar stock and cut it to length and welded it to the side of the frame rail, then for the inboard axle plate (the axleless axles form an L around the outside and lower frame) I had extra 3/8" steel that I made plates out of and welded the bottom plate to the side of the frame. Naturally I didn't get any pictures but I put weld-through primer between the frame rail and doubler plate in case moisture gets in there from condensation and such.

I thought about pulling the trailer with some temporary magnetic trailer lights the 15 miles to Post Falls using back roads but figured my luck is I'd get pulled over for not having a plate on the trailer frame so I decided to rent a car hauler trailer. Loading the now 1000 lbs of steel, wheels, axles was more interesting than I expected!