5th wheel design

[skyking]

That looks like a definite "crouch" to get to the front bed. It looks lower than my all glass one.
Even though it would be easier to work with one, I can't get this design thing out of my noggin.
Having listened to my wife on her ideals, the design has changed yet again. Smaller, lighter, no pop up roof, still only 92" high at the peak. One slide for a sofa, and a murphy bed design in that same room. I have it down to only 90" wide and 28' long plus a 4~5' folding boat tail. Folded in, the end of the trailer is now only 23' past the rear bumper of the truck.
Headroom is 78" in the center and 76" along the sides. 6" radius instead of 12".
there will be a crawl up guest loft with 30" of room, that will not likely ever see guests. It is only 60" deep so It will be useful storage we can reach into.
Starting at 90" wide, I can taper it front and rear to match the truck, and lose significant wake at the back.

[slowmover]

Thanks for the update. And that unseen powers have their say, ha!

[skyking]

Yes indeed. I need to remember "we" are going to see the country in this rig. She wants to get into smaller places.

[skyking]

I think I have an answer for following the template vs angles. I could do a couple of angle changes at the outside edge, using pipe quarter sections for the form, but morph that up to more closely match the template over the center. That way I get a fairly simple join line between the roof section and side walls, but the profile across the center can be much smoother.

[slowmover]

Ran across a build thread (from scratch) on RV.net thought might be of interest:

Building a 5'er

Be sure to click all the way through on links provided.

Here's one:

Glen-L RV Builder Plans (Click on RV Plan). Also, see Cost Estimating

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[spacer]

Were I still considering a hotshot rig, I'd be all over this stuff. It'd be a real boon when life is measured by the paid mile.

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by spacer

Were I still considering a hotshot rig, I'd be all over this stuff. It'd be a real boon when life is measured by the paid mile.

Yeah, a solid contract for X-time at a fine rate for one company. Load weight and size never changes. Same for routing. Then spec/build an aluminum aero trailer for a truck which has aero properties. IFTA numbers no one would believe.

A daydream I enjoy on a regular basis.

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[skyking]

Cool ,thanks for the links. My dad and I built several glen-L boats in the 70's and 80's.
You know, I might be changing my mind about a donor trailer. If I went that route and used the clean title, data plate, and just about nothing else I'd be ahead of the process with the state patrol here.

[skyking]

Maybe Phil will stumble across this:
Are my proposed 6" longitudinal radii sufficient to reap the crosswind benefits?
I lean heavily toward those because it eliminates the need to put slideouts and doorways up into the radii, greatly simplifying the construction.

[slowmover]

There is a thread somewhere discussing degree of radius. 12, I think, was a good number not to go underneath. Higher, the benefit curve falls off.