Specifications

Overview
A "teardrop" trailer is a type of small camper, usually with a rounded, streamlined shape, that dates back at least to the 1930's. As cars get smaller, storage space more expensive, and recreational time more precious, a new appreciation is growing for the efficiency of really good teardrop campers.
A fan of small boats, small cars, and small houses, designer John C. Harris found the concept of a teardrop camper irresistible. "Think of it as a big step up from a tent in terms of comfort and utility. But it's so compact and light that I could tow it behind my MINI Cooper. "
He continues, "Even the smallest standard RV trailers are going to require at least a mid-sized tow vehicle, and they will make a giant dent in your gas mileage."
Teardrops have always been available as build-your-own projects. You can find ads for kits and plans in old magazines from the 1930's and 40's. Some of these are pretty sophisticated, but most are clumsily-built, and look and feel cheap. "What if we take the same boatbuilding materials and techniques we've been refining for 25 years at Chesapeake Light Craft and build a teardrop trailer? And we apply the same sculptural approach that we bring to boat design?" Harris asks.
The result is the 5' x 8' (1.5 x 2.4m) teardrop you see here, with much more elegance than the common "canned ham" teardrop designs. Drawn around a 60" x 80" (1.5m x 2m) queen-size air mattress, this little camper is small on the outside but surprisingly roomy on the inside. Two adults up to 6'6" (198cm) tall can stretch out in great luxury. Large doors on both sides and a 15" square hatch on the roof provide easy access and copious ventilation. There's room for a 12-volt electrical system to run lights, fans, a stereo, and charging plugs for devices.
A large galley occupies the locker in the rear of the trailer. While this space could be customized in many different ways, staff designer Dillon Majoros has devised a brilliant shelving unit that drops in as a separate module, and which we offer as a kit option. For car-camping or tailgating, this will be a giant improvement over a tent. No need to fool around setting up a tent after a long day. Simply arrive at your destination. Park. Open door. Climb in. Go to sleep.
Our friends at Arbortech wanted a CLC Teardrop to use as a mobile display at woodworking shows. To build it, they tapped YouTube and Netflix woodworking star Paul Jackman. The result is the lively and detailed construction video that can be found below.
When we started this design project in Fall 2014, we took our time, documenting every step with carefully staged and lit photos and video, which we then used to create an extensively-detailed start-to-finish instruction manual and a how-to video.
Meanwhile our longtime collaborator Geoff Kerr of Two Daughters Boatworks helped his daughter Sheldon build a "beta" version from a kit in November 2015. Sheldon Kerr, a professional mountain guide, towed the completed teardrop camper from Vermont to her home in Colorado, reporting that even after the long drive "it was still so much fun that we slept in the camper on the street in front of the house." There were no leaks during the rainy road trip, and the doors and hatch stayed tight and leak-free. (We spent weeks designing and integrating a locking door latch that clamps the doors tight against gaskets. The doors can be locked from the outside.)
"My dad and I finished mine about 10 days ago, and I think I've spent 5 out of the last 7 nights bunked in it. It's like having a treehouse on wheels," Sheldon writes. "I think people like us are united by the fact that we all still want a whimsical backyard fort from which to launch adventures. Our 'backyard' is just a little bigger now."
While a trailer isn't included in the basic kit package, one of the key features of the design is that it will fit on nearly any small trailer. "We started with the cheapest and most basic trailer, a Harbor Freight flatbed that cost $189 delivered," Harris explains. "But the architecture lends itself to fitting on just about anything with wheels. Boat trailers, flatbeds, whatever. Just bolt it down and go." CLC collaborated with Trailex to design the Trailex SUT-1000-CLC Flatbed Trailer Kit, a custom ultralight trailer just for the CLC Teardrop Camper.
Construction of the CLC Teardrop will be familiar to anyone who's built a stitch-and-glue kayak or small boat. Starting from a kit, computer-cut marine plywood panels are bent into a simple mold (included with the kit). The seams are reinforced with epoxy and fiberglass tape. The teardrop is flipped over, the mold removed, and the streamlined, sculptural shell is sheathed on the exterior with a tough coating of fiberglass for strength and durability. Doors and hatches are cut on marks engraved by the computer cutter. Then lots of sanding, install the galley, and you're done. We finished ours "bright," i.e. varnished inside and out. It makes a striking statement on the highway, parking lot, and campground.
The roof has been reinforced from the start for optional roof-racks, so you can carry kayaks or bicycles atop your CLC Teardrop. An optional lockable storage box, sized to fit a 48-quart cooler, mounts forward of the camper on the trailer tongue.
More recently, we developed the 23-cubic-foot Integrated Cargo Carrier that can hold anything from surfboards to skis to tents. You can learn more about this in the Buying Options below.

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Waterlust Builds a Teardrop
Build Your Own Teardrop Camper
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