Modification: Bye-bye table

Part of what makes the T@B (and a lot of other RVs) so flexible is that you can convert an eating area (a dinette) into a bed. You do that by folding down the table to form a platform. By rearranging cushions atop the platform, you get a bed. So why is this picture of the table taken in our basement?

Well, the T@B table is heavy. (After all, it has the TUV - an European version of UL - sticker on it. That means it's probably built stronger than the trailer itself. Did the US builder of the T@B really need to import this mechanism from Europe?) It takes up a lot of the limited floorspace inside; removing the table makes the trailer seem bigger. Trust me - every bit helps on that front.

So out went the table. But that also means you lose the bed, unless you come up with a substitute for the platform. I did just that, using a common modification among T@B owners.

First I put two "rails" on the front of each side of the dinette. (This was made out of a leftover "wood" piece I found in IKEA's as-is section. It's a really good match to the cabinets.)

Then I cut a bunch of slats out of 1/2"x4"x36" "craft board" (I think it's pine) found at Lowes. I just cut the end to length and sanded off the edges.


These slats fit in the curbside cabinet. They're thin, so they don't take up much room. (Most people seem to use thicker boards, but we haven't had any scary creaking sounds or breakage when we both sat on them.) When it comes time to go to bed, we put the slats across the rails, arrange the cushions, and there we go - bedtime.

One more thing - our trailer's floorplan had cushions that continued the dinette's backrest back to the rear of the trailer. Curved on the top, these cushions had to be stowed while sleeping, since they didn't make up part of the bed. Since we aren't worried about seating six for dinner, those cushions were yanked out of the trailer and put in the box of "stuff to give the next owner that we never used" - along with the table, I guess.

Tom

Modification: Going under (stove) cover

An advantage (and pitfall) of actually researching purchases is that you start to learn inane trivia about the product. (Hence, this blog.) One of those things that you pick up are what changes happened from model year to year.

RV manufacturers are a lot less consistent at this than car companies. They can get away with it: hand construction, and the various components aren't that critical to one another. Consider your house: you can replace the dishwasher with another one, and the rest of the house still works OK. (Not so much with cars.)

2007 was a pretty good vintage of T@B, at least in my point of view. It has the newer Alufiber construction and they offered the floorplan that I wanted. But there are a few things I would have liked: a city water hook-up, 12 volt outlets inside, and the sleek flat-top SMEV cooktop.

Of the three, it's that cooktop I'd like the most. The flat top gives more countertop space when it's not on. And it looks cool. But not worth paying several thousand dollars more, the cost of a 2008 T@B.


Our more pedestrian cooktop didn't have a cover. Thanks to the enabler that is the T@B Yahoo group, we learned of an eBay listing from an RV surplus place that was selling them for $22. Sold. (You'd think an RV company would hold onto surplus as spare parts, but I guess not. I'm trying to get a replacement screen, but need to wait 3-4 weeks and buy an entire window surround unit.)


The cover works well, giving us another surface and it keeps cooking splatter off the back wall. For some reason, we attached it with Command adhesive strips, keeping the countertop free of holes in case we do that concours restoration, I guess.

Tom

Modification: Under the bench storage

Dear T@B designers and builders:

Thank you for building my trailer in August 2006. You seemed to have done a pretty good job. But I have to ask you this: could you have maybe, just maybe, have run the wiring under the streetside bench better?

I know that copper wiring costs a lot. And the shortest distance between two points is indeed a straight line. But if you had run the wire along the bench, using maybe another foot of wire, you would have left a free space for storage. That would be nice in this little trailer. Instead, the wiring is nearly as tight as a banjo string and runs right across the middle of this cabinet.



Sure, I know you tried to keep me out of this bench. The top was screwed shut, and there is a warning label about putting flammable objects in that space (bah!), since the electrical panels and 110 AC to 12-volt converter is there. But really - you couldn't package this more efficiently? (I get the feeling the German-built T@Bs don't have this; wasting that space would be verboten. After all, they would put an iDrive controller or something like that there.)



But that's OK. Doing this made me feel all handy and stuff. First I cut off 2 inches of the plywood top and screwed that in place against the wall. That gives a mounting point for a piano hinge. This gives me access into the cabinet. (I did the same on the other side.)

Then I screwed in some wood to form a bracket for a small tool box. I put some wire loom around the electrical wires, cleaning things up and protecting the wires. Finally, I found a small basket to screw to the forward edge, giving room for more tools.



Still not all that efficient of a use of space, but I'll take it. (Don't get me started on the furnace routing....)

Truly yours (until I find the Trailmanor or Airstream of my dreams),
Tom

Modification: Tired Out

See that bracket (with the two nuts) underneath the center of my trailer? That's where the spare tire was located on our T@B. ("Was" is the operative term.)

Now this seems kinda crazy; it's about eight feet from the end of the trailer, and four feet underneath. If you get a flat, which would drop the trailer's ride height, it leaves next to no room under the trailer to get to it. (There already isn't that much space.) And once you loosen the two bolts, the heavy wheel and tire comes crashing down, probably onto your arm.

This all seemed, well, somewhat impractical. (That's putting it lightly - frankly, it's stupid.) It was hard enough for Gen-X me to remove the tire on a dry day, in the daylight, on a level paved driveway.

But the tire isn't there anymore. I bought the tire holder from Tropos Manufacturering, a nicely made frame that bolts onto the tongue of the trailer. Installing it required drilling four holes. That would have been easier if 1) I had the right sized drill bit and didn't have to borrow one from my neighbor (thanks Jerry!) and 2) it would help to have at least one fully charged cordless drill battery.



You do have to be a bit careful with exactly where you mount the holder. You want enough room to get into the propane tank cover while leaving enough room for the tire to fit on the front, around the brake handle and such. We worked it out. (The carrier comes with a little plastic spacer that tilts the tire at just the right angle to achieve all of this.)

Buying this is like insurance - hopefully the $129 keeps me from ever having to fix a flat on the trailer. But if I do, at least now there is a chance in hell that I can do it myself.



Oh - and since I couldn't just have an ugly steel wheel and tire besmirching the sleek lines of the trailer, I had to find just the right tire cover. I found one from Bestop; they make lots of covers for Jeeps, and they're all out of heavy convertible top fabric. This one is sized for a Suzuki Samurai (!) and the charcoal gray matches the trim on the trailer. Even found it on closeout since they're getting rid of the color. It fits on snugly with elastic around the back; I'm hoping it stays on on the road.

Tom