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Blog followers already know that a few weeks ago I bought a new camping trailer for my extended bird photography trips to replace my previous\u00a0trailer that was 10 years old and well-used. This is it, sitting in my sloped driveway on the day I brought it home last month\u00a0(I’ve posted this photo before).<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/cabinet-over-dinette-final.jpg\")
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Overall I’m very happy with the new trailer, so far at least. And one of the reasons I’m so pleased with it\u00a0is the quality of much of the workmanship, including the cabinets. In\u00a0contrast to the cheap\u00a0pressed wood and veneered\u00a0cabinetry in\u00a0many camping trailers these are solid wood\u00a0and well constructed. This photo shows some of the cabinets over the dinette but the same quality is found in the cabinets\u00a0throughout the trailer.<\/p>\n
But I’m not as happy with their design, partly because\u00a0most of them\u00a0are large cavernous\u00a0cabinets with no interior shelves for more efficient storage. Of course I knew that when I bought it so I’m now in the process of\u00a0building and installing\u00a0adjustable shelves.<\/p>\n
But a bigger problem is the overall\u00a0lack of interior storage in the trailer. There just aren’t enough cabinets, even\u00a0fewer than in my previous, slightly smaller trailer. It’s a common issue with trailers this size, especially for folks like us who are often camping in the wild for a week or more and can’t just run to the grocery or hardware\u00a0store on a whim.\u00a0We have to carry a lot of “stuff”.<\/p>\n
So the obvious solution is to add a\u00a0custom cabinet or two but the question then becomes… where do I put them?<\/p>\n
Out of necessity and almost by definition camping trailers already have almost every nook and cranny on floors and even walls already filled with\u00a0things like dinettes, cabinets, appliances, beds and windows\u00a0so there’s very little space available. And spaces that are available are unique in size and shape so you typically can’t just buy something off the shelf that will fit and look good\u00a0– it has to be custom-built.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/wasted-space-final.jpg\")
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The only practical\u00a0space available to me to add a cabinet was here – on the floor beneath the window and against the wall. The shape of the cabinet would have to be specific and very precise to fit between the wall and the arm of the sofa in one dimension and between the cabinet behind the\u00a0arm of the sofa and the drapery screen to the left of the window in another dimension\u00a0(that drapery is a privacy screen\u00a0for the queen sized Murphy bed that comes down over top of the sofa).<\/p>\n
So then the question becomes where\/how will I get a cabinet that will fit that spot and use the space efficiently? And one that won’t junk up my trailer because it’s cheap-looking and doesn’t match\u00a0the other cabinets?<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/pie-safe-9920-ron-dudley.jpg\")
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Normally the answer would be… I’ll build it myself. I’m fully capable of building cabinets and furniture and I’ve done it often in the past. This is an antique pie safe I built some years ago based on a historic design and using many historic materials and techniques. I use it for storing kitchen gadgets because I also love to cook.<\/p>\n
But because of a bad back and nerve problems in my feet I just can’t do stuff like that anymore. There isn’t a chance in hell I’d survive all those hours on a cement floor during the building process so I had to swallow my pride and have the cabinet custom-built.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/new-cabinet-1-final.jpg\")
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This is it in place and I love it (the last 3 photos are cell phone shots so their crappy quality doesn’t do justice to any of the cabinets and the color looks off).<\/p>\n
It fits perfectly between the wall and the sofa and underneath the overhanging cabinet top on the right, so perfectly that I can’t fit a piece of paper between them but they don’t actually touch each other. It also matches the other cabinets perfectly, in color and in the design of the door. I purposely chose a door handle of a different design so it wouldn’t catch on\u00a0clothes but it’s the same color as those on the other cabinets.<\/p>\n
So that’s where I am at the moment but I have much more to get done. Now maybe you understand why I bought a camping trailer at the beginning of winter instead of early spring when I’d be chomping at the bit to get “out there”.<\/p>\n
Now that I’ve bored many of my readers to tears with this wordy and non-birdy\u00a0post\u00a0I’ll quit but “you” did ask and I like to respond when I can.<\/p>\n
Back to birds tomorrow, I promise.<\/p>\n
Ron<\/p>\n
PS – If any local readers are in the market for custom cabinets I highly recommend Madera Mill Inc.<\/a> in Murray, Utah. Brandon built my cabinet and I’m very\u00a0impressed by his workmanship. It’s a long story but I also know him to be honest and fair. If I need more cabinets built for my trailer or my home it will be Brandon who builds them.<\/em><\/p>\n For those who may be curious the dimensions of the new cabinet are 27″ wide, 24 3\/4″ tall and 10 1\/16″ deep. It has one adjustable shelf.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Many readers have asked me to post photos of the modifications I’m doing to my new “covered wagon”. Today’s post is a beginning.<\/p>\n