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RLPRACING · 02-07-2015, 08:03 AM

I thought about aluminum for a few seconds and that's about it. Everything has its pluses and minuses so you have to decide what's more important.
1) Aluminum costs more.
2) MIG welding steel is much easier and faster than TIG welding aluminum.
3) Since we don't have a shop tall enough to do the build inside, using our TIG welder outside was going to be an issue due to reach. That may not be an issue for you.
Since we would rather spend our time and money on the race cars, it was an easy choice for us.
A lot of weight could be saved on all the wood we used.
1) We installed real house cabinets which have backs, thicker sides and tops/bottoms than standard RV cabinets. Why? We live near the Kraftmaid outlet store and pick them up for $40 and under. And we put in lots of them. Saved a lot of time over building our own or money buying RV units. Downside is hundreds of pounds extra weight.
2) Real wood trim is nice to look at but weighs a lot(and took a lot of time).
3) Roof is 3/4 plywood so I can walk on it with no worries. Could be made out of 1/4" if you watched your steps after all, how often are you ever going to be up there?
4) I used wood 2x4's to build the walls, dinette and bed because they are cheap and easy. There are lighter ways of doing that.

Now if you have the time and the money and cut back on the wood and used aluminum, than I got to think you could easily cut the weight by over a ton. Our Freightliner has the "semi" engine in it, not the standard box truck engine. Horsepower to pull the weight is not an issue. I pay for that by getting poorer fuel mileage. But this thing will go up Fancy Gap Mountain in Virginia without shifting at 65 mph. For those that haven't had the pleasure of traveling up I-77 in a truck, its a 6 mile climb at a grade of around 4%. Not for the faint of heart but one hell of a view. I once drove our old turbo 4 cylinder Detroit Diesel up it pulling a 48' trailer. Foot to the floor for 17 minutes with the Detroit screaming at 2500 rpm. A little under 30 mph. Glad I had an electric fan on it to keep it cool enough to make it. We laugh about it now but my nerves don't need that crap anymore! Give me horsepower, I'll pay the fuel bill!

02-07-2015, 08:03 AM	#128
RLPRACING Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Elyria Posts: 108	Weight, Time & Money I thought about aluminum for a few seconds and that's about it. Everything has its pluses and minuses so you have to decide what's more important. 1) Aluminum costs more. 2) MIG welding steel is much easier and faster than TIG welding aluminum. 3) Since we don't have a shop tall enough to do the build inside, using our TIG welder outside was going to be an issue due to reach. That may not be an issue for you. Since we would rather spend our time and money on the race cars, it was an easy choice for us. A lot of weight could be saved on all the wood we used. 1) We installed real house cabinets which have backs, thicker sides and tops/bottoms than standard RV cabinets. Why? We live near the Kraftmaid outlet store and pick them up for $40 and under. And we put in lots of them. Saved a lot of time over building our own or money buying RV units. Downside is hundreds of pounds extra weight. 2) Real wood trim is nice to look at but weighs a lot(and took a lot of time). 3) Roof is 3/4 plywood so I can walk on it with no worries. Could be made out of 1/4" if you watched your steps after all, how often are you ever going to be up there? 4) I used wood 2x4's to build the walls, dinette and bed because they are cheap and easy. There are lighter ways of doing that. Now if you have the time and the money and cut back on the wood and used aluminum, than I got to think you could easily cut the weight by over a ton. Our Freightliner has the "semi" engine in it, not the standard box truck engine. Horsepower to pull the weight is not an issue. I pay for that by getting poorer fuel mileage. But this thing will go up Fancy Gap Mountain in Virginia without shifting at 65 mph. For those that haven't had the pleasure of traveling up I-77 in a truck, its a 6 mile climb at a grade of around 4%. Not for the faint of heart but one hell of a view. I once drove our old turbo 4 cylinder Detroit Diesel up it pulling a 48' trailer. Foot to the floor for 17 minutes with the Detroit screaming at 2500 rpm. A little under 30 mph. Glad I had an electric fan on it to keep it cool enough to make it. We laugh about it now but my nerves don't need that crap anymore! Give me horsepower, I'll pay the fuel bill!