Need to replace bench? Help?

[carrie923]

We're taking possession of this very sad Shasta 2500. We don't know much about the trailer as the history hasn't been passed down and the recent owner just let it sit & get gross.

Anyways - I'd like to rebuild the seat and put new cushions and then have it be an additional bed. Can anyone link me to where someone has built the framing and also made them convertible for a bed? I've found plenty of cushion threads but can't find any with the how-to for a new bench.

Thanks!

[Deleted]

It appears there is marking on the flooring that would have been covered previously,by some sort of structure, which would have been the bench base. Measuring would tell you if the former one mirrored the existing side. Can you make out marking on the wall in that area also? This may be a clue to the height...again, might mirror the existing.
I can only guess how there may have been a table there, as there isn't a clear mounting method with the window there. This may take a little clever engineering.

[carrie923]

Thanks for the response. I can figure out the measurements but just don't know what to make it of I guess...

I'm torn between putting a mirroring bench in or removing the table all together - put table out on porch - and then just making this a bench "couch style" seating area that can transform into a bed.

[Deleted]

Are you planning on traveling with this or is it staying put? It looks like it's in a nice spot.

I think that if you do the facing benches, or the pull-out couch idea, you should be able to model the builds after the rebuilds of the older models. The framing is fairly standard fare, so the design choice really becomes the bigger factor. If you lose the table out to the porch, I can think of a couple options to add a different type that could become part of the sleeping base.

[carrie923]

The trailer is permanent at a site with an attached porch.

crw22620 - What ideas do you have? This is all new to us. I'm not necessarily worried about keeping it "original". I want it to be workable, providing room for all.

[Deleted]

My ideas come to me in spurts..symptom of old age I guess...But here are a couple of them, briefly.

Since originality is not an issue:

Easy way out...remove the existing bench, clean up the markings left behind by the benches (flooring, walls) and put in a futon. Easy, no building, clears the window, seating and instant sleeping room. Free-standing, no structural re-engineering necessary. (I have also seen from time to time the jack-knife sofas they use in the newer camp trailers come up for sale, as a possible alternative to a futon.)

An easy "keep" of the dinette setup... Build a stick-frame bench that mirrors the existing one, being sure to measure for bed length for sleeping. (Perhaps engineer a removable or fold-down back...) Build it heavy enough so that it won't slide while being used, for sleeping especially, or lag it to the floor to hold it in place. Then, measuring again to the length for the bed, build the table to drop into the center, and create the middle of the bed deck. Build the table using a post mount, which the post can be removed from it, in order to set it down. (I am assuming the table in the photo is free-standing, like a small version of a kitchen table...) Here is a post-mount kit, surface mount flanges and post:



A framed pull-out sofa would not be impossible either, tho is would present a couple challenges. This could be built based on the idea of the framing of a pull-out in either the Airflyte, SC, or even the Compact models. The frame could be attached at the wall and floor, built only seat-height, with no back, (backed up to the wall below that window), with a slider top. This one is a bit hard to explain. The photos are from my Compact...a bit different set-up, but basic idea would be the same.

Bench slid in:



Slid out:



Top removed: