Dinette Project
Our trailer originally came with a front gaucho (a couch that converts to a bed). The dinette was a side fold out type that you flipped out when needed. We found it very inconvenient to use because we had to seat four. So usually two of us ended up standing to eat or balancing the plates on our laps while sitting on the couch.
I had seen how other Airstreamers had replaced their gauchos with dinettes and thought I would give it a try. It was a great learning experience as I had to learn to work with laminates, t-molding, and different types of wood.
We have used the new dinette a few times this season and it worked out great for us. Makes the trailer a lot more fun to use. It was a very worthwhile project for us.
The first step after removing the original gaucho was to build to seat frames. The seat frames were built with storage in mind. Also the complete dinette had to convert to a double bed a night.
Here is a picture of the rough framing. You can see the centers lift out for under seat storage.
The table was built out of 3/4" birch which was kind of a waste since I laminated it. It was a very nice quality piece of plywood that was strong and straight which is what I needed for the project. I needed 3/4" because I used aluminum t-molding for the edging that was 13/16". I purchased the rippled t-molding from Outwater Plastics. I was able to use the original fold down bracket for the table leg.
The finished product!
Here is the dinette setup in bed mode. We also add an airmattress on top of this to really make it comfortable.
I was not planning on doing this part. But I had enough material left over I built new kitchen countertops and a new TV and DVD shelf. I was able to build the kitchen counters, dinette table, and TV shelf from one sheet of 4' x 8' plywood and one sheet of laminate.
