The story of our first teardrop trailer 
Annie loves to go camping. Her family used to load up the 1957 station wagon and hit the road for a month at a time. We started with a van and tent for the kids, moved up to the truck and camper and then the motorhome. It seemed we were always getting bigger, better and more costly in time, expense and upkeep.
Annie wanted to go in a new direction and get back to basics. She saw a teardrop trailer on display at REI and it was just what she wanted. The teardrop trailer was small, lightweight and could be towed behind a fuel efficient car. It had a cozy cabin for two with hard sides to shelter us from storms and allow us to comfortably sleep in bear country. The teardrop trailer even had a small camp kitchen to cook and prepare meals under the lift up rear hatch.
Annie knew that she was lucky being married to a second generation cabinetmaker whose business specialized in the design and manufacture of custom cabinets for banks, clinics and high end homes.
It wasn’t long before I began working on designing and engineering the perfect teardrop trailer for us. I wanted to keep it small on a 4’x8’ platform. It needed to have a comfortable bed that was 6’-3" long with full length storage underneath for fly rods and camping gear. We both wanted an efficient kitchen with a pull out cook stove at a comfortable working height and be able to standup under the rear hatch and be sheltered from the sun and rain while preparing meals.
The trailer had to be true to its teardrop trailer heritage in design and features. It was built with retro 50’s styling and modern materials. Each and every piece needed to fit together as tight as a jigsaw puzzle and sturdy enough to last for a generation or two.
Like my dad used to say, “If you can’t do it right, don’t bother doing it at all.” It’s nice to know that some things never change.
Jack Gerber
Work History
I learned the woodworking and construction trade from my father Ralph Gerber. My father started Gerber’s Cabinet Shop in 1949 and was an accomplished craftsman with a can do attitude who was not afraid to tackle any project. He taught me to believe if there is a will there is a way and if someone else can do it, I could do it better.
I owned and operated my own custom cabinet business for 27 years. I then pursued a lifelong dream of teaching high school woodshop and construction trades for six years sharing my passion, knowledge and skills with students.
Since building the first Tiny Trailer in 2004, I have discovered a passion for designing and building Retro Style Teardrop Camping Trailers which I am proud of and have loads of fun using.
I build a limited number of Teardrop Camping Trailers for sale each year and would love to build one for you.