1950 Liner "Weeble" - Interior walls pulled and last of 65 year old insulation gone!
Posted 09-22-2015 at 06:43 PM by Bowmans
I had a 4 day weekend and spent as much of it as I could working on Weeble.
On Saturday, I decided to pull the other 4 opening window mechs and interior trim so that I can get what is left of the rusted screens and old seals off. This will allow me to polish the outside without getting all this in the polisher. It took about 2 hours to get the first one off last week so that other 4 took all day. There are about 14 screws per window but most are rusted and stripped. Pliers, Dremel and lots of contorted positions and all of the little screws finally came out. I also took out all of the glass window frames, split them enough to get the center beams out and just re-hinged them on the trailer to try and keep water out a little. I will be wire brushing and painting all of the mech pieces.
On Sunday, the wife and I went to the box stores to get some supplies which included some small steel pieces and a belt sander. The steel will be used to make one window arm and center beam which will be for the one missing window. The belt sander will be used to shape the curved edges of the glass I have ordered. I am going to replace all 10 pieces since some have permanent rust stains and the first one I took apart cracked.
Later, my wife help me pull the ceiling interior aluminum down. This is the 10' wide by about 15' long 3 sheets riveted together piece. I prepped by removing all of the screws to the sides so about 8 screws left it hanging from the center of the ceiling. I then coaxed my wife to hold one side while I took out the screws. It went better than I thought. It didn't easily fit out the door in one piece so we left it loosely rolled inside.
The next morning, I started the day by calling Restoration Specialties and ordered 22' of seal for the Lexan (front and back) windows using item number 706A. Seems to be a little thicker on the inside trim than original which test fit really well and seems to be a little better than original in that regard.
I then went out and cleaned up the insulation and animal nests that were in the ceiling. Then I removed the 150 rivets to separate the 3 pieces which were easily removed through the door. Next I removed the rivets holding the end caps up and got them out the door. Again, I cleaned a mass of insulation that fell from the end caps. Nasty job. Next I need to make 1/4 wood templates of the floor and put in bracing. With the floor half gone, the shell has drooped some so as I brace the shell, I will adjust and block it on the frame so it stays in shape.
Interesting note, the backside of one of the ceiling panels was signed by one of the CA workers at Airstream. Hard to make out but looks like "palof" or Pa Lof, 12-11-25, HFXAV. My wife said it was the workers name and birth date which would make him/her 90 this year. Not sure what the HFXAV is. If anyone has any insight, please let me know.
I recreated the interior flat in the yard so I could mark them better which was the image at the top of the post. Another shot below. I then drew out a diagram and numbered them with a blue sharpie on the backs from the door around in rows. Cleaned the backs of all of the pieces and put them in the rafters of the shop for later. I plan to reuse the aluminum but will need to see if I can get the corrosion cleaned up with enough aluminum left. The back of the rear end cap and center ceiling sheet look bad. I want to apply a brushed finish which I did a test piece of a few weeks ago that turned out good after a number of different tries using different processes.
Today, I started with a call from VTS and my 'L' bulb window seals are in so I ordered 55'. Back outside, I cleaned the rear end cap and window frame, used scotch bright to remove tough spots and removed the rear Airstream badge. Straightened the window frame as much as possible with a hammer and block of wood. I then realized the camper was too close to the fence in the back yard to be able to polish so got out the jack and hooked up the truck to move it a few feet forward.
Next was polishing around the rear window frame and the aluminum tube that holds the window in. I got about half the end cap polished in the process. I then cut another piece of scrap plastic for a temporary rear window and put it in with the tube frame and SS screws. Slowly making progress cleaning, polishing and sealing the outside.
On Saturday, I decided to pull the other 4 opening window mechs and interior trim so that I can get what is left of the rusted screens and old seals off. This will allow me to polish the outside without getting all this in the polisher. It took about 2 hours to get the first one off last week so that other 4 took all day. There are about 14 screws per window but most are rusted and stripped. Pliers, Dremel and lots of contorted positions and all of the little screws finally came out. I also took out all of the glass window frames, split them enough to get the center beams out and just re-hinged them on the trailer to try and keep water out a little. I will be wire brushing and painting all of the mech pieces.
On Sunday, the wife and I went to the box stores to get some supplies which included some small steel pieces and a belt sander. The steel will be used to make one window arm and center beam which will be for the one missing window. The belt sander will be used to shape the curved edges of the glass I have ordered. I am going to replace all 10 pieces since some have permanent rust stains and the first one I took apart cracked.
Later, my wife help me pull the ceiling interior aluminum down. This is the 10' wide by about 15' long 3 sheets riveted together piece. I prepped by removing all of the screws to the sides so about 8 screws left it hanging from the center of the ceiling. I then coaxed my wife to hold one side while I took out the screws. It went better than I thought. It didn't easily fit out the door in one piece so we left it loosely rolled inside.
The next morning, I started the day by calling Restoration Specialties and ordered 22' of seal for the Lexan (front and back) windows using item number 706A. Seems to be a little thicker on the inside trim than original which test fit really well and seems to be a little better than original in that regard.
I then went out and cleaned up the insulation and animal nests that were in the ceiling. Then I removed the 150 rivets to separate the 3 pieces which were easily removed through the door. Next I removed the rivets holding the end caps up and got them out the door. Again, I cleaned a mass of insulation that fell from the end caps. Nasty job. Next I need to make 1/4 wood templates of the floor and put in bracing. With the floor half gone, the shell has drooped some so as I brace the shell, I will adjust and block it on the frame so it stays in shape.
Interesting note, the backside of one of the ceiling panels was signed by one of the CA workers at Airstream. Hard to make out but looks like "palof" or Pa Lof, 12-11-25, HFXAV. My wife said it was the workers name and birth date which would make him/her 90 this year. Not sure what the HFXAV is. If anyone has any insight, please let me know.
I recreated the interior flat in the yard so I could mark them better which was the image at the top of the post. Another shot below. I then drew out a diagram and numbered them with a blue sharpie on the backs from the door around in rows. Cleaned the backs of all of the pieces and put them in the rafters of the shop for later. I plan to reuse the aluminum but will need to see if I can get the corrosion cleaned up with enough aluminum left. The back of the rear end cap and center ceiling sheet look bad. I want to apply a brushed finish which I did a test piece of a few weeks ago that turned out good after a number of different tries using different processes.
Today, I started with a call from VTS and my 'L' bulb window seals are in so I ordered 55'. Back outside, I cleaned the rear end cap and window frame, used scotch bright to remove tough spots and removed the rear Airstream badge. Straightened the window frame as much as possible with a hammer and block of wood. I then realized the camper was too close to the fence in the back yard to be able to polish so got out the jack and hooked up the truck to move it a few feet forward.
Next was polishing around the rear window frame and the aluminum tube that holds the window in. I got about half the end cap polished in the process. I then cut another piece of scrap plastic for a temporary rear window and put it in with the tube frame and SS screws. Slowly making progress cleaning, polishing and sealing the outside.
Total Comments 2
Comments
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Looks like you have it well under control! Thank You for sharing what all us Streamers are willing to go through for our Baby's. Keep up the Great work and I look forward to seeing the rest of the project to the end result.Posted 09-24-2015 at 12:45 PM by Gman1957 
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Thanks Gman1957. Not sure I have it under control but I am taking it one step at a time and will see it through to the end.Posted 09-26-2015 at 08:43 PM by Bowmans
