Alana's 1973 Tradewind Project

[noreen]

Originally Posted by exthemius

Acrylic sealer? I thought he used floor wax (like Future)?

Your right. I did it 2 days ago so the name was out of my head. Sal.

[pxlchk1]

Well, thanks for the heads up on the search query! Lots of great info to be found.

Based on what I found in this search, my plan will be to grab a Scumbuster brush (or some sort of scrub brush that can be attached to a drill) and try any or all of the following de-greasing cleansers:

Spic-n-Span, Greased Lightning, 409, or Superclean (which is apparently available at Walmart).

Then the consensus seems to be to cover it in Future Acrylic Wax, meant for floors, which keeps the plastic seepage (the cause of the stickiness) down.

We'll give it a try!

-Alana

[Belegedhel]

Hi, and welcome 70s enthusiast!

I notice in your to-do list that you have a lot of decorative/aesthetic items, but few mechanical items. If you haven't already, you should check out your water system for leaks, and leak test your propane system as well. On my '73, the propane system was in pretty good shape, but every o-ring and seal had dried out in every fixture in the water system.

You should also determine if your axles need replacing (mine did)--if so, it might be worth doing before spending a lot of time working on your existing brakes.

I would be surprised if you don't have more floor rot than you think. When I pulled out my front gaucho, there was a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach as I poked around along the front wall. With that dicey looking wing window repair, I would be amazed if you haven't been getting water in there. In the rear, open up the cupboard under the sink in the bathroom and look back toward where the water lines come up through the floor. This should give you your first indication of rot back there.

Good luck!

[pxlchk1]

Thankfully the previous owners have receipts for the LP system and electric upgrades and repairs. The plumbing is secondary for us right now to getting to campable since we're used to smaller vintage campers where we just used the campground showers. I'm kind of trying to prioritize some things that are easy to do with a small space heater inside the camper, too, while it's still cold here. A lot of the external stuff is better to take on when it warms up, but in the meantime I can do the inside stuff.

You're absolutely right about the section of floor by the gaucho. That's the section I refer to "by the door". That whole area needs to be cut out and replaced. The gaucho doesn't have any cushions, so we can see right down onto the floor.

A lot of what looked like floor rot in the photos turned out to be leftover adhesive and padding from the carpet, thankfully.

I'm still going to take the trailer in for a gas line pressure test before putting my family in it. Also plan to install a carbon monoxide detector.


Just got home a little bit ago with a trunk full of de-germing and de-gunking weaponry:



The suction cup handle is for yankin' out some dents.

Watch out squirrel poo! I'm a gonna get you!

-Alana

[pxlchk1]

Just so I have all my favorite resources and answers I need all in one place, here's the thread for how to whiten up yellowed plastics.

And the recipe for Retr0Bright.

[pxlchk1]

Went over to the Airstream today and scrubbed all the rabies off the left bunk area. MAN that was gross. There were brown paw prints underneath the hinged cover for the bed frame, in the closet, and up onto the thermostat and shelf. Yeeesh! Bleaugh! ::grossed out:: I'm convincing myself these are squirrel paws and not some less adorable rodent.

Tomorrow, the right half. I feel like I should be doing this in a HazMat suit.

On a fun note, I found a fabric I like for the curtains.



Also ordered a weight distribution hitch and got overwhelmed with tire selections. Took a good look at the wood under the front windows and YUP it's gotta go. Luckily 99% of the rot is all on one piece of wood. *Maybe* that'll make it easier to replace. Maybe that's too much to ask. That doesn't seem to be in line with The Alumiholics Rules of Rehab.

[CarrieSue]

Hey Alana,

It looks from your photos that you worked with a dealer for your purchase -- would you mind commenting on the experience? I am looking to buy a mid 60s-70s AS come April, and have been investigating Craigslist as well as dealers in my area (Portland, OR), but I have some trepidation either way. I would also be keen to know the asking price vs. purchase price but no problem if you'd rather not say.

Also, I love your Pinterest board -- a great idea for this undertaking! At the moment my vision is sort of a David Lynch meets Pendleton Woolen Mills... but I can't say for sure until I find my trailer.

I look forward to watching your progress!

[pxlchk1]

Originally Posted by CarrieSue

Hey Alana,

It looks from your photos that you worked with a dealer for your purchase -- would you mind commenting on the experience? I am looking to buy a mid 60s-70s AS come April, and have been investigating Craigslist as well as dealers in my area (Portland, OR), but I have some trepidation either way. I would also be keen to know the asking price vs. purchase price but no problem if you'd rather not say.

Also, I love your Pinterest board -- a great idea for this undertaking! At the moment my vision is sort of a David Lynch meets Pendleton Woolen Mills... but I can't say for sure until I find my trailer.

I look forward to watching your progress!

Hi Carrie Sue!

I'm very interested in seeing what this take on David Lynch / Pendleton shapes up to be.

I didn't buy from a dealer, I purchased from a family who had it for a few years and had done quite a bit of restoration work on the mechanics of it, but not the cosmetics. The kids wanted the parents to be in something more modern so they'd feel better about them being out on the road and then sold the Airstream. Super nice folks.

Seems like a lot of the trailers I see are in your region, so you shouldn't have any problems finding multiple candidates.

Good luck!

-Alana

[pxlchk1]

Update on the sticky vinyl wall cleaning:

I used straight Greased Lightening with a wheel brush like this one:


The stuff worked like a dream! I had considered painting the walls before, but now I really don't think they need anything. They're pretty good looking now and before they were yellowed and dirty. Now they're almost white and have a nice texture. Hey! Cool!

[here2day]

I was thinking about repainting my interior, I will try the Greased Lightening and see how it looks first.
Thank you,
Paul