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Old 07-16-2012, 09:49 PM   #1
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1972 29' Ambassador
Henderson , Tennessee
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 12
Meet Gypsy Star (pic heavy)

Hi everyone, I'm Jeremy and my wife's Jennifer. We recently were able to obtain a 1972 29' Ambassador. My wife named her Gypsy Star. I'm a little late starting our restoration post but I will try to get it caught up quick. We purchased her 3 weeks ago today and we immediately started gutting. Our plan is to completely strip, replace, and modernize. I know a lot of you out there enjoy the vintage look and keeping it original but we like the modern style. We were first attracted to AS's after stumbling on a website of Matthew Hofman's restoration design.
Airstream Renovations - Modern House Plans - Hofmann Architecture

Our purpose/mission/dream is to eventually move onto our land in northeast Nevada and build an Earthship ( Radically Sustainable Green Buildings - Interior Earthship Images ) and raise a permaculture farm. We want to live sustainably, relying on OURSELVES and not broken systems & greedy men. We are young, energetic, and motivated!
I am pretty handy with my years in the home improvement industry and what I don't know I figure out or learn quickly so be ready for questions. I have a list already prepared of things I can't quite seem to locate on the forums. I have to say that the forums are amazing. We are Jeepers as well and we at one point owned 3 Jeeps, recently selling 2 of them to help our Airstream/Nevada goal. The Jeep forums are very similar to Airforums. I really appreciate the time you veterans put in to actually reading so many threads and answering questions. Anyways, that's a little about us. We want to get to know you all and eventually see you at the rally's! Our 1st AS goal is to be ready for Disney Wild Kingdom in November...! Now, on to Gypsy!





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Old 07-16-2012, 10:02 PM   #2
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1968 28' Ambassador
Cedaredge , Colorado
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Hey welcome to the AS forum. A lot of us like to update too. Myself included. There are many restoration threads and lots of great ideas that people have done. Good luck, and taking it out is easier than putting it back together. My thread is here: Not as nice at the as that Hofmann's AS those are really nice.
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f174...8-a-90934.html
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Old 07-22-2012, 10:21 PM   #3
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1972 29' Ambassador
Henderson , Tennessee
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 12
Okay, so I'm pretty far behind on my posts so I will try to get caught up. I stay pretty busy so finding time to sit down and upload pics and make posts isn't easy. I guess I could use the Airforums app and do it quickly... Maybe I will try that later.
Anywho, this was maybe 3 weeks ago. We began the long, drawn out process of "The Teardown". You all know what that means. This has been the biggest eye-opener of all. You never can really prepare yourself for gutting an Airstream for the first time. It SEEMS like it should be pretty straight-forward... HA Well, I pulled out all of the furniture and even sold quite a bit of it already. The rest I took to the dump, sorry. Then the interior skin came down. SO MANY FREAKIN RIVETS! And the PO's used 5 types of screws everywhere too. Imagine changing your bit out every pass! Then, my 7 year old drill finally died so I had an excuse to go buy a new set After the walls came the wiring. Looked like a jungle for a few days. I don't understand WHY there is so much wiring and I am hoping that when I begin planning out the re-wire that I can get away with much less. Same with the plumbing. I'm using PEX as that is what everyone on the forums suggests and after my research I understand why. I am also buying new aluminum to skin the walls. I would reuse the old skin but 1. I hate the texture and 2. it has more holes than swiss cheese! I am partial to NEW and CLEAN as well. I'm a little OCD with certain things. I have all the original skin if anyone wants to come pick it up... $50 for all of it! I am however keeping the 2 end caps to clean, paint, and reuse. As for flooring, I am still debating on a shell on or shell off. I will go into more detail in my next post, trying to keep the dates altogether. I am also still pondering my layout and I will get around to drawing it soon and then post it for criticism









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Old 07-22-2012, 10:23 PM   #4
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1972 29' Ambassador
Henderson , Tennessee
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 12
Oh, btw, I need some advice on lighting. I want recessed LEDs. My plan is to have the ceiling as flush as possible because I am 6'6" and have a fear of hitting my head EVERYWHERE, ALL THE TIME. Anyone know where I can find this kind of lighting? I remember seeing them on a thread but I don't know which.
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Old 07-22-2012, 10:38 PM   #5
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1972 29' Ambassador
Henderson , Tennessee
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 12
Well hell, I almost forgot. It's not in chronological order with my posts but I HAVE to show you guys what we just bought! Our new TV! That's my Jeep that I traded for the deal. Little sad but we'll get a CJ soon down the road.

2006 GMC Yukon XL Denali 6.0l V8

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Old 09-12-2012, 09:40 PM   #6
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1972 29' Ambassador
Henderson , Tennessee
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 12
Here's a quick update of where we're at. We've gotten the AS fully gutted, frame brushed down, POR-15 about 90% complete, and subfloor purchased.
I am trying something a little different on the subfloor. I searched around and didn't find anyone using this material so that means either I'm on to something or it'll turn in to an epic fail! I bought a 5 gallon bucket of Black Jack Roof Gard 700 white. I'm going to put a couple of coats of that on all sides of the plywood.
I went with Plytanium 19/32 x 4 x 8 Pine Sheathing plywood from Lowes. ($24 a sheet) I know there's better, more expensive wood I could use but I figure if I focus on fixing all the windows and seams from water leaking and I coat the floor with that elastomeric roof sealant it should last as long as I will need it and them some. I also bought a 2x4 sheet of the same wood in 1/4" for the joints. The entire purchase of wood, coating, roller covers was just under $300!
The next expense will be new axles!

Here are some shots of our POR-15 work:

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Old 12-04-2012, 04:17 PM   #7
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1984 31' Sovereign
anycity , New Hampshire
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Posts: 23
Looks Great!

My wife and I did this project to full time on our property while building a house. Got any updated pictures? I cant wait to gut it and rebuild it again!
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Old 12-04-2012, 04:28 PM   #8
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Long Beach , California
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Yes, updates please. Looks like you've gutted it. Back together yet?
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