Project 2k5

[C Johnson]

I have gotten 100% of the cleaning done. yay ! Something is finished, lol. I removed the front two sections of floor today, the old insulation, cleaned and prepped the frame for paint. All of the interior panels have been cleaned now. Did that yesterday. The good news is that I don't need anymore welding done. Everything up front is solidly in place. I do have to make a new "u" channel. The short section by the door is cracked in three places. I am thinking I better just replace it rather than do a repair. The back two sections of the floor are completely bolted in now. The small things I did were, finish up my tailights, license lamp bracket, and put a new hose on my shower wand along with a thumb operated on/off switch. I did some shopping while it was pouring rain on Saturday. Gotta love HD ! I bought my closed cell foam insulation for the floor, new faucets, new 110v electrical box, new circuit breakers, and new drains for the kitchen, bath, and shower. I also am going to install an outlet behind the fridge for when the old one I have dies. That way I don't have to tear everything apart later, when I get a 100v/12v/gas fridge. I am still thinking on what exactly to do about a holding tank. Mine is DOA. Thinking maybe make one out of plywood and fiberglass, put one under the rear end, or buy one that is premade. The jury is still out on this one. I have new pics in the members photos section.

[C Johnson]

A quick note, the frame work is done ! All painted and welded. One more thing to check off the list.

[C Johnson]

Oh my oh my, how wonderful it is to have a new floor back in the Caravel. I still have to make new corner pieces for the belly pan and then I can permanently attach the skin back to the floor. I also put in about 2/3 rds of my insullation under the floor. I routed my new 12v cable for the running lights as well. Felling a bit less overwhelmed now. I am taking most of the day off from the AS tomorrow. I need a break now, a little r & r is in order. Pics of the progess in the members photos section.

[C Johnson]

Last weekend I finished the insulation under the main part of the floor. I completely rewired the 12v wiring for the brakes and running lights. The old wire was so brittle, if you bent it the insulation would crack and fall off. Can't have that ! I plugged it in to the TV and everything work as it supposed to, how cool is that ? The lights seem to be brighter too. I am taking the day off work Wednesday to pick up my new belly pan material. I found a truck trailer repair place that will sell me .040 aluminum for 11.55 a foot. So I can have a solid belly pan with no seams, aside from the outer skin attaching. They use it for roofs on semi trailers so I think it will make excellent belly pan material. Next weekend I hope to put the axle on and the corner pieces + the rest of the outer insulation, then the underside will be done, aside from the plumbing. Things are clicking right along. Sorry I didn't take any pics this time around. Had my nose to the grindstone.

[C Johnson]

I started the day off with going to get my belly pan material. I found a truck trailer repair place that had 103 inch wide by as long as you wanted aluminum sheet stock. It is .040, which is a good thickness for the underside. Then I was off to the RV store to look for ideas about my holding tank issue and to do some more thinking about the plumbing. I didn't take my tank so I had to go back home to get it as they wanted to see it. On the way home I stopped by Laurelhurst Heating and cooling. They are an outfit here in Portland that installs appliances in RV's. I scored a new burner tube for my Bowen HW heater. How cool is that !!? I also bought a new stove there as mine is nearly dead, another score. I bought a new Wedgewood. It is a scratch and dent. Only Paid 200 bucks for it !

So I went home got my holding tank and went to a plastics outfit to see what they could do. No luck, they only work with acrylics. Too brittle for my application. They did turn me onto a place that does custom work with plastics. They are called Apex Inc. I stopped in there and talked to Todd. He was very informative. The good news is they can make me a tank for a reasonable price, exactly like mine (well not exactly, lol, better !) . The bad news is they need to have the fittings so they can match the plastics for a really good bond. Since I had no idea what I was going to do yet, I don't have the fittings to give them. So once I get the fittings I'll go forward with that. I'll get them this weekend and take it in next week so they can get started on it.

For the forum members here, once they have the tank made it will easy to duplicate. So when I get the finished product I will let you all know how it turns out. I could assist in getting more tanks made there if there is an intrest in that.

Soo, back home with my stuff. I got the new bellypan cut out today. It is all one solid piece with no seams in the middle. Looks great ! I installed the bellypan part way. I discovered that I need to do a few more things up front before I put it on all the way. I also got my new axle put on. It fits well too ! I had to drill new holes in the axle flanges, Andy said I would have to do this. The shocks fit great too. Everything clears and no other modifications are necessary.

Soo all in all a very productive day indeed ! New pics of it all in the members photos.

[C Johnson]

Posted a few new pics. Most of what I have done has been chasing down materials and vendors to get a holding tank and a new refer scoop. Luckily today, I managed to find both and they are in the works. I am getting a new plastic holding tank and a metal fridge scoop. Both cheaper than repros. the fridge scoop will be aluminum, maybe I could polish it...hmmmm

Chris

[Stefrobrts]

You're making fantastic progress Chris, don't you ever work Seriously, I love reading your updates - can't wait to see the trailer in person. Do you still think it will be ready to go by Trout Lake?

[C Johnson]

Hi Steph, I plan on bringing it to Trout Lake. I may not have a few things done but it will be road ready by then. I will probably be sleeping on the floor in there, lol. I have a couple more somewhat difficult, time consuming jobs left to do before the easier stuff gets going. I do work too, about 40 to 50 hrs a week. I sleep well at night ! Thanks for the encouragement.

[C Johnson]

Hi all, I have successfully replaced my belly pan ! yay ! I have to put the corner wraps on and rivet the skin to it underneath but the main part of it is done. My hands are sore from trying to roll the .040 up under the front of the trailer. I like the thickness but it sure takes a lot of strength to hold it in place and drill holes for the rivets.

I made a little design change ( next to the frame ) up front to try and keep water from getting in while driving and washing. I made a piece of angle from the scraps of .032 2024T3 I had and riveted it to the frame and the belly pan. I put a lot of Vulcem in between the aluminum and the steel. We'll see if it works or not. If it doesn't, it will still be far more stable up there anyway. Here is a pic of the streetside.

Something else I changed was I put one vent hole in each corner of the interior. In the "u" channel between the outer skin and the inner skin. I used aluminum screen and a plate on top to hold it down. I have a pic of that in the members photo section. I am thinking that this will help dry things out if they should ever get wet in there, and they will, it's inevitable. The only place I sealed the belly pan was in the front along the frame rails, in the wheel wells, and at the step. I am also thinking of putting some small vents in the pan itself. I found some 2" vents that are aluminum at HD that I think would work. Not sure if I really need to do this at all. I can do it later at any rate.

I also put new screen on for my bottom fridge vent and cut an access hole for my 12V electrical connection place, which I moved from the front to right behind the step. It seemed like a logical spot for it. I just wanted one place to make connections.

I broke two drill bits dulled another one. Got three cuts from the aluminum and a tan on my legs while they were sticking out from under the trailer, lol. I ran out of rivets, both olympic and the large ones that I used to attach the belly pan with.

The underside looks really wonderful now ! mucho better than before.

Thats about it ! Enough for one day huh ?

[albert]

Originally Posted by C Johnson

Oh my oh my, how wonderful it is to have a new floor back in the Caravel. I still have to make new corner pieces for the belly pan and then I can permanently attach the skin back to the floor. I also put in about 2/3 rds of my insullation under the floor. I routed my new 12v cable for the running lights as well. Felling a bit less overwhelmed now. I am taking most of the day off from the AS tomorrow. I need a break now, a little r & r is in order. Pics of the progess in the members photos section.

Hi CJ, can I ask what you used to seal the edges of the new floor you layerd down?
I am doing the same thing and have heard many diff solutions: epoxy, stain, boiled linseed oil. Yours looks fairly well sealed, I'm dying to know what you used.
Also, what size elevator bolts did you buy? I am using 3/4 ply for the floor. Thanks

[Stefrobrts]

Good job on the bellypan! That's a tricky job!

I find I have on occasion had a leak inside, and the water sloshed around in the bellypan until it found it's way out. So if your seams are super tight, you might want a small opening in the low spot to let water drain out in case any somehow gets in.

I'm not sure about the vents, but I was thinking that would be a good idea too, as long as they didn't let in more water than they helped dry out!

[C Johnson]

Hi Albert, I used an oil based, mold resistant, primer made by Zinnser(sp) I put on 2 coats. It soaks in very nicely. The water that did get on it beaded right up and I could wipe it off. I didn't do the whole floor on the topside bit I did do the entire bottom and edges. I wanted untreated wood under the vinyl flooring so the glue can get a good hold.

I used 5/8 acx - exterior ply. Same glue as marine, but has more voids than marine.

The elevator bolts I used a are 1/4-20 x 1 1/2" long. I bought a box of 100 and used 94. I used torque nuts and them bet them over just like they were when I took the old ones off. Some things I saw no reason to over engineer it. There is a pic of the bolt configuration that I used in my members photos.

Chris

[C Johnson]

Hi Steph, Thanks ! It was worth it to change it out rather than try to fix all the problems with the old one.

Yes, I was wondering about the same thing on the vents in the belly pan. I at least wanted the ones inside the walls. I know water won't be entering those.

Chris

[albert]

Originally Posted by C Johnson

Hi Albert, I used an oil based, mold resistant, primer made by Zinnser(sp) I put on 2 coats. It soaks in very nicely. The water that did get on it beaded right up and I could wipe it off. I didn't do the whole floor on the topside bit I did do the entire bottom and edges. I wanted untreated wood under the vinyl flooring so the glue can get a good hold.

I used 5/8 acx - exterior ply. Same glue as marine, but has more voids than marine.

The elevator bolts I used a are 1/4-20 x 1 1/2" long. I bought a box of 100 and used 94. I used torque nuts and them bet them over just like they were when I took the old ones off. Some things I saw no reason to over engineer it. There is a pic of the bolt configuration that I used in my members photos.

Chris

The only thing I still question is the floor plywood thickness. I hope mine isnt 5/8 after I bought the 3/4 marine ply. It was really hard to measure the ply still on the floor and I tossed the rotted stuff before trying to measure it. I guess I can sand down the difference.

[C Johnson]

Hi Albert, You should be fine with the 3/4 in ply. It will raise up the skin 1/8 of an inch. That's if you had 5/8 to begin with. Mine was 5/8. They may have used 3/4 in. in the newer coaches, I am not sure about that one. If you have to, you can always run a router around the outside edge to bring it down to 5/8. You might ask around here and see if anyone knows what the thickness of the ply was in 1970. Good luck on your project !

PS - on the bolts, I countersunk them into the floor about an eighth of an inch and then I am using a filler over them to get a smooth surface.

[C Johnson]

Just thought I'd let ya'll know. I don't need the jackstands anymore ! I bought my tires today and put them on. I had to go with 14" rims rather than the 15's that were on there. Couldn't get a small enough tire for the 15's. So if anyone wants 3 15 inch rims with 2 new coats of por-15 let me know. I'll let ya have 'em for a few bucks. The size is 15 x 5 1/2 on 4 1/2. They are Kelsey hayes wheels.

It sure looks good setting on it's own tires again ! I'll take some pics tomorrow.

Chris

[C Johnson]

New pics The latest pics show how much the axle has raised the trailer, the finished axle install, and the new black water tank

[Janet H]

I am SOO impressed! I just looked at your pics. Great documentation.

[C Johnson]

I took off the rooftop a/c unit. Wow, that thing is heavy, no wonder the roof sagged there. I am not entirely sure if I will be putting it back on as I usually boondock with no 110. I only have one more corner left to do on the bellypan. I got my pkg from AS dreams. The new vent pipe covers look great, can't wait to install them. This weekend is dedicated to getting as much done as possible. I'll burn the candle at both ends, up the side and down the middle

[Stefrobrts]

Good luck, Chris, you're doing a heck of a job!

BTW, I have no AC and haven't missed it much. There's not much in the NW that can't be remedied with a good fan or a shady spot by a stream - if you know what I mean Actually our hottest trip ever was a weekend in Sisters in July, where we spent most of our time touring in the van with the AC on. It was just toooooo HOT! But otherwise I've never found myself wishing for AC.