'63 Safari - It 'Bee' Traded (#8671)

[goransons]

It's been too long since I've posted on here. We've been so busy with the "new" house the last year and a half, not to mention the kids which are growing up way too fast. To all those that helped us get the safari back in use thank you, we will be out in it again soon this summer for a few rallies and family vacations. I've been doing more of the little things, redoing some others including replacing the VTS counter edging with the stuff I purchased through a forums member that bought a huge roll from Outwater Plastics. A much better fit and spot on color match.

I just thought I should post a picture I found online recently. I keep an eye on our 67 overlander that was traded to make this all happen. He's done some nice stuff with the interior and I must say the bees are cool, but we are very thankful they aren't in the Safari.

Thanks to all that have helped on the restoration, with parts, brain power, words of encouragement, and Joe and the folks that made it happen in the first place! Ok back to work....

[goransons]

Great weekend in Astoria Oregon for the Region 10 Rally. Great to see so many friends, it's been almost a year!

Here's picture on the way there, we decided to go a route we don't use often, slower in some ways but what a view of Mr. Rainier.

(Photo by my wife!)

[flyfshr]

That great looking Wally decal looks awesome on there Scott.

Brad
FF

[gdod25]

Is Rob on the forums? I have bee questions.

[goransons]

The guy that did the artwork Brad did amazing work!! Of course that back was photographed a bunch this weekend and one of my rally decals had come up from the sun and I didn't get it replaced. Driving me nuts!

Rob runs the Napa Valley Bee Works. You can google that and find him on several of the social media outlets and he has his own blog style website by the same name but I don't think it's been updated in a year or so.

[goransons]

I wish I could get that brass plate made, I keep trying but failing. With 3D printers and that type of technology the plate itself is easy, but haven't found any companies or private artists that are willing or are properly equipped to do porcelain inlays that big.

I'm sure the guy that did all that artwork will like that one too when I finally manage to get it done! (P.S. Brad did the artwork in both cases)

[goransons]

It's time to dust off this thread and this trailer! After a 6 years of other projects including moving to a new to us 110 year old home, and 3 major Airstream restorations, 8671 is ready for some love. Last year we added on to our garage and made a forever indoor home for our trailers, but years of the desert sun took its tole on my past work.

This winter I'm starting (indoors thankfully) recleaning all the window frames, redoing all the now brittle window glazing strips, new weatherstrip on all windows and doors, and cleaning up the skin and resealing the trailer all the way around.

Over the next year we plan to go back on the interior and really dial this trailer in way more authentically than it was before. At the time we did this thread we were really digging in our our first full restoration, I didn't know a whole lot, and there are many things that I know how to do far better than I plan to issue a "do-over", including upgrading the VCT 12x12's to more authentic 9x9's (cut down 12x12's), a lot of cabinet refinishing/repairs, and this past year we learned of a company that makes a near perfect match to our original cushion fabric, so new cushions for all 3 couches will be happening this year.

Today I started the process, removing a small CB antenna that wasn't on the trailer during the Around the World Caravan, which was prone to leaking just about every trip, and finally cleaned up the door jamb and installed the inner door weatherstrip that has been in ziplock bag for almost a decade!

I've got some boxes of window parts coming from VTS and vintagetrailergaskets this week so I can start on that work. New screen fabric, lots to do, but it's nice to be working inside when I want to without a schedule or deadline since we have the Globetrotter as a daily camper when the weather is nice!

Adding the inner weatherstrip sure tightens up the door and hides up the back end of all the solid rivets at the door frame.

more to come...

[goransons]

(don’t mind the filthy trailer skin!)

[Bubba L]

Scott, great to have you back at working on an AS. It’s been awhile, hope you can remember the steps. Keep us posted. Take care and stay safe.

[goransons]

Learning more and more these days.

I am thankful for Vintage Trailer Supply and all that Steve has done for the hobby. When we first restored 8671 he had recreated jalousie window parts that nobody else had, but our trailer had some weird stuff, round gasket slots when everyone said they didn't exist. This time around, the gaskets are all hardened from years of UV and I went back to a source for obscure gaskets that I used when working on Wally and Stella's trailer and its Parlyn windows.

Robert at Vintage Trailer Gaskets is a human encyclopedia of vintage trailer windows and knows all the gaskets that goes with them. He also has put together a website with a ton of information if you start learning to navigate through the sheer volume of parts.

Robert not only helped me ID which gaskets I needed (for both 1400 series and 2701 series Hehr Jalousie windows) but that one of my windows spans 3 generations of window parts (they sure were thrifty and used what was laying around).

Some great reading on his page:

first, the 1966 hehr window catalog shows not only the varies styles of windows to that point, but also shows roof vents, the kitchen exhaust vents and all the associated parts and pieces. Check it out:

https://www.vintagetrailergaskets.co...anual_1966.pdf

The rest of his document archive covers the 40's to 80's of virtually every window you can imagine. Its worth checking out for your restoration. go to vintagetrailergaskets.com and click on the vintage window library.

Tomorrow, with a bunch of parts from him and VTS the window rebuilds begin.

[Hittenstiehl]

We also just had a great experience with Robert of Vintage Trailer Gaskets. Between him and VTS the diagrams and nomenclature are very helpful.

[goransons]

I’ve been working on cleaning up the exterior. Last weekend I cleaned up the rear window and installed new bulb seal. The gaskets I installed years back have hardened due to the UV and heat.

I had ordered in glazing strips from VTS but the redesign they recently did resulted in strips that I could easily remove with my fingernail. I emailed them and they refunded me and are adjusting tooling. That’s why they get my business time and time again. They are great people.

I went ahead and tried the version that VTG sells. Theirs is slightly darker, more curved and is made slightly wider on the face so the edge of the black tape holding the glass is fully covered.



The VTS version on left, VTG on the right.



VTG on the vertical (note the black doesn’t show on the glass edge), new VTS on the bottom.

Notes:

The VTG fits TIGHT, like can’t get it out without breaking it and they need to be warmer than the 45 degrees in the shop this afternoon to snap in well. His page has a few photos on how to “massage” the angle to help it snap in and how to hold it which helped a lot.

I’m going to clean up one full side of the trailer window frames to warrant the energy needed to warm things up and I’ll report back.

[Emsmalley]

Do you still have this?

[goransons]

Yes we do!

[goransons]

When we first restored 8671 we did our best with the tools, skills and knowledge we had at the time. Now we know a bit more and have better tools, so we are going back to do things better.

Instead of a modern refrigerator, we had National RV Refrigeration retrofit a modern Dometic cooling unit into a 1963 refrigerator.

The interior is going to get new VCT cut down to 9x9, and cabinets are going to be restored to their original color and the stove is going to get rechromed. We found a near exact match of the original couch fabric and will have that professionally done for all 3 couches.

It's going to be nice to actually work on an Airstream at our own pace, that we are keeping forever, and get to do it in the garage, which is a first!

Here's the rebuilt refrigerator.