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10-07-2014, 03:42 PM
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#1
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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'65 GT 20' my winter project
Hi, I am happy to meet my fellow AS owners. Live in North Seattle. Purchased last week out of Gold Beach, OR. It's in great shape. Known for my great vision, lacking skills and tools. Some work I will do on my own, other will be hired out.
The first thing I want to do is fix the hitch and tongue. Next would be electrical and wheels/tires. Guidance on RV repair experience. People you may have dealt with.
Thank you!
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10-14-2014, 11:30 AM
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#2
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Reading all the posts thoroughly. What a great knowledge base!
I have two repair shops I am going to start working with to see how they work with me.
This week I am taking the GT in for the hitch, wheels, tires, electrical, brakes and door repair.
Next week I am going to a truck wash to have them prepare the proper acid wash. It was living near salt water at Gold Beach, Oregon for 12 years. They will evaluate the skin.
One thing that is coming to mind that I see frequently in the forum is a reference to Axel replacement. Thinking not a bad idea since I am trying to be safety minded. How crazy is the replacement cost? Low compared to the consequences I know.
With that said my second concern, I have an F-150. I have seen someone say its ok others not. I have 2940 lbs.
Thanks!
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10-14-2014, 12:08 PM
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#3
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Moderator
1968 17' Caravel
Battle Ground
, Washington
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 12,253
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Hi, and congrats on your awesome find! A GT is a perfect size for adventuring
First off, your F-150 should be just fine. I towed our Caravel, just slightly lighter than your GT, for years with an E-150 with a towing capacity of 6600 lbs. Now there's some caveats, like if your truck is lifted, that would be bad for stability. You probably still want a hitch with some sway control (look up friction sway control). If you want to carry a LOT of heavy stuff in the truck, you could eventually exceed capacity. But really, that truck is bordering on overkill. And yes, lots of opinions about towing, the next person to post will probably suggest you need something bigger
Axle replacement is pretty important. If you think about bouncing down the road and trusting your trailer to a 50 year old axle, it only makes sense to get it replaced as well. You can get a complete axle with new brakes. We had a shop install ours, but I can't tell you how much it cost because the bill was mixed in with a bunch of other stuff I had them do at the same time like new propane lines. I can tell you it was worth every penny. Going down the road was tearing my trailer apart before I replaced the axle, now it just glides along behind us, no trouble at all.
We have a lot of NW forum rallies during the summer, I hope we get a chance to say hi in person someday! There are a LOT of us in the NW
__________________
Stephanie
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10-14-2014, 12:25 PM
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#4
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Thank you Stephanie! Just getting the hang of this forum. How do i edit my typo? Yikes. Yes the Axle is a must do. I don't want to hear a bunch of noise in the back. My first trailer is a 1962 Aloha. It tows with my Mercedes ML350 like a dream.
I do hope to meet you too!
Dena
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10-14-2014, 12:39 PM
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#5
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Moderator
1968 17' Caravel
Battle Ground
, Washington
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 12,253
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Posts can be edited for a few minutes after they are posted. If you find an edit you need done after that just ask a Moderator and we're happy to help.
When we first got our trailer after a trip we'd go in and the pillows would be on the floor and the cupboards had shook open and we were losing rivets on the outside. The ride was so rough it was just getting tossed! After we got the new axle you could leave stuff on the counter and it would probably still be there at the end of your trip. HUGE difference.
__________________
Stephanie
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10-14-2014, 01:24 PM
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#6
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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The longer I sit on the this site, the crazier it gets. Frame off.
So then I go to where I can start doing some of my own work. Do I risk the asbestos and rip it all off? Common sense I know that if the sub floor is bad I need to replace. Then when I put the flooring down, do I do the whole floor? Then I can just caulk the gaps when I install cupboards and such?
Pretty sure I am taking the gaucho and turning into a dinette. My model has the old heater directly in front when you walk in. The right dinette is not a full bed to sleep on. I have shared pics in the gallery.
Getting braver.
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10-14-2014, 01:42 PM
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#7
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Moderator
1968 17' Caravel
Battle Ground
, Washington
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 12,253
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Don't go crazy if you don't have to. I had a lot of bad spots in my floor, I just replaced the front half. I did not take the shell off. And I used it for a year before I dug in and did the fixes over the winter so we wouldn't miss any camping. Also gave me a chance to see how we really liked it. Of course you already have another trailer, so maybe you're more confident. I just know shell off is a HUGE project. I wouldn't be eager to dive right into it!
__________________
Stephanie
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10-14-2014, 06:43 PM
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#8
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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I keep saying, just get it road safe and cleaned up. Hang out, chill out. it all will come to me! You are right, I have my 62 Aloha to use!
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10-14-2014, 08:58 PM
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#9
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Rivet Master
1966 22' Safari
Hilltop Lakes
, Texas
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,764
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Acid wash might be a really bad idea. This is not a welded aluminum truck tank, it's a riveted Airstream shell. Acid will penetrate the seams and cause corrosion problems. I would never let anyone acid wash my trailer!
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10-14-2014, 11:18 PM
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#10
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Hi Mimi, There are grades to get it done properly from the research I have done. Q: Can you acid wash the external skin instead of polishing?
A: It can be done, but if you don’t get the acid completely removed, it has the potential to be a perpetual leaker. The acid may get under the rivet heads and may not get rinsed off properly. The acid may reactivate and will continue to eat away at the aluminum underneath the rivet heads. Even so, many commercial and respected restorers use this method. Once etched, you then polish conventionally using coarse to fine polishes. More info on the Perfect Polish website.
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10-15-2014, 01:35 PM
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#11
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Rivet Master
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer
, Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
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A new axle for your trailer will be in the $800 range. Installation takes 4 to 6 hours my guess. You will likely have some modifications required to the frame, like new mounting holes. Not a big deal, but time consuming. Figure $100/hr at a RV shop and there is a ballpark price. ($1500).
Buy your axle with new brakes and bearings. Well worth the extra cost. Inland RV in California and Colin Hyde in New York are very good axle suppliers.
David
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10-15-2014, 02:30 PM
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#12
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Thank you for the tips on the Axle. It is a must do indeed.
The hitch is giving me trouble. Tonight we are dropping off at Evergreen RV in Seattle. I will get a bid from the on the Axle as well as Ryan's RV.
I just need to slow down and watch this unfold and not be in a hurry to fix it all at once.
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10-15-2014, 02:53 PM
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#13
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Moderator
1968 17' Caravel
Battle Ground
, Washington
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 12,253
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Take your time! Winters coming anyway
__________________
Stephanie
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10-16-2014, 12:04 PM
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#14
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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A bit more details about the GT in the photos here in my flickr link. https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5jW8GA
The photos are high res and I have to figure out the tool to reduce size and place in the gallery.
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10-16-2014, 05:50 PM
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#15
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Rivet Master
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer
, Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
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Hi there thumb... I believe you can post pictures directly to your posts. You select "post reply", quick reply does not have photo capability. Then select the "paper clip" in the tool bar. A "Manage Attachments" window pops up asking you to choose a picture file from your hard drive. Do so, and select "open" in that window. Now that you have selected a photo, select "upload" and go have a diet coke. It takes up to 3 minutes for the system to resize and upload your photo. You will see your picture file name toward the bottom of the pop up window. Then close the window. You're done. My 3 meg photos are automatically resized to less than 300K, good enough for show and tell.
Hope this helps. You probably knew this anyway and are way beyond me on these kinds of things!
This is my winter project. And in Minnesota, I will have a loooong time to work on it.
David
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10-16-2014, 07:12 PM
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#16
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Hi there, so I got photoshop and resized the pics. Then I figured out the dang attachment in the posts. Thought it was best to just keep pics on my gallery. Today was a lot of learning, I felt a bit overwhelmed. But I can do this rivet thing and repair 8 windows. One a week, no problem!
Sent from my iPad using Airstream Forums
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10-27-2014, 05:59 PM
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#17
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Safety basics first. Lights, Bearings, Axle repair
Very excited. The smallest of progress is good. Like having a safe coupler, greased bearings and lights! Evergreen RV says I can wait a year on the axle replacement. Likely will do that in the spring. The lights have been giving them trouble. Of course. All of it was ripped out and replaced. I can now drive him.
Ready now to haul it to work on in a glass studio called Glassometry located four hours from my home outside of Hood River, Oregon. My friend is lending me a huge studio space to work on the GT indoors. This is very exciting as my job in technology marketing allows me to work anywhere. Just need to be near an airport. And to find some good labor that can take my direction. Direction I get off the forum that is.
Next step is documenting the plan and weighing pros and cons of the frame off or on stage. My budget is 12k and I hope I can make this dream happen while getting my hands very dirty. Timeframe is about 8 months.
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10-27-2014, 07:24 PM
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#18
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Rivet Master
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer
, Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
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You are getting set up for the winter in a warm, dry place. Your new coupler is a major improvement. I think your budget is reasonable. It all depends how much "free" labor you can provide on weekends and the like. Maybe you have poked around the perimeter of your floor with a sharp awl? Look for soft spots or holes. A bad subfloor usually leads to the shell off. You can assess your frame once the belly pans are down and all the old, icky insulation is in the garbage.
The rear subfloor under the toilet was rotted away on mine. But the rest of the floor was adequate. So I just replaced the last 4 feet of sub floor without lifting the shell. Here is a photo of no floor.
It will be a neat Globetrotter when done.
David
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10-28-2014, 01:08 AM
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#19
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Thank you! Tonight I was exploring the topic of silicone removal. Also adding to the dreaded list of tools to out on the list in my search at pawn shops. The EIGHT windows will be my first attempt at rivet removal.
Not only do all the windows have silicone covered in dirt, but it is around my tail lights. Torn between the Rustoleum Automotive aircraft remover and the McKanica caulk remover. Mixed reviews on the product on VTS.
Someone went to town with the silicone.
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11-24-2014, 11:12 PM
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#20
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GlamperGirl
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 377
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Dent repair New Alum sheets source Portland or Seattle referral please
Challenge is how to remove the rusty screws with three different heads and not lose patience. I am trying to keep the frames in one piece and pull out. Rough going.
What is the type of aluminum I order to get new skins? I have a lot of dents as you can see in my pics.
Big dimple on the roof-
One under the door
One front right
Bumper area
https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5go1wA - day i bought it pics of exterior and interior- shows dents well
https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5jW8GA - hitch and jack- exterior views
https://flic.kr/s/aHsk2QzA3L - interior mess removal of front dinette
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