Old Trailer New Floor

[dbj216]

Winter is over and my Globetrotter project is done. There will be more work next winter I'm sure. This year we wanted a functional toilet, a new fridge, and a new floor covering. Last winter we built a new "U" dinette that makes into a huge bed as well as new converter and new belly pan. The "gaucho" in back pulls out into a 48" wide bed. New cushions for this sleeping space are in the works. Little by little this old trailer is becoming more than an aluminum tent.

David

[Aerowood]

Looking good. One of these days I'll stay home long enough to start on my GT again.

[dbj216]

Hi Aerowood: No no, keep flying. You gotta keep contributing to social security so I can play with the Airstreams in my retirement. I stay home everyday much to my wife's dismay.

Our old Globetrotter is nothing compared to yours. But I do appreciate the compliment. I think the 69 Globetrotter interior design was not Airstream's best effort. The U shaped dinette does accommodate two sleepy adults, and the gaucho in back will take one sleepy child. Getting to the rear bathroom is worse than getting to the bathroom on a crowded 747 international flight from the long middle rows in coach. Everybody wakes up. Excuse me, excuse me.

Soon you can get back to your Globetrotter and make it the best one in the USA. I drove through Avarda the other day and told the wife there is a famous Airstreamer who used to live here.

David

[ALUMINUMINUM]

David,


Your boy's GT is looking remarkably “unmolested” as they say. He's lucky to have a dad with Airstream savvy. Glad you're keeping it mostly in its original vein of design. The ash woodwork looks marvelous. GTs are a great size in the single-axle line up.


I'm not sure why for 1969, Airstream execs decided to scrunch the bath into a windowless street-side closet. Maybe it makes better sense having the rear gaucho bed instead of the middle gaucho that stares at the kitchen appliances and restricts access to the rear bath? It's a mystery. Probably driven by the number of “sleeps” to advertise. I have an old '65 Caravel magazine add where Airstream claims it “sleeps” up to six persons.


The '68GT is such a totally different trailer than the New Improved '69GT, but still, they share the wood, latches, lighting… The '69 windows are probably more rare and expensive than the often maligned '66-'68 Philips Cornings. Stashing original 1969 front wing windows could be a good retirement plan.


I've read that the short trailers were built only in the beginning of the “new model year” starting in the Fall, Like Detroit cars. Then, at some early actual year point, like February? the factory stopped making the less profitable short trailers, and switched production to the tandem axle models. If you ordered a new GT in May, you'd have to wait 'til next year's short model was available in the coming Fall. I wonder if all that is true. The '68GTs were serial numbered as Twins and Doubles. Maybe the '69s were too. My '68 is a Double (one gaucho across the front), and the serial number reflects that by a “series number” starting with 5(00) before the 37. It's the 37th Jackson Center 1968GT Double. I've never seen a 68GT Twin (that would be the front dinette with single bed/seats on curb and street-sides).


OK that was confusing, I'm betting that fewer than 100 total (East, West, Twin, Double) 1969GTs were ever made. I wonder if anyone knows. Perhaps my point is that the “finite number” of these vintage trailers is actually quite low, and folks like you are appreciated for keeping them in memorable condition.




Enjoy the Rocky Mountains….

[ke6gkv]

Nice gt,my first as was a 70 gt.now that the weather is getting i have to finish my wall and front dinnete in my 80 caravelle.

[dbj216]

Aluminuminum: How are you? It's been a while since I've read any of your great posts. I've got you and Aerowood looking at my amature Globetrotter. I'm embarrassed...

The son's Globetrotter has had a rough life like me. The street side lower skins were replaced form the beltline down for some reason. The person doing the work used Olympic rivets for goodness sakes! And there is some damage to the curb side front cap aluminum. Hammered out with a ball peen hammer. The folding steps are missing and one of the square corner wing windows suddenly shattered on us, over night in the drive way? It has Lexon in it for now.

This trailer must have been a "twin" model originally. Maybe it slept 6 with folks piled up like cord wood. Here is a photo of the front dinette with a table that folded down and a gaucho that slid out.

So we made the trailer a little more functional I believe.

David

[Minno]

We looked at one in Faribault, MN a few years ago that had had the lower street side skins all replaced using screws. No knowing how much potential damage under that skin. We still had Little Girl up on blocks at the time, so passed on the Globetrotter.
This trailer you've got looks great!

Kay

[dbj216]

Hi Kay: Screws may be better than Olympic Rivets. You were wise to pass on that Gobetrotter. Globetrotters are like beagle, very cute but not good for much more.

Olympic rivets are for decorative attachments, not for stressed structural members like Airstream skins. As they pop off, I replace them with 5/32 sealed pop rivets. Twice as strong as an Olympic, half as strong as a solid rivet. Maybe someday we will take it all apart and do it right, then again maybe not.

Thank you for the complement. The Globetrotter is only inspected no closer than 10 feet. It looks better that way.

David