Do you need a new pan or are you going to clean it up and POR it?
I will have to replace about 1/3 of it. I will try to get the same guage galvanized metal for the big patch. This pan is made of much heavier metal than regular "heat/AC duct" galvanized metal. Then, I will use a product called RUST MORT on any rusted parts that are left, then paint the whole thing with silver Rust-oleum.
An Airstream Dealer in Atlanta tried to get a new pan for me from the Airstream factory, but they don't make them anymore. He recommended frabricating a new one. I got one quote from a metal shop for $350.00, but after seeing the detail of how this thing is made, I was not sure I would ever get one made that would fit. So I decided to make the extensive repairs to this one. Bill
Thank you for the description. I think your story and others raise a dilemma for a vintage owner -- I mean, owner of a vintage AS :-) -- to open up the cover of the frame or not. Maybe traveling cross-country would tip the balance in favor of opening up to take a look. I think maybe like a surgeon, if you look long enough, you're sure to find something.
Question: did you look into using one of the air-powered metal shears I have heard about? Is the grinder best for heavier metal, like the frame members vs. skin? How did you decide to go with a grinder?
To use POR-15 all one is expected to do is remove loose rust and dirt, degrease the metal and paint away. It isn't like auto paints where 100% of rust must be removed!
A knee-jerk reaction to the word "grinder" - every spec of unrusted metal is precious on our older airstreams. An abrasive wheel "grinder" is just too fast at removing good and bad alike on our trailers! However, a cup style wire brush in a angle grinder, or a sander with the many flaps of fine sandpaper or perhaps my first choice, a 3M corporation product that is 2" or 3" biscuits of scotchbrite thats been dipped in some gnarly abrasive. The holders are about $12-15 and each biscuit is a buck or two.
And some shameless bragging now; just replaced the rear BT support and tacked in two bottom panel braces just in case the sheet metal wants to settle, I am sealing the plywood between the frame rails w/ Kilz exterior to seal up smells left from the worst squirrel, rat, mouse, wombat and ground sloth infestation I could imagine. I am ready to put foil-foam-foil R-14 insulation up & I purchased two sheets 5' X 12' .032 aluminum yesterday (55 pounds at $2.25 a pound, $125 after taxes) and PLAN to get frame rail sections closed up soon!!
I discovered the worst damage on my unit was caused by no caulk at the rear trunk lid hingle plate ath the shell seam, any water on the hinge plate just crept into the trailer and wicked through the fiberglass almost 10 feet up the frame rail. Keep that seam well caulked!
Hey, Wabbiteer,
Thanks for the tip on the trunk lid hinge plate and the sanding options. I was trying to describe POR-15 to someone and instead said POS-15. That is NOT my true feeling about my new Airstream!
A.
Question: did you look into using one of the air-powered metal shears I have heard about? Is the grinder best for heavier metal, like the frame members vs. skin? How did you decide to go with a grinder?
Anne, I got the grinder for several reasons. It was recommended by another Forums members. Also, every "Metals Shop" I have recently visited had several of these....they come in different sizes......and they are not that expensive. My 4 1/2 inch unit cost $35.00 (made in china, arn't they all!!) but works great and has the power, speed and features of the more expensive units. They are very good for cutting light weight metals and grinding/finishing metal for just about anything. There are several wheels available for different jobs. A welding torch is best for cutting most heavy metals.
Initially I purchased an air-impact wrench....thinking I could run it with my 6 gallon, 1 HP Air Compressor. Well, NIX that! It wouldn't work!! It takes a very large capacity Air Compressor to run "AIR" tools. So, "Air Powered" anything is out of range for me.
After spending 2 hours and breaking many little cutting wheels, I finally cut a small access hole in the pan with my "Dremel" to get at replacing the main tank gate valve. That's what led me to discover all the rust damage....and that seems like "light-years" ago!! That access hole would have been a 5 minute job for my new Angle grinder. Bill
Just one last point, use POR-15, others have tried other products and they have failed over time.
You don't want to do this again do you?
__________________
Bob
'77 Sovereign Intl 31' CB '07 GMC 4x4 2500HD EC 8.1 Allision six | Bedrug | Softopper | Airbags
WBCCI 11411 | Metro NY | AIR 15915
WBCCI Time's a-changing Say no to Lawrence Welk attitudes
Just one last point, use POR-15, others have tried other products and they have failed over time.
You don't want to do this again do you?
Bob, I have used POR-15 before. I'm not a big fan of this product. It's expensive, tricky to use and must be covered with a paint to protect it from UV ray destruction. I'm going with the RUST MORT for this project. If it last 10 years, that's enough for me! Bill
The first photo shows the part that has been treated with Rust Mort on the left and far right. I will be painting all of this with silver Rust-Oleum The brown part is the untreated part that I will cut out and remove....then replace with new galvanized metal. In the 2nd photo you can clearly see the two access holes and the long vertical strip where the rust has eaten through the pan. .......to be continued. Bill
I mentioned favorite tools for working on my old trailer frame and today I must correct my above post; on my 1973 Overlander the frame paint is an asphalt compound that loads up & ruins sand papers and abrasive fiber discs!
Yesterday I spent 7 hours working on frame with a high-speed rotary air cutoff saw and wore out two 3-inch wire wheels that chucked up nicely in it. The tool I use has a throttle trim so I kept it on its lowest speed and then regulated the air pressure to keep the RPM's just high enough so it wouldn't bog down on light pressure.
Now I am trying to degrease the nasty asphalt 'creosote' residues the wire wheel left on; more work than I wanted. POR-15 calls for using a postassium hydroxide degreaser, any solvent based degreasers plug the metal pores with a thin film of whatever they are carrying away...
I am posting a question on POR-15 and old Airstream frames immediately after uploading this...
Hooray! Hooray!!! I have finished the repair/rebuild of my holding tank pan. Well almost. I still have the 3-in. exit plumbing to complete, but that will be comparatively easy. I installed the pan Saturday while my Nephew was available to help. Getting that thing back up and in place was way too much for one person. That repaired holding tank pan is a heavy item. I cut out a piece about 20" by 56" and replaced it with a piece that was 30" by 60". The over lap all around added some noticeable weight. Anyway it's done and looks good. That new angle grinder was what made it all possible, that's a great tool.....But it demands care when in use.
I forgot to take any photos of the "finished" pan, too anxious to get it back on I guess, but I took some of the back part after it was installed.
Here is a tip for you. Leaky sewer vents are so destructive that I have decided to install an "early warning" system on two of my 3 vent pipes, the two that I can get access to. Both of these go into that pan I just re-built. I never want to have "leaky" sewer vents again! Now, this is a high-tech solution, so follow this very carefully. I will tie an old white cotton sock around each vent pipe, up about head height, just after they come through the roof. The two vent pipes that I can get to are both hidden in closets, so the socks will not be obvious. Then periodically, after it rains, I will feel the socks to see if there is any evidence of moisture!! If I got moisture, then I have a LEAK! SHAZAM! Simple and effective! The price is right, too! Airstream should offer these as an accessory.
Bill, That looks great!
Congratulations!
Good pictures, too.
The tip is priceless, a real piece of ingenuity. I was about to yell "Roll Tide," for your Alabama smarts, but maybe you're a War Eagle. (I am a native of Athens, AL; can't take the Bama out of the kid, even in a bad year, with Ohio State down the road.)
Anne
This scares the heck of me, since I'm just reactivating a '63 Bambi which has been sitting outside unused for 27 years.
The pictures and story at [http://www.six55.com/AS/frame.htm] are especially scarry, as the implication is the tank (before repair) could jar loose on the road, and the commode could fall out on the highway behind it.
I'm loaning the Bambi to a young lady whose Dad will tow it from Atlanta to Asheville, NC, leave it parked for 5 months, then tow it back. I sure wouldn't want a disaster to befall them on the way there or back.
So, someone pls. advise. Would it be adequate to suggest they pull it around locally when traffic is lighter, and check if anything happens. Or, do I need to pop the rivets, pull the panel down, and check if the tank is secure?
Any opinions would be appreciated. I only have this week to do something, one way or the other.
The more I read on this forum, the more challenging the reactivation of my Dad's 44-year-old Bambi is looking.
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Say no to Lawrence Welk attitudes
I have finished the repair/rebuild of my holding tank pan. Well almost. I still have the 3-in. exit plumbing to complete, but that will be comparatively easy. I installed the pan Saturday while my Nephew was available to help. Getting that thing back up and in place was way too much for one person. That repaired holding tank pan is a heavy item. I cut out a piece about 20" by 56" and replaced it with a piece that was 30" by 60". The over lap all around added some noticeable weight. Anyway it's done and looks good. That new angle grinder was what made it all possible, that's a great tool.....But it demands care when in use.
Leaky sewer vents are so destructive that I have decided to install an "early warning" system on two of my 3 vent pipes, the two that I can get access to. Both of these go into that pan I just re-built. I never want to have "leaky" sewer vents again! Now, this is a high-tech solution, so follow this very carefully. I will tie an old white cotton sock around each vent pipe, up about head height, just after they come through the roof. The two vent pipes that I can get to are both hidden in closets, so the socks will not be obvious. Then periodically, after it rains, I will feel the socks to see if there is any evidence of moisture!! If I got moisture, then I have a LEAK! SHAZAM! Simple and effective! The price is right, too! Airstream should offer these as an accessory. 
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