Jim+Jane's '67 Safari

[JRF0st3r]

David,
Thanks for your reply!
Let me just say that at this time there are no legs beneath when the bed is extended. It has 2 pair of 24" full extension drawer slides with each pair rated for 220 lbs. There is a slide bolt to lock it in place either open or closed so than might provide some additional support. If the extended bed frame bends, I need to quit eating (and drinking).

I appreciate your foam information since we have done no research. What thickness do you have?

Jim

[dbj216]

Hi Jim,

We made all the cushions in 4" thickness. The standard width is 24", so that was a consideration for the dinette layout. 4" isn't much, so I first tried "extra firm" stuff from a local shop. It felt fine for sitting, but it was too stiff and not comfortable for lying down. But further research discovered foam specifications first comes in density. Higher density is longer lasting. Then select the "firmness." It is actually measured in Indentation Deflection where the measure is how much weight indents a piece of foam a given depth. There is a standard industry test method for this rating.

We found the spec we posted above just right for us. Maybe a bit soft for sitting, but quite comfortable for sleeping. We also wrapped the foam with polyfill for surface comfort and wrinkle free cushion covers. Now the son has a big bet for crashing after a long day of mountain biking, and a big U shaped dinette for eating and drinking too much. Note: the Globetrotter is a size smaller than your Safari and the 69 model year has a rather goofy floor plan in my view.

I tried drawer slides for the gaucho in the son's Globetrotter. But we found they weren't strong enough. I don't think they were as beefy as your slides. My 66 Trade Wind has those wooden slides like you might find under a dinning room table and they seem okay. Rockler sells several variations of "cantilever" drawer and table slides. I ended up with legs on the son's Globetrotter as he eats too much and drinks too much!

David

[JRF0st3r]

We stole your mattress spec David so if we can't sleep it'll be your fault! Just kidding. Our upholstery friends came Monday to measure and order the foam for the bed and gaucho.
We have the dinette & gaucho mostly cut out and assembled. It's great to finally have a place to sit down inside!
Jim

[dbj216]

Very nice "breakfast nook" you built there. It's perfect for two travelers in a smaller trailer. The wife and I argue about dinettes all the time. I like comfortable seating as I can eat standing up if I must. She like a place to "set the table". I want a comfortable place to be in the evening and on rainy days. That is not a dinette. However, it is true that a kitchen table is a main area of any home. But I don't like wasting the floor space for a dinette I might use 30 minutes a day.

But it is nice to have a spot in the trailer where you can sit and contemplate your next project.

My bet you will like the foam spec. Remember you gotta wrap it with poly fiber fill batting to give the covering some shape and provide an initial soft touch. Your upholster will do that automatically.

David

[JRF0st3r]

We like to have meals on a table, often outside when weather allows, but still nice to have a dining area inside that also serves as an alternative bed.

Dinette table hardware is in place as well as the enclosures for wheelwell and space beneath benches. We put a Wave 3 catalytic heater on one of the benches and the CO / propane detector on the other. Now we are waiting on the cushions and cooler weather for our next trip.
Jim

[dbj216]

The son has a catalytic heater and seems to like it. I've never installed or used one. But they make sense.

We took our Trade Wind out last week. Everything seemed to work good enough. We were boondocking without hook-up so dependent on the battery and the water in our fresh tank. The trailer was comfortable enough, much better than a pup tent.

David

[JRF0st3r]

You've got a fine looking trailer, David.

Our friends in the upholstery business, Robert + Trish Holmberg delivered some fantastic cushions today. We feel a trip coming on!
In the photos are Jane and my sister, Judy.

[dbj216]

Very nice looking cushions! Okay, I have to ask, is the selected foam comfortable for both sitting and lying down? I sure hope so. Our first foam selection was too firm, but the second spec (the one given in this thread) seems to work well for us. At least the ladies seemed pleased in the photo.

Feeling a trip coming on is a whole lot better than feeling a headache coming on. Yes, take it for a short trip and see what adjustments you might want to make.

David

[JRF0st3r]

ARRGH! Once again, I almost finished a post and it disappeared before finishing. I hate for this Air Forum to waste out time! So here goes again---

David, we gave your mattress to our upholsterer and so far it seems comfortable for both siting and laying down. The sleep test is yet to happen.

I confess to not being even a little bit skilled at towing or backing a trailer. Recently I towed it out of its shelter to wash it and apply a rubberized white coating to the top flat panels. In the process, I drove too close to a tree and scraped the doorknob off. Well crap, I've repaired everything else on this rig so why not the Borgman L1-00 lock? Exterior face plate was replaced and knob was repaired. One can love to hate this wicked lock design! Pic before was posted Dec 31, 2014 and see after attached.

In April I posted info on our Blue Ox sway control and weight distribution system but don't think I have talked about our tow vehicle. We have a 2005 Dodge Dakota 4x4 Club Cab with a 4.7 Liter Magnum V8, 230 horse, 5 speed automatic, 22 gallon fuel tank, weighing 4429 lbs and combined carrying capacity of persons + carried weight of 1387 lbs. Our little truck has about 60K miles and is well maintained. Of course it is silver. Earlier I measured tongue weight of the trailer as 410 lbs but will need to update this before our next adventure.

Looking at the cost of new trucks and considering that we are both retired, we need to be happy with this one for awhile! What do you think?

Jim

[dbj216]

I hate it when I erase my post after composing it for a while. It has happened to me several times. There is no "constant save" feature on Air Forums that I know of. If I click to do something else without thinking, kapow, my work is gone. If my computer crashes, same thing. So I just hope for the best. It doesn't happen too often.

Blue Ox is a good hitch, and your truck ought to pull your Safari fine. Even in those Ozark Mountains. There is a gross combined vehicle weight rating on the door jam of your truck that will give what the vehicle is designed to pull. Or you can look it up on the internet. Maybe your truck has a transmission cooler? That would be a good thing to have.

We pull our Trade Wind with a Jeep Grand Cherokee up and down these mountains. It is rated for 7000 pound trailer and it seems to do okay.

I rebuilt the Bargman L-100 lock on the son's Globetrotter last winter. I played hell to find one at a decent price, but got lucky. Paid 200 for two of them used. I removed the locking feature as it can "lock you out of the trailer" as happened to my son. To lock a Bargman, all you need to do is turn the inside knob. Now we use the deadbolt only to lock the door shut. The Bargman locks are becoming more rare every year. I'm glad yours was repairable.

And I'm glad only the doorknob was chewed off by the tree. There are many Airstreams with damaged bodies from hitting something during a turn. Gas station pump protection posts are a common cause. My Trade Wind has a big old patch under the curb side window next to the entry door. The previous owner turned too sharp and hit a brick outdoor fireplace. The bricks weren't damaged. It takes some practice to get used to the wide turns and backing up with a conventional trailer.

David

[JRF0st3r]

Our Dakota has a GCWR of 10,500 lbs and the online Dodge Towing Guide says we can tow 5,750 lbs. The trailer is probably closer to 4,000 lbs since the dry weight in the Owner's Manual says 3,420 lbs. I'll see about adding a transmission cooler.

David, like you, I removed the locking feature from the Bargman L-100 since I use a deadbolt to secure it.

The last cabinet is now in place, a small closet for folded clothes. Today I polished the panel next to the door and started repainting the nameplate. The "Airstream" name should be silver which requires a steady hand or some other trick.

We are eager to take a trip and have one set to meet a brother and sister in law in Hot Springs, Arkansas in early October. We might squeeze in something before then.
Jim

[Itaintover]

dbj216
I have been following your progress on the thread and I have
learned a lot. Someday soon now I will get away
from my hectic job and get to work on an old beat up 1968 Safari
sitting in my yard.
Comment about how your posts can time out. Have
had that problem with my office stuff.
Found out it is easier to type it out on a Notepad and then
copy to whatever your are working on. Notepad never
times out!

[dbj216]

Hello itaintover, welcome to Air Forums and Jim and Jane's Safari refurb thread. I've just been following along as they design and build the trailer they want. They are doing an excellent job.

I'm recently retired from my hectic job. I guess it's nice not to go to work every day, but I do miss it some. I am no computer expert by any means.

Jim and I have found Air Forums does not "automatically save" content in posts while it is being composed. Nothing is saved until you hit "submit". So it is quite possible to make a key stroke error while attaching a photo and loose your stuff. I have never lost data in a "timed out" event while composing, and then being distracted by something else, like dinner. I loose data by clicking the wrong thing, especially the wrong "X". Now, after you hit submit, you have about 20 minutes or so to hit "edit" on your post to make a correction.

Overall Air Forums is a darn good internet site, better than the diesel pickup site or sports car site I participated in the past. But I don't participate in very many. It seems like they are all rather similar in their operation to me. Air Forums has good administrators and good moderators so we don't get into heated, angry, off color, or inappropriate posts. I personally like that.

My old 66 Trade Wind as well as the wife's 86 Limited gave me enjoyable project work in my early retirement. You will find Air Forum members helpful when you have a question on your Safari. Jim had rebuilt one and knows them inside and out.

We like Airstream traveling and plan on heading out soon, destination unknown, but we plan on heading north this time. We will see what we see and stay where ever we are when it gets dark. Our "tiny house" is right behind us.

Airstreamers like to say new adventures keeps us young.

David

[Itaintover]

Now that sounds like something I could look forward to.
Thank you for the great description of a very good life.
I have now 2 months and 28 days to go here. Then the real work will begin.

[JRF0st3r]

Itaintover,
It's a good thing to hear that you have learned good stuff from our thread, now over 4 years old. Although there have been over 10,000 views of our experience, it means a lot to hear that another person has been watching our efforts and errors. David and I also learned a bunch from those who went before us.

One trick a moderator told me to minimize the loss of a post is to check "Remember Me" when logging in. I still loose stuff but no doubt it's my fault. Air Forums is a great website!

I've been continuing to consult on design and construction projects as an Owner's Representative, now that I have become Architect Emeritus. It's a good thing to have had the income to cover trailer restoration and my work requires less than half time continuing for the next 12 months.

In addition to a trip to Hot Springs in October, we are now making plans to go to Galveston September 22-26.

Jim

[JRF0st3r]

First, to David, allow me to "walk back" a comment about both of us learning much from Air Forums. It's true for me but a bunch of what I learned came from those who learned it first, especially you. Thanks for all your good advice!

We spent 5 days at Lake Catherine State Park, Hot Springs, AR, see pics. We had a fine time and always love visiting Hot Springs.

This weekend we will be at the Mid-West Air Forums Rally near Branson, MO.

[dbj216]

Hello Jim, very nice pictures in Hot Springs of you folks and your Safari. I'll bet you get quite a bit of attention at the campsites. Guys like me walk by and take a picture. And heaven forbid you might be outdoors and I'm like to say "Hello fellow Airstreamer" and proceed to use up 30 minutes of your time.

Your trailer is nearly complete, which is the same as saying completed except for the next thing that needs doing. Vintage Airstreams require a lot of "adjustments and improvements" to keep them going. By the way, it is likely worth quite a bit now. Better check that insurance coverage.

We traveled in the 86 Limited in September. Explored some Colorado and Wyoming Rocky Mountains. We even tried boondocking, but decided we really like electricity! Especially when it's below freezing in the morning and we have to run the furnace, draining the batteries rather faster than we would like. Here is a photo at Grand Lake, CO. This is the headwaters of the Colorado river. I think the Arkansas River also starts somewhere in the rockies.

So traveling is likely over for this season and I'm starting to put together the list of needed and desired projects for both vintage Airstreams. Something to pass the long, dark winter months.

David

[JRF0st3r]

On the way back home I encountered one of the orange highway barrels because I dozed off. It scared the pee out of me. After the impact the trailer looked like the first image but today I bought an air powered dent puller from Harbor Freight. Now it looks about as damaged as the rest of the trailer, see attached.

I've asked my metal-smith brother in law to help by fabricating segment protectors or rock guards to the front corners.

Jim

[Hittenstiehl]

JRF that did a fairly good job of pulling it out.

Might consider that for one of ours. I tried the heat gun / bag of ice trick on ours recently and it did nothing.

[dbj216]

Ah the hazards of the road. My son hit an orange barrel in the same place with his 69 Globetrotter. I used a suction cup (non air powered) and got it to "oil can" back out to some degree. Then I used glue tabs and a puller and made further improvement to it. But I can't get the crease out. Let's call it "patina".

My 86 Limited has been hailed on three times since 2005 when we took possession. All three storms happened after I stripped and polished it. There was no hail damage in the 20 years it sat out side before we got it. I was really bummed out about it. I think I cussed during all three hail storms. I tried my glue tabs on some of the larger dents to no avail. The glue just won't stick to the polished aluminum for me. I also think the "weaker" aluminum Airstream used in the mid 80s also contributed to the denting. It was worse on the end caps of course. Your Safari and my Trade Wind are built with 2024 "aircraft" aluminum which I think is stronger, more resistant to hail stones. More "patina" for the 86.

Speaking of damage, my Trade Wind, it was damaged by the previous owner told me he was turning too sharp and hit a outside brick fireplace. It even broke the cast aluminum door frame. But he started the repairs and I finished them. But the door still doesn't fit tight in the frame.

Then in 2012, I hit a truck tire tread laying in the middle of the highway with my 86 Limited. I was following a semi and decided to pass it. I checked mirrors and all was clear. Then I pulled into the left lane and bam, there it was. It gave us quite a jolt and sway. I had limited visibility following that truck. It tore off my right front banana wrap and the tread proceeded to roll under the whole curb side of the trailer. There was quite a bit of damage. I'm afraid I cussed a bit again when it happened. I went to Jackson Center to have it repaired and they did an excellent job.

I regret your nifty Safari was damaged, but it won't be long before you won't notice it, especially while inside of the trailer. Damage happens to many Airstreamers, and as long as we humans are okay, we can recover. I bet you didn't cuss like I did.

Misery loves company, maybe. Just trying to make you feel a bit better about the incident.

David