The Ole Gal had an oopsy doopsy

[Jenniflow]

Yes. I did it. All by myself. I rolled back into an unoccupied parked car. When I was tired. And I hadn't really put her in Park. Aaaaaagh!

Could someone puhlease take a look at the pics here: http://hownottorv.com/how-not-to-enc...p-parking-lot/

and tell me how bad it is, doc, and where would be the best place for repairs of this kind on the west coast, in or north of the Bay Area?

We are planning a trip north and could stop along the way, maybe.

I guess I should add that there appears to be little damage to the aluminum quarter panel that could not be improved (is that right?), but the fiberglass panel is a little shredded. There are only a couple of small pieces that separated, they fit in the palm of my hand. The rest are still attached to the bumper, which is pretty bent.

To remind you, this is a 1986 345 moho.

Thanks in advance for your sympathy!

Jenniflow

[Waipio Rim]

Don't despair, this is fixable.

The piece that you refer to as fiberglass is, I believe, actually ABS plastic. Airstream Supply shows the part as NLA, see http://airstreamsupply.com/Airstream...rb-side-200860. With any luck another dealer will have one in stock.

I hurt my rear bumper worse than yours. A nephew who was a welding student at the time got it back in shape. I had to drive around with no bumper for awhile, but fortunately managed not to hit anything else. Any decent welder or body shop should be able to straighten yours.

The dent is another story. I would start with a suction cup dent puller, and if that did not come out good enough start calling dealers for repair estimates. There are members here who can tackle that kind of work, but not me.

[Jenniflow]

Originally Posted by Waipio Rim

Don't despair, this is fixable.

The piece that you refer to as fiberglass is, I believe, actually ABS plastic. Airstream Supply shows the part as NLA, see http://airstreamsupply.com/Airstream...rb-side-200860. With any luck another dealer will have one in stock.

I hurt my rear bumper worse than yours. A nephew who was a welding student at the time got it back in shape. I had to drive around with no bumper for awhile, but fortunately managed not to hit anything else. Any decent welder or body shop should be able to straighten yours.

The dent is another story. I would start with a suction cup dent puller, and if that did not come out good enough start calling dealers for repair estimates. There are members here who can tackle that kind of work, but not me.

Thanks so much Waipio Rim.

I will start my search for the bananawrap. I started calling it fiberglass because someone else called it that, but I guess neither of us really knew.

Will any body shop try the dent in the quarter panel? Or does that have to be someone who works on aluminum specifically?

I'm glad you managed not to hit anything else!

It would have helped me not to be driving at 9 pm with hours to go before I slept. I couldn't read my speedometer that evening because the dash circuit had gone out, so I couldn't see that I must have been creeping along after the accident. It took me another 4 hours to get what ordinarily would have taken 2.5! I guess I was being pretty careful.

If anyone else has a lead on this part I would greatly appreciate a heads up.

thanks again!

[Mollysdad]

"That'll buff right out."

[SteveSueMac]

Originally Posted by Mollysdad

"That'll buff right out."

X
That's wrong on so many levels - but is that John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles?

[Waipio Rim]

Originally Posted by Jenniflow

Will any body shop try the dent in the quarter panel? Or does that have to be someone who works on aluminum specifically?



I'm glad you managed not to hit anything else!

I was lucky, got gas while jet lagged after flying cross country and clipped one of the concrete filled posts that gas stations use to protect their pumps with the very end of the bumper. Bent the bumper end out to 90 degrees and cracked the aluminum top and bottom, but you have to look hard to find where the damage was now.

I would trust pretty much anybody to fix the bumper, R&R the banana wrap, and try the suction cup trick on the quarter panel. It's unusual work and you may have a hard time finding a shop that will do it. If the quarter panel needs to be taken apart, I would take it to an Airstream dealer or someone who is similarly qualified.

Steve

[ijustlee]

I'd try the inner tube, plywood and shop vac trick on the dent, you might be able to make it look a lot better. Probably need a bit of work with a rubber or leather mallet to move the crease. Fiberglass can be re-glassed but the bumper probably needs to be replaced unless you can find somebody who really knows how to work aluminum. I hate when this happens!

[Jenniflow]

Thanks Waipio Rim. I'll look around.

Originally Posted by ijustlee

I'd try the inner tube, plywood and shop vac trick on the dent, you might be able to make it look a lot better. Probably need a bit of work with a rubber or leather mallet to move the crease. Fiberglass can be re-glassed but the bumper probably needs to be replaced unless you can find somebody who really knows how to work aluminum. I hate when this happens!

I don't really need the repair to be perfect, I'd just like to push the bumper back out where it belongs, get the bananawrap back on there, and improve the dent the best we can.

I'm not familiar with this trick. Can you direct me to a thread where it's described, ijustlee?

Thanks!

[bkahler]

Jenni,

The biggest problem with the dent repair is the rub rail is bent as well. You'll have to remove the rub rail, straighten or I guess I should say put the proper curve back into it and then you can tackle the dent.

To really get the dent looking almost perfect you're going to have to remove the inner wall aluminum skin. When there is a crease present it needs to be worked from both sides.

The dent isn't really that bad, especially if you're wiling to live with a slight crease where it's bent the worst. The guy working on Peanut had some similar dents and he managed to make them look a lot better. Not perfect but something that at least doesn't stand out to the casual viewer.

As Steve said the bumper is definitely fixable. You just need to find a good welding & fabrication shop. Replacement bumpers are no longer available so if you want a rear bumper you're going to have to get yours straightened.

Good luck with your repairs!

Brad

[Isuzusweet]

Possibly a number of good parts here. If you're interested in contacting him to find out if he's going to start parting the moho out I would be willing to go down and rescue the rear bumper and rear banana wrap and ship it to you. As you can see in the rear photos the same rear panel is dented as well so you don't want that.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-rv-motorhome/...ationFlag=true

Cheers
Tony

[russelld]

If you are coming north , you might contact Sutton Airstream dealer in Eugene ,Oregon. They repaired a similar thing on my Airstream and you would never now anything was ever wrong. Good Luck Russd

[Boom Sounds]

As Brad says, I suspect a crease will need pressure from the inside to get it into reasonable shape. I wonder whether that is possible by removing the fibreglass and getting a roller up between the skins. It's difficult to tell from the pictures. I would say stage one is to get it pulled out with suction, then take it from there.

Please would you drop me a PM if that fella in Canada is parting out his coach as I need to get hold of a few bits.

All the best
Nick

[Betty Farmer]

Help a newbie!!! 01. What is banana wrap
02. What is a rub rail?

Thank you.

[TheGreatleys]

Originally Posted by Betty Farmer

Help a newbie!!! 01. What is banana wrap
02. What is a rub rail?

Thank you.

Banana wrap is a piece of the belly pan. There is one banana wrap at each of the four corners. It's curved and resembles a banana in shape.

Rub rail is a straight piece of aluminum trim, generally installed over the seam where the belly pan meets the side of the trailer, or elsewhere along the side of the coach.

[Jenniflow]

Tony, Brad, thanks so much. I will check with the dealer of the moho, although it's probably a long shot.

And I do now remember posting about this after it happened and that you, Brad, warned me about the rub rail. When I went through my thread subscriptions I didn't see it, but I guess that's age for ya.

And RussellD, thanks for that pointer! We could well be passing through Eugene and if I call ahead that might be just the thing.

Boom Sounds, I will make sure to report back here on what the moho dealer says.

I really just want to do the minimum on the Ole Gal to make us acceptable at campgrounds, I don't have a lot of personal identity invested in making the coach good as new or even close. I'll see what I can pull together on this.

Our priority now is to just get back out there and have fun while we still can. Right? Right.

[Jenniflow]

Hey Folks,

I just spoke to Murray, the guy selling the salvage moho here:

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-rv-motorhome/...ationFlag=true

He told me that if he got enough orders he'd be prepared to part it out.

I encouraged him to go ahead and post his own thread in the Classic Motorhome section here to see if he can garner enough interest. He said he'd do it tomorrow, that's Monday, but in case he doesn't, go ahead and call him at 519-670-0183 if you need any parts.

He said it was tipped over in a hurricane and he got it at a salvage auction.

Good luck!

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by Boom Sounds

As Brad says, I suspect a crease will need pressure from the inside to get it into reasonable shape. I wonder whether that is possible by removing the fibreglass and getting a roller up between the skins. It's difficult to tell from the pictures. I would say stage one is to get it pulled out with suction, then take it from there.

Please would you drop me a PM if that fella in Canada is parting out his coach as I need to get hold of a few bits.

All the best
Nick

Nick, the space between the walls is not accessible from below. If there is a window above the creased section it might be possible to remove the wall skin rivets where it attaches to the window to gain access for a body pick.



Ernie used similar pick's when working on Peanut's various dents and dings.

Brad

[Jenniflow]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Nick, the space between the walls is not accessible from below. If there is a window above the creased section it might be possible to remove the wall skin rivets where it attaches to the window to gain access for a body pick.

Attachment 282616

Ernie used similar pick's when working on Peanut's various dents and dings.

Brad

Interesting. There is a fixed window above that section.

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by Jenniflow

Interesting. There is a fixed window above that section.

You may have to remove a few trim bits but if you can pull the inner skin away from the window frame near the dent then someone will be able to stand on the inside of the coach and place the pick while a person on the outside taps around it to re-shape the outer skin. It will never look perfect because the aluminum is stretched but it will look a whole lot better that it does now.

[Jenniflow]

Originally Posted by bkahler

You may have to remove a few trim bits but if you can pull the inner skin away from the window frame near the dent then someone will be able to stand on the inside of the coach and place the pick while a person on the outside taps around it to re-shape the outer skin. It will never look perfect because the aluminum is stretched but it will look a whole lot better that it does now.

Cool! Thanks Brad!