Clipper, Cutter, Land Yacht, Interior Updates

[masseyfarm]

Over the years I have often thought I should make up some type of guard for the TPV (tractor protection valve) on the Clipper.

This valve is located directly right of the steering column and forward of my right knee while seated in the cockpit, and I have on occasion accidentally pushed on it when cleaning the windows or reaching for something in the upper cabinet. I have always caught what is happening before actually releasing the brakes, but someone else may not pick up on the rush of air that charges the brake system.



Inadvertently releasing the brakes is not good.

We have another weekend camping trip approaching with our overactive granddaughter who likes to push Grampa's buttons so the time was right for experimentation.

This evening I thought I would try this idea before drilling any more holes in the dash.

I took a plastic top off a beige spray paint can and used the small grinder to open the bottom. After removal of the roll pin holding the yellow valve handle, and the removal of the valve retainer nut, the top slips over the shaft and is secured with the re installation of the retainer nut. Remount the valve handle with the roll pin and job is done.

The cap has approx. the same estension as the TPV did and is soft enough that it will give a bit so it should not result in major knee injury.

I was originally going to cut out the right side to allow better access for my fingers, but for now I am going to test it this way.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

While camping this past week in the strong sun, we found it to be of some help to leave the interior twin cab fans on in addition to the twin Fantastic vents. (anything that keeps the air moving is bound to help)

For this type of beach escape there is no sense in running the air conditioning as we are outside until the wee hours of the morning.

I had purchased this cheap, single speed, oscillating, clamp-on 12V fan at WM a few years ago and also had it plugged in over the media desk. These fans are less than $20.00 compared to automotive 12V fans from the auto jobbers, or marine outlets, that run up to $100.00 very quickly.

I decided that this fan would work better if permanently mounted on a swing arm that could be directed to any of the seating in the cab or lounge area.

To facilitate this, I trimmed up an aluminium bike stand mount and attached it to the bottom of the upper cabinet over the media desk, and directly behind the cockpit passenger seat. It is now powered off the 12V power plug located on the #3 battery solar feed located in that area.

The swing out arm allows the fan to be directed into the cockpit, or onto the couch, or barrel chair as wanted.

For general air circulation or storage, the fan can be left in the retracted position below the cabinet and out of the way.

Works great.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

I have now found this foot rest to be usable also on my barrel chair in the lounge when parked.

Modified the Barrel Chair base to accept the foot rest, and to make it even more comfortable to stretch my legs on, I have installed a removable swivel base for my feet to rest on.

This foot rest is actually able to do double duty here as, when the cockpit p/s captains chair is reversed and reclined, the foot rest, now on the barrel chair, is just in the right spot to support my extended legs.

The swivel base is mounted with two snap on leather straps that allow it to be rotated to any angle or removed if wanted.

Dave

Originally Posted by masseyfarm;1242371
I purchased today, a 60" length of 5/8" aluminium round stock. $13.70.

I did my bending on the truck trailer hitch and some fine tuning on the tractor draw bar.

I had a soft cover from an old bike rack that I slide over the aluminium.

The finished total length of mine is 52". I could have made it a bit longer but I wanted to still be able to swivel the chair with it on.

The foot rest is easily removed by pulling straight out of the seat base but fits snug enough to not slide when foot pressure is applied.

The upper angle can be increased depending on what length your navigators legs are. :brows:
[URL="http://www.airforums.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=175370&d=1356734916"

[/URL]

Dave

[masseyfarm]

We are heading for the high humidity area of the continent, Ontario and NY State.

To make things a bit more bearable, without running the Penquin Air all the time, I have installed another quiet fan installation for the passenger captains chair sitting or sleeping position.

When parked for the evening with the drapes pulled, not much of any light breeze will pass thru the screen and drapes.

If sitting there working on the laptop, a quiet breeze would be appreciated.

To create a gentle breeze with little noise, I have trimmed up my clear acrylic cover/arm rest that slides on the passenger side cabinet, to accept a couple computer fans and a control switch.

Think I might add a light to this also.

This is just a proof of concept project at this point, and if it proves value, I will redo this acrylic with some tinted material in the future.

Powered from the solar run to the #3 battery bank, this acrylic panel can slide forward approx. 12" to place that gentle breeze where it might be most effective.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

I have finished the MKII version of the fan and light assembly tonite.

I bent up some tinted acrylic to make a form fitting arm rest for using the mouse, and added a light that the navigator can control after dark that will not interfere with my driving visibility.

The fans are quiet and do give a nice gentle breeze when sitting here at the laptop with the window open.

At this point I am pleased with the result.

Dave

Originally Posted by masseyfarm

To create a gentle breeze with little noise, I have trimmed up my clear acrylic cover/arm rest that slides on the passenger side cabinet, to accept a couple computer fans and a control switch.
Dave

[masseyfarm]

These low noise fans are great. Decided to install one for myself in the bedside cabinet on the road side. Nice gentle breeze to make those humid nights better for sleeping.

This time I used a PCI cooler fan mounted on a plexi rotating mount, and controlled by the illuminated switch that I had previously installed for the CPU fan installed on the passenger bed side.

This PCI fan seems to be a bit more productive than the CPU style I had installed previously but low noise level is about the same.

I will probably update the passenger side to a PCI style at first opportunity but I have other priorities at the moment.

Dave

Originally Posted by masseyfarm

Now that I'm in this corner, I decided to make MGW happy ( happier ) and install a small fan with an illuminated control switch on the cabinet.

The fan can be pivoted out of the way if not wanted.

This is just a 12V computer fan that is quiet, but gives that gentle breeze across the head and shoulders. For more HD weather, I have a large 12V fan that I mount in the open window, but it is a bit noisy. This small fan is difficult to hear.

The fan is controlled by a switch that has an indicator light when on. Because the switch is in the dark corner, it can be seen from the hallway and would catch your eye if it was left on.
Dave

[masseyfarm]

I find that taking a picture allows you to view the situation as others would see it.


On this bedside cabinet, I see a lot of wasted space and decided to mount my combined clock/temp./pressure unit up on the back wall. This frees up the base for 'stuff' that comes and goes.

Bent and trimmed another piece of plexi and another improvement done.

[masseyfarm]

Had some time today to update the fan on MGW's side of the bed.

Changed out the CPU fan for the PCI Case Fan that does a better job at no increase in noise level. These are cheap to buy and not a big deal to make up a pivot mount that will clears the cabinet frame.

With that done I then installed a second one on my side just to use up the material I had on hand. (no sense storing something if you can use it?)

These all pivot out of the way if not wanted.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

Also had time today to find a solution for the place mats that were, stored behind and, always falling over the dish drain rack.

Simple works great.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

We are presently boondocking and have 2 Digital TV stations that are of strong steady signal.

PROBLEM: When I turn on this lamp, 12V LED mounted above desk, it knocks out the digital signal to the TV????????



No other LED lamp has any effect. The lamp is 3 feet or more lower than the TV and 5 feet or more lower than the antenna.

The TV is AC and the lamp is DC. The lamp is even on a completely independent circuit. (#3 batterybank)

Any expert input would be of interest?

Dave

Originally Posted by masseyfarm

Originally, I had a 12V desk mount lamp here that worked well but again took up valuable desk space.

Originally Posted by masseyfarm

I updated this with a wall mount version converted to and powered from the 12V power plug at the rear of the passenger side window. (off the #10 wire run to the front solar panel mounted on the front Penquin AC that powers the #3 battery bank.)

I fabricated an aluminum backing plate that mounts to the bottom of the window frame, thus not putting any holes in the wall fabric on the Clipper, so that it can be removed later if wanted.

There are good OEM lamps above this desk mounted in the bottom of the overhead cabinet, but this new lamp can be moved to direct light to a specific area. It could even be used by a passenger seated in the barrel chair, at night, while underway if wanted.

This media desk has a PLEXI top that can be slide under the rear retainer, that doubles the desktop size of eating from the barrel chair and the front passenger Captains chair when it is reversed. The PLEXI top is stored between the end of the kitchen counter and the couch.

Dave

[RocketManKen]

Dave, what was the spoiler from in the OEM? What kind of wind tunnel numbers do you see?

[masseyfarm]

You will have to go to

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f313...ml#post1375053

for the whole story.

Dave

Originally Posted by RocketManKen

Dave, what was the spoiler from in the OEM? What kind of wind tunnel numbers do you see?

[masseyfarm]

These are night shots from the drivers seat of the Airstream Clipper.

I like driving in the cool of the summer nights, and now its easier to drive than stop and be alone.

#1 is drivers left console, #2 is lower left dash, #3 is centre dash, #4 in centre dash console with the coffee cup holders illuminated.

The cockpit has indirect night lighting something similar to what could be found in any new a/c.

I am so suprised that more of these units have not been maintained to still be on the road today. These are a beautiful road machine for the technology available at the time.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

I installed this holder in the CLIPPER reading room last year. The puzzles tend to accumulate as I have not been travelling with all that has happened this year.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

On my CLIPPER I have been annoyed for some time now with the amount of water that runs from the bath faucet while taking a shower.

Today, I decided that maybe I could do something with it.

Took the bath faucet off. There is a set screw in the bottom that holds it on the pipe. Loosen the set screw with the appropriate Allen key.

There was excess play in the faucet shaft and the slide with the rubber wiper.

Spread the plastic fingers apart and slide the shaft out the top of the faucet.

Make up some type of spacer to insert into the plastic retainer that holds the rubber wiper. I used two tops off the orange juice boxes after trimming them to correct size.

Because there was a lot of play in the shaft, I cut up a straw for a sleeve and after slicing it lengthwise so that it would fit, inserted that into the hole. Insert the shaft and cut the straw to exact length so it will be retained in the hole when you install the plastic retainer.

Be sure to clean the area that needs to be sealed with the wiper so that it slides smoothly.

Re-assemble.

When you reinstall the faucet, caulk around the pipe before installation. Mine was not caulked there. You don't want any water going back through this hole.

On the CLIPPER the faucet does not fit square against the surround, so it should also have some caulking around the faucet just to help secure it as it is not mounted on copper pipe.

The faucet has an O-Ring with in it, so make sure that does not get damaged. Use a bit of lube when putting it back on the pipe.

Now, there is going to be more back pressure on the O-Ring so when you caulk the faucet, leave it open at the bottom so that it might drain any leakage past the O-Ring. Again, you don't want that leaking back through the tub surround to create more problems.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

Back in September of 2013, on 'Heather's Last Tour' we stopped at Walmart in Lowville, NY, and they had a clearance sale on H4703 Lamps. I thought at the time they were the same as the H9406 used as dock lamps on the Clipper so I bought a couple. Price I think was $3.00 each. They did not fit. Almost, but not quit. Today, my RF dock lamp was out and being Sunday, the jobber was not open. I decided to modify the one lamp assembly to take the H4703 bulb, and this did work, so my big investment was not lost after all.
The retainer ring requires grinding to elongate it, but if you are careful, it looks OK on completion.
I am getting cheaper in my old age. And of course I am now home alone, with no distractions, so have way to much time to do this stuff.

Dave

Originally Posted by masseyfarm

The cheapest place to buy the H 9406 sealed beam seems to be Ryder @ $14.63.


Sealed Beam Lamp Rec-48 Tractor Flood Blade Term, H9406, GE Lighting - Ryder Fleet Products

Dave

[masseyfarm]

I had a couple old technology routers that I was discarding. One should always try to take a moment to see if this old stuff can be repurposed.

The SMC router housing I used for a holder for my PLAYBOOK,
( http://www.airforums.com/forums/f313...ml#post1589145 )
and the Linksys router I repurposed, the back end, to hold my TV remotes on the side of the cabinet in the CLIPPER bedroom.

Now I even reused the front end of the Linksys as a catch tray for the VW Beetle, trimming it up with the disc grinder, and mounting it on the shift counsel.

A little spray of paint and it will look OEM.

Dave

[masseyfarm]

There is always a need for storage solutions in an RV. The CLIPPER is no exception to this, even though it does have a lot of storage capacity within the <37' body length.

Small items tend to get lost in the bottom of drawers, so this annoying problem, led to this solution.

I picked up, what is probably a drip tray? at the used store this week, thinking 'I could use that'? Cost was .25 cents with tax in.

I trimmed up a couple pieces of junk vinyl siding for the rails, and mounted them under the middle shelf in the bathroom cabinet. I now have a shallow slide out tray for some of the smaller items that gather in the bathroom.

The weight in negligible, the space was not being used before, and now it should be easier to find some of these small items when they are needed.

Dave

[Schools Out]

Recycle, reuse, reduce. Clever ideas.

[masseyfarm]

One more cheap fix to a problem that could have got expensive.

When travelling across the country in 2009, I needed to charge my electric razor, and plugged it in, and left it in the sink to secure it while underway.

First stop, my loving navigator set it on the counter so as to be able to use the sink. As we drove away of course, the razor hit the floor.

Once was enough for that.

To make sure this situation did not repeat, I made up a holder, from a vitamin pill plastic bottle, to hold the cord and the razor, and installed on the side of the bathroom cabinet. Out of the way, out of sight, but handy for use anytime.

These bottles last forever, and take lots of abuse. I cut the base out, drilled the cap, ran the cord up through it, and the remaining cord coils in the base of the holder. Out of the way, and always where you want it.

Some of these simple solutions would not be acceptable for the rich and famous, but we were only living the dream of that lifestyle, and to do that we did not splurge on buying stuff we did not need.

Dave