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Old 12-22-2007, 07:31 PM   #1
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Historic Airstream on ebay?

Hi,
I see a '63/64 Airstream on ebay and seller claims it is one of Wally's Around the World Caravan members. Its WBCCI number is 8671. I'm curious about this, and the other members of that famous journey.

Any thoughts on it?
Thanks!
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Old 12-22-2007, 07:35 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by barbara4rb
Hi,
I see a '63/64 Airstream on ebay and seller claims it is one of Wally's Around the World Caravan members. Its WBCCI number is 8671. I'm curious about this, and the other members of that famous journey.

Any thoughts on it?
Thanks!
Could be, a truck and trailer combo from the tour was on Ebay a few months ago, may be the same trailer. What is the item number?
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Old 12-22-2007, 07:44 PM   #3
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Old 12-22-2007, 07:55 PM   #4
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I've seen that trailer before in person. The owner's name was Cecil and he lived here in Indiana. The last time I saw him was in 2000. I hope he's still doing well. He was not the trailer's original owner, but he knew a lot of it's history.
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Old 12-22-2007, 08:52 PM   #5
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Here's another Around The World Caravan Airstream

It's in my back yard patiently waiting on me to restore it.

Around the World Overlander
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Old 12-22-2007, 09:12 PM   #6
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That is a great trailer with quite the History.

I tryed to find out any history relating to my 62' Safari about it's owners or any of it's travels and could find nothing. think it maybe went to Florida a few times and then lived out retirement in New Jersey before I found it.

I will follow your restoration of this Overlander as you proceed. All of the photos of it's past are amazing and really add to the trailers story.
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Old 12-27-2007, 01:36 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by barbara4rb
Hi,
I see a '63/64 Airstream on ebay and seller claims it is one of Wally's Around the World Caravan members. Its WBCCI number is 8671. I'm curious about this, and the other members of that famous journey.

Any thoughts on it?
Thanks!
I went and looked at this trailer today - it's a 1963 Safari Twin. I believe it is an actual trailer from the Around the World Caravan. I am pretty sure this trailer with it's WBCCI # can be seen in the 3rd of 5 VHS videos about the Around the World Caravan that I purchased from Airstream a few years ago (I have only checked tapes 1,2, and 3 so far, so perhaps it shows up again in tapes 4 & 5). In addition to the WBCCI # on the trailer, there are other identifying marks that indicate that this is the same trailer - the unusual double Jalousie window next to the door, and the extra reflectors on the rear of the trailer. That is the only photo evidence I can find. None of the published photo's from that Caravan show this trailer (at least not in enough detail to identify it).

I really want this trailer because of it's the history, but in its current condition I wouldn't pay very much for it. I fear the final eBay price will exceed my price - in fact it already has.

My assessment is that it needs at least a full body-on floor replacement, if not a body-off restoration. I think many systems like fridge, furnace, toilet, exterior lights, etc. were updated, probably in the 1980's, but I'd guess the trailer has been sitting unused and deteriorating for at least 10 years. I think there is enough left to definitely make this trailer worth restoring, but it will be a big job.

Interior: The inside skin has been painted over the Zolatone (but at least the wood was not painted). Some of the cabinets and seats are literally falling apart, but they at least all still there. Some will be able to be reassembled and some would at least be good for templates to make replacements. The closet floor above the water heater seemed to be missing. The folding leg for the dinette table is broken off, but still present. There are signs of water around the perimeter of the floor in several areas, so I assume a floor replacement would be required. The Fridge cabinet was hacked up because the replacement fridge was not the same size as the original. The stove is sitting cockeyed because the cabinet is coming apart. One roof vent has the openers removed and a fiberglass cover glued in place. The fold up table has been covered in vinyl tile. The bathroom counter has been covered in contact paper. There was an electric pump present, but I am unsure if it is an air pump for the pressurized water system or a replacement electric water pump that may have replaced the original air pump at some time - maybe in the 1960's or 70's. I guess I didn't look close enough at the pump. In any case, the galvanized water tank is still there. At some point, most of the water pipes were replaced with PVC or some other type of plastic. The cushions are shot, but probably are original to the trailer, so they'd at least make good templates for replacements. I would assume that the fridge, furnace, and toilet, which are replacements, would all need to be replaced again. I didn't look too closely at the stove, but it might be a replacement, but even if original, it may need to be replaced. I would assume the old water pump would need to be replaced. Of course I did not have the ability to check to see if any of these interior systems worked.

Exterior: The skin is in pretty good shape. There are two patches, both less than 1 foot square. One is fairly high up on the rear curbside corner and the other is right next to the furnace opening on the streetside. Speaking of that, both the water heater and furnace openings are in and of themselves patches because the replacements were not the same size as the originals. There are a couple of scratches that creased the skin on the front curbside corner. The only cracked window I saw was one of the Jalousie panes next to the door. Of course all window and door weather stripping is shot. And I did not verify if any of the windows actually open (nor the two roof vents that still have openers). I seem to remember some heavy caulk around the rear window, which would indicate a past attempt to seal a leak. There has been a modern (but old) 12V battery and old Univolt style converter added inside the outside storage compartment (at least I don't think they came as original equipment in 1963). I am guessing that these were added later, maybe in the 1970's? The frame looked pretty good - only surface rust that I could see - at least I didn't find any obvious rust thru holes. I couldn't really see the torsion axle, as it was wet and I didn't want to crawl under the trailer, but I'll assume they are original and the rubber is hardened. All of the exterior lights have been replaced. The marker lights are similar to the originals, but are not quite shaped the same. The tail lights are not at all similar to the original wedding cake tail lamps. In fact these replacements are recessing into the body, so I assume that holes were cut to do that. There are heavy duty skid plates welded under the rear frame ends at the rear bumper. I assume that this was done before the Caravan so that the rear of the trailer dragged more easily when it undoubtedly hit the ground. The trailer does appear to suffer from rear separation of the body from the frame as the gap was about 1/2 inch between the body and frame where it extended out to the bumper as it sat there. And I could lift up on the rear bumper and decrease the gap to the body, so they are obviously not firmly attached. BAL stabilizer jacks were added at some point in the past (at least at the rear - I didn't check the front). The tongue jack is removed by there and I was told this was done so when the current owner tried to use it and it broke. It was a manual jack, not a power jack. Both LP bottles are missing. There is a regulator and lines there, but I'd assume they all need to be replaced. There is a spare tire rack on the tongue, but the spare tire is gone. I didn't look too closely at the wheels and tires, but I'd assume they will need to be replaced, too. There are signs that this trailer may have had a patio awning at some time in the past as there are some sort of lower brackets still present. It also had a rear window awning, too, because those brackets are also still present.

Paperwork: I saw some of the paperwork the current owner has, but not all. It included the certificate that is normally mounted inside the closet door. In this case it is not attached to the trailer, but instead is framed under glass. There was also some other papers and photos that came from the caravan, but none that linked this specific trailer to the caravan beyond identifying that the people that had it's WBCCI # were on the caravan. There were no caravan photo's that specifically showed this trailer. In fact all of the photos I saw can be seen by searching the internet or by looking at the various Airstream Books that have been published in recent years.

- - - - -

Well, that's about all my memory can remember at the moment. I am providing this summary not to discourage or encourage anyone from bidding on this trailer. I am just trying to document it's current condition as best I can so that anyone interested can make an educated decision before they bid.
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Old 01-03-2008, 06:49 PM   #8
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It is the same one!

Joe-

Thanks for the detailed inspection report. I went back through my archives and found pictures of this trailer from 2001. It is the same one that belonged to Cecil from Butlerville, IN. We met him at a Vintage Club Rally held at the RV Motorhome Heritage Foundation Museum in Elkhart. The pictures show everything looks pretty much the same on the trailer now as it did then. I did not have interior photos, only exterior, though.
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Old 01-03-2008, 09:51 PM   #9
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I wish I had the opportunity to buy this trailer for whatever the current owner bought it for (I'd assume he paid no more than the $2000 opening bid amount from the eBay auction). He found it because he knows someone who knew the owner.

The current owner did let me take some photo's of both the interior and exterior, but I haven't downloaded them from my camera to my computer yet.

I'm sure I will regret not bidding on this one for a while, but it appeared to be a bigger project that I could reasonably take on at the current time. Still if the eBay deal falls thru, I still might be tempted to bid if it reappears on eBay.

One thing did puzzle me about the trailer, and that was a couple of decals on the rear window. One was for the Vintage Airstream Club and the other was for www..airstream.net (the Vintage Airstream Cub web site, but with no acknowledgement that this was the VAC web site). If it was owned by a VAC member at some time during the last 10 years, I'd have thought it would have shown signs of a cleaning and/or a restoration having at least been started. But that was not the case - the trailer was so dirty and falling apart inside that it had to have been sitting unused and neglected for many, many years.

I wonder if the eBay auction winner is a VAC member or an AirForums participant, and if so I wonder if they will be forthcoming with addition information about the trailer in the near future.

In any case, I was glad to have the opportunity to look it over.
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Old 01-03-2008, 10:38 PM   #10
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You can always contact the buyer, it is an option on ebay..
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Old 10-27-2008, 08:19 PM   #11
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Update: Those of you who are in the Vintage Airstream Club know that I wrote an article about this trailer for the Spring 2008 Issue in which it was noted that the new owner wanted to turn the trailer into a mobile HoneyBee Observatory. He told me he was going to respect the history of the trailer and make no permanent modifications. I had my concerns, but is it was too late to do anything about it.

Well I guess our collective worst fears are being materialized. The trailer had been gutted so that it can be extensively modified. And just to make sure that it can never be put back into original condition, the owner is now selling the interior contents on craigslist:
own a piece of history - round the world caravan interior

The full text and photo's for this ad are copied here:
Quote:
own a piece of history - round the world caravan interior (napa county)

Reply to: sale-894765277@craigslist.org [?]
Date: 2008-10-26, 7:48PM PDT



i have recently dismantled the interior of my 1963 22-foot airstream safari.
all the sinks, gauchos, cabinets, refrigerator, stove, bathroom and heater removed with gentle loving care. the trailer originally went on the round-the- world tour in 1963-1964 with wally byam (airstream founder) international. #8671 has list of countries painted onto the inside of the door showing its travels on this world famous historic caravan. currently being retro-fitted for a creative work fund grant i will no longer need the interior. find out more about the project at Napa Valley Bee Company. will sell to the best offer.




  • it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
PostingID: 894765277
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Old 10-28-2008, 02:02 AM   #12
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I too was shocked. As one of the contributers to that story in the Vintage Advantage I can not believe that this is the final fate of this Grand Damme of Airstream History.
I am heartbroken to say the least....... Here is what we can expect for old 8671...
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Old 10-28-2008, 08:06 AM   #13
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My Favorite?

I wonder if I'm ever going to be able drink my Favorite again....

Dad was right stupid people shouldn't breed...

Bee's. Okay
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Old 10-28-2008, 12:08 PM   #14
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'Mobile honeybee observatory' ?? Since a grant was used does that mean OUR tax dollars paid for this??? WHY does one NEED to be on the go and observe honeybees??
Im also rather insulted by some of the of the pics and insinuations (on the website)...I guess certain kinds of insensitivity are acceptable...
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Old 10-28-2008, 12:39 PM   #15
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Like not government money. But being as Haas has contributed part of that money (if I remember correctly) I am guessing that part of the importance in this IS to study the declining bee population. This is a critical issue. And a company like Haas has a vested interest in seeing Bees continue to thrive.
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Old 10-28-2008, 02:06 PM   #16
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I am 110% pro-bees. Even though personally, I am allergic to them ~ without them we would be in a heap of hurt!
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And a company like Haas has a vested interest in seeing Bees continue to thrive.
And a community like Airforums has a vested interest in seeing significant Airstreams continue to thrive.

Shari
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Old 10-28-2008, 02:26 PM   #17
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I agree - I am feeling both sides of the emotion spectrum because I love the idea of the project Rob is putting together. What an excellent educational piece. Just why did it have to be THAT trailer. I keep having that picture of all of the places the trailer had been on the door.... Bummer
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Old 10-28-2008, 06:11 PM   #18
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Hmmm... If (IF) I had the money, I'd offer a trade of my gutted 63 TW for this one...
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Old 10-28-2008, 07:35 PM   #19
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There are any number of vintage Airstreams he could use for his project. Why gut a historical one? That's sad.
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Old 10-28-2008, 08:01 PM   #20
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This guy sounds very interesting--and he's doing valuable research and education--but his destruction of this irreplaceable piece of history just doesn't make sense. I don't think he realizes what he's doing. What about trying to reach him through the St. Helena Montessori school he's working with...
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