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Old 04-10-2012, 10:55 AM   #61
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1969 25' Tradewind
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Hi mark ! Love your updates I am doing same process and learning so much from yours . Please keepup the greatly detailed steps , products and before and afters . I am so excited to follow your post .
THANK YOU
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Old 04-10-2012, 08:48 PM   #62
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Starting to look past the floor and have my eye on the looming electrical challenges. Any good resources out there? I will be starting from zero and want to end up with 30a service, solar charging, and all the gizmos....just need to find a book on what parts on I need, how to integrate them all. I understand electrical, just have no experience with 12v and the idea of converters, inverters.....Any one have any help on this one?
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Old 04-10-2012, 10:05 PM   #63
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The 12volt Side of Life (Part 1)

The big picture is fat wires, fat batteries and conserving watt you can...
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Old 04-11-2012, 07:38 AM   #64
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Look for a thread by lucymcdog. Lots of good info. It's a long read.
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Old 04-22-2012, 09:15 AM   #65
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New wheel wells and frame leveling

Progress slowed as I am waiting on welding of the tank hangers to be complete by my father in law..he is also building me a new fresh water aluminum tank for under the floor. He did complete the new wheel well covers and they look great. Made of galvanized- old ones were cold rolled steel and were rusted to bits.

Grinding out the last or the floor bolts and my angle grinder quit, started smoking and tripped the breaker-- only 3 bolts left! Dang! That is 2 Rigid power tool funerals in one month- 18v drill quit too.

Started cutting the floor out too - got the rear nose piece cut. Plan is to use 3/8 and 1/4 laminated together. I'll epoxy it with the West System on the bottom and tops, then glue and screw them together. Will be easier to fit into place and will give me a slightly thicker platform than 5/8, 6 plys of wood instead of 5....Will see how it goes and post pics as I work through it.
Also spent 2 hours trying to get the frame perfectly level for the floor install- jacks and blocks everywhere....The frame has a slight bow in it, the tail end is about 1 1/2" lower than the frame at the mid point and the nose is about a 1/2 lower than the middle too. Odd.

Realized I have to start on wiring the brakes pretty quick here too-- Will be easier with the floor out.
Mark
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Old 04-22-2012, 09:32 AM   #66
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Your new wheel wells look great. I love the pictures of the empty frame with the shell on top... such a nice aluminum skeleton! Keep up the good work!
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Old 04-22-2012, 10:34 AM   #67
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Looks to me like you chose wisely in fathers in law.

Good progress.

cheers,
steve
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Old 04-22-2012, 09:44 PM   #68
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Sealing up the cracks.

After a week of rain I was able to identify leaky rivets and start sealing up all the drippers. I plan on sealing up all the seams from inside anyway but got a start on it today seeing as it was 19 Celsius here today (that's 70f for you Americans) and the caulk I am using needs at least 10 c to set up. The stuff is DAP Dynaflex 230 exterior elastomeric caulk. Awesome stuff- have used it lots on my aged stucco house to seal cracks and what-not. Tested it on a leaky window a couple weeks ago, after the week of torrential rain there wasn't even the slightest leak (in that window ).
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Old 05-02-2012, 09:31 PM   #69
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Cool Window Frames and Polishing Question

Father in Law came over and welded in the first of the tank supports today, so finally the tank installation is moving along. Already thinking to the next step and started to replace the cracked and broken windows so I can put the floor in and and keep it dry.

Also got the floor pieces all cut and ready and waiting for a warm night so I can epoxy them -- went with the West Epoxy system, planning 3 coats for the edges and first foot of perimeter, then 2 coats over the middle bits.

All my bits and pieces arrived from VTS, including the glass seals and window nuts for the Hehr windows, floor bolts, screws, etc etc. More stuff coming tomorrow too- and Friday, including a fridge, stove, furnace, Low profile AC unit, power converter, warer pump, jacks, thermostat, and more. Also got a backup camera from ebay, a Furrion electrical plug-in and Furrion matching cord set, a Furrion cable tv inlet and a Perko marine water filler with a vent. Also had to buy a fresh water tank for under the floor too...Man, it was an expensive month!

Question: I guess I have to take the glass out to get the little grey window glass seal in? Can't see how you could possibly slide the seal in without the glass out first. So I took an opening window out, took the back frame off and will get glass cut tomorrow....now am wondering how on earth to I polish the frame without scratching it all to hell? I don't have any Nuvite....do I need it?

Any comments on epoxy on the floor? Any reason to use a water-based stain on the wood first, then top coat epoxy? Would that enhance water repellancy, or just cost $50? Alternately could varathane over the epoxy-- would that help?
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Old 05-02-2012, 09:55 PM   #70
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About scratching the hell out of the window frame: Our window frames were so pitted and scratched! So, we used the drill with an abrasive wheel attachment to clean them up. Yes, if you look closely at them you can still see where we used the drill attachment on them. They look infinitely better, though. (I'd do it again.)
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Old 05-03-2012, 09:01 AM   #71
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sparky57 View Post
Also got the floor pieces all cut and ready and waiting for a warm night so I can epoxy them -- went with the West Epoxy system, planning 3 coats for the edges and first foot of perimeter, then 2 coats over the middle bits.


Any comments on epoxy on the floor? Any reason to use a water-based stain on the wood first, then top coat epoxy? Would that enhance water repellancy, or just cost $50? Alternately could varathane over the epoxy-- would that help?
I'd just go with the West System. Only issue that would make you want to put something else over the epoxy is for UV protection, but that's not an issue on the subfloor.

Try not to wait too long between epoxy coats, overnight is fine. If epoxy gets to a full cure over a few days, you'd have to sand between coats and epoxy is very hard.

cheers,
steve
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Old 05-03-2012, 06:48 PM   #72
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When you put it back together put the end caps in first. This. Is the hard part for getting things lined up. Of course you have lots of those temporary rivet do das. If no buy them.
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Old 05-04-2012, 08:23 AM   #73
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Ok-Thanks Steve, I was hoping for that answer. I am sooo looking forward to getting the floor in and being done with the deconstruction, welding, grinding etc!

M
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Old 05-04-2012, 10:23 AM   #74
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Originally Posted by Sparky57 View Post
Ok-Thanks Steve, I was hoping for that answer. I am sooo looking forward to getting the floor in and being done with the deconstruction, welding, grinding etc!

M
Yep, it's such a big day when you get the subfloor in and most of the ripping apart done. The fun part is ahead.

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Old 05-04-2012, 11:26 AM   #75
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This may be obvious, but maybe it will save someone from making standard newbie mistakes.

(1) Between coats, you do have to remove the "amine blush".

(2) Don't mix too much at once in a standard container, especially on a hot day. It will kick, possibly getting dangerously hot and wasting expensive material.

Here's the user guide if you don't have the link handy. WEST SYSTEM | Use Guides

Wish I was that far along! Good luck.

John
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Old 05-04-2012, 11:16 PM   #76
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Keeping the epoxy in a flat container, like a paint roller tray or pie pan, gives it more surface area for cooling and can delay kicking.

I was happily (well, sort of) epoxying the shower pan we built for our TradeWind, using a large plastic drink cup as an epoxy mixing container. Dip...brush...dip...brush...dip...brush...dip...br ush...THUNK! In between brush strokes it had kicked completely solid.
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Old 05-05-2012, 09:38 AM   #77
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Must admit, I am delaying a little too because I am not exactly sure how to do it yet....and thanks for the tips. So, flat tray, small batches, remove the blush or else recoat when still tacky.

Have my mechanic buddy coming over to rewire all the lights and brake lines on Monday, welding the tanks in on Monday too so maybe the floor can start going into place in a week or 2.
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Old 05-08-2012, 08:49 PM   #78
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Still prepping for the floor....

Well, a sick kid has kept me at home with me for the last 2 days and has given me a couple chances to work on the beast:

Got the floor epoxied with West System- 2 coats on the top and bottom, 3rd coat on the outside 12" perimeter. 12 Sheets of wood total- the top is A/C fir ply 1/4", the bottom is 3/8 AC fir ply. Thinking that the thinner wood will allow me to easily bend them into place and slide them under the C channel, then PL400/ screw the 2 layers together- just like they build boats...Used every last drop of epoxy too....

Also got the new jack in place. 1000lb side wind -- had to grind out the old hole just a 1/16th, then it slide right in. Fastened it with 3 new Grade 8 5/8 goldie colored bolts, lock washers and nuts secured with loc-tite

Removed 3 broken windows and took them down to the glass smith- getting obscure glass in the bathroom window....was a snap decision, we'll see how it looks. Just got the 3ml std glass- no tempered, was tempted but 2x the cost...Started polishing the window frames...lots of corrosion...

Decided to rewire all the running lights and brakes too- ripped all the old out and ran new 7 wire right from the Bargman plug at the jack plug all the way back to the brake area...into a weatherproof junction box and then marine wire to the brakes from there. 6 wire cable runs to the back to power the rear lights, signals, running lights and to power the reverse camera. Soldered and shrink wrapped all the new lines, old brake connections...

Also got all the steel and then cut and drilled the angle iron in to hold the tanks, and the hangers all assembled and screwed together with stainless bolts and loc-tite...now they are with my father-in- law for welding...that should all happen this week.

All my stuff came from AdventureRv.net....all looks awesome except they sent me the totally wrong fridge. Wanted the Norcold 510, they sent me some Dometic thing. I'll let you know how that turns out...

Gotta get that floor in this month!

Mark
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Old 05-08-2012, 09:07 PM   #79
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Didn't get much done, did you?

You may have had someone do you a favor with the Dometic instead of the Norcold. We bought a Norcold in 2008, thinking that it would be better, especially because it doesn't have the parasitic 12v draw.

This winter, we were on the road without enough tools when it failed. The guy that replaced our 3 year old Norcold said the the trade calls them "No-cold". We replaced it with a Dometic and were happier with the operation.

When we buy our next fridge for our '59 Overlander, it will be a Dometic.
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Old 05-10-2012, 12:59 PM   #80
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I would keep it if it was the right size, or an upgrade, but it's neither so I will send it back.

Will be welding hangers in tonite, and maybe finishing the wiring on brakes this weekend ( if my backup camera ever arrives from China! )

New glass back from the glass cutters but he cut them all too short so I have to get them recut....took that opportunity to upgrade the front window pane to tempered...only 30 bucks more, and it is a big one so probably worth the extra $.

Have to finalize the plumbing layout and cut the vent and drain lines in too...
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