Shell's Back On!

[funchucky1]

OK...well, it's a crisis for me, anyway.
This is for you great shell-off folk.

I'm removing the shell.
Glad I waited till it's 90 degrees here every day.
That way it's a good 110 in the trailer, where I'm working.
Comfy.

Anyway, here's where I am:
Front and rear wood floor: nonexistent (rot).
All rivets out around exterior waistline and a couple of rivets up from there where the endcaps meet the sides. (This does not include the rivets that hold the bellypan to the U-channel, since their heads are beneath the upper outer skin, and are relatively inaccessible.) I did remove the sneaky rivets in the side skin, tucked under the front and rear endcap corners.
All bolts in U-channel removed. Used grinder, Dremel, Rotozip, boltcutters, and air chisel. Finally got them all out. I didn't remove the ones in those little steel brackets yet, but they don't seem to attch to anything but the plywood floor.
Bracing is in place. 2x6's in the front, in the middle, and in the rear; additional braces and some to brace the braces. They're exactly 5 1/2" off the floor - so they have rested on a 2x6 on edge.
I guess I didn't mention- interior skin (lower strip) removed, all the way around. Insulation out from there.

So here's the problem:
I'm jacking, and it doesn't seem to be going anywhere!
Well, I started in the front. Hydraulic floor jack fits nicely under the brace (in the center). As I jack, I can hear a little creaking here and there....and, in fact, although I can't see any lifting occurring (the rivet holes through the perimeter still line up-I can still see light), I have been able to "chock" it an inch higher. That is, the brace is, after jacking, now 6 1/2 inches from the floor (it was 5 1/2 earlier).
I then moved to the center brace; it, too, will elevate a tad, but not too much.
I haven't moved to the rear just yet.

I wanted to shoot this email out first.

Am I missing something else that holds it together?
Are there other hidden rivets or the like that I need to remove?
Am I correct in thinking that the shell (outer, upper walls) and the ribs should be the only things going up?
Is there even a need to have removed the bolts around the perimeter, since the U-channel will remain on the floor until after the shell is lifted and the rivets for the bellypan are removed?

I just don't want to use too much force and screw anything up (Ha! Like I haven't already!)

Anyone?
Anyone?

Feel free to PM me...in fact, anyone with experience, PLEASE PM ME!

Thanks!
-Chuck

[summerkid]

No PMs, please! I really want to hear the answers. Glad you took the time to write all that out, and best of luck.

[funchucky1]

Well, the only reason I'm hoping for a PM is so I can offer my phone number and actually talk about this!

I sort of have to do it NOW, and it can't wait for a week of message-volleying.
That's all.

But if answers come quickly, I'm happy to see them here, on the thread.

[markdoane]

chuck,
There must be some rivets holding the floor channel to the ribs. Some are at the corners are hidden under the skin. Other than that, I don't know, because I left the floor channel attached to the ribs when I lifted mine. Use a 3" putty knife to go all the way round between the skin and the channel.

[funchucky1]

Don, when you said...

Originally Posted by markdoane

chuck,
There must be some rivets holding the floor channel to the ribs.... because I left the floor channel attached to the ribs when I lifted mine.

How did you leave the channel attached to the ribs?
Did you cut the rivets for the bellypan off from the inside? (I've cut a few off with an air chisel...just "Bzzzz!!!" and they're gone...)


Do you have any idea how many rivets I might find holding the floor channel to the ribs? Should I just be on my belly, looking for rivet evidence at the bottom of every rib?

Thanks!

[59toaster]

Been there done this.

The trailer is assembled bottom up, upside down. The wood deck is layed out. The frame is set on it upside down. The U track is fitted. And the Key to this puzzle. The belly pan is attached. Then the whole assembly is lifted and flipped back over.

Now the body is set on the floor u-channel. The end caps are complete but ths last peice of the side is off. The ribs are lined up and riveted through the bellpan and the U-track. Then the outer skin down the sides is attached.
Pictures are in this post at the end.
http://www.airforums.com/forum...ead.php?t=6554

What you need to do is look at all the ribs at the u-channel and you will find several still have rivets in them. I drilled it out from the back side and then used a putty knife to pop it apart. There is a little sealent in spots and I ran the putty knife between the shell and belly pan to make sure it was free all the way around.

I lifted the whole mess the same way you are. Worked out pretty good.

[markdoane]

Chuck,

You can bust them off from inside like '59Toaster, or whAT I did was remove the rivets up the side about 18 inches, enough to pull the body skin out far enough to drill the rivets out from the outside. Fortunately there aren't any channel-to-rib connections in the front or end panels, which can't be pulled out because of the curvature.

[funchucky1]

Well, now we're getting somewhere.

So far I've founf 4 of those hidden rivets.

In the rib, but under the skin.

I've been using an air chisel from the inside, inside the rib....take off the flattened (bucked) part of the rivet, then poppin' the skin off by stickin' a putty knife (or similar ;-) ) inbetween the U-channel and the belly skin, from inside. Sure enough, that's allowing my putty knife from the outside to have a clean sweep.



I only did the front half of the trailer so far (I imagine I'll find at least 2 of these hidden rivets in the rear, as well.

I could feel the temsion release with each rivet.

I'll do more in the next couple of days.



Thanks so far, guys!

[59toaster]

If the coach is outside you need to make sure the shell is secure. There is pictures on Airstreamphotos of a 28 or 31 that was in the middle of a shell off. Body was sitting on the ground and the wind caught it. Not pretty.

If you look at those pictures I posted you can see the frame work. Once I lifted the body enough to pull the floor and frame out I slid the 10ft long 2x4's in there screwed them to the legs I had screwed to the suport frame. I drove the stakes into the yard to suport the body and cross braced. That effectivly staked the body work to the ground.

[greg176]

Try this link to photos of wayward shell.
http://www.airstreamphotos.com/photo...=500&ppuser=34

[funchucky1]

Greg, I've seen that before. EEEEK. And it sure does get windy here. Frequently.


So....Toaster, I like that Idea. It may be a better one than the ole' saw horse method I had intended.
Hey, Toaster - can you address the last question from my original post? Thanks!

....maybe I'll go buy a couple of cheapy 2x4's.....

[59toaster]

Originally Posted by funchucky1

Greg, I've seen that before. EEEEK. And it sure does get windy here. Frequently.


So....Toaster, I like that Idea. It may be a better one than the ole' saw horse method I had intended.
Hey, Toaster - can you address the last question from my original post? Thanks!

....maybe I'll go buy a couple of cheapy 2x4's.....

The U-Channel Bolts? You can leave them since your drilling all the rivets. The U-Channel has to go on before the body so no need to remove it before the body comes off. Your also going to find a couple rivets are holding the belly pan on that are not through the skin.

As for stalking. In our case that worked out very well but our dirt here is some pretty brutal stuff. It will hold a stake very well. In Michigan I would have had to drive the stakes a good 4ft-5 in the ground to do that. Here is only took 24 inches. It weathered a few good storms like that.

[funchucky1]

I was just making sure I had the right idea about the U-channel.

And yes, it's quite obvious that there are MANY rivets thru the bellypan that are not thru the outer skin.

I may use a dozen and a half 12- or 18" steel stakes in the ground on an angle. And I may weigh down the bracing on the inside (after the frame is out) by anchoring it to a bunch or cement blocks, too. We'll see how creative I get.

[Over59]

When you say through the belly pan but not the outer skin what besides the belly pan are they attached to, the rib?