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I finshed the black tank box. I por-15 the outside and the inside of the box. I had some bed liner spray and used it on the inside. I had my friend make the frame out of 1/8 inch angle iron. Everything has been done to the orginal specifications.
This man who built the 1/8 inch frame to hold the box is brilliant. He teaches welding and does a great job. He is going to come over to do some welding on the disintegrated part of the rail and put the box frame in. Once he does that I am ready to put the floor in. I bought the Nyloboard Monday and it looks great. I think it will work really well. I ordered my black tank through the airstream dealer in Jonesboro and I am waiting for it to come in. I ordereded about one month ago. I will call them tomorrow. I also want them to put a new dump valve and senors on the tank for me.
I took measurements for the new floor and made a template from foam board. I made it just a little bit bigger then what I need because I figure it is easier to shave off extra then to mess up the Nyloboard. I will definitely re-measure before I make cuts. Check out the pics
Welding is suppose to take place next week to install the new frame to hold the black tank box.
Before you permanently weld the tank frame in make sure your's didn't have four little tabs welded to the main frame that the two angle iron supports actually BOLTED to, first. The purpose of this was so that the black tank can be DROPPED out the bottom of the trailer (for service/maintenance) without much trouble. Well, a lot less trouble than cutting a welded frame out would be, ya? You'd just take out four bolts/nuts and the two angle iron tank supports would drop out after bellypan removal. just a heads up\
Before you permanently weld the tank frame in make sure your's didn't have four little tabs welded to the main frame that the two angle iron supports actually BOLTED to, first. The purpose of this was so that the black tank can be DROPPED out the bottom of the trailer (for service/maintenance) without much trouble. Well, a lot less trouble than cutting a welded frame out would be, ya? You'd just take out four bolts/nuts and the two angle iron tank supports would drop out after bellypan removal. just a heads up\
fotochop
Rick,
My A/S (1970) has the bolted in supports that you mentioned. However, if the old supports had not rusted completely away the bolts were so rusted that it would have been imposible to remove them. Do you have any ideas on how to prevent this the next time? Should I use SS bolts? I am having to build a new tank box like Brian did and want to make the whole setup right.
maybe a metallurgist here can weigh in on the SS vs. galvanized bolt debate? I'm just putting galv in mine with self-locking nuts (have a plastic bushing inside the nut threads) and POR-15 on just about everything. a real trailer-ist will probably be dropping the belly pan once a decade anyway just to keep life interesting... The POR will really slow down rust to where it should not be a problem. If you compare the before/after images in my '69 Safari Bath Repair thread you'll see what I mean. It's amazing stuff. So much better than OEM paint. If your supports are shot you'll have to weld new ones anyway, just be sure you POR 'em after..
I have had small brackets made for the back end of the frame for support. I guess it is what they call dog ears. They will support that small area that does not sit on the frame. I have seen several pictures in past threads which show where airstreamers have installed them. My welder told me that he needed bare metal to do the welds for those bracket supports. So I had to remove the por-15 to expose some metal for the welding to take place. Oh boy is that paint protectant tuff. It took me the use of a grinder to remove the paint. The wire brush on the grinder would not remove it. Once the brackets are installed I will put more Por-15 on.
I plan on using galvanized bolts with nylon lock nots on holding tank box frame. I am not worried about them rusting. I figure I am in my mid 50's and by the time they rust I will probably be dead and gone to the airstream campgrounds in the sky.
Welding of the frame, the new brackets that hold the black tank box installed, the new little frame brackets to prevent end separation are in place, Por-15 coated on metal, and the new black tank arrived yesterday. Now it is time to start to putting it back together. I will take pictures tomorrow.
I decided to take the old belly pan and patch it. After I priced aluminum I decided I needed to save money somewhere. I took old roof flashing, sealant, and rivets and patched it up. It should work fine. Nobody is going to be looking underneath anyway. Wow metals have gone up 600% in the last couple of years.
.......I decided to take the old belly pan and patch it. After I priced aluminum I decided I needed to save money somewhere. I took old roof flashing, sealant, and rivets and patched it up. It should work fine. Nobody is going to be looking underneath anyway. Wow metals have gone up 600% in the last couple of years.
SIU Bound
Brian
That's exactly what I did and used the same logic as you. Nobody's gonna notice down there.
Jim
__________________ Any significantly advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. Arthur C. Clarke, C.B.E. (1918-2008)
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