STEP-BY-STEP Shell-Off Floor Replacement

[59toaster]

Originally Posted by ankornuta

That video is crazy... that can't be stock.

Power Stroke 7.3 is an amazing motor. Mild Chip from the dealer parts dept will put 100hp and 150lbft of torque no other mods. Funny thing is a have three friends with that chip and all three said when you can keep your foot out of it it gets 3mpg better with the chip then stock.

Reason you can't buy it that way stock is the transmissions won't take the beating. I have driven a couple with the full Banks set up customers had. Putting along 10-15mph in a Dually crew with a few hundered pounds of cunstruction gear in the bed. The owner and I were talking about what it had when I spyed the Banks Pyro and boost gage. No internal mods all exhuast and electronics. Still had the factory turbo.. ...he told me to hammer it and see what I thought...He just grinned at me as the turbo started spool and said "don't let it get away from you". Turbo came up and just lit off the tires like I was power braking and started to walk sideways....this is a DUALLY CREW LONG BED with 300-400lb of junk in the bed. I had a big grin as well after that. Guy pulls a 12k trailer with it.

That one in the vid I am sure has all the bells and whistles, Big fat turbo custom pump with Propane injection (diesels version of NOS). Doing the math on a desk top dyno and a guess on the weight...that truck is making 900-1000hp.

[ankornuta]

Wow, that's totally amazing. I'm always shocked when I see fast diesels like that It's a dream of mine to get a 1958 Cadillac Coupe deVille and swap out the powerplant with a new diesel engine and drive train. Of course, I'd keep the propane tanks in the trunk for a little extra boost now and then. The nice thing about a 58 caddy is that it's got plenty of wheelbase to tow my 26' trailer, and with the diesel engine it would get good mileage doing it....

[A-Merry-Can]

back to AIRSTREAMS, for a minute! now that the back window is done, i can start on the rear interior caps, and insulation, which i did! i'm about 65% done with the rear, then i'm going to try to bring a shine up on all 14 panels before moving ahead with anything else. that makes a HORRIBLE mess in the trailer, and there's no sense even trying to do anything remotely clean while i'm in polishing mode.

speaking of polishing, the replacement buffer came in today, so i had to test it on the front corner. the original caps in this are really rough. a PO way in teh past painted the trailer white and black... then another PO sanded it off... not with the gentlest of grades, i'm afraid. it shines up ok, but there's definitely a difference between them and all the new metal i've put on myself.

i had the little porta-heater running in there, and it's amazingly warm. guess the insulation is doing its job. that's a good thing. i'm hoping to keep working on teh interior through the winter.

jp

[ankornuta]

Originally Posted by A-Merry-Can

i had the little porta-heater running in there, and it's amazingly warm. guess the insulation is doing its job. that's a good thing. i'm hoping to keep working on teh interior through the winter.

jp

It's funny, you working through the winter there is like us working through the summer here. It's supposed to be in the 80's this week.

Looking really nice, btw!

[A-Merry-Can]

thanks! i'm glad you didn't let yours go. i don't think i'll ever sell thislittl eone after all we've been through... ha!

jp

[A-Merry-Can]

man, i couldn't spell for #$@% that last post! ha!

anyway, i got back from thanksgiving camping a little early, and managed to get all the running lights wired and tested, as well as getting the lower belt molding on the front screwed in. i may go back and revisit that with more olympic rivets a little later. the belt molding on this trailer is really thick, and doesn't hug the body too closely, leaving some small gaps between screws. so, i'll double the screw holes, and finish it with olympics... see hwo that pans out... (later!)

next up is finishing the end cap installation (interior), and hopefully addressing the door this week. i'm going to completely reskin it with new .040. and send off the old bargman to be rechromed. need to start looking for an atlanta source for that, i recon...

jp

[ankornuta]

Originally Posted by A-Merry-Can

i'm going to completely reskin it with new .040. and send off the old bargman to be rechromed. need to start looking for an atlanta source for that, i recon...

jp

Wow, when you're all done with this thing is there going to be any original aluminum left on it?

[A-Merry-Can]

Originally Posted by ankornuta

Wow, when you're all done with this thing is there going to be any original aluminum left on it?

just the end caps! ha! funny, huh? once i got started, i just couldn't stop!!! originally, i did it, because i didn't think i would have all teh ahtches in teh same place, etc... now i'm thinking i won't have any hatches at all. it really looks clean without them... though i guess convenience will play a part at some point. i might end up adding a hatch on teh curb-side to access under the bed. who knows. this trailer is turning into a total custom deal... but then again, don't they all?



jp

[ankornuta]

They certainly do... I know mine has been turning into a total custom job. More so than I wanted it to, originally. I think I may end up having to replace some exterior skins, eventually...

[A-Merry-Can]

it's best to do that early, while the interior inards are out. i'm going to end up replacing both rear quarters in our 62 globe trotter. overall, it's not as bad as it sounds... and riveting is actually kinda fun!

jp

[jcferguson]

I second that about rivetting, it makes you look at airplanes differently - that last minute when you go between the air-bridge and the plane itself and can look down the fuselage at those rows of rivets.

Great work Jordan.

Carlos

[flyfshr]

You'll look at fuel tankers differently too. Especially the reflection when you're following a shiney one and your vehicle looks like its in a funhouse mirror. :-D

Brad
FF

[dmaiden]

Originally Posted by ankornuta

They certainly do... I know mine has been turning into a total custom job. More so than I wanted it to, originally. I think I may end up having to replace some exterior skins, eventually...

Some of my skins are less than perfect after being polished. I thought about replacing them but then decided those blemishes are what gives my little Flying Cloud character. It's like crow's feet on an aging actress.

[A-Merry-Can]

Originally Posted by jcferguson

I second that about rivetting, it makes you look at airplanes differently - that last minute when you go between the air-bridge and the plane itself and can look down the fuselage at those rows of rivets.

Great work Jordan.

Carlos

thanks man! i've always admired your and uwe's work from day one. i really fell behind this past year, but i wouldn't change that for the world. parenthood has its moments, but the smiles are worth more than i could imagine!

anyway, i'm finally figuring out a pseudo-schedule that allows me to work on the airstream again. a week of full days isn't in the cards, but none-the-less, i can find a few minutes here and there.

tomorrow i'm hoping to finish polishing the front inner end cap, and finish the insulation around the floor level there. i've got a pile of parts in the garage beconning me to install them!

jp

[flyfshr]

I've got one panel on the curbside that I'd like to replace. The TW had a 2' crease behind the door when I got it. Not too bad, suppose I could have lived with it but when the door flew open at 65mph, now I've got another blemish in the same panel. One day I'll get this done and when I do, Dave, I'm going to be calling you so you can get a taste to see if this is something you want to do on yours.

Brad
FF

[A-Merry-Can]

Originally Posted by dmaiden

Some of my skins are less than perfect after being polished. I thought about replacing them but then decided those blemishes are what gives my little Flying Cloud character. It's like crow's feet on an aging actress.

i like that approach, too. the biggest problem with this trailer is the PO sanded it all with what LOOKS like 100 grit sandpaper. whatever grade it was, it was course enough to flatten off some of the rivets to their shoulders. replacing the skin is time consuming, but almost the only thing i can do to make a restorable finish. getting the end-caps to shine up to even anywhere NEAR the new aluminum takes SO much more time than the skins on my other 2 trailers. if i worked a single panel for a whole day, it would just be getting close. i have high hopes, though! it'll just take elbow grease and dedication... both of which i seem to have (at the moment, anyway!)

long live the earned scratches (aka patina)!

jp

[A-Merry-Can]

Originally Posted by flyfshr

I've got one panel on the curbside that I'd like to replace. The TW had a 2' crease behind the door when I got it. Not too bad, suppose I could have lived with it but when the door flew open at 65mph, now I've got another blemish in the same panel. One day I'll get this done and when I do, Dave, I'm going to be calling you so you can get a taste to see if this is something you want to do on yours.

Brad
FF

when my door flew open on my 64 Trade, it blew a hole in the side. i ended up patching it. hardly noticeable to the uneducated eye! one of these days i might get around to replacing the skin, but for now, it's my camping camper... i'd call her "patches" if she didn't already have a name...

SHOTGUN

on the street side, the panel under the galley window has a blast pattern of dents under the window. now THAT'S character!

jp

jp

[scottanlily]

I myself have the 60 trdwnd door dent in the curbside from the past .I
don't like it ,but I too have done alot to fix it.One thing was to remove a couple buck rivits on the middle rivit line at the center /lower portion of the dent ,pop! out came most of it as the structural rib was bent in some as well holding the skin in .I installed ,glued JB Weld a couple aluminum buck rivits back in place ,looks so much better .i also have a large patch panel on the streetside ,but they did a good job with it (past again)I go with the
character thing also ,thats what it is anyway .I figure my tradewind has
been places ( Wally Byam caravan to Mexico once )so who then knows
just what and where my trailer was when this happened ,with who??
See ,character .

Scott

[A-Merry-Can]

well, the front cap is 85% there now! 5 1/2 panels out of 7 done! one thiing i've noticed is the curved segments second from each end are a different alloy of aluminum. i think i remember seeing a different code on the backs when i took them out, it makes sense, though. they contain the greatest compound curve of them all. the other 5 are 2024 T3. it's probably too brittle to make that curve. when i'm polishing, the center 3 took 2 passes with the wheel, and one pass with nuvite, and were good to go. the second to the end on the left too 3X that long, 3X the passes with the wheel, and it's still slightly less polished than the rest. i won't tell if you won't!

jp

[dmaiden]

Originally Posted by flyfshr

I've got one panel on the curbside that I'd like to replace. The TW had a 2' crease behind the door when I got it. Not too bad, suppose I could have lived with it but when the door flew open at 65mph, now I've got another blemish in the same panel. One day I'll get this done and when I do, Dave, I'm going to be calling you so you can get a taste to see if this is something you want to do on yours.

Brad
FF

I will hold your cold beverage and offer you hearty encouragement Brad. Actually I'd love to help you so I can see where we went wrong.