Greetings, need model info

[Stargazer]

Good Morning All,

I'm a longtime Airstream owner who doesn't know much about the vehicle she owns. Not even the year. The title says 00 for the year. I've owned it ten or twelve years. The man I bought it from said it was about thirty or more years old when I bought it. So I think it's about 40 to 45 years old now.

My family & friends tell me to get rid of my Airstream and I think of doing that as I write the storage check out each month. But, my dream has been to fix it up and travel in it when I retire and am no longer caretaking my mother.

My airstream needs a lot of help to be pristine again: it needs help inside and out. It is a total of about 25 feet long, has one door into the livingroom, a kitchen in the middle a closet opposite the bathroom and a bedroom at the back. It is about 7 1/2 feet wide and twenty feet long plus the tongue. The brakes are gravity brakes. It has a small metal plate with # 6828 (I think) to the right of the door.

I joined this group to learn how to find out how old my trailer is and what to do to fix it and how much it would cost and to get to know others who like airstreams too. Would someone be willing to kindly point me in the right direction on where to begin gathering information. The number of threads is overwhelming.

Thanks,

Sunnyvale Stargazer

[Chuck]

welcome to the forum!

post pics. lots of pics. we LOVE pics. someone here will be able to ID your trailer. a full serial # will be helpful, too, but I'm not sure where to look for it...again, someone will know.

in the mean time, go to http://www.vintageairstream.com, and look at the "archives" page; (http://www.vintageairstream.com/archives/index.html). He's got pics of nearly every make/model ever made. see if you can find a match.

sounds like from your description, it might be a 1960 tradewind or safari...or perhaps a caravanner or flying cloud...that's if it is in fact a "1960". Airstream measures the trailers from ball to bumper, so sounds like its a 22 or 24 foot model.

[Stargazer]

I'm not much of a photo hound. I'll have to go take pics. The storage area's several hours away so it'll be awhile before it's done but I'll do it soon.

I appreciate the leads and will follow up on them asap. Will check back later for additional thoughts.

Thanks again!

Sunnyvale Stargazer

[Goin camping]

Is the serial number on your registration or pink slip?

[CanoeStream]

Stargazer -- Hello and welcome to the Forums! Goin camping is headed in a good direction by asking about the serial # or VIN. It's fine if you have that on some paperwork. There is usually a small metal plaque somewhere on the trailer front (often by the door). Report the combination of letters and numbers back to this post and we'll figure it out year and model within minutes with our secret decoder rings. We'll actually share the online source and walk you through exactly what you have.

[Stargazer]

I'm going to take a ride and take some pics today if I can. From the styling and some of the comments I read I think mine may be from the 1950's.

Wow!

Thanks for the sites!!!

Sunnyvale Stargazer

[Stargazer]

Hey Guys,

Thanks for your posts. As I said, I think the plate you refer to is only numbers e.g. 6828. I'll check when I take the photo's. I just checked the registration and the year sold says 1966 but the door and styling looks like older to me. VIN on the registration says #6828 like what I remember the plate to the right of the door to say.

Thanks again,

Sunnyvale Stargazer

P.S. The registration doesn't give the model year and it also says 1993 (this is probably the year I bought it.)

SS

[balrgn]

Originally Posted by Stargazer

I'm going to take a ride and take some pics today if I can. From the styling and some of the comments I read I think mine may be from the 1950's.

Wow!

Thanks for the sites!!!

Sunnyvale Stargazer

Lookin forward to seeing pics!

[Goin camping]

Welcome to the group. I too am eager to see the photo's

[Stargazer]

No photo's yet. Have to take them somewhere where I can download them to my computer. And, Guys this unit is in storage and has been for a lot of years so it dirty and junky now. Someone else had started to work on it before I bought it. I fixed it up some but it's gotten trashed since. You'll see when I post the photos.

Anyway, there are two axles which I had forgotten. The metal plate by the door has the Airstream wave design from Los Angeles and the numbers are 6828 on the plate. The larger Airstream sign is above the front window (I think).

The front and back windows have three panes each. There is a small window with two panes to the right of the door coming in. The door has a screen door that is incorporated into the door. There are three window on each side. On the same side as the door there is a slightly larger window behind the stove and another smaller one in the bedroom. The small ones are like the one next to the door. On the other side of the trailer there are two larger two paned windows: one is in the dinning area and the other is above the kitchen sink. There is also a smaller window in the bathroom. It's like the other smaller windows in the bedroom and next to the door. There are two pop up screened vents in the ceiling: one is in the livingroom area and one in the bedroom. There are also holes in the ceiling where I think an airconditioning unit would have been.

There is an old Serval (propane only) refrigerator built in the 30s or 40s (I forget just when.) and there was a Princess stove that didn't work when I bought it. I gave that away because the oven didn't work. (Darn.) The refrigerator is to the left of the stove. The sink's across from the stove. The light fixtures are painted metal with little holes in them that the light shines through. And, the cupboards above the sink and stove have sliding doors which are at a slant e.g. they are not perpendicular to the floor. The cupboards below have a safety latch that you have to twist to open. Guess that's all for now.

Any thoughts about a model and year?

Thanks,

Sunnyvale Stargazer

[wkerfoot]

Originally Posted by Stargazer

No photo's yet. Have to take them somewhere where I can download them to my computer. And, Guys this unit is in storage and has been for a lot of years so it dirty and junky now. Someone else had started to work on it before I bought it. I fixed it up some but it's gotten trashed since. You'll see when I post the photos.

Anyway, there are two axles which I had forgotten. The metal plate by the door has the Airstream wave design from Los Angeles and the numbers are 6828 on the plate. The larger Airstream sign is above the front window (I think).

The front and back windows have three panes each. There is a small window with two panes to the right of the door coming in. The door has a screen door that is incorporated into the door. There are three window on each side. On the same side as the door there is a slightly larger window behind the stove and another smaller one in the bedroom. The small ones are like the one next to the door. On the other side of the trailer there are two larger two paned windows: one is in the dinning area and the other is above the kitchen sink. There is also a smaller window in the bathroom. It's like the other smaller windows in the bedroom and next to the door. There are two pop up screened vents in the ceiling: one is in the livingroom area and one in the bedroom. There are also holes in the ceiling where I think an airconditioning unit would have been.

There is an old Serval (propane only) refrigerator built in the 30s or 40s (I forget just when.) and there was a Princess stove that didn't work when I bought it. I gave that away because the oven didn't work. (Darn.) The refrigerator is to the left of the stove. The sink's across from the stove. The light fixtures are painted metal with little holes in them that the light shines through. And, the cupboards above the sink and stove have sliding doors which are at a slant e.g. they are not perpendicular to the floor. The cupboards below have a safety latch that you have to twist to open. Guess that's all for now.

Any thoughts about a model and year?

Thanks,

Sunnyvale Stargazer

Stargazer,

I am thinking an early 1950's Cruiser or Liner. Only the Liner 29 or 30' has two axles. How many sections across the front? Have you looked here for something similiar? http://www.vintageairstream.com/archives/index.html

Please find some pictures.

Bill

[Stargazer]

I've narrowed it down to late 1950s. am going nuts looking so I'll give a rest for now. There are features I see in various years that match. Most telling is the 7 panel ends. \ l l / According to what I read these showed up first in California in 1957. By 1960 the windows look different than mine. The double axle wheel wells are the tear drop style. that's all for now.

Thanks,

Sunnyvale Stargrazer

[CanoeStream]

Stargazer -- do you know the measurement from bumper to ball? That should be close to the actual model length.

Here's a 1958 double axle -- 26' Overlander. Go to http://www.acefogdallrv.com and click on Preowned Inventory. Switch the 'Show Me' to travel trailer -- second on the page. Click on 'More Details' for pics. I've walked thru this unit. The fridge was replaced with a 110V and the whole trailer probably needs a lot of work -- smells old but not quite musty inside. It has a house doorknob replacing the original door handle. The rear bumper looks pretty easy to return to original. Price seems high...

Reason I'm saying is that this '58 also just has a 4-number VIN like you report. The Airstream FAQs VIN page only gives information on VINs from 1966. We'll probably need some late-50s owners to pipe up. Your # is 6828? Could the 6 be the year; ie, 1956?

[47WeeWind]

Hi Stargazer:

Airstream trailer s/n 6828 is a late 1957 model year California factory built 26' Overlander trailer. The tandem axles were probably still an optional extra cost extra for 1957, so having them on your trailer is a plus. Your trailer body should be about 23 feet long on a 26 foot long chassis.

The 1957 model year was unusual in that it was very long, beginning in October 1956 and not ending until April 1958. Have fun rejeuvinating and soon using your vintage Airstream!

[Stargazer]

Hi Fred,

Thanks for the info. I didn't re-measure yesterday when I went to take pics. Will have to wait for another day. My memory is that it is about 25 ft long so 26 is not much different. Someone told me years ago they thought the bumper &/or tongue had been replaced. If that's true it may account for the reduction in length from 26 to 25 ft.

I'll try to get the photos up later today.

Thanks again!

Sunnyvale Stargazer

[47WeeWind]

Originally Posted by Stargazer

Hi Fred, Thanks for the info. I didn't re-measure yesterday when I went to take pics. Will have to wait for another day. My memory is that it is about 25 ft long so 26 is not much different. Someone told me years ago they thought the bumper &/or tongue had been replaced. If that's true it may account for the reduction in length from 26 to 25 ft. ... Sunnyvale Stargazer

Stargazer:

Trailer lengths are "model" lengths, not actual lengths. Model lengths are rounded up or down to a nearby "model" length whole foot, which is not necessarily the nearest actual length whole foot. Don't sweat the tape measure.