Just bought 68 Overlander

[Air Hamel]

We just bought our first Airstream last night, a 1968 Overlander. We bought it off of Craigslist. To say the least, we are excited. Wondering if the rally mentioned in here is still a go in August at Meremac Stare Park. We would love to be there with a bunch of other Airstreams. We look forward to a lot of cleaning on this and a few upgrades, and some help from all of you.

[centennialman]

Welcome and congratulations!

You will learn a lot here....please post pics of your new toy....we love to see the pics!!

[Air Hamel]

I hope this works posting these pics.

[Air Hamel]

This it. Any suggestions on the propane tanks. These are old ones. I was told that to just exchange them at Home Depot for regular ones. Then I can use the exchange, instead of buying new ones. I don't know if these are originals or not. The window on the passenger side that looks shattered is actually tiniting coming off. There is one window that has plexiglass. That is a future thing to do. Thanks for any suggestions anyone has. We didn't pay much, but feel like we did good.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by Air Hamel

This it. Any suggestions on the propane tanks. These are old ones. I was told that to just exchange them at Home Depot for regular ones. Then I can use the exchange, instead of buying new ones. I don't know if these are originals or not. The window on the passenger side that looks shattered is actually tiniting coming off. There is one window that has plexiglass. That is a future thing to do. Thanks for any suggestions anyone has. We didn't pay much, but feel like we did good.

It looks pretty good. You should probably lose the window a/c unit, and install a roof mounted one. It will be centrally located, and do a much better job of cooling both ends of the trailer.
As far as the tanks, H-D probably won't take them, as they are too old, but you can always buy a pair (name brand here is Blue Rhino) of exchange tanks. They will be 20 pounders, but will get you by 'till you find a pair of 30 pound cylinders.
New tires would be a very good idea, unless they have been replaced int he last 3-5 years, and are proper size and rating. Inland RV and Vintage Trailer Supply both sell replacement windows to replace the plexiglass one you have, as well as the missing one where the a/c unit is.
Good luck, and happy camping.

[centennialman]

I would get propane bottles that are specified for RV's and make sure your regulator is up to date also. Check the windows for gaskets. If they are old or brittle, you should replace them. You will want to replace the stacks on the roof because they probably leak also. The main thing is to seal everything up. Then you can start on the inside work. You will need to check the axles, brakes, gas lines etc.....

[Air Hamel]

This has the, I think is swamp cooler ac on the roof. If it is that, I don't think those work well in the humis midwest. I know it isn't a regular ac roof mount unit. I know the vent for the fridge leaks, but that was the only obvious one. The door seal and a couple of the roof vent seals need to be replaced also. We have always had the tin over wood campers that rot to hell, so this will be something different. I have always loved Airstreams, now I get to have one. Is that rally still going on at Meremac State Park? We are only about 90 miles from there. Thanks.

[Isadora]

You can get the valves changed on your propane tanks if they are in good shape. We just had that done at a welding shop.

[Silver Threads]

Welcome to the forums. Congrats on your "New" Airstream. Looks a lot like our Tradewind on the inside. Did you check the Rally Calendar? It should tell you if the rally is still set up.

[Jim Pike]

Congratuations! - she looks really nice on the inside - especially the cherry wood veneer panels.

Our '68 Overlander is an International as well, but no where near as nice a condition as yours. Ours is a twin that SPO hacked attempting to change to a double configuration The double as you have would be my preference.

Going into our third season, the whole trailer is getting better with effort informed and aided by a tremendous amount of very practical, valuable information from this site. (Permit me one example please - Be wary of your Suburban furnace/heater as several serial number series in our model and year were subject to a recall. It's worth searching for this thread and checking yours - we just about gassed ourselves before I learned about this issue from this site). Lucky!

I've just spent an afternoon going over a '73 Overlander International double as a possible purchase/upgrade. Longer and wider, but on reflection I sure prefer the looks and genuine wood interior finish of the '68!

Best wishes

Jim Pike
Victoria, BC
'68 Overlander parked at Lake Cowichan

[Air Hamel]

We just got home with the baby, ok 2 hours ago. We've been scrubbing and vacuuming away the dirt. It is already looking much better. We can't wait to camp in it. Even the old gas light still works. We are going to check the plumbing tomorrow and see if it is going to cooperate as good as the rest of the things. All of the interior lights are working, even the control panel lights! It has 6 of the old plastic drawer containers that are in ggod shape. We will let you know the progress as it goes, and updated pics.

[Air Hamel]

Another update. We spent today cleaning and checking things out in the rain today. A couple of the window seals are leaking, but nothing serious. There are no leaks in the plumbing, works good. Haven't checked the water heater or the furnace, but those aren't major things really. I'll keep everyone up to date on what we find.

[Air Hamel]

Thanks to Steve and Amy (soldiermedic) for coming over and seeing our baby. Not all the news was good, floors around the edge. But it was great to meet you both. Thanks for offereing to help on the floors, I will need it when we tackle that. It's great to meet people who have been there, done that. Thanks again.

[soldiermedic]

No problem, and thanks for showing us your new trailer!

Steve