Newbie w 1965 Caravel

[Amfrench]

Hi! We just commited to purchase a 1965 Caravel - 2 prior owners all members of same family from FL (we're in SE Wisconsin). Got a great price but NOW have to figure out whether we'll drive it up here or ship. Suggestions? Pics to follow. That darn day job keeps getting in the way (don't tell my boss I said that).

Question: Prior owners installed AC (!!) in the back window of the bathroom. We'll take it out and restore BUT do you all put AC in yours? Does it need it? I know it depends on the geographic area you travel but what have ya'll done?

[toastie]

Originally Posted by Amfrench

Hi! We just commited to purchase a 1965 Caravel - 2 prior owners all members of same family from FL (we're in SE Wisconsin). Got a great price but NOW have to figure out whether we'll drive it up here or ship. Suggestions? Pics to follow. That darn day job keeps getting in the way

Would replace the axle before bringing home, the below site tells about the design flaw with the 65 Caravel axle............

'65 Caravel - Axle Damage

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by Amfrench

Hi! We just commited to purchase a 1965 Caravel - 2 prior owners all members of same family from FL (we're in SE Wisconsin). Got a great price but NOW have to figure out whether we'll drive it up here or ship. Suggestions? Pics to follow. That darn day job keeps getting in the way (don't tell my boss I said that).

Question: Prior owners installed AC (!!) in the back window of the bathroom. We'll take it out and restore BUT do you all put AC in yours? Does it need it? I know it depends on the geographic area you travel but what have ya'll done?

1968 and prior Bambi's and Caravels, have many axle failures, in part due to the small spindles.

They also go bad when the trailer is parked for an extended period of time, as well as the rubber rods simply "giving out."

The following article will teach you how to check the axle out.

Dura Torque Axle

Using an Airstream in the summer months suggests having a good AC, regardless of the USA area.

Andy

[Stefrobrts]

We're very happy with our Caravel without AC, there's only been a few times we'd wished we had it. Luckily the Caravel is small, and with lots of windows it's easy to get a nice breeze going through it. So it depends on where you live and how you camp. If you go without hookups a lot, you won't have anyplace to plug it in and run the AC anyhow (unless you bring your own generator).

[moosetags]

Welcome to the Forums. We're glad to have you with us.

If you decide to drive it, you really need to go through the running gear thoroughly before taking it on the road. You didn't mention if the unit has been on the road recently. If it has not, you need to have the wheels, brakes, and axles inspected by someone who knows vintage Airstreams. It is very possible that all of these will need repairs or replacement. New tires are probably a given.

Having the Airstream shipped would probably be the best way to go, but it could be quite expensive. It might make more sense to have it made road-worthy in Florida, and go get it later. That way, the money you would spend on shipping could go toward repairs.

As far as the A/C goes, we couldn't camp as much without it. We use Lucy a lot in the summer in Florida.

[safari57]

Welcome to the forums.

We had an A/C unit hidden in a cupboard in the Flying Cloud but I could not get it vented properly to get decent cooling. I moved to a 1957 TravelAire 12v swamp cooler I found in a local recylcer magazine (even came with the original owners manual) and it works pretty good. I realize that there are pros and cons to swamp coolers, but this thing works sweet - is vintage like my cars, my trailer (heck, even my wife - she'll kill me if she knows I said that ) and the only downside at all is the fan is a bit on the noisy side.

Even way way way up here on the coast of frigid Canada we need A/C or a cooling system enough to warrant one. The issue is finding one that looks good at the same time. I've never been a fan of the ones on the roof just because no matter what you do, they are an "add on". My wife thinks I'm nuts and my friends with their twin to ours have one that came on it (looks like something from the sixties) but having some level of cooling capacity is helpful. Fans help, but they don't always cut the mustard.

By the way, be very cautious about having someone else tow that trailer. Very recently a lady on the forum had a trailer picked up in the south east and hauled to CA and it disappeared along the way. She did get it but only after involving the State police (not sure which State) and many nights of angst (my new word for the day).

Pictures of your new trailer would be great.

Thanks,
Barry