Newbies starting on interior panels

[BellAirSafar]

Hello fabulous airstream folks

We are new to this airstream world & loving every minute!

We purchased a 1962 22' Airstream Safari in January & started taking it apart immediately! (Husband has engineer in his blood & I'm an artist)

Shewie! Took out the laminate floor, & subfloor only to notice the last owners had not removed the original subfloor (with extensive water damage) but just laid the new floor on top! Goodness gracious. We then started investigating some patches in the interior walls to discover they had been fixed with masking tape & then painted over! So, as many vintage trailer owners find, we've got a fun project on our hands!

We have started (trying to) strip the numerous layers of paint off the walls. We will have to remove the interior panels to check insulation & wiring. Any advice on treatment of the panels before during & after this process? Any & all advice for newbies is greatly appreciated

Thanks!

[flygrrl]

Welcome, welcome.
You will probably find that the upper end caps on your baby are fiberglass, not aluminium. Lots of folks have started stripping only to find this out mid process. Some have replaced the ends with aluminium or copper, or veneers, and some have just left them painted.

Has the axle been replaced? '62 was the first year for the Dura-torque and they only last 15-20 years.
Congrats, the consensus on '62 appears to be that this was a very good year.
Have fun!
Leonie

[flygrrl]

Looking at your photo, she looks pretty perky on that thar axle, but it would be good to check.
Leonie

[BellAirSafar]

Thanks Flygrrl!

We just learned something new about our trailer! Not sure about the axel but it appears to be in great shape. Will take some pics tomorrow & post. Her shell does have several dents as you can see in the pics below.

[flygrrl]

There are several great threads about removing dents with a soft rubber mallet or ball peen (gently, gently) and a bag of lead shot (I think Aerowood had something on this). The search function will find them. We just have a little road rash, thankfully.
There are also some really good axle threads that will tell you how to check that your axle is tip top, or... toast. It involves jacking the AS up and seeing how much the hubs/spindles drop. If they don't drop very much the rubber in the axle is probably hardened and done. The no load (ie: tires off ground) spindle angle for our year is 22.5 degrees. When on the tires the spindle is usually at 0 degrees (ie; level) so that is not necessarily an indication that the axle is bad.

I am so happy for you guys, every time I walk in the door of my baby I fall in love all over again (it IS a sickness). I also understand that there is a lot of blood, sweat and tears ahead of me as I begin to (finally) refurb her. I had to put her on hold so I could build a house for my daughter and her family next door. My 18 month old grandson will be helping me every step of the way. He helped his Nini build his house and knows his way around a screwdriver.
Leonie

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by flygrrl

There are several great threads about removing dents with a soft rubber mallet or ball peen (gently, gently) and a bag of lead shot (I think Aerowood had something on this). The search function will find them.

My personal favorite is dry ice. Park the Airstream in the sun on a hot day. After the metal skin has warmed sufficiently, take a small lump of dry ice (with heavy gloves on, of course!) and put it in the dent. The rapid cooling will pop most dents right out. Doesn't work on creases or scratches, though. My dad once used this method to pop out dents from a hailstorm on his automobile.