Cabinetry wood

[till]

In removing my interior I noticed that there seems to be a couple of types of wood used. The 1967 brochure I have a copy of says that the interior wood is "American Cherry". I didn't know that there was country specific cherry?

I would think that they would have used "light (ie weight) and cheep" wood to keep cost and weight down.

Also what would the finish be that is on the wood?

I assume that the partitions are just panels with veneers on both sides, is this right?

Also, I found markings inside a couple of the cabinets as to the length of the trailer and one that showed that it is for a double. I will post pictures later tonight. It is funny that one showes it was intended for a 26 foot trailer vs. my 28 foot trailer. Just something to ponder....

[Airstream Life]

I believe "American Cherry" is another name for the wood known as "Cherry" and "Black Cherry".

It is light, the way they did it in the 60's Airstreams. What you have is merely a veneered 1/4" plywood. Not just the partitions, but all the cabinetry. Take a look inside and you'll see that it is basically a light weight frame of 1" pine or spruce holding up 1/4" plywood.

The veneer species has little to do with the overall weight. The core of the plywood is the same lightweight stuff regardless of whether the veneer is cherry, mahogany, elm, or whatever.

I'd like to know what the finish is as well. I've heard "lacquer" and "varnish" but that is a vague way to describe it. Anyone know for sure?

[TomW]

Originally Posted by Airstream Life

..What you have is merely a veneered 1/4" plywood....

I'd like to know what the finish is as well. I've heard "lacquer" and "varnish" but that is a vague way to describe it. Anyone know for sure?

Be careful - I think you will find that particular plywood is more like 3/16" - Not a big deal until you buy new 1/4" plywood, and find it will not slide into the extruded aluminum wall mounts

After completing the construction of a new twin bed frame for my Overlander, I am 99% sure the original face frames are cherry. As for the finish, I believe Airstream used a 1-step process of spraying stain and finish, instead of stain, wait 24 hours, then varnish. Craftsman - any thoughts?

Tom

[till]

I understand that the side panels are 3/16 or 1/4 paneling. I'm talking about the cabinet fronts. They are solid wood, maybe I'm just seeing the water stained and half roted wood and the untouched still stained/sealed wood.

Images as promised....

It's difficult to tell want kind of wood the two doors in the photo at the top are made from. The bottom two photo's look like mahogany veneer( straight grained, no real figure).. Remember, when they say "Cherry" or "American Cherry" they don't necessarly mean the species of wood. Sometimes it's just the look. What the manufactures use is inexpensive veeners and stain them to look like whatever is popular at the time.Most of the time they don't remotely resemble the real hardwood. You can strip the finish from a piece of furniture described as "American Cherry" to find that it's stained Maple.
Jack

[Creampuff]

Originally Posted by Craftsman

It's difficult to tell want kind of wood the two doors in the photo at the top are made from. The bottom two photo's look like mahogany veneer( straight grained, no real figure).. Remember, when they say "Cherry" or "American Cherry" they don't necessarly mean the species of wood. Sometimes it's just the look. What the manufactures use is inexpensive veeners and stain them to look like whatever is popular at the time.Most of the time they don't remotely resemble the real hardwood. You can strip the finish from a piece of furniture described as "American Cherry" to find that it's stained Maple.
Jack

C'man is correct- very common to find that in furniture. American Cherry in this case would probably be the stain color. My orig. Safari manual describes the interior finish as lacquer. Varnish takes too long to dry in production work and lacquer is/ was the material of choice. Lacquer is easy to touch up as one coat will bond to another- varnish is not as easy.
DEFT brand finishes are what I recommend for the amateur but in well ventilated conditions.

[TomW]

Originally Posted by till

I understand that the side panels are 3/16 or 1/4 paneling. I'm talking about the cabinet fronts. They are solid wood, maybe I'm just seeing the water stained and half rotted wood and the untouched still stained/sealed wood...

Tedd,

The cabinet fronts, i.e. what you see when the doors are removed, are solid wood doweled together. On a side note, if you happen to remove the doors (seen in your first picture above), you will notice they will be unusually light for their size. I believe you will find all your 1/2-inch thick doors have a corrugated cardboard core instead of solid lumber. As a nod to Airstream, these doors were probably more expensive to make compared to just using 1/2-inch plywood, but they are lighter & work just as well.

The only drawback is they can not be recycled into another project if they need to be resized So, think twice if your new floorplan includes cutting any of your wardrobe or kitchen doors.

Tom

[till]

Tom,
That would explain the "honey comb" glue pattern I see on the inside of the bathroom sliding door. Yep the doors are super light. I plan on keeping the wardrope in tact as the pantry for the kitchen. I am now planning on using the same construction method for the kitchen cabinets and bed frames/drawers that I have to build. I found going through the cabinetry last night that some of the vaneer is plastic with a wood grain painted or ?? on it. I'm guessing that that was a cost savings.

[TomW]

Originally Posted by till

...I found going through the cabinetry last night that some of the veneer is plastic with a wood grain painted or ?? on it. I'm guessing that that was a cost savings.

Tedd,

I believe what you referring to are the countertop edges and foldout table. That veneer is formica (or equivalent of the day) and is there to cover 5/8-inch or better plywood. It is more of a durability issue than cost as it is covering surfaces that need to be cleaned often. I thought about building a real wood foldout table to replace my damaged one, but decided it would not do well in an uncontrolled temperature environment. Formica on plywood appears to be a better choice.

Tom

[Over59]

I have a 68 Caravel and the only "plastic" is the vinyl on the faces of the overhead cabinet doors and that isn't woodgrained and the bath folding door. If you are finding plastic laminate then I think someone has been there before you . I don't think such stuff as that was happening until sometime early 70's. The wood in mine is a brown ash. Very light and very tough stuff when laid up as furniture plywood. Prehaps given the values of the day plastic laminate was an "upgrade". Very mod baby