Interior Aluminum Replacement

[ALANSD]

is that a yahoo auction or?? I have been looking at cork flooring.

[silver suz]

the brain is not working today. I looked in Google and there are several sellers of cork, one has large rolls used as accustical underlayment for floors. I naturally figured that would work for the walls and curving ceiling. try Natural Cork. But it's also in one of the architectural firms in google too under cork floor. Sorry I misled you. silversuz P.S. no idea on cost

[ALANSD]

Thanks...the best prices i have found are from I-Floor.com , even their shipping cost was considerably lower than others. APC cork seems to be the most reasonable. As low as 2.69 a sq foot.

[jjonesnc]

I am assuming the vinyl can be painted? I HATE that flowery pattern in the bathroom.............

[tin can luv]

It's going to be a terrible shape to veneer....DOn't know how I'm going to handle it. I don't know why you wouldn't be able to paint it though...

[josephhh]

Hey folks. Is this thread still alive?
I want the new AL look inside of my 79 24' Excella Motorhome. I read all of your inputs and it seems like great advice. My conclusion is that I would cover over the old walls with the new aluminum probably using the glued on cork to cover old rivets and help with sound reduction. I went to a place in Warner Robins GA called Prince Sheet Metal -a big fabricator near Robins AFB. They priced me a 4 x 12' sheet of 32mil(?) AL for $50. Felt and looked like good stuff - but what do I know...
They were nice folks and said they could help cut it with a CAD/CAM machine for best quality cuts. (Sounds pricey!)

I have some specific questions about the project that ya'll might can answer:

First, what exactly is the name/grade/specs of the Al I would want to use? Does it really matter since it is cosmetic?

Second, what happens where the new AL meets the window frames? I would like for it to disappear under the frame but I reckon that is not going to happen due to the nightmare of R&R-ing the frames. So, is the plan to butt it up against the frame?

And lastly for now - It looks like I could cover the long overhead center piece without too much difficulty, however, what should I do about the little strips on each side that it tucks under? It is vinyl covered and ugly. It would look especially bad next to the new AL.

My MH is stripped out right now so now is the time to do this. I think I'm fired up beyond the point of no return.

Looking forward to your valued opinions .

Josephhh

[malconium]

I think you are right that the type of aluminum is less important for the proposed application. Go with something that has the look you want. You probably could go with thinner aluminum sheet if you want as well. The outer skin is 0.032 thick and the belly pan is typically 0.024 thick - still pretty stiff especially if you are going to overlay something else. As long as you get something that is thick enough not to wrinkel too easily I think you would fine.

One place to check for metal is the following site. See if they have an outlet near you:

http://www.metalsupermarkets.com/

A pretty neat alternative technology that is new can be seen at the following site:

http://www.alsacorp.com/products/she...sheetingfx.htm

This stuff is a composite material with a layer of metal laminated with a layer of clear lexan on top of it. It comes with a peal-off adhesive backer. The claims are that it is very easy to install, looks just like metal (because it is), but is better protected. The catch is that it is more expensive. In small volumes it goes for about $10 per square foot. It does seem to be pretty cool stuff though.

Malcolm

[74Argosy24MH]

Originally Posted by josephhh

First, what exactly is the name/grade/specs of the Al I would want to use? Does it really matter since it is cosmetic?

Cosmetic is the key word. Because of the way a decoiler and stacker work it is very easy to get long scratches in the sheets. Also look for repetitive marks, small pieces of dirt or metal can get on the flattening rollers and leave a string of dings down the panel. Also make sure the panel is perfectly flat, if there is a curl it will be at a right angle to the curve of the body and be very difficult to work with.

Second, what happens where the new AL meets the window frames? I would like for it to disappear under the frame.

Pull the frame, there are only a few pop rivets holding it on. This will be by far the easiest part of reskinning. It is just like the trim in a house, if you are a 1/8" off on your measurements it will hide the mistake. FWIW all the corners on my windows were the same radius. I made a template that fit one corner perfectly, used it to do all the cutouts.

And lastly for now - It looks like I could cover the long overhead center piece without too much difficulty, however, what should I do about the little strips on each side that it tucks under?

Pull the strips and clean them up, they are riveted like the window frames and like another piece of trim.

John

[ALANSD]

I used some of the flashing type aluminum sheet from HD on my door, at the bottom where the vinyl looked crappy. It dents pretty easily and would probably not be the best for the interior in that it might not hold up too well over time.
For the door bottom it looks ok, but the screen door still marks a black streak on it as it did on the vinyl. I keep the screen door clean, and even put some metal tape over the area that rubs..better but not yet solved.
Might have to put some material in a strip across the door where it rubs.

[latrans]

Try looking at the online catalog of "Airparts", you can buy any thickness of 2024 T3 Alclad as used in for aircraft skin. They will cut it to size and roll it for shipping. You will love the appearance of alclad.

[josephhh]

Thanks guys for the inputs. The FX Sheeting looks like an interesting alternative. I guess I'll go out and remove one of the window trims to see how that works. Seems like I recall Andy's new trailer having some cool looking big rivets running around the inner window frames. My frames only have a few little rivets. I reckon I could add the big ones for looks? I'm very suspect of the "stickiness" thing with the current old vinyl covered aluminum. I understand that the old glue oozes through the vinyl. I am curious what effect this has on today's adhesives sticking to it. Do you all think today's peel and stickum products will stick to it permanently?

I need to go sit in the motorhome and stare at the walls for an hour...

josephhh

[ALANSD]

The alsa aluminum sheeting stuff looks awesome. It would be great to use the brushed aluminum look inside our Moho's. Its 30 bucks a square foot which is not too bad, and supposedly it can be hand formed around corners and such. I wonder how it would look over the plastic cabinets?

[josephhh]

I agree Alan, that it looks good, but those 30 dollars are going to add up pretty quick aren't they? We need a bulk deal here.

[josephhh]

The interior of Andy's new trailer illustrated (to me) the value of having the contrast between the metal and the wood. His interior aluminum was very clean and stout looking. The wood cabinets made for a nice mixture. I think it might be too much to cover the walls and cabinets with Aluminum. I've got a cabinet maker living across the street and he said he can duplicate my plastic overhead cabinets pretty easliy in wood. That's what I'm thinking...

[pinkflamingoes]

Here's a picture of our end cap area in the front. I'm seriously debating putting in new aluminum on the inside except for end caps. Husband says he can fiberglass over the bathroom (rear) end cap and perhaps over the front; we're putting in a u-shaped dinette there.

Any ideas, pro or con, to the fiberglass idea? Is aluminum on the end caps really hard? I would think so.

What thickness aluminum is recommended?

[TouringDan]

I googled "airstream aluminum interior" and this old thread popped up. I want to remove the mouse fur from my 95 Excella and install new interior aluminum over the existing aluminum wall material (presently covered with glue).

I am thinking the best material to use would be the same as Airstream uses on the new trailers. I would like to know the specific material and the thickness. I am also thinking that the material thickness could be thinner as it is going over existing material. I don't want to add unnecessary weight.

Thanks, Dan

[redthies]

I'm in the process of re-skinning the interior of my 29'. I'm using .032" 5052. The amount of weight using that thickness (same as factory I believe) will be inconsequential. It's not going to be any easier using thinner material.

Have you done anything like this before? It's not exactly an easy project. It is also very time consuming. Not trying to dissuade you, just giving you the benefit of my current experience. I am what some would call a highly skilled tradesman with a background in both high end finishing/cabinet making and metal fabrication/welding. I have a very well set up shop too. Again, I'm not trying to talk you out of the project, but just trying to give you an idea of the reality of the job.

I should add that I have a client with a mid '90s Excella who is in the process of stripping his mouse fur prior to us doing an interior renovation on it. He has apparently had some success with stripping the glue. I haven't seen his trailer in about a month, so I'm not sure what the end result is looking like.

[muddy_hollow]

I would agree with Redtheis that this is not an easy project. I reskinned the interior of our '56 Caravanner using the original sheets as templates. I saved the end caps and used aircraft stripper to remove the zolatone. What a rough job that was.

The trickiest parts are around the door and the ceiling panel. Everything has to line up right. I used the same thickness and type of aluminum used by the company and I would caution you not to use something else. The door area needs to stretch a little and I was fretting a rip. Nothing like that happened but was on my mind.

Also get a couple helpers.



Not the best photos of the project but you can see glimpses of the new skins and the polished cap. Also you will see every finger print so you'll need to polish the interior every so often. Exactly what I wanted....,more polishing time

[muddy_hollow]

There's another thread on plasti dip for the exterior but that would would be an interesting use case as an interior coating.

[TouringDan]

Muddy Hollow and Redthies

Thank you both for chiming in. This is exactly what I was looking for, some input based on experience. What I am planning on doing, I believe, is no where as difficult as what you guys have done. First off, the ceiling. I have the dreaded vinyl ceiling that is coming unglued. Fortunately no end caps are involved. My plan is to remove the wall cabinets and then the vinyl material and then strip the glue from the aluminum. Once this is completed I want to paint the aluminum white along with the plastic end caps, fantastic fan plastic and skylight plastic. The big question here is what to use for stripping the ceiling glue from the aluminum. What do you recommend?

I want to remove the mouse fir on all the walls. I then plan to cover the aluminum with the same product that Airstream uses for the new Airstreams. I don't know Airstream uses. I just bought some aluminum from Airparts, Inc to make some repairs to my 66 Tradewind- .032 2024T3 Alcad Aluminum for the exterior and .025 5052h32 aluminum for the belly pan. The interior panels may be the same material as used for the exterior panels. I really do not know.

As far as my skill level I would put my work at a "B" level when compared to other work I have seen on Airforums. I have done lots of work on houses (rough and finish carpentry, plumbing, electrical, hvac). I have also done lots of work on cars. I am completely self taught. I have no sheet metal work experience. I will be getting some soon working on my 66 Tradewind.

Thanks, Dan