Help! '77 Sovereign

[Nosborasil]

Hello!

Looking for someone knowledgeable in Sovereigns that I could email a few pictures to and get feedback.

Made an attempt to post questions on this forum but can't find it.

Thanks!
Lisa

[J. Morgan]

Elaborate some!

I know some about Sovereigns..


Brevi tempore!

[Nosborasil]

Hello!
Thanks for the response.
So the rear lower right side facing (when standing and looking at the rear of the camper) has a pretty questionable dent. In the picture it looks like it also is pretty seriously banged up into the belly pan (?) if it goes up the bottom and meets the sides of the camper.
I have a image but haven't been able to load it successfully.
The rear bumper also looks like it was affected and hangs down, so what ever was hit, the owner did well. ��
Our concern is could there be damage to the frame? (How is the bumper connected?) could the lower wrinkle (not really a dent I guess if it's the belly pan area) create any concerns and what would/should we look for?
Would they be easy fixes? Or costly repairs? My husbMd is handy, but we are not familiar with airstreams as much seeing we are just starting.

Sorry a lot of info.

[HiJoeSilver]

Just post them in here and people may provide feedback.

[Nosborasil]

I have tried :-( I first tried through my cell phone but hen I would click on the attach image it closes the forum. So then I logged in through the computer and wasn't able to get it to load either.

I can supply a link to see it on Flicker...

https://flic.kr/p/yQmfMs

But the forum won't let me attach it :-/

[dwightdi]

That is a pretty severe dent. The bumper being down on the left likely means the frame is likely bent, as the bumper is bolted to the frame. Repairs will be expensive.

[HiJoeSilver]

Yep, from the photo it looks like that frame rail dips down pretty good, though with that big a dent everything around it could be bent up quite a bit causing optical illusion. Either isn't good. Looking at some pretty good damage there. Not a simple replacement of the end segment and fixing banana wrap because the u channel is also going to need some serious work. Fixing the frame could probably be done by removing everything in that area including the floor and everything inside the area so a welder can either cut and fix or cut and replace that section of frame.
The bumper is simply bolted to the end of the frame rail, which is the black metal you see sticking out.
Looks like the damage stops at the awning arm which is good because behind it is hiding the seam where the next panel starts.
Any which way this isn't an easy or cheap fix.

[Nosborasil]

HiJoeSilver
Thank you for the feedback! It was exactly what we needed to know! I had added additional pictures as well. The owners are asking $4000 and we are hoping to find an airstream that we could camp in and do some restoration but not major (frame) work. Guess that rules this one out!
Back to the search!

Thanks again!!

[J. Morgan]

Ok, my trailer didn't have a big dent like that, but in the end the repair I did would have fixed your problem.

I removed all fixtures and interior panels from the rear of the trailer, removed the rotten rear sheet of plywood from the floor, removed the black tank, cut the rear four feet of frame from the trailer, reconstructed the frame sections from channel iron, welded it in, cut a new plywood floor, and then reattached the rear of the trailer to the frame.

Sounds like a lot, but it was only a couple or a few days.

I had a lot of smaller dents than yours, which I straightened out some and then camouflaged with a thin coat of body filler and paint or truck bed liner.

http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/g...ps113e1088.jpg


http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/g...ps3gktpnx9.jpg

Is what I did "according to Hoyle" "right"? No.

"Right" would have been removing and replacing all questionable aluminum, but I wanted to go camping in four months after buying the trailer, and I did...

Brevi tempore!

[Lumatic]

The other concern with Sovereigns is rear end separation. There is a tendency for the floor and frame to separate from the body. Stand on the bumper and bounce it. It the bumper moves significantly and the body doesn't that is a problem. Hard to tell if $4K is fair without knowing about the rest of the trailer but this is a big red flag.

[HiJoeSilver]

J Morgan, at least they'll have a good idea, if this would be something beyond the scope of work that they think they could accomplish, or were looking to take on. I know a professional with the right tools skills and time can definitely accomplish this, but if you'd need to outsource it could be major.
Seen lots of your posts and you're definitely in the DIY category, and do excellent work.

[J. Morgan]

A project like that has to be attacked till finished once started, it isn't really hard, but it can be intimidating. A lot of projects like that get started and never finished. Your warning about taking something like this on are very prudent, and thanks for the compliments HiJoe!


Brevi tempore!