1967 Caravel, cracked shower pan

[webuyvintage]

Hi- new owners of a 1967 Caravel have a cracked shower pan and a crack in the bathroom sink countertop. Hauled it to a fiberglass repair shop only to find out that it isn't fiberglass (ABS plastic is mentioned on other posts.) How do we fix this???

[TomW]

Welcome!

Got any pictures?

I have successfully repaired cracked ABS plastic, but I don't want to point you to my website where I outlined how I did it until I see what you are up against.

Tom

[fireflyinva]

Are you sure it isn't fiberglass--or if they just don't want to bother with a laborious repair? Fiberglass generally has cloth impregnated in it, which you can see from the rear side.

I don't know much about plastic repair, but I do know (from reading labels on epoxy cans) that fiberglass repair techniques can be used on some kinds of plastic, but I don't know which.

Since they rejected you, I think it's fair game to ask them what kind of plastic it is and what kind of trade would repair it. Then that puts you in the ballpark so you can research fixing techniques on the web (or call Tom for help!).

Mary

[C Johnson]

Ibuyvintage, I have a 1965 Caravel and my shower pan is fiberglass. I know the '67 Caravels' shower enclosure is very close to the '65s' style enclosure. I had mine professionally refinished. They added 3 layers of fiberglass on the pan portion and sprayed two layers of gelcoat on the entire thing. They then buffed it out. It looks tons better than it did before. The place I chose to do the refinishing was a little hesitant at first. They only refinish tubs and sinks. It's not cheap, however.

I did have to hunt around to find a place to do the job.

Also, I had it out, so I could just leave it at their shop. They did it at their leisure. Which is good, I didn't want any mistakes with this part of my project.

Are you sure it is abs ? A few places I talked with didn't want to do it no matter what.

Let me know how it turns out. I am curious.

Chris

[driftwood]

ibuyvintage,

For a project like this I suggest that you go to a fiberglass boat repair shop. In your area a hot tub manufacturer may be a better shot.

Usually there is a qualified employee that will take the project on as 'home work' - as a hot tub shop will have all the materials and tools for a proper job.

Keep us posted relative to your progress and success. Any pictures?

[robandzoe]

Contact Colin at www.gsmvehicles.com They have Rich from Airstream Life's Caravel there and I believe it is a 1967 model. Colin probably even has it out of the trailer. He can help for sure.

Rob

[webuyvintage]

Have started making some contacts. Pictures are attached. How do we get remove the bathroom pieces from the trailer? The interior is otherwise intact, so we aren't gutting this. Thanks!

[C Johnson]

ibuyvintage, Looks like you have a problem there. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but, when they built these trailers they put the bath in first. You may be able to fix it in place. But if you do end up taking it out. Both closets will have to come out. and either the couch or the galley will have to be removed in order for you to get the enclosure out of the trailer. It will fit thru the door as that is how they got it in there. The top portion was put in before the body was put on the frame, as I understand it. It is a 2 piece bath. Yours isn't beyond repair but, be ready to pay for getting it fixed. Mine cost me $1200 to get repaired, it was cracked everywhere, similar to yours.

This may be a little off topic but, do you have any other things like loose rivets and screws in there. Judging by your pic, I would be checking on the condition of your axle. The tires shouldn't be quite so far up into the wheel wells. The reason I mention this is that it could be what started the cracking in your bath. Mine was bad and since I have gutted my Caravel I saw firsthand what a bad axle can lead to.

But I digress......Look for a professional bath refinisher/hot tub refinisher or boat refinishing outfit. They will have the expertise and know how to fix your bath enclosure.

Chris

[fireflyinva]

Chris is dead-on the mark. Taking the items out is a pain in the you know what. On the other hand, it's not impossible, so I wouldn't rule taking it out. We dealt with taking out our smaller bath and it was a true epic (it's in my blog, if you want to see pics). In our case, we found the darn thing was completely glued down to the subfloor with epoxy. In your case, look to Chris' explanation for figuring out how to take it out, but don't be surprised if you find yours is fitted differently (Airstream was notorious for non-standard installations--part of the tinkering mentality of the firm).

Get all the screw drivers you own out, fire up a couple of extra drill batteries, invite over a willing friend (good for help and moral support) and figure on it taking at least a whole weekend. Keep a store of ziplock baggies for screws and label each bag with a sharpie. You'll want to store everything while you get it repaired--and this stuff is much more space sucking outside the trailer.

Looking at the picture, there may be truth to what the repair folks say. Fiberglass tends to fracture into splinters, not clean cracks like you have. Still, you may find it will be hard to find a tradesperson willing to take on the job--your problems are the large laborious type that shops hate to take. On the other hand, it's worth trying to save, since you'll never find anything else that fits the space. Good luck and best wishes.

Mary

[05ModPod]

Hi Ibuyvintage;

Not sure how you are making out with your bathroom repair?? But from the looks of that sink - unless someone was constantly sitting on it I would have to venture a solid "guess" by the lack of rubber showing on your wheels that you might want to fix the cause of your bathroom problems first.

In the picture you provided the trailer looks like it is sitting pretty level - and the wheel well looks like it is almost to the centre of the wheel.

If you have not considered this part of the resoration yet - please take it from us who learned the hard way - take care of the running gear first - then everything else will be safe!

We made our Globe Trotter nice a pretty first on the inside only to have her almost fall to pieces during our travels from a really bad axle.

We just had some pretty nice work done at Axis Products - they will take care of you with great customer service and quality products. Don't let Axles and the price scare you off ( they really are very affordable!) - if we got hooked up with Axis from day one - we more than likely would still have a front window.

Good luck with your restoration - she looks like a nice cuttie

[webuyvintage]

Thanks everyone for your good advice. We actually have yet to get the trailer in our possession due to a hold up with part of our hitch. We did have it looked over by what we assume was a reputable place, but didn't direct them to the axle in particular.

More to come soon...

[mtpalms]

My lav sink cracked, and PizzaChop posted a link in my thread to some swell repair work he did on his rig.

Click here for my thread

My husband is repairing our sink with Goop SuperMend (2 part epoxy paste), because he is familiar with it, but there are several abs plastic repair products out there. Do some forum searches on 'abs' , and you'll get some good results.