New Owners - '67 Sovereign

[Paddledipper]

Just seeing this thread in it's entirety. You have accomplished so much. You are a machine! ~ Joy

[m.nolte]

Thanks Joy! We are trying.


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[m.nolte]

It's the little things that make Slim happy. Like new accent lights. Found these online and they were an almost perfect color match to the existing stove and I love the vintage style. Of course they had to be tweaked to do what I wanted because they were incandescent, 110 with a cord switch. But with a new 12v socket, toggle switch, and led bulb...we have light!


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[Panama Red]

SWEETNESS!!!

-Red, tag line longer than comment...

[m.nolte]

I posted this to the batteries and Univolts forum but in the interest of keeping up with our progress, I will post here as well. Plus some of you peeps might know something and prefer not to read a daily forum on batteries.

Slim is currently plugged into the house. I noticed this weekend when we were working on it that there was a clicking sound coming from under the bed, where the battery and 12v system are located. The clicking appears to be one of the resetting 12v circuit breakers cycling on and off. I ordered and replaced all three of the circuit breakers but they continue to cycle on and off. But it only happens when all the 12v fixtures are off. If I turn on 2 or 3 lights the circuit breaker quits cycling on and off and the current seems to smooth out. (no more flickering at the lights).

All the 12v systems, including the Univolt are original. There is no battery currently installed. No other breakers AC or DC are tripping. It seems to only affect the one circuit breaker that serves the back half of the trailer (bathroom, bedroom lights and reading lights above bed).

Could the converter be oversupplying and causing that circuit breaker to heat up and cut off? (I ask because when you turn on the lights and start to use some 12v current the problem stops)
Is it as simple as needing a battery to smooth the current? And if so, I have read several times that the Univolts will cook the battery. So it seems as though I would need both new converter and battery?

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks!

[m.nolte]

Clicking solved. We had a short at one of the fixtures. A new ground wire and cleaned up connection and problem solved.
We are continuing to work on the build out inside. We finished up closet shelves and hubs replaced the old sofa and table ledger boards with new and built me a tiny bookcase/dvd holder next to the table. We are working on a new table, hope to have that done this weekend and I have been sewing curtains. Curtains really shouldn't take me as long as they have but I sew, get distracted, pin, get distracted, iron, sew, get distracted. Oh well, they will get done eventually.
I have also been working on window sealing, this is an ongoing process since the PO decided two tubes of silicone per window was the right way to seal them.
Pics to follow.

[m.nolte]

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[Panama Red]

You're clogging up the interwebs with all these pictures...

-Red, jealous of your mad skills...

[m.nolte]

Sorry, sorry. I will keep pics to a minimum. ;-)
-Melissa - don't be jealous, I don't have my red-mobile yet


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[Panama Red]

You need to get Brian working on that... How you gonna be like the cool kids? And I was kidding about the pics. Keep 'em coming!

-Red, running out of sign off tags...

[m.nolte]

He is on the lookout for appropriate bike frames.

Poor man - I have the red-mobile on my list, a smaller version of the firepit we brought, woodworking for the camper, he wants to build a small grill and it looks like we are going to make a road trip to OK next weekend to pick up my new project.

At least he is never bored.

-Melissa - in search of a housewife and millionaire benefactor so I can work on my projects.

[Panama Red]

Liking your new project! Going to tow with it?

Red, bad jelly now...

[m.nolte]

No towing but Slim and the new project are almost like cousins. Both American icons, one a 67 and one a 68. I'm just hoping everything pans out, 18 hours on the road is a long way to go to not bring it home. We leave next Friday night and are planning to be back Sunday. As a good friend tells me "Melissa, our tongues are gonna be hangin' out".

[m.nolte]

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[m.nolte]

I haven't done very well about keeping this thread up to date, so a recap of current events...
Progress on Slim continues, although as always its more a slow slog than a rapid race. Most recently hubs built me a new cedar table, table surround and even added a dvd/book shelf. We fixed a short we caused and we installed new reading lamps. And we talked about Polishing. Polishing is capitalized because 30' of aluminum is going to be a hell of a job. It is such a big job that I believe even talking about Polishing should make the accomplished list.
Progress has gotten even slower than our normal snails pace because we did go to OK and bring home that other project, Slims cousin, a 68 Chevelle. I still haven't come up with a good name for the car. Suggestions? Keep it clean people. (Red, I'm looking at you)
We also brought my daughter her first project, we found an awesome lawnmower called...Big Mow. Nope I didn't name it that, the factory did. It is a belt and chain driven three wheeled mower and when my husband pointed it out to me, I knew the young'un needed it.
And even though we continue to work on the camper and there are a few big projects remaining (a/c, axles, upholstery, and POLISH-AHHHHH!) we are actually using it some as well. We attended a music fest and Canopener, we are going down the road to the Gulf State Park this week for Spring Break and my daughter and her best friend have made it the official clubhouse. They camped by themselves in the back yard two weekends ago and built tents...in the camper.
So we may not be expert Airstream restorers and it may be the slowest restoration in history but we continue working on and enjoying our Airstream and isn't that what its really about?

[Minno]

We've been talking about Polishing for 2 summers, and still haven't done it. And may not. We'll probably do something about the corrosion and even up the surface, but Polishing is probably not going to happen. Not the Nuvite - Cyclo- mirror finish kind of Polishing, anyway.
And you're NOT the slowest! We're starting on 8 years and STILL not done!

Kay

[m.nolte]

Thanks Minno! You are allowed 8+ years though, ya'll have done some amazing woodwork in your trailer.

We took Slim out this past week, went to the Gulf State Park and really had a good time. The park was very clean, facilities were great and we had a great group of travel mates. I also got to meet another forum member. Basscan, was in attendance with their grandkids. Glad to finally meet in person Basscan. I think we may have been the only silver trailers in the park, we actually had people wave at us when we pulled out on Sunday.

Slim did great, the almost 50 year old a/c even kept up despite temps in the 80s and high humidity. Most mornings we looked like a Coors can fresh out of the ice chest. We did find two window leaks, minor, but one did get hubs bed a little soggy. So we will be fixing those and I really want to strip the clear coat and see how it looks. Maybe no polishing right now but that clear coat is looking kinda leperous.

For all of you also working on your own projects, get out there and camp some! Even if its just you and the kiddos in the backyard, it makes all those laborious hours worthwhile. You may not be completely done, you may look like the Clampetts have come to town but it is a great reboot for the next round of work.

[Minno]

We were amazed at the improvement when we stripped the clear coat off. You may just stop there..... We seem to have!
It's not exactly fun and aircraft stripper is the way to go (there goes the environment, but oh well). It's not the worst job we've done either. Taking off the belly pan is probably the worst!
Oh, and in my humble opinion, anyone who has done what we all have done is an expert now.

Kay

[m.nolte]

Thanks Minno, I'm definitely going to strip the clear coat. Did you wax yours after?
-melissa-thinking this post is sounding like a seedy dive with dancing girls :-)


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[Minno]

Yes it does have that "feel" doesn't it! We did a polish with something called "purple polish" or something like that. Now we're thinking of Walbernizing or polish waxing with something. We'd like to get the corrosion off the top edges but not go to high polish. We don't want to spend half our very short summers re-polishing every year.
I do like stripper canoes.....

Kay