Visit our Popular Forums

tallytwo1994 · 01-24-2010, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed Emerick

Templates? I need templates of what??????
The floor? Now I'm in trouble!

Cute!

Remember this trailer has to be done right - it's for your baby girl.

Ed Emerick · 01-24-2010, 07:32 PM

She is far from a baby, she's an engineer, or sort of! She don't think right, just like all engineers!

soldiermedic · 01-24-2010, 09:11 PM

If she's an engineer you should let her do the rebuild, and save yourself some headache!

Ed Emerick · 01-25-2010, 06:11 AM

Wrong kind of Engineer, she is a Chemical not mechanical.....

Still, she has a odd way of thinking!

AND I don't think I want power tools in her hands, she needs both of them to complete college.

Ed Emerick · 01-31-2010, 02:27 PM

Today was the end of my floor removal journey. As you can see in the photos all that is there is frame and belly pan. Next week I will remove the lower trim on the front and back and then start to drill out the rivets that hold the sides to the belly pan. As far as I can see once that is accomplished I should be able to lift the shell off and pull the frame out. I don't see anything else holding it to the frame, it think

Now its time to research new belly pan material and a surf through vintagetrailersupply for the hardware I need to put the floor in.

Ed Emerick · 01-31-2010, 02:30 PM

The photo shows a lag bolt that was used as a sort of clamp to hold the floor to the frame in the nose of the 54. It went through the floor, on top of the floor was a small steel plate and under the frame it went through another steel plate. Those drew together to squeeze onto the frame. I had never seen this set up on any of my other trailers, anyone ever seen this?

Ed Emerick · 11-28-2010, 06:32 AM

OK so my camping season is completed and the 88 is in storage and the 54 back in the drive.

With almost a year away its time to take this thing apart. The question, the belly pan is riveted to the outer-skin, the channel that is supposed to be attached to the floor is attached with the same rivets? What I want to do is remove the belly pan intact to use as a template, not have the channel be dislocated so I can't reattach and loose my shape? Isn't it important to keep that channel attached to the outer skin?

I am rambling but I guess I'm asking:
1. Do I need to drill out all those rivets around the bottom to remove the belly pan?
2. If I do, will the channel that is attached to the outer-skin and attached to the floor holding the skin to the floor become dislodged and cause all kinds of realignment problems?
3. Is there anything else I need to worry about with this Shell off process that I am missing?

Thanks in advance
Ed

62overlander · 11-28-2010, 07:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed Emerick

OK so my camping season is completed and the 88 is in storage and the 54 back in the drive.

With almost a year away its time to take this thing apart. The question, the belly pan is riveted to the outer-skin, the channel that is supposed to be attached to the floor is attached with the same rivets? What I want to do is remove the belly pan intact to use as a template, not have the channel be dislocated so I can't reattach and loose my shape? Isn't it important to keep that channel attached to the outer skin?

I am rambling but I guess I'm asking:
1. Do I need to drill out all those rivets around the bottom to remove the belly pan?
2. If I do, will the channel that is attached to the outer-skin and attached to the floor holding the skin to the floor become dislodged and cause all kinds of realignment problems?
3. Is there anything else I need to worry about with this Shell off process that I am missing?

Thanks in advance
Ed

Ed,
A)to get the belly out, yes, you will need to drill all the rivets around the belt line. You will also have to drill, or shear, some that are between the channel and the belly, but not into the outer skin. You are reverse engineering this. They put the floor on the frame. Then the channel on the floor, then the belly pan was wrapped and riveted to the channel. Then the shell was placed over channel and all of it riveted together. Just reverse that.
B) I strongly encourage you to make an accurate template of the c channel before you start disassembly. It will allow you to make a new floor and replace all the channel exactly as it was before you took it all apart. This takes all guessing out of it.
C) once you take the body off, make sure it is lowered to the ground and no wind can get to it. That shell will be only about 400 pounds with the windows in it and a 20 mph wind will send it rolling toward Lake Michigan.

Don't worry Ed, you can do it....

soldiermedic · 11-28-2010, 08:41 AM

Ed,

Since my 53 and your 54 are near identical, check out how I did it on my blog below. You will need to go back aways, but it isn't hard to find.

Steve

Ed Emerick · 11-28-2010, 03:44 PM

Thanks guys for the help, the reverse engineering post and and blog did help.

One question came up this afternoon, well maybe more......
The metal piece in the nose is attached to the skin with a bunch of rivets, is it going from the frame, inside the skin and then the channel attached to that? Also I noticed that there are brass (?) ( they sure aren't aluminum or steel) at the lower part of the skin, under the trim and not attached to the metal nose plate, as far as I can tell. Is this normal?

Thanks for the help and support!

66Overlander · 11-29-2010, 05:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed Emerick

Thanks guys for the help, the reverse engineering post and and blog did help.

One question came up this afternoon, well maybe more......
The metal piece in the nose is attached to the skin with a bunch of rivets, is it going from the frame, inside the skin and then the channel attached to that? Also I noticed that there are brass (?) ( they sure aren't aluminum or steel) at the lower part of the skin, under the trim and not attached to the metal nose plate, as far as I can tell. Is this normal?

Thanks for the help and support!

Ed,
Photos would sure help to be sure what you are asking about. That front metal plate should be a big "L" bracket, riveted to the front skin and then extending back under the front of the floor. The front floor channel should be bolted through the floor and "L" bracket to the front frame cross member. In the case of my '55 Safari, the two rows of front rivets went through the following layers, in order: outer skin, the front of the belly pan wrapped up between the rails, two extra layers of aluminum sheet for reinforcement (maybe 3' x 3' each in size), the steel "L" bracket/front plate. This made it plenty strong. There may have also been 3 or 4 extra rivets down low below the molding that also went through the front floor channel.

Are the "Brass ?" you are mention, the screws that attach the rub strip to the body? If so, I think mine were stainless steel and in the middle they did penetrate that front plate on my '55 Safari. When I welded an extra "L" bracket to my rusted front plate, we covered up those holes, so I may have to drill and tap them before the front molding goes back on, but I am not to that point yet.

For reference, you may want to also refer to my thread about the '55 Safari: http://www.airforums.com/forums/f338...ari-45822.html

The posts from about #109 onward should be of the most help to you, but if you want to see the details about a "body on" floor replacement and welding up the front plate, check out the earlier posts.

Ed Emerick · 11-29-2010, 05:38 PM

Thanks Joe, I will take a look. The brass? I forgot to type, rivets. They are what looks like brass rivets that are under the trim and into the body. Never saw brass rivets used before. I am out on the road for work, when I get back I will try to take a photo of them and the plate.

66Overlander · 11-30-2010, 05:30 AM

The original rivets on my '55 Safari under the trim and everywhere else were aluminum. The replacement 5/16" buck rivets we put it back together with had a gold colored coating, but it buffs off easily back to the base aluminum color.

I guess I can't say that brass rivets, if that's what you have, weren't original. It could have been a solution to keep the production line going if there was a temporarly shortage of aluminum rivets in 1954. Hiding brass rivets behind a trim strip would have been a way to make the aluminum colored ones last a little longer in the visible locations.

Of course, over 56 years there could have been repair work done that substituted brass rivets or gold coated 5/16ths rivets, too. Or maybe the rivet heads are just dirty. I guess once you start drilling one out you'll know what the shavings look like and that will end the mystery.