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hippiechick · 06-13-2016, 07:21 PM

AC is off the roof. Thank goodness for friends with tools. The back floor is out and partially replaced. Continuing to work on clear coat removal. Having a galvanized pan fabricated for the black tank (black tank is another issue). Repaired all window cranks. Made replacement brace for canopy.
So moving forward we will be completing the floor replacement and installing installing a/c. Of course the whole list is enormous. But we're eating this elephant one bite at a time.

hippiechick · 06-13-2016, 07:23 PM

Picture of prepared frame.

hippiechick · 06-13-2016, 07:27 PM

Fun equipment.

dbj216 · 06-14-2016, 07:16 PM

Way too many VWs in the background!

Your old Trade Wind looks like mine did in the back. I did not have to replace as much subfloor as you folks.

Soon you will begin the rebuild process. Keep in mind that takes much longer than the teardown. Have patiences.

David

hippiechick · 06-14-2016, 08:00 PM

The VW community is awesome. Supportive, knowledgeable, interesting and fun. We love 'em. Your floor wasn't too bad. Ours probably only required the very back section replaced but since everything was out we decided to do the next section also just to be totally sure everything was solid. Got that section cut and test fitted tonight should have it all locked down by the weekend. It was 97 degrees here today. Talk about a SAUNA . . . Then we had a major downpour of rain. Tarp covering the empty a/c hole held tight thank goodness. Ordered a new roof air conditioner today. Should be here around the last week of this month. That should be fun.

dbj216 · 06-17-2016, 07:12 AM

I was wondering if your Trade Wind had a "future air conditioner" 115v AC wire installed by the factory from the circuit breaker box to the roof. I have read here many Airstreams have this wire, and my 66 Trade Wind had one.

What ever previous owner installed the AC on my Trade Wind was not aware of this wire, and consequently ran a new wire (without a conduit) along the base of the interior wall.

The original AC wire was black. My "new" wire is yellow romex.

The old VW hobby is fun, similar to other vintage cars. I was discussing "milestone" cars with a friend the other day. Certainly the Ford model T was one. And the VW "peoples car" was another with the air cooled rear engine and efficient space utilization. That successful design lasted until this very day with the Porsche 911.

David

hippiechick · 06-19-2016, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbj216

I was wondering if your Trade Wind had a "future air conditioner" 115v AC wire installed by the factory from the circuit breaker box to the roof. I have read here many Airstreams have this wire, and my 66 Trade Wind had one.

What ever previous owner installed the AC on my Trade Wind was not aware of this wire, and consequently ran a new wire (without a conduit) along the base of the interior wall.

The original AC wire was black. My "new" wire is yellow romex.

The old VW hobby is fun, similar to other vintage cars. I was discussing "milestone" cars with a friend the other day. Certainly the Ford model T was one. And the VW "peoples car" was another with the air cooled rear engine and efficient space utilization. That successful design lasted until this very day with the Porsche 911.

David

Yes there is an a/c in our future. There was on old one in place - Armstrong - so all the wiring is there. We received the new one Friday but had some damage so we are trying to exchange it. Always hurdles to jump in these projects. You're sailing along and out of the blue a big rogue wave takes you under. But that's just the nature of things. Back on track soon I hope. It's not like there's nothing else we can work on in the interim. It's just that big 14x14 hole in the roof that makes you keep your eye on the clouds. The damage was not evident until we removed the Box and tried to unscrew it from the crate.

hippiechick · 06-19-2016, 06:36 AM

We ordered through amazon from rvsupplies so we will see how good their customer service is. Amazon has always been great for us . . . But this is a third party deal. It's hard to see the damage but the lower pan is bent in a couple places and the screws that held the unit to the crate were bent. Looks like it's been dropped on its side.

Twinke58 · 06-19-2016, 07:25 AM

Well that bites! I'm camping in mine. It has no anything do to redoing but I took it with to international and I used a vent cover to cover my hole. I put in a new fan for the vent hole. No leaks on top at all. Oh I did sold my VW Bus but I do have a 63 Bug.
Rachel

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hippiechick · 07-04-2016, 06:46 PM

Update from the long weekend. Worked pretty much non stop besides a good dinner out last night. We had gotten the damaged ac bench tested earlier last week. So that was the big push Saturday. To prep on Friday I went up through the 14x14 hole and cleaned the area of all the gunk and used screws and tempro to seal all the holes from the original ac install. Wow it's hot up there and so bright I could hardly focus. DH put in the bracing and squared up the hole. We put up scaffolding on the other side of the trayla. On Sat DH attached the drainage unit and with the help of a friend we got the unit mounted. We needed some additional hoses so finally we got to Lowes. We were chillin' with cold air this morning! Yay! It is bigger up there on the roof than I expected. Oh well . . Other things to check off the list - refurbed all the window latches. Had a near catastrophe with one window. We checked the security of the glass on each one but as DH was winding one in it suddenly fell out of the track. The look on his face was priceless. It fell along side between the trailer and the scaffolding miraculously without damage. Unbelievable! We have the new clips for the glass as well as window gaskets which will be going on soon. I was able to get on the roof with the scaffolding and clean the rear end cap. I have completed all the clear coat stripping of the shell and just have a few areas that need to be retreated. Used citristrip which I've used on other projects, it's easy to work with but will kill your grass in patches if in high concentrations, don't ask how I know this. I also stripped and sanded the rear bumper. It still needs some work though. We removed the rest of the copper plumbing maze. Still working on chasing some leaks. How frustrating is that? We knocked off early today at five o'clock. It gets so all consuming. If we aren't working on it, we are researching options for various projects. We ordered the dry flush toilet from Home Depot. Should be here in a couple weeks. Hopefully we can modify as necessary and get it to fit and look decent. If not it is returnable and we will be back to ordering a new black tank and conventional RV toilet. We are currently discussing the addition of a gray tank if the dry flush toilet works out. So many decisions and we still haven't settled the flooring issue.

hippiechick · 07-04-2016, 06:53 PM

Scaffold set up.

hippiechick · 07-04-2016, 06:58 PM

Installed unit.

hippiechick · 07-04-2016, 07:00 PM

A Window latch before.

hippiechick · 07-04-2016, 07:02 PM

A window latch after.

**Hans627** · 07-04-2016, 07:56 PM

Nice work! I'm sure you'll get much enjoyment from this project!

dbj216 · 07-05-2016, 06:23 PM

Your AC looks kinda like the one on top of my Trade Wind. I no longer notice it up there. It does add to the overall height of the trailer. I think my trailer is 10 foot 8 inches tall.

Nice job on those Phillips window winders. I think they rank as one of the silliest things on our old trailers. There are much easier ways to open and close a window. I see VTS does carry new replacements if needed. I wire brushed mine a little bit, but they don't look near as good as yours. I'm glad your window glass didn't break. A close call for sure.

As mentioned earlier, I did install new black and gray waste water tanks. I didn't research these new fangled "litter boxes" for people. I'm used to an old fashioned water flush and rinse.

I think there is more heat heading your way. Be careful out there.

David

hippiechick · 07-05-2016, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbj216

Your AC looks kinda like the one on top of my Trade Wind. I no longer notice it up there. It does add to the overall height of the trailer. I think my trailer is 10 foot 8 inches tall.

Nice job on those Phillips window winders. I think they rank as one of the silliest things on our old trailers. There are much easier ways to open and close a window. I see VTS does carry new replacements if needed. I wire brushed mine a little bit, but they don't look near as good as yours. I'm glad your window glass didn't break. A close call for sure.

As mentioned earlier, I did install new black and gray waste water tanks. I didn't research these new fangled "litter boxes" for people. I'm used to an old fashioned water flush and rinse.

I think there is more heat heading your way. Be careful out there.

David

I'm used to the old fashioned kind too but . . . Newfangled doesn't necessarily imply bad does it?

If the litter box works out we probably will put a grey tank in the new pan. Where did you order your new tanks? And yes the window function is one of the weirdest methods I've ever seen. The whole set up with the two or three catches and the hanging sheet of bare glass is ridiculous. DH says now that we have ac we are never opening the windows again. Valarie

dbj216 · 07-06-2016, 07:37 PM

Airstream used these special Corning curve glass windows for just 3 years, 66,67, and 68. In 69 they went back to a framed glass window, with drip caps I might add. So I conclude the frameless curved glass windows weren't a big success. Judging by the complaints about leaks, I can understand why.

I recommend you research Inca Plastics in California. They have a website, and they have an on line catalog (download pdf) that has all kinds of shapes and sizes of plastic water tanks. What I did was search through their catalog until I found a tank that would fit my trayla, (see, I'm learning). I needed 54" long, 17" wide, and 9" deepest end. Bingo, I found it and ordered two of them. I think they are about 25 gallons each. Inca Plastics has been molding plastic tanks for 50 years, and supplying the RV industry. They will accept a one tank order. But one tank costs more than ordering 10 or 100 of course. I paid in the $200 range for each tank. UPS ground was spendy also.

Once I decided on the tank size and location, I could plan my new rear bath as well as the drain and vent plumbing runs. Since my tanks were mounted between the frame rails, the toilet was located over the tank. One thing leads to another. The result is I have a functional bathroom, but it ain't the most glamorous one in the campground. Not a "glamper".

Here is a photo of my Inca Plastic tanks, and a photo of the nearly finished bath. Gotta love that flush toilet!

David

Slats · 07-08-2016, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbj216

I needed 54" long, 17" wide, and 9" deepest end.

David -

I take it the deepest end is the end on which the drain pipes are attached. What is the depth on the other end?

TouringDan · 07-09-2016, 09:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hippiechick

The whole set up with the two or three catches and the hanging sheet of bare glass is ridiculous. DH says now that we have ac we are never opening the windows again. Valarie

It is a bit of a chore to open and close the windows, but overall the huge, square edged curved glass windows are one of the best features of the 66 Tradewind. Unless the heat and humidity are oppressive, we much prefer opening the windows and listening to the pleasant sounds of nature over the noise of an air conditioner.

Nice job on the latches. Mine work fine, but now I am feeling guilty about how they look.

Dan