Visit our Popular Forums

bbwwjd · 04-20-2007, 11:56 PM

Also I need a door handle for the inside of the entry door. Butch

pinkflamingoes · 04-21-2007, 12:16 AM

I am planning to put mine back on, but if for some reason I change my mind, I'll send it to you. Problem is I won't know if I'm not re-using mine for a loooooong time.

I wonder if there's some other material that can be used? I'll keep my eye out for ya.

Door handle for the inside can be had at Vintage Trailer Supply I think. Oh don't forget eBay, things pop up there regularly. I always have this illusion that every single Airstream owner is a member of this forum, and they're not (which is crazy)...people are out there selling stuff without us knowing!!

pinkflamingoes · 04-23-2007, 02:20 PM

So the fence fell down because of the rain, we hadn't had a chance to shore it up and fill in the cement again. It was leaning on the trailer when we went outside yesterday. Now it's propped up with a 2 x 4.

Oh well there was no damage and we needed to do a better job on the fence foundation anyway. More delays on trailer shell-off progress. The joys of homeownership...what's another three weeks with a pile of dirt?

pinkflamingoes · 05-07-2007, 12:02 PM

We set fence posts and poured cement. I am beyond tired.

sequoiacoast · 05-07-2007, 09:39 PM

Alright- looking like major progress... and room to work!

It was great meeting you, my daughter said it was the best camping trip!

Can't wait to do it again... and maybe you'll be in an aluminum facility by then!!!

Keep it up!

pinkflamingoes · 05-20-2007, 08:05 PM

Fence is up, trailer's been backed into shell-off position. Now I go inside and prep the interior for the interior bracing. Just thought I'd let you know I'm still around...

pinkflamingoes · 06-02-2007, 04:53 PM

Braced up the interior. Pictures forthcoming...

pinkflamingoes · 06-04-2007, 05:06 PM

Here's the most fun picture of the shell brace job. The rest are on my Flickr account in the "shell brace" set. Next up: shell off!

sequoiacoast · 06-04-2007, 05:08 PM

Awwww, that is so precious! Absolutely captures their essence..ay??!!

pinkflamingoes · 06-09-2007, 11:15 PM

The shell comes off tomorrow. Details at 11.

pinkflamingoes · 06-10-2007, 06:22 PM

Shell is off, all jacked up, probably higher than necessary, but wow. He did it pretty much all by himself. With the help of two car jacks, lots of lumber, stringers, and screws. And me. It looks like it's sitting tentatively on four sawhorses, but it's all tightly connected.

Someone waaay back warned me about a metal panel that was riveted to the interior of the front exterior panel, and then welded to the frame. We finally figured out why the shell wasn't coming off and had to drill out all the front rivets, and the shell came loose from the front panel. Rivets came out nicely with the rivet removal tool...worth the money if you're removing a lot of exterior rivets.

Next up...tow the frame to the shop to have axles replaced. It may not even be necessary, but the axles being so old, we would feel better having all new and safely installed running gear for safety. At this point in the game, we figure it's a no-brainer.

Here's a picture, the rest are in my Flickr gallery. For the record, jacking up and putting on the sawhorses took him only four hours, which is why I ask so many questions...once he gets started, get out of his way!

Boondocker · 06-12-2007, 07:57 AM

Looks like you are moving right along on the project! Its going to be fun watching you put it all back together

.

sequoiacoast · 06-12-2007, 10:33 AM

Awesome Ingrid! I sure do hope you can bring it to San Antonio... I'm trying to get my husband interested in towing that far!!

Was it easier/harder than you thought? Do you have a floor plan nailed down, fabric samples, melmac?????

pinkflamingoes · 06-13-2007, 11:49 AM

I was about to post that I'm pregant with triplets and Godzilla's the father, just to see if anyone's watching my thread anymore...we were in limbo for so long.

It was easier than we thought, but Jeff is very experienced in carpentry and extraordinarily strong. (He once pushed up our whole roof for a few seconds so my Dad could put a crossbeam under it).

After we (well, mostly he) braced it up, he had a step by step plan for getting it up and placed onto the sawhorses. He put 2 x 6's laid flat under the bracing wood, and jacked it up slowly, flipped the 2 x 6's vertically, and attached them with stringers. Then we slid another set of 2 x 6's under the trailer, the three that are holding it to sawhorses. Attached those with stringers, and then jacked it up and attached the sawhorses with screws. I have no idea of that makes any sense. But that baby is secure!

One could easily get seriously injured doing this without a lot of help. Those front rivets on that piece of metal threw us in the beginning. I let out a lot of little screams and handed him tools, and ran around the trailer peeking and telling him what looked level, etc. One exterior rivet popped, but the rest stayed in place. I think we're good!

We're towing the frame for new axles this week, I think!

I am looking at Formica and Wilsonart laminate samples, for the countertop and possibly even for over the inner panels. I think we're replacing the inner panels with aluminum, or we might put in the old panels and veneer over them. Not sure on colors yet.

Hey Sequoiacoast. how do you feel about your floors? I'm thinking easy to clean, but Jeff wants to put in laminate. I'm torn. On the other hand, they both seem easy to clean.

I'm hopeful for the LSA trip with a trailer!

What's melmac???

Creampuff · 06-13-2007, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinkflamingoes

What's melmac???

Melmac were the dishes we used to use when family camping in the '50's. It was indestructible. Go Girl!

sequoiacoast · 06-14-2007, 08:36 AM

Oh baby, melmac, is my evil passion. Ebay was my friend for all the airstream goodies a girl needs, while "waiting" for the darn thing to be done.

Counters, etc: I would advise you to take the sample of Formica or Wilsonart that you are deciding on and try to scratch it- like slide things on it... my counters & table scratch reaalllly easily- it is the major bummer of my li' project. But, I tell myself, "It's just camping"! (it sorta helps)

On your floors, are you thinking laminate, as in wood style? It looks nice too. I was considering Marmoleum- pretty pricey, without Home Depot for us- but awesome color selection- and it could be a whole sheet, like linoleum (which I seriously dislike). I do love my floors. They are easy to clean and the squarefootage makes it easy to "mop" on all fours in less than 10 minutes.

I don't know how you feel about "off-gassing", but I recently went inside a new trailer, and the fumes were sooooo nasty; I could hardly stay inside for 10 minutes. It was filled with linoleum, carpet, polyester bedding/mattresses, and laminate (plastic) cabinets (doors were solid, I guess). My trailer really never did that, however it does get a little 'off' when closed up for days on end.

pinkflamingoes · 06-14-2007, 04:42 PM

I'll look into the formica scratch factor, but is there anything else out there, really that doesn't scratch, that's inexpensive and light to install for countertops and tabletop?

Hey SQ, I hate linoleum too, but I hate dirt that shows even more. If I could manage it, I'd make my trailer rinse-out-able with a hose. (Like my creative wordage?) That's the only reason I'm considering it.

But I believe we will end up going with laminate, maybe using the stuff in our garage attic. It's a little on the dark side, but it could work.

As for formica countertop, it seems easy to replace if it gets really bad and scratched up. After all the work we're doing, it would end up being a bummer to have it get messed up, but I try to remind myself it's for camping.

BIG NEWS! The frame has just now been towed away for new axles, at a place called Oakland Rim and Tire, a Dexter dealer. Too exciting. When it comes back, I finish my POR15 spots, we put in tanks and plumbing that goes inside the belly pan, insulate the floor, and put the floor in.

Question for my loyal readers: if we put linoleum down "for now" while the shell is off, and decide we want to put something else in later, can we put it over the linoleum, or would that cause a problem? I may end up double posting this.

Here are tow-away pics.

pinkflamingoes · 06-14-2007, 07:40 PM

I had called this axle place and asked them if they carried Dexters (yes) , how much would it cost to have them installed (bring it down) and did we have to make an appointment (no). I even told them it was just a frame and we would be towing it down there. Sales guy said come on down, we'll get you all set up and today, when we got there, they tell us they don't do the axle installations! What a waste of time. No-one else around here from the Dexter website does installations, so I guess we call Dexter Monday and get the straight up. Frame's back in the driveway.

CaddyGrn · 06-14-2007, 09:27 PM

If you put the C-channel on top of the linoleum and change out the belly pan then Don says everything should work. If you use part of the old belly pan you will have trouble matching things up.

I agree with SequoiaCoast Marmoleum is very nice.... that was one of our top choices.... then we came back to earth and realized, hey, this is a camper! So we went to Lowe's and bought what we needed (vinyl flooring) for about $75. The upside of vinyl is that it isn't nearly as heavy as laminate. I have a tendency to pack a lot of stuff, so we thought we would save the weight for the stuff inside rather than the flooring.

Great progress! Let's get that shell back on before winter!

Mrs. NorCal Bambi (traveling in S Tardis)

Inland RV Center, In · 06-15-2007, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinkflamingoes

I had called this axle place and asked them if they carried Dexters (yes) , how much would it cost to have them installed (bring it down) and did we have to make an appointment (no). I even told them it was just a frame and we would be towing it down there. Sales guy said come on down, we'll get you all set up and today, when we got there, they tell us they don't do the axle installations! What a waste of time. No-one else around here from the Dexter website does installations, so I guess we call Dexter Monday and get the straight up. Frame's back in the driveway.

Henschen axles are easily installed.

Many owners have done so.

Andy