Maggard2, welcome to the Forum and to the Caravel Club [there isn't one, but there should be, because we are a fun lot!]. This is a great resource for new vintage trailer owners - I got a
1966 Caravel in mid-summer 2019, and have just finished restoring it...as close to original as I can. Based on that "journey," I am able to answer a number of your questions:
"1. Shower curtain, what the heck, there are snaps in the ceiling, is there a pattern for one, can you find one anywhere?"
I just wrote a detailed post about the shower curtain (I believe I have an original), the ceiling track and the placement of the snaps. Click on my link below and go to Post #178 - it will tell you more than you probably ever wanted to know about a Caravel shower curtain! If I had to guess, you probably are missing the track. If you will post a photo of the bathroom ceiling, the group can possibly help you with that.
"2. Should there be a second curtain or folding door before you get to the shower area/wet bath?"
Yes - the original trailers came with a plastic folding door. On the edge of the curbside (CS) bulkhead, you should see a small metal plate (unless it was removed). You pull the folding "door" from the streetside (SS) to the left. I've attached a couple of pictures of the one I had made - I used the original door as the "pattern" and harvested as much of the original hardware as I could to create it. I have posted about this too! hahaha! [warned you!] [Post #166] I still have the carcass of the original door, so I could give you the dimensions. You can purchase these at Walmart, etc. for a lot less hassle...and $$ (but I wanted cloth and am glad I did it).
"3. There is an odd shaped chase on the kitchen counter that comes from the fridge area to the upper cabinet. My guess is it is a vent for the propane fridge. If our was converted to electric do we still need that chase. Would love the counter space and to replace the counter top."
Yes, that is the refrigerator chimney. If you still have the original refrigerator, it is an ammonia heated unit - they are great and as you will learn from the forums, you should try to keep your original refrigerator if at all possible. Even if you are only going electric, you still need a way to vent the heat out of the trailer [it's a whole thing]. There are some very talented folks on the Forum, who have handled this in all sorts of ways - check out Atomic_13's tradewind resto [Post #103], and SteinVT [Post 109] - both did some first-rate venting arrangements. as you can see.
Me, I wanted to go original. But mine was too far shot and had vestiges of scotch tape. I took mine to a local Porsche fiberglass expert [that's a whole other moment...] and he used my old one to create a form and then hand-molded a new one for me. I then had that one painted by an expert vintage car restorer. It just blends right in now. [If you're interested, Posts #7 and 110] But if you are going to try a newer approach, Bubba is right - the original chimney has value for sure. I am sure someone on the forums would love to have it if you want to upgrade.
4. There is a vent hood fan but can't find a switch anywhere, any idea how to turn it on?
If you could share a photo perhaps someone can help. I also restored my fan. It has a simple on/off toggle switch and a pull-down chair to open the vent. Yup, I wrote about that too -- [Post #71] I've also attached a photo of my fan just after it was reinstalled-- it is the best picture I have of the on-off button.
"5. Gaucho cushion puzzle. I think with some modifications that the prior owners made our cushions are not correct. They gave us an "extra" cushion but it was actually two cushions sewn together. So I think from pictures that should go on the side gaucho. There was no back cushion on the front gaucho so I think the one from the side goes there however the front gaucho does not pull out, should it? It appears it may have been screwed together so it does not pull out? So I think I have it figured out just need to know if the front gaucho should slide out at all and if it should have legs like the side one? I think it can all be fixed with some simple carpentry."
Not sure if the gauchos in the
1965 are the same as the ones in the
1966. If you can take a photo of the ones you have, we all can try to help out. Surprisingly, I don't have a post on this... FOFL.
At any rate, congratulations - these are fantastic trailers...and very well laid out. Send me a note if you need any measurements or more photos! Hollie
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