Ben and Lynn's Bambi II Re-do

[PA BAMBI II]

Originally Posted by aceflys

Hey Ben

Is your wife going to have her sewing machine with her this weekend? I would love to pay her to sew tabs on a shower curtain for my AS. I have the tabs. Looking forward to seeing all the cool vans this weekend. Lisa and I will be there Fri. Frank and his family are coming on Sat.

Ace

I don't think so, Ace! She is enjoying a break from it this evening. She still has some detail work to do on the curtains, but we plan on just enjoying it this weekend.

I will have my Greenbrier van there (not towing the AS!) and I hope to grab all of my vintage camper ads to bring along. I know you like looking through those. See you Friday, Ace!

Ben

[REDSLED88]

Ben,
Did you install prodex between the new 19/32" floor and the frame?
I meant to ask you that awhile ago.

Trailers looking good... and I'm going on just about 4 years, and finally got my scaffolding this week to work on the top.
Hopefully I can get to where you are by the end of summer... fingers crossed.

TIMK

[PA BAMBI II]

Originally Posted by REDSLED88

Ben,
Did you install prodex between the new 19/32" floor and the frame?
I meant to ask you that awhile ago.

Trailers looking good... and I'm going on just about 4 years, and finally got my scaffolding this week to work on the top.
Hopefully I can get to where you are by the end of summer... fingers crossed.

TIMK

I did put Prodex between the floor and frame. I do not have it double-layered down there yet- still have not officially buttoned up the belly pan yet.

Thanks- we plan to enjoy it this spring and summer- although it is a few years from being finished, it is nice to be able to legally and safely tow it and use it for camping.

[hazelbambiII]

PA, what did you find the original thickness of the Bambi II plywood to be? 5/8 or 3/4. I'm picking some up tomorrow

[PA BAMBI II]

Originally Posted by hazelbambiII

PA, what did you find the original thickness of the Bambi II plywood to be? 5/8 or 3/4. I'm picking some up tomorrow

Closer to 5/8". It is definitely NOT 3/4". I went with exterior grade 19/32", actually.

The Bambi series (II included) was built lighter- lighter frame (3" vs. 4+" for bigger trailers) and had lighter plywood for the subfloor. The smaller frames make adding gray tanks more challenging unless you do what Becky B. did and replace with a heftier frame.

These were meant to be towed with small vehicles...weight was a concern.

[hazelbambiII]

I wonder if 1/2 inch marine, would be pushing my luck?!

[PA BAMBI II]

Here are some pictures of the build process of the bunk beds. Lots of fun as nothing is square (obviously) in a compound-round trailer. Lots of research, measuring, and figuring.

We are stoked with the outcome. The girls love them. We will shoot some photos tomorrow of the beds with finished mattresses and the girls enjoying them...

[PA BAMBI II]

More bunk bed photos...

[hazelbambiII]

So exciting. You had to use 1/2 inch for the construction? How did you attach it to the walls? Is this a ridiculous question. My little max is looking at the pictures saying "super cool"

[PA BAMBI II]

Nah- there are no stupid questions when you have an airstream torn down to the walls!

The "framing" is 1x4 scrap I had laying around, and the sheet wood is just 1/4" luan. I can upgrade the sheet to 3/8" when the girls get bigger, but the bed frame in the 1972 Airstream I grew up in was just 1/4" plywood- like paneling- and I slept on that well into my twenties, so I think we'll be fine.

The frame just gets screwed into the wall- with a support down to the floor on the bottom bunk. I will need to add a support to carry the load to the floor from the upper bunk someday as well. I have not figured out the best, most aesthetic way to do that yet- but I have time. Emma does not even weigh 40 pounds yet.

Fun to plan, isn't it?

[PA BAMBI II]

I have been messing around installing industrial gray receptacles and switches into their proper places. I think the gray looks great with the aluminum interior paint. Big holdup now as I am waiting for my electrical supply place to come through with gray covers and a GFI outlet in gray for the outdoor outlet.

Meanwhile, I test-fit the black tank/shower pan. Things look pretty good. Getting the tank to fit required me to cut a HOLE into the subfloor. It is tough to cut such a hole when you just worked so hard to get a solid floor in there! But it is done.

Wondering what folks install UNDER the shower pan as it sits well above the subfloor. I remember during demo that AS had just put scraps of plywood under there to support it, but it seems to me there must be a better way. Any ideas/suggestions?

[PA BAMBI II]

I took some photos of the bunkbeds in their current state- mattress covers were sewn by Lynn and the white fabric are mattress protectors modified by Lynn to protect the cushions/covers.

These pictures show placement of the bunk frame/supports to windows, etc. There is still a lot of trimming out to be done. These are not finished, but certainly comfortable and usable.

[Becky B.]

Looks great, Ben! I used plywood under my shower pan. I wish I had put some insulation like Prodex or Refletix on top of the plywood to fill any voids. Here are a couple of pix of what went on under my shower pan:

[PA BAMBI II]

Originally Posted by Becky B.

Looks great, Ben! I used plywood under my shower pan. I wish I had put some insulation like Prodex or Refletix on top of the plywood to fill any voids. Here are a couple of pix of what went on under my shower pan:

Thanks for the pictures, Becky. I have been cutting and stacking some scrap plywood to give some support. The shower pan is such a strange shape for drainage! Hard to match the contours. Is it important to get it all supported, or just generally?

Also- did you reuse the original PVC fitting for under the shower tub that the metal drain screws into? Is it necessary to put that in before the pan goes down, or can it be done from underneath later? I am going out to play "shims" some more.

Thanks for all your help! Ben

[PA BAMBI II]

A few weeks ago we went, as a family (along with no one else for the first time in a long time...), to Knoebels campground. It was the first trip of the season and I was happy to have gotten the 30 AMP electric inlet installed and most of the interior outlets working before the trip.

We had a blast especially since when we arrived on Saturday evening the campground was packed, but after an early morning rain, the place cleared to a ghost town on Sunday morning! The amusement park lines on Sunday were a treat as well. We stayed until Monday after pillaging a gazillion sites for leftover firewood. We could not believe what people left there. Lynn and I even enjoyed watching that wood burn after the girls were safely down in their bunk beds Sunday night- a much needed relaxation for both of us.

[PA BAMBI II]

Projects of late have included 30 AMP inlet installation, installation of a new bumper, making a spare tire rack, working on the 12 volt wiring/brakes/12 volt aux feed from tow vehicle, building new cabinet doors (poplar frames with wainscot inserts and original Bambi hardware), and AC install. Busy, busy. We leave for Chatanooga on 7/5 and I want to have all 12 volt working, all 120 volt working, and the ability to put things in cabinets and leaving them there for the trip instead of camping out of so many boxes. I am on my way to making my goals!!

[PA BAMBI II]

I have made much progress on the old girl, but have paid little attention to documenting the progress. Since I last posted I rebuilt the rock guard, added upper cabinet doors utilizing the original hardware, and we took a nice family vacation to Chatanooga last Summer.

I also spent time last Fall building the cabinets for the center-rear of the trailer. Over the Winter I painted them. One is a facade to hide the AC unit and also holds some thin but long IKEA slide out drawers, and the upper cabinet where the original fold-down mirror used to reside is for pillows and perhaps some light but bulky items. We won' really know until we take it camping how/where everything will live.

Happily looking forward to our first outing of the season near the end of May. I am hoping to have the kitchen cabinet and all of the boomerang counter tops in place by then. Once that is finished, we will lay the laminate flooring and then pay attention to the LP and plumbing systems before final polishing.

It is just nice this Spring to know we can easily take the trailer camping and that we will be comfortable in it as final projects are under way.

[Becky B.]

Wow! You have gotten a lot done! I must have missed your last post too...a/c looks a little familiar....ours really works nicely & is so much quieter than our rooftop a/c on our other trailer. Enjoy planning your vacation! Trailer looks great!

[PA BAMBI II]

Originally Posted by Becky B.

Wow! You have gotten a lot done! I must have missed your last post too...a/c looks a little familiar....ours really works nicely & is so much quieter than our rooftop a/c on our other trailer. Enjoy planning your vacation! Trailer looks great!

Thanks, Becky! We are looking forward to our first trip this summer in late May. The girls are super excited! We are looking forward to having more permanent storage and not having to use duffel bags for all of our stuff.

The AC we are using is just one of the stand-alone room units. It worked very well for us last summer. I wanted to build a nice facade for it to hide it a bit and tie everything together. I am ready to cut the MDF for the counter top and get the formica installed at school. I will be ordering some edge trim from VTS soon to finish things off. This will be our first taste of how the finished counter designs will look and we are excited to see it all come together!!

[PA BAMBI II]

Since our last post our trailer got published in Vintage Camper Trailers magazine...attached are some "glam" photos we took of our work-in-progress (that did not get printed) for the magazine.

Also, a shot of the Bambi with our "new" 2012 Chrysler Town & Country minivan/tow vehicle on a test run the other night. Things look nice and level.

Finally, a shot of our in-progress countertops, finally with vintage aqua boomerang laminate glued on. This project is being completed by the students in the cabinet shop at school...with nearly no mishaps (excepting the fact that I had the laminate rolled up too long, it has a permanent bow and curve to it, is resistant to relaxing to make the job easier, and a student broke one needed piece in half...but, hey...)

We are heading out for our first camping trip (and long tow) of the season on Saturday...can't wait!!