'63 Safari - It 'Bee' Traded (#8671)

[goransons]

I was going to get most items through Palomino parts like I did on the 69 but found some better deals out there.

Toilet I got through americanrvcompany.com, best deal I found on the net from a good company anyway.

Fridge and water heater I got through RVTEC on ebay (adventurerv.net) which I've ordered from in the past. He was about $100 cheaper than Palomino on these two items alone.

Picked up the progressive dynamics inverter on ebay also, from a northwest seller that had the best deal, bought the same item 4 years ago for the 69 from them.

Fabrics came from our local store (all special order of course)

foam came from overstock.com (see about one page back for that info).

[66Overlander]

Originally Posted by goransons

I would be tempted to do a taller fridge and go all the way up but in this specific instance I'm going to leave it exposed. I spent a lot of time making it look "right" that I want it to look as vintage as possible. But I agree I don't like the scoops. I'm really leaning towards the 2551 since I'm starting from scratch there, the more and more I look at it, the less I think it will be even slightly noticable.

Hi Scott,
I know you already made the choice and ordered the 2551 Fridge, but I was going to say go ahead with the larger one, but leave the visible scoop as a nod to originality in your historic Safari. Fridges are wearout items that are replacable and the one in your Safari had already been replaced anyway.

P.S. If you don't tell anyone during open house, no one will notice the height difference.

P.P.S. Keep up the great work!

[goransons]

STUNNED!!! So Monday night I place an order with adventurerv.net on the refer, and this morning at 8:15 AM I get a call from the truck driver asking if I'm going to be around the next couple hours so he can drop it off. 9:30 this morning, less than 48 hours after my order the fridge is in the trailer, now I better get going on that cabinet area first, since its hugely in my way!

Also got my veneer today. Those that do cabinet work in these trailers, what is the most stable adhesive/glue available to the common folk? I've heard contact cement can dry out and come apart, some prefer evenly brushed on yellow glue, but to me I'm worried the veneer would buckle from that. Thanks!

[Zeppelinium]

Originally Posted by goransons

...Also got my veneer today. Those that do cabinet work in these trailers, what is the most stable adhesive/glue available to the common folk? I've heard contact cement can dry out and come apart, some prefer evenly brushed on yellow glue, but to me I'm worried the veneer would buckle from that. Thanks!

Send a PM to INSIDEOUT. Shari did some fine veneer work in Birdie and I bet she knows the answer.

Zep

[Frank's Trailer Works]

ready to be more stunned. Yeller glue is the best thing. You will need a big press or a vacuum bag to get the right fit. The old school way to use yeller glue for veneer is to apply a very even wet coat of the yellow glue between the surface and iron it. The heat cures the glue fast and the iron flattens the veneer. Even though, when an apprentice I did this, it is a very skilled technique. You better practice a lot.
Poly glue like Gorilla Glue can also be used if you have a big press or vacuum bag. It works super well. You do not iron that glue.
Another option is contact cement. DO NOT ROLL IT. You will get nothing but amateur results. Get the spray kind. Sta Put and Bond Rite are both good brands. Super 77, super 99 and any other 3M brand will fail. It is made for Harry Homeowner and contains very little solids. That glue will fail and I know it first hand. Where to find the good spray glue? Remember me telling you to make friends with a cabinet shop? They would get it for you.

[goransons]

ok so I'll warn you that I took pictures on my phone in a messy garage with half natural light and half overhead light so colors don't look right at all, but thought I'd show what I got done.

Frank, don't get too excited, but I did find a local cabinet guy that would sell me his spray contact adhesive.

I've been stripping the original veneer which was destroyed by moisture (and sitting outside for some time while it was on craigslist).

Once I've done that, repairs to all joints (glued and screwed) and repairs to sections of the plywood structure. After that I did my first round of veneer. What you are looking at is after one coat of stain. The upper cabinet and the 3 drawers look identical in person, but due to light issues the camera picked it up a bit different.

Refaced the goucho today also, well replaced the plywood front entirely on it, it had way too much water damage. Once that glue all dries then I will use the trim router and get it all cut out and those 3 drawers will have a home.

I'm really pleased how well the veneer is laying down, and how easy it is to work with, I am really surprised how nice it is to work with and wish I'd have tried it on our other project (though it ain't cheap).

The piles of parts and pieces and the old pieces of veneer on the floor are figments of your imagination.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Scott, glad you made friends with a wood shop...

[3Ms75Argosy]

That's beautiful Scott! Nice work! So did you roll it, or just put the veneer on with some weight to glue it down?
Marc

[goransons]

Thanks Marc, per Frank's suggestion and the local cabin maker's I used a spray adhesive called Sta'-Put . Goes on like typical Upholstry spray contact cement then used my hand to make the bond, starting in the center and working out to the ends, then came back with a laminate roller. Per discussions with insideout I placed it face down on a table and trimmed close with a razor blade then lightly sanded the edges to smooth it all out. I'm really happy with the results. Lots more to do though, I think 11 more drawers, 4 more doors, one more roof locker, then still lots of divider walls etc to rebuild.

[goransons]

although stain isn't done on everything, and nothing has a clearcoat on it yet, I wanted to test fit to make sure everything actually fits correctly before proceeding.

Worked over 20 hours this weekend on cabinets. Dinette, including table has been rebuilt, drawer front and face frames have been reveneered. Have three more drawers drying then test fit them, adjust, then remove everything for final finishing. Table leg and frame is sanded down, ready for fresh white paint.

Dinnette still has the original tops, which will be used as patterns, but are being used right now to make sure everything fits back as it was.

Both roof lockers are just waiting for paint to dry on the sliding doors, then they are ready to go back in, and tomorrow after work I can apply the stain to the double wardrobe cabinets, which are finally done.

Slide-out goucho frame is repaired. Front apron will get upholstered (ignore the old bathroom wall, was making sure everything still fits correctly).
Bathroom vanity is test fitted, and ready for finish coat too

[flyfshr]

I say that is really progressing nicely. It still amazes me just how quickly mine went back together. My mantra when taking things out was to fix, repair, replace or redo before storing it away so that its function and hardware wouldn't be forgotten or misplaced. When it was time to put it back in, it was ready for installation.

Looking great Scott. Now that's gotta feel good.

Brad
FF

[goransons]

Thanks Flyfshr! I too am pleased how good it feels to bring a new piece in. Still have tons of finish work. Unfortunately I didn't have the pleasure of removing the interior, so when I stored it I did my best laying the piles out and figuring out what went together.

This afternoon I got the double wardrobe in place, still have lots of finish work to get it in place perminantly, the roof angle isn't quite the same as it was before the floor replacement. The sealand toilet arrived today, glad we went with the low profile.

Water heater arrived today but they sent me an Atwood instead of a Suburban which doesn't work with the exterior cover. I clearly purchased a Suburban so I'm waiting for them to open tomorrow and hopefully get the right one in the mail immediately.

Discovered I'm missing one drawer for under the side goucho, guessing it never left California with us.

3 years later... looks a little better

[goransons]

Originally Posted by Overlander & Sea

Got it! Let me get it out of the countertop tonight. It is the same as the one on my kitchen sink. Sorry, the insert is missing on my refrigerator (PO put contact paper on it), plus, it does not cool.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Faucet arrived today and looks like it will work perfectly!! Thanks again!

On the plumbing front, I think I will venture slightly from stock when it comes to pipe. I hope nobody hates me for it, but I plant to use Pex anywhere that isn't visible to the average onlooker, such as behind cabinets, under cabinets etc and transition to copper in places that are visible, such as around the toilet area. We have heavy freezes here and I'm just a huge fan of Pex and its forgiveness to a small pocket of water. I already have buckets of pex fittings and tons of pipe left over from the tradewind and our home remodel as well as the crimp tool.

[InsideOut]

Originally Posted by goransons

3 years later... looks a little better

I'd certainly say so!!! Atta boy!!!

Shari

[Overlander & Sea]

Originally Posted by goransons

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Faucet arrived today and looks like it will work perfectly!! Thanks again!

On the plumbing front, I think I will venture slightly from stock when it comes to pipe. I hope nobody hates me for it, but I plant to use Pex anywhere that isn't visible to the average onlooker, such as behind cabinets, under cabinets etc and transition to copper in places that are visible, such as around the toilet area. We have heavy freezes here and I'm just a huge fan of Pex and its forgiveness to a small pocket of water. I already have buckets of pex fittings and tons of pipe left over from the tradewind and our home remodel as well as the crimp tool.

Scott, you're welcome!! I'm sure the faucet needs to be cleaned, and I bet it should be rebuilt with new washers, gaskets, etc. I agree with going with PEX. I had a copper line break because of a freeze about a year ago and I didn't find out until I went on a camping trip.....the fun of vintage!

[goransons]

So I expect to be sending rims in to get them powder coated in the next couple weeks. The big question, gloss black or white... Black makes them kinda disappear, white gives it the impression of a white wall look with the baby moons. Thoughts?

Also I think we're going to go with the Maxxis M8008's. I haven't seen near the threads on failures. We have Marathon's on the tradewind, with no problems so far, so not hating on them, but seeing what else is out there.

[goransons]

In the process of cleaning up the kitchen light, I noticed that the metal can is offset from the cabinet by a spacer of some type of wafer material, obviously to keep heat from getting to flamable surfaces like the wood above. I carefully removed it, was damaged on the ones I picked up from a forums member awhile back. I am highly suspecting these may be asbestos. I know that testing is the only definative way to know, but what do you think?

Also what is a safe alternative, needs to be about 3/8 thick. and will show once installed.

[safari62]

Originally Posted by goransons

So I expect to be sending rims in to get them powder coated in the next couple weeks. The big question, gloss black or white... Black makes them kinda disappear, white gives it the impression of a white wall look with the baby moons. Thoughts?

Also I think we're going to go with the Maxxis M8008's. I haven't seen near the threads on failures. We have Marathon's on the tradewind, with no problems so far, so not hating on them, but seeing what else is out there.

black rims for me.
white rims sound like high maintenance...and..modern.

[flyfshr]

Black rims for me as well with baby moons and a chrome trim ring.

Brad
FF

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Mine are black too. I will be going to a color soon though, I like color. Black is the classic color though.