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Hazim · 01-17-2021, 06:35 AM

So wife and I just purchased our first travel trailer and it's this 19' 1963 GT. Previous owner did some upgrades and kept it pretty clean. It's not perfect but we managed to tow it 350 miles from central Florida to our home in Homestead FL. Tires are a year old and managed fine at 60mph the whole way down on the turnpike. The freshwater tank needs service. I noticed it still has the original compressor for it, but also has an upgraded water pump but isn't being used. Im hoping i can clean out the tank and get it working again. It came with the original stands and spare original rim. I'm interested in a mount for the spare on the rear bumper..i like that look, and I need a new door catch to hold the door open since the original one is gone. Where should I go for these items. We're not interested in too many upgrades, we like the original-ness of it, though I wouldn't mind replacing the kitchen with better wood and countertop

Hittenstiehl · 01-17-2021, 07:21 AM

A door catch can be purchased at VTS (Vintage Trailer Supply). They come in two sizes, short or tall. They also have lots of others supplies you might need in the future. Window and door gaskets and various rubber trims and seals also come from VTS or Vintage Trailer Gaskets. Out of Doors Mart also has some Airstream parts.

Reference a spare tire carrier that will likely be fabbed by a specialty shop that can weld a carrier. Look for a shop that works on landscape trailers, boat trailers or rvs so they know what they're doing. It needs to be properly attached to the frame so it doesn't cause bumper or rear end sag. It should also have a hasp of some kind so you can lock it.

redthies · 01-17-2021, 09:38 AM

Welcome to the world of Airstream. I just bought a ‘63 GT as well, but mine is a total gut job. Not a big deal for me, but yours looks great!

VTS is a great resource for you as well as OODM as Hitt mentioned. I buy 99% of my Airstream parts from those two vendors, and I have 9 Airstreams on the go right now so I buy a LOT of parts.

InsideOut · 01-17-2021, 10:00 AM

Congratulations on your "new" trailer! Our first trailer was a '64 GlobeTrotter so similar. I know they did put the tire racks on the rear in '63 but ours was on the front to move the extra weight up to the tongue instead of on the bumper. In longer trailers especially, extra weight on the bumper is not advised.

Here is a link to a post I posted several years ago which shows the design or our spare tire carrier. It was very simple.

Over the years that we had that trailer, I did notice various designs of tire carriers which leads me to believe they were an option, possibly by the

dealers and not the factory. I do know Herb Spies (ex-pres. of VAC but not active on AirForums) has a rear bumper mounted one on his 1963 GlobeTrotter (photo below) and he lives in Pensacola, FL - you may reach out to him to see if he has found a modern resource for those. Pretty much, I think your best bet is going to be eBay or custom.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do...and enjoy your trailer!

Shari

Hittenstiehl · 01-17-2021, 10:29 AM

Shari thank you for posting that link of your spare solution. I have saved the images. I had seen it years ago but would have never found it again. We now have two trailers that have no spare holder and will need solutions.

The photos are good but we can't quite tell did you leave your battery box on or was it removed.

Thx

InsideOut · 01-17-2021, 10:35 AM

Ours didn't have a battery box on the tongue - it was under the side gaucho. Just the propane tanks & tongue jack shared the tongue w/the spare tire.

Shari

InsideOut · 01-17-2021, 10:39 AM

Wow! I just looked at the date on my link...I posted that over 15 years ago! Time flies...if you look at that whole thread, there are a couple of other design photos too.

Shari

Goin camping · 01-17-2021, 02:02 PM

Welcome and congrats Hazim,

Have a 60. When my pressure fresh water tank started to age out. I replaced the pressure tank with a tank and water pump. Been happier ever since.

Less to go wrong and cheaper to repair if something does go wrong.

The very best to you.

dbj216 · 01-17-2021, 06:46 PM

Another welcome from Colorado: Vintage Airstream trailers are a labor of love. There is a lot that can be done to make them more reliable and comfortable. You can learn about all these modifications that folks have done here on Airstream Forums. I might suggest the Airstream Knowledgebase - Airstream Trailer Forums found near the bottom of the Forums page. Select Globetrotter and your year and start reading. You would learn a lot. Some folks to a painstaking restoration making the trailer like it was when it left the factor. Back in the early 60s that wasn't just everything.

David

Hazim · 01-17-2021, 06:47 PM

Thanks everyone!!! Shari, special thanks for the spare tire talk. I can't do what you did because I have a large storage box behind the tanks. I plan to get the three rims powdercoated in teal or seafoam and some white wall trim rings. Now I gotta learn about trailer wiring; I worked auto parts for 15 years and have built show cars so I think I can handle the small.issue it's having. Thanks again all, I'll post more picks soon

Hazim · 01-17-2021, 07:01 PM

I'm seeing these large four-digit numbers on the upper rear...what's that all about?

InsideOut · 01-17-2021, 09:27 PM

They are the WBCCI club membership numbers. The “Wally Byam Caravan Club International” is the Airstream club, the red numbers are the us of the members.

Shari

62GlobeTrot · 04-07-2021, 10:55 AM

I just found your thread and am excited to see your progress! As I have told you we are 17 months in on our 62 Globetrotter and are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! Good luck in all you do!

Quick note, our spare tire was mounted to the bumber when we bought it, being a shorter trailer I think this will be fine moving forward but I have heard some talk about the extra weight back here. Again though our plan is to re-use the original spare tire mount on the back bumper moving forward.

Hazim · 04-08-2021, 05:01 AM

We just did our first trip to Ft.Wilderness Disney. It worked out great. I learned a lot and the camper performed as intended.

So about the spare...is there a bumper kit or will I have to fab one?

dbj216 · 04-08-2021, 06:47 PM

Congratulations on your maiden trip in your 63 Globetrotter 20'. Nice evening photo of the "screen" door open. I think your may have been the last of the door within a door. But my memory is fading like my hairline.

I might suggest the possibility of the spare carrier behind the propane tanks. I had one on my 66 Trade Wind 24'. It was steel, and it was corroding the front aluminum exterior skins, so I removed it. See photo.

Maybe your 63 is like my 66. Mine had a rear fiberglass bath, a rear battery, a rear water heater, a rear waste water tank, a rear converter. I wonder if Airstream did this to lower tongue weights. But adding the weight of a spare tire back there is something I wouldn't advise.

David

Hazim · 04-09-2021, 07:34 AM

So you can see here that there is a custom made storage box towards the tongue behind the tanks and the AC is forward of the axle. I think the tire on the back might be ok, balance-wise. Gonna polish her soon.

PA BAMBI II · 04-09-2021, 08:31 AM

That is a classic Fort Wilderness campsite! What a wonderful campground to cut your teeth with a new-to-you Airstream!

We have taken our Bambi II tow FW twice. Both were great experiences.

Hazim · 04-09-2021, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PA BAMBI II

That is a classic Fort Wilderness campsite! What a wonderful campground to cut your teeth with a new-to-you Airstream!

We have taken our Bambi II tow FW twice. Both were great experiences.

So small note about FW. Their 30 amp breaker was acting funky. I thought it was the Cable or the trailer(being as old as it is) but the previous owner did do a good job of wiring the 110, though it seems the 12v needs attention. It took forever to figure out that this was the problem because as I was connecting things up, the power would go on and off until I guess the planets suddenly aligned and the power stayed constant. --That is until the 2nd night when I had the AC on and it shut off twice in the middle of the night. I walked out to the breaker in the dark and just slightly pushed the arm on the breaker and all was good. I called them the next day as i was leaving so hopefully no one will suffer my issues.

So the greywater tank is not a thing on mine, It all goes out the blackwater tank. who here has added one and if you got any pics I'd love to see 'em.

PA BAMBI II · 04-09-2021, 12:11 PM

You should have called them to share your concerns/experience with the breaker. I do believe they would have come anytime, day or night, to fix it for you. We went to the nearest comfort station to get a bag of ice to help the fridge along in its cooling and it jammed up. I called the number, and within five minutes a golf cart with two bags of ice showed up. They gave me ice for the next two nights like clockwork even thought our fridge was well on its own by then. We enjoyed lots of COLD water to drink!!

I added a gray tank, below floor, on the Bambi II. It is about 20 gallons. I had it made from 6061 aluminum to fit between stock crossmembers, but made it deeper than the frame for more capacity and to mate up with the valve. I built an aluminum drop pan/surround to cover the tank...works great!! You can see it here on my Bambi II progress page, on post #123:

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f14...o-88942-7.html

Hazim · 04-09-2021, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PA BAMBI II

You should have called them to share your concerns/experience with the breaker. I do believe they would have come anytime, day or night, to fix it for you. We went to the nearest comfort station to get a bag of ice to help the fridge along in its cooling and it jammed up. I called the number, and within five minutes a golf cart with two bags of ice showed up. They gave me ice for the next two nights like clockwork even thought our fridge was well on its own by then. We enjoyed lots of COLD water to drink!!

I added a gray tank, below floor, on the Bambi II. It is about 20 gallons. I had it made from 6061 aluminum to fit between stock crossmembers, but made it deeper than the frame for more capacity and to mate up with the valve. I built an aluminum drop pan/surround to cover the tank...works great!! You can see it here on my Bambi II progress page, on post #123:

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f14...o-88942-7.html

OMG....the Corvair van