New 1961 Bambi owner

[thinktankair]

I've been a lurker, then a member, now I'm an owner! I got an unadvertised 1961 bambi from Reno while tracking down the previous owner of a cruisette in the same city. The guy that owned Cruisette said, "I have a Bambi in much better shape for the same amount if money." I bought it! I have a blog at bambiairstream.com. This site has been so helpful to a newbie like me. Thank you all!

[KiraSuze]

Hi! Congrats! I'm doing the exact same thing, lurking, now a member and searching for the same! My dad and I have always talked about getting a trailer for myself and traveling one day. He went the tent trailer route years ago. I would love to follow through with this dream we always visualized. However, I do lack the knowledge. Now my fiancé and I are looking at 1961 Airstream Bambis. We are newbies and would not know the first thing to look for when it comes to safety and something lasting. We hope to find one that will last us years to come. We are looking locally and currently see one in the Los Angeles area that we would love to check out but I wouldn't know what to ask or how to know if it's a reliable seller etc. Are there inspectors or people to help us check it out? Do you have any advice on how to find the best one for us? Anything helps, thank you!!

[Becky B.]

Originally Posted by thinktankair

I've been a lurker, then a member, now I'm an owner! I got an unadvertised 1961 bambi from Reno while tracking down the previous owner of a cruisette in the same city. The guy that owned Cruisette said, "I have a Bambi in much better shape for the same amount if money." I bought it! I have a blog at bambiairstream.com. This site has been so helpful to a newbie like me. Thank you all!

Congrats on your find! Looks like the body on the streetside is in great shape. Have fun with your new toy! I just looked at your blog. You've been busy! Looking good!

[RM66caravel]

Awesome job but I would not use mgplywood. I would go with sanded plywood with thompsons water seal.
Cliff

[thinktankair]

Kirasuzie - I used to post the airstream that I was looking at without the location in the forum. It is amazing how much people know about each one because of its history. I wanted a bambi or a cruisette because of their size. Bambi's come in ohio and California versions (the only difference is the layout). I didn't care which model I got. Everyone is different, but my factor was interior condition. I wanted one in original condition inside. I knew I could fix most everything else. The only other thing I would say is the ice pick test. Everyone is going to say their trailer doesn't leak, but they do. The leakage affects the floor. The condition of the floor keeps the shell on. Take an ice pick and push it between the inside wall and the floor. If it pushes through, you will need to replace the floor and that is time and effort. So post your find without the price and location and you will get a lot of advice. BTW, my trailer doesn't leak anymore because I sealed it. You may want to read a book called restoring a dream. I guess people always want to know how much it will cost. I found recently that a Bambi in poor condition or gutted is $8,000. I would buy one of those. A bambi that needs some restoration is $10,000 to $13,000 (the owner will say it doesn't need anything, but it will in this range). A restored bambi goes for $18,000 to $20,000. I couldn't afford that so I went for the $10 to $12 range and I am doing some restoration. My blog is at bambiairstream.com.

[thinktankair]

Thank you rm66. I read all the post about plywood and finally went with acx and epoxy.

[KiraSuze]

Originally Posted by thinktankair

Kirasuzie - I used to post the airstream that I was looking at without the location in the forum. It is amazing how much people know about each one because of its history. I wanted a bambi or a cruisette because of their size. Bambi's come in ohio and California versions (the only difference is the layout). I didn't care which model I got. Everyone is different, but my factor was interior condition. I wanted one in original condition inside. I knew I could fix most everything else. The only other thing I would say is the ice pick test. Everyone is going to say their trailer doesn't leak, but they do. The leakage affects the floor. The condition of the floor keeps the shell on. Take an ice pick and push it between the inside wall and the floor. If it pushes through, you will need to replace the floor and that is time and effort. So post your find without the price and location and you will get a lot of advice. BTW, my trailer doesn't leak anymore because I sealed it. You may want to read a book called restoring a dream. I guess people always want to know how much it will cost. I found recently that a Bambi in poor condition or gutted is $8,000. I would buy one of those. A bambi that needs some restoration is $10,000 to $13,000 (the owner will say it doesn't need anything, but it will in this range). A restored bambi goes for $18,000 to $20,000. I couldn't afford that so I went for the $10 to $12 range and I am doing some restoration. My blog is at bambiairstream.com.

Thank you! Your respond meant a lot! I'm still trying to figure out my way around this site. It took me awhile to find my way back to this thread. I've looked at your blog. It's quite intimidating yet informative. I keep going back an forth through a few different trailers, I've become overwhelmed. I'd love to find a fixer upper but not one so much where I'd have to completely gut it out. Wouldn't know how to go about it. I do want to be able to change or add to the interior but how do you go about it ensuring that we aren't doing anything to make trailer too heavy? The search has been a little more difficult as I am actually hearing impaired. I continue to find myself in positions where I need to call on phone but I am limited. I have questions about what is best to tow with my 88 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I am not strict on which type of trailer I want to get because I also want to get one that I am capable of maintaining myself on the road. If I wanted to share a couple I am looking at online, how do I go about this?

[thinktankair]

You can post it online in one of the repair forums or private message me (go to quicklinks and look for thinktankair. Good Luck! There are a lot of trailers in California.

[CaddyGrn]

Just for any Bambi owners who are in the throws of restoration... here is a link to my hubby''s thread when he was restoring our 1963 Bambi several years ago. Lots of photos and how-to's... might take a while to find what you need, but hopefully will still be helpful to some!
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f36/...mbi-17925.html