1970 27' Overlander restoration

[monocoque]

Thanks for the update. I'll be doing the same in the near future. Looking forward to seeing your pictures. How and what kind of jack did you use?

[vhord]

On the axle install I used two hydraulic jacks (6T & 12T that I had access to) and two jack stands to stabilize it.

Well I didn't take as many pictures as I thought but here goes:

This is a picture after the old axles were dropped and the frame POR coated.



Then we top coated with metallic aluminum enamel paint (Ace Rust Stop).
Here is the finished product with new wheels and tires.



This is a view from the inside.



Today my wife and I cut out the next two sections of subflooring, sealed the edges, and washed the wheel wells. I have spray undercoater coming tomorrow to spray the undersides of the wheel wells and then all of that can be installed. I hope to have all the subfloor in by the end of the week. Hopefully!

[monocoque]

Wonderful progress. Must feel fine! And looks great, Vernon. BTW what did you do with the old axles?

[vhord]

Thanks Todd. It does feel good but it will feel better when I get the rest of the subfloor in and can start removing the rest of the inner skin. I am still not sure what kind of surprises I might find when I remove the next sheet of subfloor over the step assembly. Hopefully whatever is hanging up my step can be repaired easily (wishful thinking!).

My old axles are behind my hardward store in a pile with the old water heater, furnace, water pump, and etc. There are a couple of junk dealers that come by regularly to see if I have any scrap for them.

[vhord]

Today I sprayed the underside of the fenders with undercoater. I mainly did this to cover the white plastic look and also because they had some sort of undercoater on them before. I really do not know why.

My plans were to spray them, wait a little while for them to dry, then install them so I could put down more subfloor. When I discovered that they were not drying as fast as I had expected I decided to read the rest of the directions. Come to find out this stuff takes 36-48 hours to dry. Now I get to hurry up and wait!



I recently purchased something neat on Ebay. An original 1970 Texas Trailer license plate for five bucks! I changed my avatar to a picture of it. I think the 747 on the plate kind of goes with the Airstream aviation look! Too bad it wasn't "A 27 - 747" since my Overlander is 27'. Oh well, you can't have everything! I haven't been able to find out if I can use it as a vintage plate here in Texas or not. I know you can use them on cars, trucks, and motorcycles but do not know if they will let you use it on travel trailers. If not I will probably mount it on my propane bottles. More people will see it there anyway.

[utee94]

Very cool, Vernon. I hope they let you use it. Let us know, I might be interested in doing something similar.

-Marcus

[vhord]

Originally Posted by utee94

Very cool, Vernon. I hope they let you use it. Let us know, I might be interested in doing something similar.-Marcus

Thanks and I forgot to mention that on the 1970 plates the lettering was Airstream blue (or close to it!).

[vhord]

After installing all three of my rear subfloor sheets I started removing the front sections. I cut out a piece right inside the door and discovered some major rust out. I have not been able to find out the proper name for this item so I will just call it the step release assembly. It is welded in and extends about a foot past each side of the step outriggers. In the middle on the outside is a bent out lip that you pull out to release the steps. On both ends on the outside the metal is curved down to match the outriggers. Will I have to refabricate this or is this item available for purchase? The only other option that I can think of would be to weld in a patch and go on. What have some of you done?

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

[Jim & Susan]

Vern, take a look at http://www.airforums.com/forums/f36/...-39673-18.html begining at post 240 and see if it helps.

Jim

[vhord]

Originally Posted by Jim & Susan

Vern, take a look at http://www.airforums.com/forums/f36/...-39673-18.html begining at post 240 and see if it helps.

Jim

I have been keeping up with Todd's progress (fellow Texan!). His step release uses a type of trigger mechanism which I guess was used after 1970. Mine however has the inverted metal c-channel that is split down the middle of one of the legs that allows you to pull it out (flex out) to release the step. The channel is 4" wide with a 1" leg on the inside and about a 2" leg on the outside (the leg that is split).

The release is the lip that I hope you can see in this picture. It is in the center.



I know the step is rusted badly but that will be a piece of cake to repair.

[Jim & Susan]

I'd love to claim "fellow Texan" myself, but only lived there 10 years, courtesy of Uncle Sam.

I was just trying to suggest that it it might be easier to simply replace the step outriggers and mechanism (or maybe just the mechanism?) right now, since you have everything apart.

I love that tag, BTW. I thought of doing the same thing, but my Airstream is "too new" for the Georgia law right. The most recent year that you can legally place a vintage tag on a vehicle is, get this, 1970. If you were here, you'd be in like flint!

Good luck and keep us up to date.

Jim

[monocoque]

Vernon, it's difficult for me to see from the photos and the description what you're dealing with there as it's different from my assembly.

I wonder if there is anybody on the forum who has disassembled one of these step mechanisms for this model and would share photos?

I haven't seen anything like this on the ODM website either. Do you have the service manual for your model? Mine has a complete break-down of the main door step assembly.

BTW most experienced welders can work miracles with metal.

[Dan@LED4RV]

Originally Posted by vhord

In the middle on the outside is a bent out lip that you pull out to release the steps. On both ends on the outside the metal is curved down to match the outriggers. Will I have to refabricate this or is this item available for purchase? The only other option that I can think of would be to weld in a patch and go on. What have some of you done?

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

That part is not Available. I checked on that part for another fellow. Your release and step is differant from Todd's. Todd has the aluminum double step ADStep and this is the steel single step SSStep.

The thing that is worth noting here is about the outriggers.

Left side outrigger

Right side outrigger

The over all design of the outrigger is differant, but the slot that the step travels on is the same(or close enough to be interchanged). So, if anyone has the same style step as Vernon's (SSStep) here, that the outriggers listed above will work.

One of the things that I have always loved about Airstream are things like this. The SSStep(Vernon's step) was before the ADStep ( Todd's step) and the ADStep has a greater design need ( weight, distance, etc). They designed the ADStep on an exsiting design or did they. I have always wondered was the ADStep designed years before it was ever put into production.

Neat to think about, I think.

The other thing I found was the SSStep with this release/catch was always hard to work. I don't know how many years they used it but I feel they changed it because folks found it hard to work.

[vhord]

Originally Posted by Jim & Susan

I was just trying to suggest that it it might be easier to simply replace the step outriggers and mechanism (or maybe just the mechanism?) right now, since you have everything apart.

Jim

Thanks Jim,

That is another option. I am just not sure that I want to invest another $600 +/- for the complete assembly and outriggers. I guess it is only money but I would like to keep as much of it as I can. It kind of makes my axles look cheap for what you get!

Originally Posted by monocoque

Do you have the service manual for your model? Mine has a complete break-down of the main door step assembly. BTW most experienced welders can work miracles with metal.

Todd,
I don't have a service manual for my 1970 (I think I read that they didn't have one). I did borrow a 1974 manual but of course the step is different. I think that my welder friend and I could possibly fabricate a replacement. He always says if I can lay it out he will cut it and weld it. But then I might end up with something that will give me trouble from now on.

Originally Posted by Dan4odm

That part is not Available. I checked on that part for another fellow. Your release and step is differant from Todd's. Todd has the aluminum double step ADStep and this is the steel single step SSStep.

Dan,
You gave me the answer that I didn't want to hear but thank you for your knowledge. I may be contacting you for the complete assembly.

[vhord]

Do any of you have any pros or cons why I couldn't or shouldn't install a step like this? It would save me about $500. The only thing that I see is that it is 7" tall closed and the frame is 5". Therefore it would hang down 2" below the belly pan. The freshwater tank is next to it and it hangs down 1" already. This type is available in 20" wide as well as 21-1/2" (existing distance between the outriggers) and 24". I am removing both outriggers for repairs so when I put them back I could actually go with the wider step.

[utee94]

Originally Posted by vhord

Do any of you have any pros or cons why I couldn't or shouldn't install a step like this? It would save me about $500. The only thing that I see is that it is 7" tall closed and the frame is 5". Therefore it would hang down 2" below the belly pan. The freshwater tank is next to it and it hangs down 1" already. This type is available in 20" wide as well as 21-1/2" (existing distance between the outriggers) and 24". I am removing both outriggers for repairs so when I put them back I could actually go with the wider step.

Attachment 60873

I say save the money. Does it have a plate that goes below it to protect it and its mechanisms? If not, maybe fabricate one, weld it on, and be done with it.

That money could be spent on more interesting things, like POR-15 and Nuvite.

[Jim & Susan]

That looks an awful lot like the step used on the new model Airstreams. I say go for it and save the bucks.

Jim

[vhord]

The front c-channel seems to be held down by four steel drive rivets. Why did they use them there? The heads were extremely rusted so it was hard to tell exactly what they were. I ground the heads off but the subfloor is not going to move until I can get the rest out at least to the frame. I don't seem to be able to punch them on through like the bolts. I tried to drill them out but it is impossible to keep the bit centered even after using a center punch. Anyone have any good ideas on this?

[monocoque]

Originally Posted by vhord

The front c-channel seems to be held down by four steel drive rivets. Why did they use them there? The heads were extremely rusted so it was hard to tell exactly what they were. I ground the heads off but the subfloor is not going to move until I can get the rest out at least to the frame. I don't seem to be able to punch them on through like the bolts. I tried to drill them out but it is impossible to keep the bit centered even after using a center punch. Anyone have any good ideas on this?
Attachment 61282

That's a new situation to me? Are you able to see the bottom-side of the rivet from below? Why wouldn't you be able to pull the shank out from below with vice-grips?

Also if it's now free on top, head is ground off, why wouldn't you be able gently pry the floor up away from the frame to unstick the shank?

[Aerowood]

Originally Posted by vhord

The front c-channel seems to be held down by four steel drive rivets. Why did they use them there? The heads were extremely rusted so it was hard to tell exactly what they were. I ground the heads off but the subfloor is not going to move until I can get the rest out at least to the frame. I don't seem to be able to punch them on through like the bolts. I tried to drill them out but it is impossible to keep the bit centered even after using a center punch. Anyone have any good ideas on this?
Attachment 61282

I hope you are setting down when you read this so here it goes. Airstream did this just to piss you off. How they put this together is: frame and plywood floors attached with elevator bolts then "C" channel on top of elevator bolts and then the steel rivets going through the whole mess. the procedure that I did to remove the front floor was to first cut a big whole in the floor about 4 ft wide and 18 inches fore and aft in order to get a saws all in to first cut the fasteners between the frame and the plywood floor and then come back and cut between the "C" channel and the plywood. The assembly engineer that came up with this needs to be cut and bled out a bit. Good luck I spent the better part of a day getting this area apart.

Kip