1984 Airstream 345 owner (Newbie) need advice!

[Mike Leary]

I replaced my dual horns last year with "The Persuader Extreme" by Wolo. They were a perfect match for my original horns so I could use the roof mounts. I got them on-line from Car Parts, Auto Parts, Truck Parts, Supplies and Accessories - Autobarn.com

They were around $100.00 work great!

[Keyair]

I know Dave...
The fronts I got when I bought it, so now 2 years old, what was on the front is now on the tag, so I think they are now 4, and the drive axles I think are 6 now, but need to check.

Thanks for the Info Mike, I know where to go if I fail in my restoration...

The horn body has soaked in derust for a few hours and looks much better.
I am planning to clean the points on it with some emery paper or a points file.... Ah, the good old days... then reassemble it and see if there is any joy..
The paper gaskets between the diaphram and body are unavailable, so I will have to make some..

So yesterday was a mixture of failure and success...

I got some more of the body buffed out, and also managed to finally strip the genset door... Not sure what the scoops are made of, but it would not polish, and remained steadfastly satin! Maybe I will leave them like that, as I kinda like the contrast!
The upperdoor was tricky too... cos its so flimsy, but I managed to get a bit of a shine on it.



Now onto my failures...
In polishing the Cab roof... I made an error..
As I pulled back with the compounding buffer spinning at 3000rpm to reload with Black Bar, I forgot the bodyside mounted Radio Antenna was right by my elbow.... In the blink of an eye, I turned it into a coathanger!
Not a huge deal, as it was not pretty, but I since realized it was also a Toploaded CB antenna too...
Too embarrassed to post a pic!

[Keyair]

Maybe I will do away with the the dual antenna and also the splitter box I found under the dash and get a K40 or Firestick and get the job done right!



Now onto my other failure...
My LED Tail lamp conversion..
Now let me make the statement right now that electrics are not my strongest suit...
I tested the lights on the bench, and they worked fine...
Lets recap...
102 LED 1157 dual output bulb.. Painted the cans with chrome paint



But when I put them in the Airstream, I can't get them to work properly..
I get brake or blinker function, but no lights...
I tested the sockets and they work fine... and with normal bulbs all is normal, but as soon as I put the LED's in, I get only brights...
Puzzled...

Good news is that with the painted cans the bulbs are still much brighter!

[Keyair]

Well, despite trying I have been unable to get the Horns working properly...
They are both making much more noise than before, but not what they should be doing... I have put them away for now... maybe someone knows how to fix them?

I found these 2 websites dedicated to repairing Sparton or similar Horns ...
Trumpet horn restoration
Horn Repair

Yesterday, I did the final prep for the storage move.
Everything was packed for travel, and as a result, I was able to fully test the brakes in anger.
The beast stopped clean and straight, and I whilst I did not lock the wheels on the blacktop, I could on the gravel.

A few days ago I spotted some coolant dripping from the passenger side mounted heater box area under the hood, but I was unable to replicate yesterday, but will be keeping a close eye on the thing... maybe it was a hose...

Today, I am going to take a shot at building an Adaptor Plate to allow me to mount the Velvac mirrors to the original mounting holes...
More later!

[Mike Leary]

Originally Posted by Keyair

Well, despite trying I have been unable to get the Horns working properly...

I fooled around with mine until I did the adult thing: bought fresh horns. Plus, they are sooo shiney!

[Keyair]

Yup, I know I will have to, but the $$ are needed elsewhere for now...
I have put them under my Bench in the "Fix or toss box".
I want some of those Train Horns on the roof one day!

Had an interesting day yesterday...
I was doing the interior tidy up ready to move... and heard a voice calling "Hello?"..
Came out, and there was a couple of nice Ladies waiting for me...
They were over getting their stuff ready to move too, but had spotted my M/H and both are Airstream fans!
I gave them the full tour, and we chatted for ages!
One of the Ladies has a 31' Airstream Trailer in the midst of a resto it seems.
Great people and we are now connected!

I have a question/statement...
This thread is getting long, and only gonna be longer, as I tend to use it as a blog, and I hope I am not boring people with my trivia!
I thought it was better to keep my whole story in one place...

Is that ok with most of you??

[Mike Leary]

Originally Posted by Keyair

Is that ok with most of you??

Yup, as long as you can handle good-natured jabs to the ribs every once in a while.

[crazeevw]

Steve, please keep all of your trials and tribulations right here. At least this way I know which thread to visit FIRST, before venturing out to the others, lol
Thanks, Derek

[PeterH-350LE]

Originally Posted by Keyair

Some more polishing... almost done with the first hit..
Stll a little swirly, but I think its an improvement...

When I bought it...'
Now...

Even got a shine on the Banks tip

Looking nice, how many hours did it take you to this point ?

[Keyair]

Ok, just checking...

I am well able to handle the pokes Mike, don't worry!
I see them as Encouragment!

As far as Polishing hours go... I have no idea, as so far it been strung out over months...
Maybe 50 or so... really I have no idea... and those of you that have done it, I bet you have no idea really...
My GF will tell you, I disappear saying I will be back later... only to have her call me and ask when I am coming home for dinner... "Oh, about 5-30", I say... she replies... "Well, its 7-30, so you missed that!".
I always have a few beers in the freezer compartment cos that cools fastest, and a few snack bars to keep me going.

Once I start, the hours just melt away... but the next day the arms tell me a different story!
I think my second HF buffer is getting tired, either that, or the AC current from the Genset is a little weak...

GF and I spent a couple of hours on the M/H today.
We decided where the TV's are gonna be mounted, and a bunch of storage issues.
We made a list of stuff that we need too,and generally did a work up ready for or trips... It was fun!

[Mike Leary]

You now have a new handle,:"Swirly" We'll be in Flagstaff the middle of September until the snow flies in November. We're friends of the campground owner, so take a cruise, give a post and we'll find you a spot.

[Keyair]

Originally Posted by Mike Leary

You now have a new handle,:"Swirly" We'll be in Flagstaff the middle of September until the snow flies in November. We're friends of the campground owner, so take a cruise, give a post and we'll find you a spot.

LOL, Swirly...
I like that!
Sounds like a plan Mike, we can stop by on the way to see my son is Pheonix!

Ok, I promised some progress...

A few months back I got some Velvac Mirrors...
They are much bigger and also have different mounting points as well as needing to move the position some..
A refresher...



Original...
On the Pass side...




New mirror foot in comparison...


Now, onto the Drivers side...
I decided to use the lower forward Original hole to index the new mirror with the old... But none of the others lined up.


Now, also, the bodywork curves inward, which also tilts the new mirror inward...

Not acceptable.



Now I needed a plan, and today I moved forward on the drivers side as its the simpler one..

[Mike Leary]

Seal it with Parbond, and you're good to go. Don't seal the drain on the bottom.

[Keyair]

After much thought I went forward..
Here is what I did...
Build an "Interface plate"...

Normally, I would have taken a block of aluminum and milled it... but I don't have access to that equipment, so it was time to fabricate something that will be a test piece and and also fully functional and visually ok..

Planning sketch... and template..


Started with some 18G steel.


Now, I made 2 plates... the Left plate is drilled to bolt to the original holes in the bodywork... and the Right plate is drilled to mount the Velvac Mirror.


Used the mounting bolts to set up the captive nuts...


Welded the nuts on the mirror side, and then began building the angle that will tilt the mirror upright..
Note that there is no nut on the front lower hole, as the bolt will go right thru and thread into the body.


Fabricated the top curve plates...


Then the bottom...


Then tacked on the body plate..


Now bolted the mirror and plate assembly together it will begine to make sense..




More welding work to do and more holes to drill, but I think you can see what I did now...
The plan is to put a skim of bondo on to smooth and blend...

FYI, to get the mirror upright, the wedge needs to be 1/2" wider at the top.

More later..

[masseyfarm]

You are busy!

Now, while you are still in the design stage, why not build in a LED signal/marker lamp on the bottom of the mount and a small flag holder on the front side.

Dave


[QUOTE=Keyair;1159431]After much thought I went forward..
Here is what I did...
Build an "Interface plate"...

[Mike Leary]

Since I just installed a new Velvac mirror that fits fine, I realized the base on yours is larger, therein the problem with mounting. Leave it to you to figure a way to square it away!

[Keyair]

Great minds think alike Dave!

I was looking at it this morning and had the Idea to drill a hole in the top of the box to mount the CB antenna!
Still have to cut a large hole in the center of the box to route the wires thru as well as access the body mounting bolts.
The mirrors are powered and heated, but for now I will use them manually.

I also had plans to add a sidemarker/Blinker to it, but there is a place on the lower mirror arm already for it,like a knock out.
This will more it outboard more and so more visible.

Just FYI, I spotted that I used the pass side mirror for the drivers side interface plate... You can see the mirror is offset inboard.. which is not the way it should be.

I am gonna go over and do a test fit today before I do any more...

[Keyair]

Yes, I saw that Mike...
I got these Mirrors very cheap, so am happy to put a little time and brain power into making them work!

The passenger side is gonna be very different tho... The mirror is going to be offset rearward by about 4" and the interface plate will be thicker... about 2" at the base is my best guess. This is due to the arm of the Awning sticking out and obstructing the view.
Today when I test the drivers side I will try it on the pass side and get a better idea.

About the only thing I have not decided is color...
Leave them black... paint them all silver metalic... or black base and silver mirror housing?

[Mike Leary]

For anyone who does not have time on their hands, the Velvac "Star" mirrors that fit our coaches are #712788 with the "Wedge" convex, or #712806 with the full width convex.
I like the black finish.

[Keyair]

Good info Mike...

Test fit went well...

Here is the Original Mirror on the drivers side..



And for fun, here is the "Field of vision" it gave..


Now compare that with the field of vision for the newly mounted mirror..


Not sure if its clear from the picture, but its a HUGE difference!

Now to the details...
Test mounted the plate... I had rough cut the holes for wiring and body screw access..



I test fitted the mirror..
Position looks great and the mirror sits upright... despite my lopsided pics!