What year Sovereign?

[blumob]

Hi,
I'v been a member of the forum for awhile and finally bought my Airstream lastnight.The title says 1973,the date of manufacture says 9-11-74, and the VIN 131-T5J-1626 represents that it is a 1975? Can anyone shed a little light on this?

[wasagachris]

I would guess that it is a 1975 manufactured in late 1974 that has been mistitled at one time over the years.

[blumob]

Thank You.Now I can concentrate on more pressing issues.It is a project which I think I got for a fair price,but it needs a complete bathroom and other work.But I'm happy to finally have found one I can call my own.

[wasagachris]

If you take written proof of the actual model year to the motor vehicle branch they should be able to amend the title to the correct year.
One way to know for sure is if the trailer has both a grey and black waste water tank. Airstream did not start using grey tanks until 1974 with the exception of the excella model which began in 1973 like mine.

[blumob]

Thanks, I'll have to check which waste water tanks I have and correct title if it is necessary.This is the kind of information which is invaluable and I'm going to be needing alot since I am going to try to do some work myself.

[wasagachris]

Here is a link to the Airstream web site with statistical information on 70's trailers:
Airstream, Inc :: Specs - 1970

owners manuals:
https://store.airstream.com/product_...roducts_id=384

and service manuals:

https://store.airstream.com/product_...products_id=96

Is yours a rear or center bath model?

[blumob]

It was a rear bath model,all the fixtures have been ripped out by PO.I'll attach some photos if you are interested.

[wasagachris]

Sure we all love pictures.
I just looked over the classifieds and there is a guy in Rochester looking to sell a complete rear bath from what he thinks is a late 60's Sovereign. Asking price is $350 but the ad is from May so he may take much less.
Rear Bath Sovereign Tub/ Sink/ Toilet Bathroom - Airstream Trailer Classifieds - Airstreams Trailers For Sale

You will need to log in to the classifieds section using your screen name and password to respond to his ad.

[blumob]

Thank you here are some photos

[Aage]

Wow, that's not so much of a project that I was expecting! I love that nice light colour of the interior bulkheads and furniture! Gorgeous, and very up-to-date, IMHO.

Sure, there is a bit of stuff missing in the rear bath, but that will look slick when you spiff it up a bit. Looks like it may have sat for a while, did the PO know much about it?

You are going to keep the interior, right? You better let me know if you aren't! I'm serious, by the way...

ps: you're right on with the VIN decoding, except that the first character is the letter "I".

[blumob]

Thanks for the encouragement, The PO paid off the storage fees at a campsite and was going to fix-it-up but with the addition of another child and buying a house he felt it was too much.The woman who abandoned it might have been a WBCCI member because there is a logo and number on front of trailer.Yes I am planing on preserving the interior, partly out of respect for the past and also for economy.I was thinking about thrifty ways to supply the fixtures.

[wasagachris]

I see some things in the pics you should check on. It looks like the floor has been replaced in the front and in the bathroom. The plywood is running front to back instead of the factory side to side pattern. Unless the interior skins(walls) were removed and the belly pan dropped to get at the bolts holding the floor to the frame, the floor may be improperly repaired. The floor is the main structural component connecting the shell (body) to the frame. It is imperitive that this connection be sound.
You should check for rear end seperation. Do a google search here on the forums on reaer end seperation. There are several good threads dealing with this issue. 70's 31fters are prone to having the shell seperate from the frame at the rear especialyy in rear bath models due to the extra weight at the back putting extra stres on this connection. You can doa quick check by jumping up and down on the rear bumper and watching for the shell to seperate from the frame.
I see an odd placement for the awning rail, it seems to be attached to the battery box door at the rear.
Yes those numbers are in fact membership numbers to the WBCCI and there is a thread here where you can request some history on those numbers. The club historian will research the numbers and can reveal who owned it nad if it went on any caravans.
From what I see it has the original water heater, oven, stove top, fridge and A/C units. I can't see if the furnace is original but probably given that all the rest are original. The shell looks to be in great shape as does the banana wraps in the front. The axle height looks good but they might be frozen in place. You should also check them out and make sure they have good travel up and down.
Even the windows look good including the front wing windows and the little stack windows on the side. I can't see the vista view windows as the shades are closed.

[blumob]

I started checking some of the issues you raised.Jumped on rear bumper,all seems in one piece.I see that only two panels of plywood flooring are in the wrong position(but still a concern)Was trying to determine if my trailer has two waste tanks(grey&black)?checked instructions and coulnn't locate valves.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Chris zeroed right in one what caught my eye in the photos. Does that floor go under the wall? The gap looks large.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by blumob

I started checking some of the issues you raised.Jumped on rear bumper,all seems in one piece.I see that only two panels of plywood flooring are in the wrong position(but still a concern)Was trying to determine if my trailer has two waste tanks(grey&black)?checked instructions and coulnn't locate valves.

Your grey tank dump valve is shown in this picture, so yes, you have one. The black tank sits directly under the toilet:

[blumob]

As far as I can tell it meets the wall.I could take some more detailed photos?I know the two panels in the front are not in the right direction(might have to do over)I could contact the PO and see exactly what he did to restore floor.

[wasagachris]

The floor sheets actually need to go under the walls and into a C channel. That channel is what the shell and the skins are riveted to. The floor and the channel are then bolted to the frame outriggers.

[blumob]

Well I decided to take up those two panels today.What type of plywood should I be using?Any other hints?

[wasagachris]

Originally Posted by blumob

Well I decided to take up those two panels today.What type of plywood should I be using?Any other hints?

There are as many answers to that question as there are members here.
The original was just regular plywood and lots of people use MARINE GRADE PLYWOOD (MGP). It is very expensive in comparison to regular.
So when you lifted those two panels how were they laid. Did they go into the c channel or were they just laid against the edge of the wall.
The first most forward sheet that is curved actually has the c channel sitting on top of the plywood floor. That is same for both the front end cap and the rear endcap.
The next section of floor and this is the same for all the floor sections along the straight sides of the trailer fit into a c channel. Actually the channel along the side is a double channel, one horizontal for the floor to fit into and one vertical for the skins and shell to rivet to.
This is what that double channel looks like.

[blumob]

Thanks, I'm going to do a little more looking now, If the flooring does go into the c-channel then how important is it to have the plywood face the other direction?