'70 Caravanner shell off for subfloor replacement?

[Jeremy9107]

All. I have had this beauty for 5 years and camping has been wonderful... but for a number of reasons I am thinking of a winter time restoration project.

I was considering doing this as a frame on restoration but...

I was expecting the subfloor to be recessed in a C channel, but when I took the banana wraps off the rear I found something different (see pic). I'm assuming the shell is sitting on top of the subfloor and bolted around the perimeter through a ledge attached to the shell? So I guess that means I have to take the shell off if I want to replace the subfloor. Do I have to remove the interior skins to access the bolts? And if so, how much of those skins do I have to remove?

Thanks for the help.

[J. Morgan]

It can be done shell on, but either way the interior walls have to come out.

[Belegedhel]

You will have to remove all of the lower-most interior skins to get at the fasteners (bolts and screws) that attach the C-channel to the floor/frame. The interior skins may overlap from top to bottom, necessitating removing more than just the lower most ones. Besides, onces you see the mouse habitrails in your insulation, you will want to remove everything anyway.

There are people who replace their floors with the shell on, but in my opinion, it is the more difficult way to go. If you have the space to lift the shell, I would say this is the prefered path. Build some gantry frames, lift the shell, then use the gantry frames to lift and flip the frame during frame repair and painting. It really makes the job a lot easier not to be lying on your back with crap falling on your face.

good luck!

[Jeremy9107]

Thanks. You have confirmed my suspicions and I will head towards the shell off path. I do suspect I will find other things to fix and replace, thus was hoping to leave shell on. Ignorance is bliss as they say.

[Belegedhel]

A vintage trailer is like an onion. The more layers you go through, the more you cry....

Good luck!

[J. Morgan]

I would pull off some belly skins and maybe some plywood flooring before I decided on a shell off.

I would want to know that the frame needed a lot of work before I would jump into that.

I didn’t do a shell off, and I was camping in a fully functional trailer 120 days from gutting the interior.

What is your timeframe, and what is your tolerance toward an extended project?

[Jeremy9107]

J.Morgan. Help me out cause I can't think of how I can replace the floor when the shell is sitting on top of it in this manner unless I take the shell off.

[Aerowood]

I did a shell on on my GT, it really wasn’t that big of a deal. I also did some frame repairs. As stated above, it really depends on the condition of the frame.

[J. Morgan]

Originally Posted by Jeremy9107

J.Morgan. Help me out cause I can't think of how I can replace the floor when the shell is sitting on top of it in this manner unless I take the shell off.

Leave the edges of the plywood under the c-channel, until you are ready to replace one sheet at a time, only then removing the edge of the plywood.

I replaced only the back sheet of plywood and the edges around the front windows and where the refrigerator sat. The rest of my original plywood was sound.

Frankly, I think that even if a person removed all of the plywood, the shell wouldn’t fall more than could be dealt with by using common common pry tools to open the gap. The shell isn’t really that heavy.

[J. Morgan]

When I was young I used to think “just take everything apart and totally rebuild everything”, now older, and maybe wiser, I try to focus on what needs to be done and getting a project out of the garage and on the road where it can be enjoyed.

Not pulling the shell was a shortcut that allowed me to go camping 120 days from purchase, with a full gut and total interior refit in the middle.

No, my frame is not a sanitary glossy black, but who will see my frame anyway?

[barts]

If much of the floor is shot and rotten out to the edges - a shell off will be a less frustrating approach, assuming you have a dry place and the requisite help/lifting ability. On the other hand, if you're looking at localized damage w/o too much under the walls, you can fit replacements sections w/o removing the shell, saving an considerable amount of time and work. You won't know what you have until you can evaluate the condition of the entire floor.

We were able to replace the localized damage in our floors, and repair the rear end separation w/o removing the shell. Your mileage may vary.

- Bart

[Jeremy9107]

So that makes sense on how you replace subfloor without taking shell off. I wasn't sure if cutting and piecing a subfloor together did anything to the structural integrity.

Another thing I have to consider is I am putting in a gray tank, so have to pull the floor up to see where I can manage to place it. Or if someone had a photo of what the frame looks like in a '70 Caravanner maybe I wouldn't have to do it...

[J. Morgan]

Originally Posted by barts

If much of the floor is shot and rotten out to the edges - a shell off will be a less frustrating approach, assuming you have a dry place and the requisite help/lifting ability. On the other hand, if you're looking at localized damage w/o too much under the walls, you can fit replacements sections w/o removing the shell, saving an considerable amount of time and work. You won't know what you have until you can evaluate the condition of the entire floor.

We were able to replace the localized damage in our floors, and repair the rear end separation w/o removing the shell. Your mileage may vary.

- Bart

Except replacing the edges of a few pieces of plywood can be done in the day it takes to build the gantries to lift the shell, and for less money.

[J. Morgan]

Originally Posted by Jeremy9107

So that makes sense on how you replace subfloor without taking shell off. I wasn't sure if cutting and piecing a subfloor together did anything to the structural integrity.



Another thing I have to consider is I am putting in a gray tank, so have to pull the floor up to see where I can manage to place it. Or if someone had a photo of what the frame looks like in a '70 Caravanner maybe I wouldn't have to do it...

I used plywood cleats under the floor, glued and screwed to the old and the new pieces, any impact on structural integrity is minimum worst case. I am four years in now with heavy use. No problems.

[Aerowood]

I replaced the end sheets first. I then left the center of the trailer float. The sides will flex out allowing the sheets to just pop in. Really easy actually. I was originally just going to replace the rear sheet only but it was so simple to replace it all I just went for it. No need to make it harder then it really is. Most people have a tendency to over complicate this easy task.

[Aerowood]

I took the sheets forward of the end pieces first then R&Red the ends first