Am I dreaming?

[Happyjoemay]

Happy greetings from OK,
I have been living the riveted life for just over a year now. I have a 1972 Sovereign 31'. It has a scorching case of rear end sag. I have found a part, 104463 that I think is the c-channel for the rear end of my Sov. The descriptions I find say it is for a narrow body. I find it listed as a part to new Airstreams as well.
It is an inexpensive part but shipping is 10 times the amount of the product.
Here is the question. IS a 1972 Sovereign 31' considered a narrow body?
Woodland Airstream mentions the piece in it descriptions of the straight runs of the channel part, # 100986.
I have thought I was going to have to improvise this thing and may still. I'm hoping someone can verify that my body is narrow and any other information that gives me less fear of buying a piece of aluminum for $50, spending $500 to get it and then it being all wrong and it just goes into the beer can recycling bin.
Thanks!

[Happyjoemay]

One more question...
I currently have the last 4 feet of or so of my trailer torn down. There is no connection between the frame and the walls. The old floor is removed but I have a piece of plywood cut to the basic shape that fits in. I place jacks at the end of the frame "beams" and lift them to meet the body. This is what I assume I will do when I have the channel replaced and can bolt the floor, channel and frame together again and that then the interior and exterior walls will be riveted back. AND that it will all hold together??? it seems like a lot of stress pulling on the walls. Should the frame "beams" be stiffened by having some kind of a plate added to their sides or something?
Thanks again!!

[tjdonahoe]

Narrow body..Your frame is bent...50 yrs old.

[Bill M.]

Why is the shipping cost so high? If it is length can they cut it into 2 or 3 pieces first? Yeah, yours is a narrow body.

[Happyjoemay]

I would think that cutting it would be conducive to receiving it in a more usable form also. I can't imagine how it could be shipped in it full shape and size. But, at that price, it must be in a 8 foot by 8 foot box, thus the crazy cost.

[B. Cole]

I've got a old Landyacht also.Lucky my frame is ok.You might, being in OKlahoma, find a oilfield welder with truck mounted unit, who would want a side project.
He could fabricate a replacement for that rear section.As light and basically weak as these frames are, he could really beef it up.
I call these things bed frames lol
These days, lot of guys could use the extra $$$
Just a thought.

[kidjedi]

Make sure you address the issues with the actual frame before putting the deck and shell back together.

imo, fixing the frame is more important than purchasing the exact right "original" piece of channel (vs. just using something similar that will work).

[Foiled Again]

Agree FIX FRAME FIRST.

A.skilled aluminum worker can make C-channel. Ask for a PM (private message) from anyone in your immediate area who can do the work or find someone qualified to help.to do so.

AIRFRAME MECHANIC- is someone with the right skills and tools.