Is this 1968 Overlander?

[JRF0st3r]

My brother nows owns Overlander Serial J 0265192 in spite of my advice. At least he paid very little for it. He was told it was a '68 but no title yet. He has not measured length yet. Of course it needs much work and many $ but he is told it was lived in parked, not much towing. He reports subfloor seems to be sound but I thought our '67 had a good subfloor at first. Interior fixtures are mostly absent.

Can you help us verify what the heck this is?
Thanks!
Jim

[rideair]

1965,

Stay Healthy,

[ROBERT CROSS]

26' 192 production number, built in Jackson Center Ohio.

Bob
🇺🇸

[BIGED52]

This trailer is Identified by the serial plate as the following:
J=Jackson Center, Ohio build factory.
O=Overlander, body.
26=Coach Length in feet.
5=Production year 1965.
192= Production/Build Number.

It is not a 1968 model as it has flat glass windows on the sides. !966 thru 1968 have curved glass with no window frames.
It has eye brow drip rails over the windows so definitely a 1965 trailer. When you measure it the length is checked by measuring from the rear bumper to the tow ball. It will not be exactly 26 feet + or - that is good to know too!
It also has the wrong ID plate to be '66 to '68 coach!

Hope this helps, Ed

[JRF0st3r]

Thanks guys!
Airstream Supply has Owner's Manuals for 1964 & 1966 26' twin Overlander but none for 1965. Should we order the '64 or '66 version?
Jim

[BIGED52]

JRFost3r, Have you tried looking at the Airstream website for manuals. I was to understand that many years were available thru that site. Ed

[BIGED52]

Originally Posted by JRF0st3r

Thanks guys!
Airstream Supply has Owner's Manuals for 1964 & 1966 26' twin Overlander but none for 1965. Should we order the '64 or '66 version?
Jim

Jim, Don't order the 1966 manuals as the '66,'67,'68 were the only years with curved frameless glass that matched the side panels of the trailers so they are totally different from the earlier years. And as a fact none since then as 1969 was the first year of the wider body style trailers. The Airstream Company Store site has a manuals section that refers owners to a web page that has many manuals and prices for copies that are not just owners manuals for the models/years but also for items such as: Carefree awnings, Dometic refrigerators, Armstrong air conditioners, Dometic Furnaces, Panel Ray heaters, etc. I was able to get many( Impossible to find) reprints of original manuals for my Safari. Hope this helps, Ed

[JRF0st3r]

Yep, I searched the Airstream website and its list of manuals does not include the '65 Overlander. An inquiry to Airstream was sent but if they don't respond soon I'll just order the '64 manual.
Thanks for your help!
Jim

[66Overlander]

Originally Posted by BIGED52

This trailer is Identified by the serial plate as the following:
J=Jackson Center, Ohio build factory.
O=Overlander, body.
26=Coach Length in feet.
5=Production year 1965.
192= Production/Build Number.

It is not a 1968 model as it has flat glass windows on the sides. !966 thru 1968 have curved glass with no window frames.
It has eye brow drip rails over the windows so definitely a 1965 trailer. When you measure it the length is checked by measuring from the rear bumper to the tow ball. It will not be exactly 26 feet + or - that is good to know too!
It also has the wrong ID plate to be '66 to '68 coach!

Hope this helps, Ed

Correction:
O = Land Yacht trim level, not Overlander

(And yes the "official" decidervon the Airstream website has this detail wrong.)

[JRF0st3r]

Joe,
Very interesting. The plate with the serial includes the words "Land Yacht" but there is also the name "Overlander" on the body, see attached. My Safari also has the words "Land Yacht" as well as "Safari" applied to it.
Thanks,
Jim

[dbj216]

Hello Jim: It's been a while. I think the 65 model year may be a better deal than the 66 through 68 trailers due to the window issues. You may remember I had a 66 Trade Wind 24' which I enjoyed working on a lot. I traded it for a 75 Overlander 27' because of the uniqueness of those windows in the 66. The 75 has been okay. It is now renovated and a very comfortable trailer, although not as special as the 66.

These last six months I've been working on a 76 Sovereign 31' that belongs to a friend of mine. It gives me something to do in my retirement. The 76 sure was built differently than the 75. Major changes to the frame and interior construction which I don't like as well.

Your brother plans on parking his Overlander at your place so you can renovate it for him. Go for it.

David

[JRF0st3r]

David,
It's great to hear from you!
Fortunately for me, my brother parks his trailer at his farm 12 hours away from Northwest Arkansas. Unfortunately for him, I can't help sharing lessons learned, making his project more expensive that what he had in mind.
Jim

[66Overlander]

Originally Posted by JRF0st3r

Joe,
Very interesting. The plate with the serial includes the words "Land Yacht" but there is also the name "Overlander" on the body, see attached. My Safari also has the words "Land Yacht" as well as "Safari" applied to it.
Thanks,
Jim

Hi Jim,
Overlander was the model name for the 26' Airstream from about 1956 thru 1968 and then the 27' model from 1969 thru 1977. Safari was the name of the 22'/23' model during approximately the same time period.

I believe that by 1965 all Airstreams bore a Land Yacht badge but the top of the line International trim level models had additional International badges on both sides that were not present on the then "base" Land Yacht trim level models.

Overall, the use of the name "Land Yacht" is a bit difficult to explain. It has come and gone a few times in Airstream badging over the years. Some years Land Yacht was a mid level trim level, some years the base trim level, some years it was a trailer or motorhome model, and some years it seems to have been used on all Airstreams.