'70s curtain track bracket question

[blickcd]

On the straight runs of lower curtain track, what keeps the track from sliding around? The tension of the drapes when in place? Crimping an end bracket?

[moparjohn]

Are you talking lounge area or bedroom? bedroom on my 73 has a largish, shelf like aluminum track held in by srews, the lower curtain tabs insert into the track. Up fron a thin/small thrack is supported by aluminum brackets to the walls. MPJ

[blickcd]

I need to know abot the lower tracks in the living room. The only lower track there still in place is the curved one for the front window. It is held in place with these brackets that stand it off from the wall about an inch on the sides and more in the front. Brackets are about 1-1/4" long.

I am getting ready to make a new set of drapes that match the original style and have lower track to install on the side living room windows. Screws are still there in the wall where a bracket of some sort was.

I have the shelf-style bracket extrusion you described, which I assume is cut into shorter brackets, 3 for one window and 4 for another, based on holes.

Should this extrusion be cut the full length of the track? No a problem, but still, since the curtain track slides onto this bracket, what locks it in place?

You can describe for me the mounting of the lower track in your bedroom if you want, though chances are I will orik on that next year.

[blickcd]

I may have answered my own question in looking up some curtain photos and looking closely at the lower track. Seems the stand-off extrusion is continuous and mated with the track. That assembly is then trimmed off by a thin wide aluminum extrusion with a laminate insert, which wraps both ends, locking the track in place.

Since I don't have all those extra trim pieces I'll probably go with smaller cut brackets since they seem to work on a front window, and maybe secure one bracket to the track with a dab of liquid nail, letting the others 'float' for any expansion and contraction.

[Lothlorian]

all orginal curtain rods, brackets and tabs we purchase from Inland RV. They sent us everything we needed. Take meaurements and submitt pics of what you need and they will take care of you.

Brian

[maccamper]

In our 1974 Ambassador, the lower curtain track behind our front gaucho is attached to 1 inch wide aluminum brackets that are attached to the wall. The brackets hold the track out about 2 1/2 inches from the wall behind the gaucho.

Under our street side windows and the window on the curb side (by the entrance) the track is the same but the brackets are shorter (about one inch) so they don't hold the track as far from the wall.

(In theory), the entire curtain track is mounted the same height from the floor all the way around -- from the street side windows around behind the gaucho and over to the window by the door. The track is 3 separate extrusions joined at brackets. Each open end of the street side and curb side track is curved back towards the wall with a track end stop (screw and nut) put in place after the curtains are slid in the track.

The groove for the sliders on the lower curtain tracks face out or sideways(versus up or down) and take the "G" type sliders versus the "T" type sliders like the top track.

The bracket is sometimes referred to as a "drapery standoff" and is available at places like Inland RV and Vintage Trailer.

This is what we have in our 1974. Hope it helps.

Nancy Mac

[dkrukosky]

Originally Posted by maccamper

In our 1974 Ambassador, the lower curtain track behind our front gaucho is attached to 1 inch wide aluminum brackets that are attached to the wall. The brackets hold the track out about 2 1/2 inches from the wall behind the gaucho.

Under our street side windows and the window on the curb side (by the entrance) the track is the same but the brackets are shorter (about one inch) so they don't hold the track as far from the wall.

(In theory), the entire curtain track is mounted the same height from the floor all the way around -- from the street side windows around behind the gaucho and over to the window by the door. The track is 3 separate extrusions joined at brackets. Each open end of the street side and curb side track is curved back towards the wall with a track end stop (screw and nut) put in place after the curtains are slid in the track.

The groove for the sliders on the lower curtain tracks face out or sideways(versus up or down) and take the "G" type sliders versus the "T" type sliders like the top track.

The bracket is sometimes referred to as a "drapery standoff" and is available at places like Inland RV and Vintage Trailer.

This is what we have in our 1974. Hope it helps.

Nancy Mac

Any chance you can tell me how many of each of the tabs you have on each window? our camper did not come with any curtains but the tracks are good.

[webspinner]

The tabs generally are attached to the curtains wherever there is a pleat, and the number of pleats depends on their spacing and the length of the track. On my curtains, I sewed the pleats about 3" apart, using triple pleats of about 1" deep.

For shallower pleats or single or double pleats, you might place the pleats closer together, depending on how much fullness you want your curtains to have when closed.

[maccamper]

Originally Posted by dkrukosky

Any chance you can tell me how many of each of the tabs you have on each window? our camper did not come with any curtains but the tracks are good.

I'd follow webspinner's suggestion and put them at the pleats. The original curtains in our Airstream had Velcro where each panel joined the other to avoid gaps in between the panels.

We used Sunbrella awning fabric for our mid galley windows so I didn't put pleats in them -- fabric is too stiff. I spaced the tabs about 3 inches apart -- leaving room for some overlap on the edges.

We have an "interim" solution on our living room/dining windows right now. They are a softer fabric and lined but don't have pleats either. I've purchased some of the Warm Window insulated product like Tinloaf used for his new drapes. So, making new drapes is on my "to do" list. I hope mine turn out as nicely as his did.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f39/...t-61003-4.html

Warm Window Treatment Insulated Shades

nancy mac

[dkrukosky]

I was just hoping to get an idea of how many I would need so I can order them ahead of starting to make the drapes. Also an idea of how much fabric would be very helpful.
another question is it possible to some how have two sets of curtains on the track one transparent set for keeping the light and one for black out?

[webspinner]

The two sets of curtains would require two sets of tracks. It's not possible to pull on curtain along a track without also pulling the other one.

As far a fabric yardage goes, that depends on what fabric you want, how much pleating you want, how much window area you want covered and how wide the fabric is. From there, it's just a matter of gathering information with a tape measure and punching numbers into a calculator.

First, figure out how many inches of track you'll be making curtains for.

Then figure out whether you want pleats and how close together you want them. I did triple pleats every three inches. This means I needed two drapery hooks and two track slides (one at the top, one at the bottom) for each pleat. As an amateur working on my curtains, I found that I couldn't calculate exactly the number of pleats, so I left about a foot of extra fabric on each side of what I had calculated would be the right number. Until you've worked with your own fabric and your own pleating, it's hard to know exactly how much width you're going to end up with once the pleating is done.

If you have 100 inches of track, for instance, and you are doing a pleat or an attachment every three inches, you would need 100/3 or 34 (always round up) for the bottom and another 34 for the top. Add a couple of extra in case your pleats end up closer together and you have an idea of what you need.

For calculating fabric, look at how much fabric any pleating will take up. If you do one pleat that's 1/2" deep, that will add an inch (the pleat goes out and back, so 1/2" + 1/2" = 1") every time you have a pleat. If, using the above example, you calculate that you will have 34 pleats, add 34 inches to your 100 inches of track, and you'll need 134 inches of width to cover your window. Add a foot on either side for "oops the pleats took up a bit more fabric than I'd planned" and for hems and you have a rough idea of how much fabric width you'll need. If your fabric width is such that you are really close to having exactly the width you think you need, be very careful with your measurements.

How much yardage depends first on the width of your fabric. If, in the example above, your windows are 24" high and your fabric is 54" wide, you would need three fabric widths to get enough for the coverage and the pleats and extra on each side.

The next thing your yardage depends on is the height of your windows. If each window is 2 feet high, and you add 6 inches top and bottom for the deep, double fold hem that pleats can use (I folded mine over stiffening tape from the drapery section of my local fabric store), that adds 6" to top and bottom and brings your fabric height to 36". So you would need 3 yards of fabric.

But you can see that a lot of variables enter into each situation. Only you know what you want to work with and how much you have to cover. Every variable (number of pleats, spacing of pleats, width of fabric) makes a big difference in yardage requirements.