End Cap Cracking (HELP)

[TylerG]

Hi there,

Both my end caps have this "tear" at the corner where the cabinets meet the plastic. My plan is to paint the end caps. Does anyone have any tips to fix these cracks/tears?





Thank you
T

[Lumatic]

First drilll a hole at the end of the crack to keep it from running. I would then try a paste epoxy to fill the crack.

[Al Zeppelin]

Are the cabinets secured? Looks they are pulling off of the wall and taking the plastic with it.

[TylerG]

Originally Posted by Al Zeppelin

Are the cabinets secured? Looks they are pulling off of the wall and taking the plastic with it.

That's a great question. I will have to take a look. I am not sure how the cabinets are secured. Is this something you can see from opening the cabinets or would I have to remove the nose cap(Not something I hear is easy to do)?

[rideair]

Looks to me like the cabinet has pulled it away. I would remove the cabinet to relieve the pressure or figure a way to push it back up in place, then do what others stated about drill a small hole at the end of the crack to stop it from getting bigger and epoxy.

Good Luck

[TylerG]

Originally Posted by rideair

Looks to me like the cabinet has pulled it away....

Good Luck

I have taken a look and I think the cabs are floating. Attached only to the nose cap. Is there anyone that could confirm how they attached the cabs in the nose caps of a 90's airstream??? For me to really take a look I would have to completely remove the nose cap which for obvious reason have little interest in doing if I am correct about how they are mounted.

Does anyone know what the nose caps are made of?

[BigAl]

I've read elsewhere on the forum that they are made of ABS plastic. What I would like to know is what is behind the end cap. Is there an aluminum skin back there or just the frame of the trailer?
Al

[Lumatic]

Originally Posted by BigAl

I've read elsewhere on the forum that they are made of ABS plastic. What I would like to know is what is behind the end cap. Is there an aluminum skin back there or just the frame of the trailer?
Al

In general there is no frame or interior skin to support the exterior end caps. I am not sure if the interior end caps have their own support frame but I doubt it and think they are probably free floating.

[Dan and Liz]

I had this problem and hear it is common. I stop-drilled, filled with some Kwik epoxy, riveted small aluminum reinforcement patches over the cracks and painted them. Color doesn’t exactly matches, but the cracks haven’t grown in about 5 years.

[Bob Blarney]

It appears that the first job is to stabilize or remove the cabinets. After that, there is All-Purpose Bondo for wood and other materials that would probably do well for repairing the crack. You can see in another thread where I rebuilt the corners of the skylight garnish/bezels with the Bondo. It worked very well.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f39/...ml#post2125575

[Steve Bryant]

I have removed my rear end cap and am working on a solution to structurally support the cabinet. It's a very poor design. The cabinet is only supported by the plastic...that's the problem.

[Steve Bryant]

Originally Posted by Steve Bryant

I have removed my rear end cap and am working on a solution to structurally support the cabinet. It's a very poor design. The cabinet is only supported by the plastic...that's the problem.

Here are some pictures.

[Steve Bryant]

I finished febuilding/improving my end cap and I'm pleased with the results. I'll do a thread on the details later.