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Old 06-24-2017, 08:01 PM   #1
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denver , North Carolina
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just got our first airstream not sure what to repair first

Hi all we just got a 1973 excela that needs total reno. Is there a book that can be recommended or website with step by step instructions. There are no electrical directipns and it needs total overhaul. What is first thing to do? Thanks
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Old 06-24-2017, 08:18 PM   #2
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Hi

Do you plan to do it all your self or contract out the "heavy lifting" ?

Bob
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Old 06-24-2017, 08:27 PM   #3
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Not sure what the heavy lifting part eould be exactly. There is so much to. But the floors are solid. That is only part I know is fine
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Old 06-24-2017, 08:48 PM   #4
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Hi

Well pulling things apart to replace the floors would be heavy lifting in my book. Has anybody done an inspection to give you an idea of what needs to be done?

Bob
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Old 06-25-2017, 04:03 AM   #5
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Welcome to the forum! Glad to hear the floors are "solid . . . fine."

You have asked questions which invite a host of answers, and complex ones at that. FWIW here are some search results which may point the way to good information:

"Airstream renovation": https://www.google.com/search?q=airs...utf-8&oe=utf-8
"Amazon book Airstream renovation": https://www.google.com/search?q=amaz...utf-8&oe=utf-8

From the latter search results, I have seen this book mentioned here a few times:

https://www.amazon.com/Restoring-Dre.../dp/1480280577

. . . and here are posts on this site discussing the above book:

https://www.google.com/search?q=rest...=airforums.com

Lastly, if you go "up" to this sub-forum's list of topics:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f44/

. . . there is a Sticky Topic thread at the top called List of Major Renovations which contains useful links:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f44/...ons-35399.html

. . . and the last post on this thread, for a '67 Ambassador, is recent:

[click on arrow in quote to go there]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jhiner1978 View Post
I just posted a long update on my build http://www.airforums.com/forums/f174...es-168216.html

If you have already seen the sources above, sorry for the duplication, but good search results are often the best initial renovation "tools" IMO.

Good luck!

Peter

PS -- Lastly, the search function here in the blue box above works very well, and will give Google-powered results from this site only.
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Old 06-25-2017, 07:47 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by volleylbiggs View Post
Hi all we just got a 1973 excela that needs total reno. Is there a book that can be recommended or website with step by step instructions. There are no electrical directipns and it needs total overhaul. What is first thing to do? Thanks
Go to the specific forum for your trailer...there are literally 100's of re-do's. Everyone different and yet they are all the same.

Do a search for the "full monty" you will get many ideas there. Good luck!
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Old 06-25-2017, 08:24 AM   #7
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Is the 1973 Excella considered a "500?" Possible sub-forums to check out:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f26/
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f261/

For instance, here is a very long '74 Excella rebuild thread:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f261...sis-72306.html

Good luck!
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Old 06-25-2017, 12:02 PM   #8
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1973 25' Tradewind
Redding , California
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12v system

The first thing we did was replace the univolt and all the bulbs with LED. If your trailer has a univolt this is a fairly easy way to get your feet wet. It's fairly easy, there are tons of forum posts about it, and we found it allowed us to work on the trailer at night when it was cooler (it's going to 113F here today).

after that we went through each system to see what worked... we ended up deciding to gut the thing.
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Old 06-25-2017, 02:29 PM   #9
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Not sure what the heavy lifting part eould be exactly. There is so much to. But the floors are solid. That is only part I know is fine
Have you checked all around the exterior where the floor goes under the wall? That is the most critical part because the floor is part of the attachment of shell to frame. The other thing I would check is that the frame is not rusted to the point where it has been weakened.
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Old 06-26-2017, 06:27 AM   #10
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Barrie , Ontario
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Reno

Quote:
Originally Posted by volleylbiggs View Post
Hi all we just got a 1973 excela that needs total reno. Is there a book that can be recommended or website with step by step instructions. There are no electrical directipns and it needs total overhaul. What is first thing to do? Thanks
I bought a book from AS at Jackson Center for my 1978 it shows how to take it all apart down to the frame step by step, I think I paid $60 something for it and they mailed it to me. Even if you don't do the work yourself it's handy to see how it all works . Good luck !
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Old 06-26-2017, 09:40 PM   #11
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1959 24' Tradewind
Twin Falls , Idaho
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Search function is your best friend

Welcome and enjoy. This is the place with the most information you will find on the net. There's some Facebook sites popping up for AS, but zero with as much content as you'll find on here

Near the top/middle of the is the search area. There are so many things to learn and it's fun, well to me it is. Post some pictures so people know what you have to deal with and well, just because we like to look at what others have. I have a 1959 Tradewind that we're doing the "Full Monty" restore/update on by ourselves. The shell is currently sitting on a few furniture dolly's and the frame freshly painted with POR-15.

You can find most of your answers by seeing what others have done and with pictures (Usually) when your searching for something, some are similar results, some are different in the way they went about fixing it.

The first thing I would do is do a very thorough inspection, if you can gain access through the belly pan to get a visual of the frame that would be great. Check your floors really well, take an awl, poke in the cabinets close to the walls and around "Wet" areas. I haven't seen one that hasn't had some form of water damage, how ever minor.

Have fun on your adventure
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Old 06-26-2017, 11:29 PM   #12
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Calgary , Alberta
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Searching around here is better then any books.
I'd suggest overloading on looking and reading through forum searches. ( best done from google searching - airforum floor replacement- as example)

Search every question you have they have all been asked hundreds of times and the answer are here.

Any airstream from that era needs a full Monty IMO.

Good luck!!
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Old 06-26-2017, 11:46 PM   #13
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https://hofarc.com/ooh-that-smell/

Good starting read...
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Old 06-27-2017, 07:58 AM   #14
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Hi

One thing that has not been mentioned is a trailer inspection. There is a list here on the forum of members willing to do that sort of thing. My guess is that you would get far more useful information that way than from just about any other source. It would be specific to your case and likely would focus you on the high priority issues.

Bob
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Old 06-28-2017, 06:49 AM   #15
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Quote:
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Excellent site for ideas alone...
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