Been working on the Silver Beast for the past week. I kinda knew the trailer would be in rough shape, based on the reading I've done lurking on various Airstream blogs and chat groups. Well, at least there isn't s#@!t to clean up! (Although I did take out the toilet and what to my wondering eyes should appear? The last schmuck who owned this trailer never dumped the black tank. Yes, correct. S.C.H.M.U.C.K.)
All the furniture is out. Most is garbage, mainly because it STINKS of I don't know what. It's like old, sour wood. Maybe the glues used in '74 have decayed over time. Who knows. I've stored a bunch of them for templates, which should come in handy.
All the electric wires have been exposed and labelled. I'm trying to wrap my head around schematic drawings. Luckily for me, my neighbor Hardy is a Swiss-trained electrical genius. A few cases of Sleemans Honey Brown and he'll be more than willing to help. It's his favorite. He literally has cases of empties stored in his garage.
There are leaks, as I knew there'd be. Not too many, which is great, but it's all relative. I'll be drilling out old rivets til the cows come home, and then replacing them (applying caulking as well). There's no point in doing this with half your bum cut off. "Why do it right when you can do it cheaper," is not the motto for this job. "Cheaper, faster, better." You can never have all three.
I removed my first panel today (after drilling out about 30 rivets). As I pulled back the pink insulation, the shiny exterior skin winked back at me. No leaks streaks, but oddly enough, the entire bottom stretch was heavily corroded (where the aluminum is placed in an aluminum channel). Time to get caulking stripper and plastic scrapers. And Por-15 rust inhibitor.
I discovered today that the wallpaper on the inner skin can be removed, revealing more aluminum. Very tempted to strip all the paper and get a VERY shiny interior. Heck, I'm retired: more time than money.
The floor is a write-off. I think a large part of the stink is from 45 years of dirt rubbed into it. So, once the walls are cleaned or stripped, off comes the plywood. Then the real fun begins because who knows what's been living in the belly pan. I've crawled underneath and most of it looks intact, so I have crossed every appendage I have in the hopes that the frame will be OK.
Dump run #2.
Mostly stripped.
All the furniture is out. Most is garbage, mainly because it STINKS of I don't know what. It's like old, sour wood. Maybe the glues used in '74 have decayed over time. Who knows. I've stored a bunch of them for templates, which should come in handy.
All the electric wires have been exposed and labelled. I'm trying to wrap my head around schematic drawings. Luckily for me, my neighbor Hardy is a Swiss-trained electrical genius. A few cases of Sleemans Honey Brown and he'll be more than willing to help. It's his favorite. He literally has cases of empties stored in his garage.
There are leaks, as I knew there'd be. Not too many, which is great, but it's all relative. I'll be drilling out old rivets til the cows come home, and then replacing them (applying caulking as well). There's no point in doing this with half your bum cut off. "Why do it right when you can do it cheaper," is not the motto for this job. "Cheaper, faster, better." You can never have all three.
I removed my first panel today (after drilling out about 30 rivets). As I pulled back the pink insulation, the shiny exterior skin winked back at me. No leaks streaks, but oddly enough, the entire bottom stretch was heavily corroded (where the aluminum is placed in an aluminum channel). Time to get caulking stripper and plastic scrapers. And Por-15 rust inhibitor.
I discovered today that the wallpaper on the inner skin can be removed, revealing more aluminum. Very tempted to strip all the paper and get a VERY shiny interior. Heck, I'm retired: more time than money.
The floor is a write-off. I think a large part of the stink is from 45 years of dirt rubbed into it. So, once the walls are cleaned or stripped, off comes the plywood. Then the real fun begins because who knows what's been living in the belly pan. I've crawled underneath and most of it looks intact, so I have crossed every appendage I have in the hopes that the frame will be OK.
Dump run #2.
Mostly stripped. |
| Totally stripped. |
 |
| Rust below pink insulation. Rotted floor. Shore water pressure regulator was burst. |
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