Eight well spent hours.

I have heard it said that the eyes are the windows to the soul. On a classic Airstream Caravanner the windows are the eyes to the soul. The aesthetic of those three long horizontal windows is something very keen to say the least. The previous owner had zero insight into this fact when he covered them over with materials to block out the light or to block out peoples vision inside. This 1959 Caravanner needed badly to be changed back to the way it was intended.

The front window had a piece of plastic in it. The middle one was covered with styrofoam and a sheet of aluminum. No glass was in either of those two openings. The back window had glass, but the inside was covered from the inside with plywood that had been riveted to the inside frame.

I installed new butyl window seal, new glass, inner gasket, and outer gaskets. I also replaced the cranks and the missing crank track to one of the windows. Now all three windows work perfectly. The one that was missing cranks still needs the locking latches installed as soon as I get the right size screws to attach them.

The side window was a chuck of super brittle acrylic. I am amazed at how much the outer gaskets shrinks. That piece is 15" long and it had shrunk a full 2" in length.

This window got the full treatment just like the other side and now works perfectly. It is amazing what a major transformation took place in a mere eight hours.

She always wanted to take a Transatlantic cruise

I took a customers trailer to the Port of Baltimore today. She was made to travel and any romantic lady her age has always dreamed of a Transatlantic cruise. I dream of one too. Maybe once a client does a complete restoration I will accompany the trailer on the boat. Most cargo ships offer state rooms on board for passage to the general public. This is a fair unknown fact and an off the beaten path travel tip I recently discovered.

There was another old lady waiting for her cruise ship to arrive. I am not certain of the exact year, but I think it is a 1952 Spartanette. When the right person corrects me I will insert the proper date. My escort also escorted this trailer into the Port, so he knew the entire story. This trailer has had one owner. It was bought brand new by a couple in West Virginia. They lived in it full time until last winter when  the old lady sold it. The guy who purchased it from her had to remove a lean to addition and a tool shed built onto the rear. This trailer needs serious attention. Someone in the UK has bought it and plans to do just that. 

I mentioned my escort. To enter the Port one needs a special clearance card called a TWIC card. The Port Authority is trying to make our homeland more secure and somehow having a card will insure this. Sorry, I digress, My escort.... I had to hire one to take me in. Joe is now my man. Until I get an official TWIC card, Joe is the guy I will call. He walked me through the entire process, giving me the proverbial "hand holding" I needed. I would have been totally lost without him. It was well worth the cash fee I had to pay him to do it. Thank you Joe for the great service you gave me.

Well there she sits next to the Spartanette and a couple dozen fifth wheel white boxes heading to Iraq. All that farm equipment you see is heading to South America. There was every type of farm implement, construction equipment, boat, campers, and used cars waiting for their Transoceanic cruise to some where in the world. There was also a vast area filled completely full of tanks, trucks, and humvies all painted desert tan and looking war front bound. 

Does driving stunt your growth?owi

Does driving stunt your growth? Not sure why it popped into my head. Perhaps it was due to driving 1246 miles in one day. I do know that it does not stunt the growth of ones waist line. Finding something healthy and good to eat while driving long distances is virtually impossible. Just try stopping in any truck stop along the highway and find something. The truckers (in general) reflect this trend. They fuel themselves in heavy, rib sticking, gut busting, and all you can eat buffet places to sustain one's self. I always loved truck stops when I drove professionally over the road. Something has changed from my Aunt cooking for me to my cousin throwing as much into the deep fryer as can possibly be thrown in. Rest areas offer nothing but fast food prepared badly by people (in general) that have surpassed the job level chosen by them in high school on that test. You know the test. I was told I should be a soldier. Most rest stop workers were told by the test that they should be a professional drain on society and have instead chosen to serve fast food to people like me trying to travel too far, in too short of time, when the rest of the world is sleeping. Sorry to break down so hard on rest stop workers, but how hard is it to screw up a cup of coffee with two creams? Very easy if you are a rest stop worker in Pennsylvania or Ohio. No sugar means three. Two cream means none. Hot coffee means old and luke warm. I will stop digressing and tell you about my journey.

My destination was Owosso Michigan to pick up a clients trailer. I left at 1 am to be there before they closed at 12 noon. I drove fast through the dark hoping all the cops were off doing other things than look for me. Thank God they were, for I shaved an hour and a half from the projected time Goggle Maps gave me.

I wish I could rant on about the trailer but I was asked to not talk too much about it. Out of respect, I will just say it is one of the nicest, most original Airstreams I have ever been in. The seller was a pleasure and complete help to me every step of the way. Until a few years ago this dealership was an Airstream dealership. A developer came along and made an offer the owners could not refuse and they decided that retirement looked very good. The trailer I picked up was taken in trade eighteen years ago and has been just sitting unused. As the business is being liquidated it was decided that the old Airstream needed to sold off too.

One of the other items they sold off was this sign. I am now the VERY proud owner of an original, never before hung dealer sign. Dale made me a very good deal and I was so happy to get this sign. I think I did not stop smiling for the next four hours. Thank you again Dale, I promise it will be cherished and not sold off. One of these was up to $500 this weekend on Ebay. I got a VERY good deal.

I really wish I could talk to you about this trailer. I have used the back of this trailer I was following back to disguise her identity. She towed great and was such a pleasure to camp in on the way back. After I hooked on, I headed back towards home. I knew it was too far to travel back in one day, so I looked for a good destination to stop for the night

A Scotty rally seemed like a great place to go. My friend Ace invited me to come by and spend the night and visit. Not sure of the true number, for I was told 48 by one person and 51 by another. There were three non Scotties there including the Airstream I was towing so maybe those numbers were Scotties/ total number of rigs. I have been flirting with buying a Scotty and now after meeting this group I will probably pursue it even harder. They are all tiny, but have a real charm to them. The Scotty group was very welcoming and their potluck supper was awesome. I gave a tour of the Airstream to virtually every person that was at the rally. People were astonished. I could have sold her three times were she for sale. 

The field is filling up. I have heard rumor a boat is going to sail soon. We will see.

Bambi visits the field

I ran up to Pennsylvania today to pick up a trailer for one of my clients. I would love to lie to you and say it went smooth as silk, but it did not. Nothing like seized brakes, dry bearings, and a round pin pigtail. I sorted it out and got her back safely. Nice little trailer even if she gave me a hard time.

Out standing in the field

From right to left that is a 1954 Safari, a 1955 Safari, a 1959 Caravanner, and a 1963 Overlander. The work is piling up. My cabinet making days are coming to an end. Full time trailer restorations are coming into climax.

From left to right that is a 1963 Overlander, 1959 Caravanner, 1955 Safari, and a 1954 Safari. That is a royal flush if I have ever seen one. 

Two recoveries in three days

I have driven a bunch of miles in the past three days. Today I picked up a 1963 International Overlander for Client #0003. A very nice trailer in near original condition. It needs it all, like they all do, but it is a good candidate for restoration. She is getting cleaned and evaluated.

That I 263 T 187 for those curious about these things.

"Scratches? I don't got no stinking scratches"

"I tell you, I don't got no stinking scratches..."

"Are you looking at my bumm?"

Hershey is 15 minutes from where I picked this trailer up. The original owner was from the town next door to the pick up location. This trailer always lived close to where it was bought it.

Apple Blossom Rally, Front Royal Virginia, 1964. She did travel a little bit though....

Rainy Recovery

I went out to West Virginia today to fetch a trailer for Client #0002. It rained from 3 am when I left my house, until right after I dropped the trailer in the storage yard this afternoon. 628 miles round trip, through the mountains in heavy rain and fog is a white knuckle drive to say the least. I pushed through and made it without any issues. For a matter of fact I learned an important lesson today. If you go equipped with tires, jack, bearings, seals, grease, tow lights and multiple rolls of duct tape you will not need any of it. I got very lucky and was able to hook on, plug in, and roll. Turn signals, brake lights and running lights all worked. The electric brakes had the perfect set when applied. I didn't even have to adjust the controller. Had I left any one of those items at home, I would have needed it.

She is a 22 foot, 1959 Caravaner serial number 229186. 

Trailers do not need window air conditioners put in the front window. It might cause three sides of the window frame to be lost.

I also find that glass makes better windows than plastic panels do. Glass lets in a little more light and affords a better view of where you are camping. Polishing is something one should not do unless one is willing to complete the job.

Can you say,  SEXY?

I think that door handle is the hard to come by type. The hasp makes for good hunting cabin security.

That is the custom porch light fixture only offered in 1960.

All the custom touches and beauty marks are all able to be fixed. This trailer will be sliding right to the front of the pack for immediate attention. Stay tuned for more reports....