the trailer came with original paperwork when it was delivered in 1978, in Bradenton, Fl.
The folks seem to have bought it and then parked it for much of its life in a trailer park.
They took good care of it for all those years, and it showed only one small dent in the "bannana wrap" below the aluminum skin area, and no dings or damage.
The interior was badly in need of updating and once I began to rip out the carpet and floor tile, the few problems that were there showed up.
Common to these Airstreams is a leak at the lower molding outside, where, behind it the skin laps under the lower panels. Water can get in if this "beltline" is not sealed properly on top.
Mine had that very damage. The good thing was it was small, and had not gone too far beyond some minor floor rot and surface frame rust.
I was able to repair this easily with wood hardener and wood filler.
Also the area where the battery had been sitting for years, suffered from some sagging and softness. This too was easily fixed, and I removed the battery and box, opting for a small battery since we rarely if ever "boondock".
The kitchen floor was a challenge due to the mutliple layers of tile and linoleum, but this too was removed.
The next challenge was the bedroom walls, where the vinyl covering had yellowed and it took a lot of various products to cut through the yellow and clean this.
The previous owner had painted the cabinets and trim with a flat latex, and this needed updating also.
I chose a paint with "sand" in it for texture and coverage, this worked out well. I used a clearcoat over this sand paint which gave it some sheen.
For the walls I got a german made wall covering which was a thin real aluminum. It went on well and covered many small scratched areas, but I had problems with the self stick glue it came with, and had to use a Liquid Nails contact cement. I also riveted the wall covering in spots to give it the Airstream look.
Flooring was a laminate product, over rubber underlayment. In the bedroom I used carpet though to soften that area and separate it from the hall.
Bathroom is small, and I used a stick down tile on the floor in there. It took maybe 6 total tiles!
More to come
