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Doug Hodder's 2010 Nomad - Scotty look-a-like build from scratch

Here is the design. The window ahead of the door is actually the window for the opposite side, but this side will have one also, it's a morphed Scottie. 

It's kinda getting off to a slow start, but I've gathered up a lot of the necessary parts so far, (not shown). The axle came in with a dinged up stud and a rear seal that wasn't seated, so had to take it apart and take care of those items.

Steve E came by this morning and we laid it all out in chalk lines on the floor, cut up the iron and got at least the perimeter tacked together and the axle roughly positioned. I think we made decent progress for 5 hours of work counting the clowning around, only ruined 1 pair of pants with a tear! Hopefully I can wrap it all up next weekend with the cutting and welding portion. Thanks for the help Steve!

 

It was a busy weekend to get the rest of the frame finished and all burned in. Plan is to dress up some welds and get it in primer and paint next weekend. Probably shoot it in the aqua and then paint bottom subfloor in black. I checked the height of the floor in relation to the top of the garage door...it will be within reasonable Scottie dimensions... 

Got it primed and in paint today, coupler is bolted on, and safety chain loops welded up. Good thing that Steve E came by as it had to be flipped 3 times to get both sides in primer and paint. I used an Alkyd enamel on the frame. Cheaper than the acrylic, and the color match is close enough for the frame. It was able to be handled in about 2 hours to set it on the floor, slide the axle in and get it up on wheels. 

I welded on the cap plate where the jack mounts and laid in a really nice weld. Just for grins, since so many people see that...I did the Boyd Coddington treatment and smoothed it out with some bondo. I"ll probably deck the front with some aluminum treadbright. I've been dragging a bunch of it around for years...gotta use it up. 

Now I can start laying out the floor on it...picked up all the materials the other day and I've got some stuff laying around that will be "recycled"...never thought I'd say that!

 

Ever have one of those nights that you just can't sleep? I figured I might as well get up and go to work. Built a fire in the garage and was going by 4:30 AM. Got the sub frame and the deck built. It fits too snugly to plop it all in assembled, so I'm going to put in the drop floor, then attach the upper decking on afterwards. I just gotta remember not to coat out the places where I need to epoxy. Now to pull it apart and coat out the bottom. Then a nap in front of the TV...Right now the roll of Marmoleum is "flattening" out in the living room, will be nice to get that out of the house. 

The decking is called "import birch"....has a lot of plies like baltic, but comes 4x8 and is much cheaper and the moisture content was way low. I think it is a poor mans cabinet grade ply, must be meant for me. The sub frame is recycled redwood from my above ground pool deck from some ripped down 4x4's. I sealed all the edges with epoxy and it gets a "mopping" with oil based primer and paint. 

Here's this weekends work...doesn't look like much but a lot of this stuff takes time especially when I don't have any specific plans and cook it up as I go. I gotta think a couple of steps ahead so I don't end up boxing myself into a situation I can't get out of. 

I met with Grant and Lisa on Sat. AM, had a good visit and a breakfast with them...and picked up my windows from him...there's gonna be 8 total, 2 in front for 15 x 48" of glass, 2 in rear for 12 x 36" and each side gets 2. It's gonna have a lot of light in it. 

It took a while to get the 3 main pieces of the floor all situated, drilled, and bolted to the frame with epoxy at all the joints. I then filled the countersunk spots for the carriage bolts/screws with some thickened epoxy and fairing filler, the flooring needs that. I also used some strips of 3M VHB foam tape under the drop floor prior to bolting. It will keep the floor from creaking and it's stuck down way good once it was all bolted up. 

I got all the Marmoleum cut and fit up so it's ready to install, (only partially shown), got all the aluminum trim and cove molding for the drop floor cut and fit up. This type of flooring isn't inexpensive, but it's not uncommon to find it in original trailers and in good shape after more than 50+ years. It's almost 3/32" thick and won't tend to tear the top like a typical vinyl flooring as the color goes completely through. So I got the flooring out of the living room, and replaced it with a couple of boxes of windows....

More on Marmoleum

Marmoleum is the brand name of linoleum flooring from Forbo:

http://www.forboflooringna.com/ModuleFiles/mod_quick_download/197/FileName/marm_color_collection.pdf

You can get Marmoleum from most flooring stores (not the big box stores). It is a flooring that has been around for over 100 years. It is also a very eco-friendly product. Retail prices can run $3.33 to $4.44 a square foot. 

You can use it for countertops if you want. It not a hard surface like formica. It was used years ago on writing desks. You would need to use a "L" shaped countertop edge that over laps the marmoleum to prevent the edges from curling of getting damaged.

I also got the wheel tubs made up. I left plenty of room in the top so that I can adjust the axle for the correct ride height when it's all said and done. I'll put some glass cloth/epoxy in them and then top coat it with some undercoating for road debris protection. I'm thinking that wood was a great choice as I can use them to attach cleats for the cabinetry.

I'm using cloth that I've got left over from the boat for the wheel wells. I don't do any off road travel, just limited gravel road travel with my trailers. I've got plenty of clearance and if the wheel gets into it, I've got bigger problems than just the wheel well. They're in 1/4" ply with 3/4" sq. backing at all the joints and epoxy as the adhesive.

I got the flooring all installed and trimmed out in aluminum. Both sides have the cabinetry/ tops made, sink and pump cutouts in. Not all the drawer slots are cut yet. The larger cabinet will have cabinet doors on the bottom right side with a slide out for a cooler, and a drawer above it. I left enough room to install a cooktop, probably won't install one right now, but there will be room to install one in the future. Where the flooring ends, a bulkhead with 2 drawers will be built. The bed will extend out that far. Doesn't look like much, but I've only had like 2 days in the last couple of weeks to work on it. 

I got the laminate down....can't tell, but it's the aqua boomerang, tops trimmed with aluminum, got the left side into paint. The galley took a ton of time. It's just 1/4" ply backed with 3/4 sq. material for stiffeners and framing. The cooler tray holds this larger cooler, but had to be lifted a bit to clear the wheel tub. I made it this way in case the vintage cooler I have develops any problems and have to use the larger one. My approach was to put in the big things, sink and cooler, then frame it in to maximize the storage space for the rest of the stuff. I can fit a Coleman lantern 200/242 in the lower left cabinet of the galley. I left enough room above the drawer to fit a cook top in the future. 

I also had some scrap ply and extra laminate, so made up a cocktail table for outside use. I scrounged the legs at a gathering when Dave A was burning up a piece of old furniture that became firewood and spotted the nice tapered legs with the swivel feet, just a paint job and some T nuts....perfect for the early 60's look. 

I'm cooking up my treatment for the door fronts....gotta be something different, not just a plain painted door.

I got the framework for the under bed drawers done, and all the cabinet/drawer fronts made and a lot of painting. Since it was such large piece of flat ply on some of the doors, I thought I'd do up something a little different. Probably not everyone's idea of what they'd do, but I'm the only one that has to camp in it, and I can always make a different door down the road. I'm thinking it will all work. 

I put a 15 degree chamfer on the back side of the door edge, drilled out a hole and counter sunk a larger hole in back to hold the piece of the coral Formica. Then routed a couple of grooves and painted them out. Found a late 50's modern/retro handle. Once all the doors are on the galley it will all tie in together, as the black lines will all line up with each other on the rest of the doors. It's all typical late 50's early 60's colors. Now what I really need is about 6 more of the Formica samples. I cleaned out the local Home Depot of the coral boomerang samples they had. 

It's kinda fun to not have to worry about wood grain....latex paint hides a ton of flaws. 

I got all the doors hung, drawers built and painted, sliders installed, backsplash built and all trimmed out in the aluminum. I need to modify the drawer in the galley as it's a bit too high to clear the bottom of the sink. It's like a saw blades width off of fitting. Seems I spent a lot of time priming and painting. 

Something else I did was to make up a galley rail. This is on the side of the sink closest to the bed. The idea here was to keep anything from coming off the edge of the galley onto the bed, beverages, dirty dish etc...I took a piece of 1/8" aluminum and ripped 3 pieces about 1/2" wide. Used some 5/16 aluminum tube and acorn nuts and bolted it together with some all thread. I was shooting for that "diner" look. 

We closed a little early today so I came home and dragged out some scrap ply...finally found a use for some of that Chinese crap, throwaway practice templates! I have coordinates drawn up for the upper portion, but the bottom portion sort of depended on the wheel well. The wheel well was roughly drawn, then took the jig saw and kept cutting till I got something I liked and most importantly...that the wheel could be removed. 

I'll drag it out of the garage this weekend and take a good look from a distance at a 90 degree angle to the side and see if that is what I really want for the wheel opening. That might also be a great opportunity to actually clean and pick up in the shop! The rear will not have that flat vertical upper portion in the final design. 

I also got all the structure for the bed built and framed in the last couple of evenings, should get the actual bed platform made up this weekend. Doug 

PS...light blue is called "cool Jazz" from Behr

I dragged it out this morning and got a good look from the side. Here's where I was with it, (pic one). But after clowning around with it and really raising it a lot when I went to remove the tire, I could get it out if I went with my original plan on the outline. 

I painted it up so that the new profile could be seen better as it's a collection of arcs and pieces cut 1 at a time ( taped together) and then removed the wheel till I got to a point that I couldn't get it out. I've had the wheel off and on about 8 times this morning and I can do it with the profile in white without touching the sides......but it ain't easy. It does look more Scottiesque however. I look at it this way. If I go with the 2nd one, I can always cut away at it later, much easier than adding material. Just aft of the wheel on this side, there will be an access door to storage under the bed and battery.

I picked up the side ply the other day and tonight got it all cut into pieces and glued up. I splined it together and glued it with epoxy. Dimensions are 6'4" x 11'. Plan is to get them cut to shape tomorrow and trial fit up. Then paint. I wasn't too careful with the epoxy on the face of them since they get painted anyway and used a squeegee to take care of the squish. 

Here's the Sunday update: Steve E came by and helped me wrestle the sides around and we spent most of one day measuring and creating the profile, lots of armwaving, discussion and yucks. We plotted the coordinates, but after they were on the side, we decided to take a piece of lexan and use it as a template to smooth them all out a bit. 

We trial fit the door side that day. That night I did the final cut on the profile, cut the doors and windows, flopped the other side down and traced it out and cut it also. A pick hook on the ceiling helps jockeying them around by myself. 

Puttied up any visible crack from the splining, primed/ painted and got them speckled this morning. Mid afternoon, we got them up on the side and braced off across the top. I'm so glad to get this portion done. Big heavy sheets of goods are a drag to clown around with. I was so thankful that Steve came by to help on the first day and again today to help set them. I would have been sunk without another person. Thanks Steve! 

The windows will be painted on the outer edge so they don't look so massive. They will also have all the corners raidused on them. 

In case anyone is wondering....NO...it won't fit out the door as it sits, I'm shy about an inch. I'll wait till it comes time to pull it out to paint the roof material and at that point I'll have a better idea on how it's really going to sit as most all the weight will be on it then. I'm thinking of making the trim piece on the header of the garage removable. Cut it, and hinge it so that it will swing out of the way. I'd like to not have to drop it any lower, but can on the flexiride, maybe 1 spline. 

Next step, build the upper portion of the galley and the front seats/table.

Today I got the upper portion of the galley built. It roughly follows the Scotty design, shelf on the bottom, slider doors for the upper portion. I used the boomerang formica to laminate up on the door fronts. The front of the top needs to be trimmed to follow the roofline. It will get a low profile light that installs under the bottom shelf. Plan for tomorrow is to start building the front seats.....somehow...I'm shorter on space than I originally had planned...don't know what happened, but I'll make it work out, have to!

I got the seat portions of the dinette done this weekend. The front slopes back to allow some heel room so it was one of those, match an angle to a curved thing. 

The front skin was a real challenge to install. I had routed slots to allow the interior material to slip in. Good idea in theory, but once painted, they sucked up a lot of moisture and kinda did a potato chip thing in the opposite direction. I'd get one side in and then go to the other side and it would pop out. My solution....rout out the material between the groove and the outside and back it up with some small blocks. Sponge Bob dropped by to help out.

Here's my Sunday update. I got the table leg made (kinda like a martini glass according to Steve E), countersunk the formica into the back, routed the front and 2 toned it. Both the seats are painted and installed for good, table top laminated and trimmed. Waiting for the sliding attachment that both Cliff and Gage had mentioned. The rest of the time was spent finishing up some of the interior aluminum trim that I had been putting off. 

More on the table leg

The black lines are routed 3/8" wide and about 1/8 inch deep and painted. The orange circles are cut with a forstner bit and backed up with a countersunk socket from behind and backed with coral Boomerang formica. 

I couldn't do the aluminum trim on the table as I drove like 60 miles down to see the guy at Cardo alum. He's closed for a week. Went to Dr. Georges RV salvage around the corner to check out some used doors and frames. They start at 150$ and were beaters. I can't see buying one and then cutting it up to make it fit and it's crap to begin with. I did pick up some chrome trim rings for my taillights and a hinge. Hardly worth the 120 miles of driving. I'll fabricate up my own frame/hinge/door assembly. 

I also got my coral melmac dishes. Great deal on E-bay...50 cents, unfortunately he didn't pack them worth a hoot and the large platter, 2 bowls, and a plate were shattered. It wasn't a complete set to begin with...now it's even less. It was a no name brand, I just wanted it for the color. Oh well...

Sorry...nothing to show a pic of. I got the 110 wired, tank and plumbing all connected....after a while of clowning around with it, nothing leaks. Pump works fine manually and by the hose connection. Watch using the brass fittings at HD....the threads are flat on them and don't want to seal well at all. All the utility connections are done to the exterior. Counter top and backsplash permanently attached. Framing for the rear curve partially done. 

The rest of the time was spent trying to clean and organize the shop. I decided that when I spend more time looking for the tool/item rather than actually using it....it was time to clean up. Didn't touch the bench though.

Here's the Sunday update...I got part of the ceiling painted and installed, again..it's a bear to bend them when they have "potato chipped" in the opposite direction after painting. I also built in the upper cabinet. I put a 1.5" round on the bottom to prevent creases in my forehead. Would have been nice to do it in poplar, but I cut up a fir 2x4. Unfortunately, it shows grain. Gave me a chance to use that bit I bought for the last trailer. Framed and cut in the windows, made the doors for the upper cabinet, got the table finally hung. Still no table trim...he won't have it for maybe 2 weeks. Build to fit/ no plans can be a real time hog.

Here's the Valentines Day update... I got 8 feet of the ceiling primed/ painted and installed. Takes 1 more sheet to get it completely done, got the rear end framed below the bed, installed the galley upper cabinet, and cut in the vent. Also glued in back up pieces for where I want to install the lights and fan. 

I went with a step van vent on the side. I don't have enough clearance to do a Fantastic fan on this one. The vent can be operated to open up or down by moving the black handle. I trimmed it out with some counter top edging. Same vent that is used on a Cozy Cruiser...(I think). I'll need to add a couple of pieces of window screen to the openings as the holes are too large. 

I also learned a great lesson. The trailer has been sitting without a roof, while I had stringers holding the tops in line, I should have had something to stiffen and hold the sides nice and flat. I did for a while, but it made it hard to work on (I kept walking into it), so took them off and didn't reattach them. Now, when it is all said and done...I had a side with a bow out on it. I figured it wasn't that bad, except it happened to be right at the door. The idea of intentionally building a bowed door didn't appeal to me so I removed the interior cabinet, which was part of the issue, cut it down to relieve the pressure and then reattach. I lost about 2 hours in clowning around with that. Oh well, live and learn. 

Here's the Sunday update...I bombed out with the hub cap thing...so the search continues. Picked up all the exterior roof skin, 1/8" luan. I know it's not necessary, but I get humongous pine cones that drop here and will dent the aluminum badly if I don't back it up with something. 

I got the rear closed up and the windows cut in. Bed deck and mattress rail is done and painted. Most of the lights are backed up and mounted. Radiused all the corners on the windows and fit them all. I still need to do the interior corner trims and on the seams, as well as windows. 

Went down to Steve E's on Saturday. He had picked up a free mid 80's slide in pop top camper that he's parting out. He really scored with it! He got a working 3 way fridge, furnace, lots of hardware and fittings, fuel tank, water tank, pump, yada yada yada...He was generous and gave me the paddle handle latch for the door! Woohoo! works slick, after some cleaning, fits down to a 1.25" thick door. Even had the key...I'm set. Big thanks Steve...I'll get you a case of your usual beverage!

Here's the Sunday update: 

I got all the 12V wiring done, 5 lights, 12V aux outlet and the fan. Some of the clearance lights are also wired. I would highly recommend anyone wanting a fan like I have to NOT...do it. I forgot just how much noise they make. Low is tolerable...high isn't, maybe it'll be quieter when I get the rest of the roof on and the ceiling doesn't act like a sounding board. Last one I had was in an old International dump truck and I couldn't hear it over the Roadranger transmission. I can hear it now! Just need some plastic loom to tidy up the wiring. I also got about 1/2 of the body insulated, the rear taillight backup blocks glued and bent and installed. 

I had a space between the upper cabinets over the dinette that had to have something to break it up. I cooked up this idea. It's kind of a modern era concept of a hummingbird, all straight lines, just angles, kinda robbed some of it from a 57 Chevy. Up here, I get lots of hummingbirds around when I camp...so I think it worked out well. At least it breaks up that big flat spot. Awning is done, cushions won't be done till Wed.

Here's my Sunday update: Not much to show, but I did manage to get the rest of it insulated, and about 1/2 the sub skin on it, cheap 1/8" luan. In order to work on the roof, I pulled the wheels and dropped it down onto the hubs on a 2x4. I'm sort of getting burned out and find that I'm putting off things that I don't want to work on. Besides, there was a car race and A Pink Panther film that distracted me today. I forgot I loaned 1 of my ladders so I have to drag it from side to side and after spending some time on it/up and down...I coasted. Also took the taillights apart and painted the interiors of them white. They were black powdercoat, now they put about 2x the light that they did. 

I did get the table trimmed out, and Marti came by with the cushions and the awning. Cushions are a teal tweed Sunbrella and zippered, should hold up really well. She does awesome work! I need the vertical poles for the awning and have to modify some tent poles for the top cross. 

Some of you might remember those anodized tumblers when you were a kid. I grew up with them, so thought it would be perfect for the trailer. I remember having Kool aid and Fizzies in them. Found some new repro ones on E-bay...the originals bring pretty good dough, and I didn't think I needed them that bad. These will work for me.

I got with someone that had a press brake and got the door jamb bent up. It's 16ga. sheetmetal, 2" deep. It will allow for the outer door and a screen. No one had any aluminum extrusion, or steel z that would work for what I wanted.

I finally got it completely enclosed on the exterior, and it appears that I haven't sunk a screw or staple into any of the wiring...a real +! I also smoothed out the joints with a belt sander and epoxied up staple holes/ voids and over the joints. I will completely coat out the exterior with a coat of epoxy prior to skinning. My thoughts are that if there is any leak, at least it won't go into the luan and become a sponge. I've seen enough that have leaked that I can't help but think it will help with any potential water problems in the years to come. The end grain on the window cuts/door will also be coated out. 

I've also started the curtains, using the Michael Miller vintage trailer fabric. I put a coral colored flange between the curtain body and the upper teal piece to help tie in all the colors. It is going to take 16 of these panels to get all the curtains done on this one. 

It's down to the point now that I can put together a punch list of things to take care of on finishing. It should be out of the garage this weekend, when I will do my final cut on the wheel well prior to skinning.

I got the final trim on the wheel wells, took out another 1" on them now that it has settled down on the axle. Welded up the door jamb, fabricated the interior structure for the door, modified the hinge for a screen, got the body covered with a coat of epoxy, and goofed around with an idea for a clock. Hopefully, I'll get the skin this next week, it's all ready for it.

While the idea of a clock is "right out" since we are on "teardrop time"....this trailer, however is a standy and I got the idea from Jiminsav's new Shasta. I had that space on the wall that needed something and the idea of a mirror only suggested that I may have to see what I look like in the morning when camping, so thought this would be a fun thing to try and a better option. 

Everyone was out of the clock movements so went to Wally World, bought a clock for 3.97$ tore it apart and got the movement out of it. I had some leftover laminate/paint/ply etc. and came up with this. It probably won't work for long as I've had problems with clocks before. You have to remove them and lay them flat as the hammering on the road will cause failure, or so I've experienced. 

It has all the colors/shapes and the balls are sort of like the electrons on the orbits for that "atomic" look that was popular in the late 50's. It's removable, may or may not keep it. It was fun to make though. If I choose not to use it...I can use it in the shop!

Steve E and I hit about 7 different suppliers today to pick up the aluminum siding, trim, and other materials. It's .025 with a 4" break pre-painted white. I came home considerably lighter in the wallet, but all equipped to finish off the siding. Major thanks to Steve for the use of his pickup with the overhead rack on it. Came home empty handed on the hub caps...rats!

Here's the Sunday update, 24 hours early....It was a very busy day here at DougKraft. Steve E, Mike A showed up about 8AM. After some arm waving and lots of measuring, we started sticking up siding. Rich and Penny (Rocketgirl) showed up about 11. The extra hands were welcomed and Penny cooked up lunch as well as giving me my "trailer warming" gift. It's a vintage cocktail shaker, ringed glass. Many thanks Penny!!!! 

We finished about 5 and have it all done except about a 16" strip on the front bottom and a 12" on the rear bottom. I only managed to blow a staple or 2 in the wrong place, but it remains to be seen if they are visible once the trim is on. As a +.....we didn't manage to kink a piece of material at all and the 11' pieces are a hassle to move around in my shop. 

I used a 1/2" pilot bearing bit in the variable speed router and dialed it down to about 15K rpm. The windows/door etc... cut out like butter and didn't gall the bit at all. It's all going to take some final fit and trim, but the hard part is done. MANY MANY thanks go out to Steve, Mike, Penny and Rich for their contributions today. I couldn't have done it without all of you!

I've received some "trailer warming" gifts from other forum members and I would like to thank you all for them. 

Penny got me the vintage cocktail shaker. Jerome the bacon and egg skillet, Chris (teardrop focus) the coasters (for those aluminum tumblers that sweat) from the set of a yet to be released movie. Thanks! They will certainly all be used and are greatly appreciated.

Here's my Easter Sunday update: 

I got the door insulated and skinned, fit up the handle and did a trial fit. The interior skin was too thick and would allow the paddle handle to slip past the stop on the latch. What that means is that I could lock myself in the trailer and have to take the latch apart to work it. I'll skin the interior with some of the leftover aluminum from the roof and it works fine. 

After we skinned it, I found that the holes for the taillights didn't line up right with the creases in the aluminum. Mike A noticed it when we did the tracing on that piece so we didn't cut them out at that time...Thanks Mike! It took a while to reshape them so that it all looked right...got the taillights installed. 

I also made up the screen door today, The middle panel and the slider on the right are some of the left over laminate I had. 

Scotties used a 2" Z shaped door jamb. It helps to stiffen the wall. I had material broke up and welded it. The door is ~ 1.25" thick, the screen is 3/4". Scotties also had a much thinner screen on them and it was in aluminum. I wasn't finding what I needed for it, so went with wood. Since I didn't have a door to start with and had a paddle handle latch, I had to make the door thickness to match the latch. I may have to rout the back edge on the screen so that it fits within the edge on the back lip of the jamb. It would have all fit in the 2" I allowed but changed plans. I'm only going to use an 1/8" aluminum flange on the outside of the door rather than the ply like I had originally thought, so that eats up 1/4". It's just a smoother finish to the door on the exterior...It's all kind of a fit and build as I go thing, this is where a parts trailer is a real +. 

It's now official! Big thanks to Caseydog for sending me the file to get the vinyl cut. It's exactly what I wanted, very similar to the Chevrolet script used on the early 60's Impalas/ Biscaynes. It has badging on the front and rear, and will also get a small one in white on the teal that hasn't been painted on the sides yet. 

Sunday Update: 

I got the door pretty much finished up, skinned both sides with the aluminum, screen door is mated to it, 1/8" aluminum strap flange with the weatherstripping. Still need to weld up the extra flaps on the hinge for the screen portion. 

Steve E came by this morning and we buttoned up the bottom edge of the front and the rear, got all 8 windows installed and butyled up, and I built a hot fire in the garage so the butyl will squish and seal well. 

I also played around with some ideas on the paint job on it. Don't know what I'll do on the front of the side yet, but I like the rear portion. It's only temporary, tape isn't exact paint lines. I can't do a full wrap with paint, since the break lines on the 2 sides aren't exactly the same and it would show in the front...whoops! Oh well.

I made 15 copies of the side profile and went at it with some colored pencils and came up with a whole new look on the side. I decided that the "wing" look is too old and I wanted a more early 60's look on it. It's just one simple 4 sided geometric shape...Now to rework the rear end and front.

I spent a fair amount of time cruising the Atlas Mobile Home Museum site looking at everything from '55-'65 in both the photos and the advertising materials for design ideas. My favorite was the 55 Nashua...had a pic of a mobile home overlain on a black and white photo of an atomic blast, complete with mushroom cloud and the copy read "bigger than the H bomb...followed by Nashua BLASTS the lid off deals".....Ahhhh, a different time, reminds me of the "duck and cover" drills in grade school or my all time favorite...the radiated seeds that I bought as a kid to grow large veggies.... 

Anyhoo.....the design on trailer graphics really took a turn once we entered the atomic space age/race. I think my original "wing" type thing is too outdated for the early 60's so am going to go with this one. It still needs to be fine tuned, but I think this is the idea I'm going to go with. It will be shot in teal like the wheels and pinstriped with black, with a small Sierra Nomad copy in white on the teal. Tongue gets the same teal color as well.

PS...had to pop some staples on the front...had a pucker that needed to be taken care of. 

Here's the Sunday update: 

I ripped up some aluminum angle and made the door fame for the storage compartment and door. The hinge isn't what's going in, I only used it for a spacer...too short. It also gets an "eyebrow" over it and all the aluminum will be painted white. 

Welded up the tabs on the door hinge to accept the screen door. I looked all over to find an RV door hinge...they only sell them with a door attached...like 3-400$ new, 120$ or so used. I must have had that door together and apart 6 times to get the outer door to mate with the screen and all of it to fit in the hole. I'm going to have to do something to take care of the worn latch on the door. It latches a bit too well, and is difficult to make operate, has a groove worn in it that hangs up. It did feel good to hear it "click" and latch shut however. 

I also got the screen door painted and screened. 

Like with a tear...you blow and go and get a lot done and start thinking, "hey I'm almost done", then run into a brick wall on the final stuff that just seems to drag on.

Sunday update...not much to report, sorry. I know, I know...is he still clowning around with the door?...YUP...It took a bit longer to get both the doors to mate up so that they operate cleanly and will latch. It's tight right now, but once the weather stripping compresses a bit, should be fine, has a good solid click when it latches. 

I also painted the cargo door framing and installed it. Got a couple of the drip caps installed, need to clean up the butyl tape squish on everything. I had to get the door done so that I could lay out the graphic points so that it all lines up when painted. I gotta get paint done soon. 

Only worked on it Sat...spent most of the day today dragging out the Voyager and getting it ready for the Dam, and I desperately need a camping trip and a break. I forgot that I had given the side table hardware to Dean when I sold the Titan to them...made up a new set of table supports. 

I'm about 3 hours from peeling paper, gonna eat lunch...then shoot it. 

It's peeled! Still curing, and I've got a fire going in the shop to speed it up. It will really pop when I get the black pinstriping surrounding the graphics on it. I can't do that till at minimum late tomorrow. I also have to wait till it cures, then finish up the door jamb. It needs it's 2nd color white since the wedge cuts across the door.

I striped off the paint and added the vinyl copy, I think the black helps make it pop a bit. I need to make up the aluminum strip that lays down on the row of staples full length. It gets painted to match the paint scheme. One of the drawbacks to not getting the material hemmed, but then they couldn't do that on their equipment. What I should have done is full sheet on the bottom, then the seam would have been up higher. One of those things I learned. 

It was too cold to do any painting outdoors today, so I finished up on the drip caps, cleaned the butyl tape on the windows, did the final install on the exterior electrical, water tank filler and hose connections along with the porch light and the awning channel. Did a trial fit up on the awning, Marti made it and it's just fantastic! I'd highly recommend her. I still need to make up the cross supports for the awning.  

Sorry that it doesn't appear like a whole lot was done, but for those of you that have come down to the last few steps on a project all know that it seems like you spend a whole lot of time doing up the final details. This is the point to make it look good and it takes time, this is all the stuff that shows and what people will notice at first glance. Ya gotta stick through things to the bitter end no matter how painful it is! 

I did up the window trim...still need to paint the parts for 4 of them. It took a while, as there are 8 windows, each one takes 6 parts, and the wood was resawn, planed, fit, primed and painted 2X. I still need to add a few pieces to finish up the trim on the paneling joints. 

Steve E came by today and we got the trim strips across the body installed. Had 4 77" joints to seal across the roof, since it wasn't done with an interlocking edge, I had done the window strips earlier. We also managed to get 32' of edge molding done on both sides. I still need to do up the bottom portions. It will involve making a jig to bend the trim to fit the wheel wells. So far, I've used 160' of butyl tape. 

Major thanks to Steve for his help and bugging me to "just do it". I think I really needed an extra hand to tweek and bend while I shot holes and screws into the trim. Got a fire going in the shop now and the butyl is really "oozing" well. I'm having a hard time finishing up some of it as the weather has been really bad and it snowed here last night and it's kinda discouraging...we should be having good weather by now!!! Hope it's good next weekend as I'm supposed to go camping with the Voyager. Thanks everyone for sticking with me on the final details.

And so it goes....blew off some time to go camping last weekend, which was sorely needed. I went out tonight and did some final epoxy sealing on the bottom end of the sides and the ply edging, I hate doing unthickened epoxy overhead...managed to get it all over my arm. Once cured, I'll shoot some undercoating on it all and the butyl tape on the edging won't hurt for sealing. 

Plan is for this weekend...make a wooden template/mold and bend the aluminum trim to fit the wheel well openings maybe get the rest of the interior trim finished...and some final running light wiring. It's going to be some tight bends on the trim around the wheel well. I may or may not do some annealing on it, I'd rather not have to do that, we'll see.

The big plus....I got some Coleman parts for an upcoming IRG project to be unveiled, from Jeremy in a "care" package, and he included some wonderful galley towels in matching colors with the appropriate formica buttons to match it all. I also received a couple of pot holders! Many thanks to Jeremy's wife's grandmother for them. They will be a wonderful accessory to the build and I genuinely appreciate them! I'm humbled to have someones grandmother make something that I can incorporate into my trailer. Thank you very much!

Steve E came by and we got the rest of the trim fit up on the exterior. I cut a jig for the wheel well then bent to fit. It was tough on the front of the well as it's a very tight radius for the trim. Unfortunately we ran out of butyl tape, so the final install still remains. 

I did finish up the interior however and it's ready to go, with the exception of cutting down the mattress, window trim and trim on the joints on the ceiling are done. The black dot is the taillight. I may or may not put a cover over it...depends on just how much the mattress covers up. I need to put in a hook for the towel that Jeremy's wife's grandmother made, it's hanging on a knob right now. 

Last weekend...got all the final trim installed, and wired the running lights. Somehow...all my tags on the lights went by the wayside when I pulled some wires and since I was extra cheap...didn't get different colors, used what I had, mostly black...I had a wad of wires and no clue which was which. After a slight issue...blew the fuses on the truck with an incorrect ground, I managed to get it all together. 

Monday morning I went by West Coast Customs and spoke with my front nose bra guy. He's done boats and trailers for me in the past and always has some fun stuff sitting around in his shop. Since white will show so much road grime...I'm going with a teal body with a white vinyl inset chevron graphic sewn into it. That way I have the same graphic only in reverse and it's all padded. I pick it up July 6. 

Figured out the deal on the hub caps. I spoke with Mike at Hub Cap Mikes. Mentioned my situation, and he said that late 50's early 60's AMC's and Mopars had a wheel with a 9.75 measurement on the hub cap nubs, right in between what's available. No....they don't make any repops for them so my next plan is to maybe get some different wheels from my nephew, blast and paint them and get the caps. I'm all out of paint however. That may be the way I go as he has some NOS dog dish police interceptor caps that would look great. In the meantime...I ordered the trim rings and a set of chrome lug nuts from Mikes. I painted out the center hub silver so that's going to be the look for the time being.

The quilter starts it tomorrow. I got with her on some ideas...the trailer name, some canned hams, bears, trees, my logo and the wedge graphic. She always does a great job and I'm sure I'll be happy with it. 

It will see daylight this weekend, may adjust the axle...early next week...off to DMV...next Thursday...camping with Mike A, Steve E and Rich and Penny.

Here it is.....all done. Special thanks to Steve E, Mike A, Penny and Rich for all their help in completing this project. Thanks go out to all of you that were patient and followed along on the build thread. Your encouragement and kind words were a big help. I know it seemed to drag on forever, but I decided from the start that I'd try to post something on Sundays that showed my progress. Don't think I'd do that again. 

Barely squeeked out of the garage with the regular tires, only down to 5PSI. I put on the utility trailer tires to get it back in and can drive it in with the truck. Lo-Liners were sold originally with 2 sets of wheels, 1 for road travel and a smaller set to get it in the garage. 

Next stop. DMV...then camping! Thanks again everyone!

Took it to DMV, once I got waited on...38$ and 25 min. along with 18 pages of receipt copies, and I was out. Walked across the street to the insurance guy...59$ for 10K insurance. 250 deductable. This one is titled as special construction "camper trailer" as opposed to "travel trailer". Titled like this, the insurance is only 75% of what a travel trailer is according to State Farm. 

Went on my maiden voyage...only like 25 miles from the house. Steve E, Mike A, Penny/Rich were in their tears. Had some rain, the site next to me had a visit from a bear, I had my bear abatement program in full swing so no problems for me. As usual we all ate really well and too much. I was really pleased and thankful that I didn't drag the floor anywhere in the campground as the road is in really bad shape from tree roots. 

Mike A had some vintage travel decals that he gave me. I've put them on trailers in the past...makes for a more vintage appearance, and back then everyone had them. Thanks Mike! 

I've got a few things that I need to square away before the IRG, plan is to get them taken care of on the 4th. I cracked the top portion of the door slider on the screen by shutting the outer door with the inner slider closed. Need to take care of that...also need to take along a brush and a dust pan...the floor gets dirty fast, especially if it's been raining. Also need to come up with a short pair of stabilizers, maybe a welding project.

Here's the last thing I had to do before the IRG....install the nose bra. The camera flash makes it appear that the color doesn't match, but it's a very close match. It's padded so that the .025 aluminum on the front doesn't take such a beating from the little rocks and other road crap that kicks up. Easily removable with the snaps.

Here's the quilt. Easy to do as I couldn't cut up the fabric into smaller pieces or the Canned Hams etc...wouldn't be visible. Nice border on it, did miter the corners on it, flannel on the back...even has a 59 Rambler in the lineup on the border. The quilter did a great job on it, has all sorts of fun things quilted into the top. Bears, campfires, trees, canned hams and copy that reads I love canned hams, my trailer name and logo. It took a while to find it, but she always quilts in a small golden retreiver with her name, for the (camping buddy) dog that I had. It's bright, but then the colors in the early 60's were. 

Also did a small pinstripe on the cooler and it's now in it's place, pretty good color match!

 

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