Rebuild or repair

[Epbowen]

We bought an aluminum one off last year. We believe it to be from the late 40s. My question is when working on something this old do you replace the skin or repair? I know it won't be as pretty as a new polished one, but it has lots of character :-)
Also what about paint on aluminum? I'm in the northwest and rain is abundant, so I'm thinking paint might be a better sealer then re-riveting.

Any input is appreciated! Can't wait to take it out!!

Emmett

[Vedette]

Welcome to the Forum Emmett
Love to see pictures of it.
Yes it is cool to have that old original look.....but yes it will probably leak after 60 years???
As I am not an authority on the restoration of Teardrops (I have been involved in Auto Restoration for 45 years) so I won't try to give advice on that.
Someone else here on the Forum will! You can be sure of that?????
But, I do know paint. And if you are planing to paint over the "Aluminum" you must clean it very well and Zinc Chromate it prior to primering it.
If not the paint will fall off in the not so distant future.
Good Luck with your new project and keep us Forum members posted.
Where are you in the Northwest??
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi

[Shadow Catcher]

This comes under the heading of Washington's hatchet, the story much abbreviated, we replaced the handle three times and the head twice, it is no longer in any way old. If you want new build new but preserve something that is original as much as practicable. The Smithsonian when replacing parts in a restoration labels them as such.
That does not mean you can not add things such a wiring in the restoration process or even a fan in a piece of replaced plywood...

[Epbowen]

Shadow catcher, we are in portland Oregon.
Is zinc chromate still legal?
I'll post some pics soon.
We are doing cabinetry and cabin stuff at the moment. Trying to decide if I want to put wood doors on her, give it a little organic feel...

[Vedette]

Forgot about that
I have some in stock, but I think it is illegal here in Cananda too??
Much like everthing these days?? If it works, Ban it" and replace it with something that is useless!!
Good Luck
Brian

[Epbowen]

Sorry guys for the name mix up!
Since nothing was on the inside, we are doing custom for us. I'm not sure if anyone will want the trailer when we are done, it won't be original, but it should start some conversations! I have buffed the oxide off most the skin, made washers from some stuff that could not be saved, and sealed them over bolt holes and such. It ain't pretty, but they are functional.
I've rebuilt the spring packs, moved the axel under the pack for some extra clearance, sometimes we camp in bumpy places.

Any thoughts on using low hung batteries and water storage? I want the CG to be as low as possible.

[mary and bob]

I used zinc chromate years ago, but heard it is no longer available. When we restored our '46 Modernistic I had to replace some of the aluminum, the hatch outer skin and the rear lower pan. Other flaws I found ways to hide so it wouldn't look like a patch job. After removing four coats of paint off the outside, and two coats from the inside, we decided not to paint it. It gets polished a couple times a year with Mothers. Not a mirror finish, but shiny enough. It's an old trailer, and is supposed to look as such. This is not a wood framed trailer, or aluminum over plywood, it's put together with aircraft type rivets.

[Epbowen]

Mary and bob, our trailer is aircraft construction too. All solid rivets, may be recycled aircraft skins too. Something's are just about impossible to match.

Got pics in the gallery?

[mary and bob]

Not sure if we had any pictures here, we were not good at posting pictures. It's my opinion that the aluminum used in some of these old teardrops was surplus from war production. I found markings from Alcoa and Reynolds on various pieces. At the time our teardrop was made there were many people with experience in working with aluminum from building airplanes. The new aluminum that I bought for replacement panels has a different finish than the original, but with a high polish on a sunny day nobody can notice, LOL! A previous owner had drilled holes and used screws to fasten wood strips on the interior to attach paneling. We removed all that, and used aircraft rivets to fill those holes. Had to buy several sizes of rivets, and some rivet tools, but most people don't know what is original, and what rivets are replacements until I point them out. We decided to keep ours close to original, no built in drawers or cabinets, lighting, or interior. Do you know the manufacturer of your teardrop?

[mary and bob]

I checked with my local auto parts store that mixes paint and there are newer primers available that work on aluminum. Eastwood company may also be a good source. If I was to paint a camper I would use automotive paint. Considering painting our Uhaul camper, but that's a ways in the future for that project. Snow birding in it right now.

[Epbowen]

I think it's a one off, some one built it, but there is no identifying marks I can find. The only reason we think it is from the late 40s is we found two pennies from 48 in the frame which was riveted tight. It was suggested that the builder did this to date the build. It is a 4x9. Odd thing is the hatch, it is 36 inches wide, so I have 6 inches on each side to contend with.

[mary and bob]

There were numerous plans available in magazines such as Popular Mechanics and other similar magazines back in that time period. A friend of ours found and restored an old teardrop that he was never able to identify its origins. Probably was a home made. It would take a lengthy and extensive search to compile a database of all those old plans. We camped a few years ago with a woman who had an old photo of a teardrop that her father had built when he exited the military in California, and they traveled back to the Northeast with it. She remembers it, but it disappeared in the late 50's, much to her dismay. Perhaps the axle or wheels may help date yours. If you look on eBay under "teardrop trailer" you'll find old patent drawings for sale, but who knows if any of those designs were ever actually produced.

[Epbowen]

I pulled the axel, greased the bearings, which were caged needle bearings. From what I could find they became available in 49 or so. Tha is the most identifying mark so far. The fenders look like they are from a 20s truck, they have bolt holes for the cowling, which were leaded in, no bondo! Also the bearing covers are threaded, another hint.

[prohandyman]

Since zinc chromate is no longer available you need to use a self etching primer of some sort before spaying the paint. It makes a chemical bond with the aluminum to adhere to.

[sagebrush]

I work in a truck bodyshop and this is the product we use when we deal with bare metal. Good for aluminum and ferrous.

http://www.tat-co.com/products/preps-an ... imer-6183/

I believe duPont makes a similar product. Try your local bodyshop supplier or NAPA etc.

Will