Lee's 58 Overlander

2010-04-23T19:00:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I finished bolting the floor to the frame. I was going to get 50 elevator bolts for this and my friend Steve said that I should get 100. It turned out that even with 100 on hand I was 4 short and I have not even bolted the shell back on yet. Live and learn I guess so it will be back to Fastnal for me tomorrow.

2010-04-23T18:54:00.000-07:00

After killing a turkey in 2 days instead of five I have a few extra days to work on the Airstream so here is how the new step assembly turned out. It not only looks good but I had a 300 pound guy stand on it and bounce around a little so its also strong.

2010-04-22T17:36:00.000-07:00

It turkey season in Wisconsin and as of 8:00 this morning there is one less Gobbler on my friend Jim's farm. I thought that I had missed my opportunity at this Tom when he came from a direction that I was not expecting and I scared him off when I tried to move in preparation for a shot. I stayed there and it took about a half hour of continuous hammering on the box call but he came back looking for the love sick hen that was making all the racket. He found me instead and I let him have it with my Benelli Nova with 31/2 inch copper plated and buffered number 5's. He got an acute case of lead poisoning and croaked. What a morning. His stats: 1 inch spurs, 12 inch beard and 23 pounds

2010-03-22T09:08:00.000-07:00

I am pretty lucky to have a friend like Jim because even when I'm not able to be at his shop things still get done. Here is the new step frame and step, and then the back half of the trailer frame is complete with two coats of POR-15. Thanks Jim.

2010-03-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

It worked and the new coupler is attached. The new one is for a 2 5/16 ball and can pull up to 12,500 pounds, I figure just over three 1958 overlanders. The welds still need to be ground off and it needs to be painted.

2010-03-14T20:36:00.000-07:00

wow, arc welding is a lot brighter than wire feed but Jim says that we needed the extra power of the 220 V welder for the welds on the coupler.

2010-03-14T20:31:00.000-07:00

Using a cutting torch and a grinder and a sledge hammer Jim removed the coupler which was for a 1 7/8 inch ball.

2010-03-14T20:29:00.000-07:00

after several hours of drying time I put on the new backing plates with brake assemblies and they went on very easily. Now we have 4 electric brakes.

2010-03-14T20:26:00.000-07:00

We also tacked a few pieces of conduit in the frame rail for the wiring to pass through for the running lights and the brakes.

2010-03-14T20:22:00.000-07:00

After removing the wheels and all of the hubs and brake assemblies I was able to POR 15 all of the suspension and frame along the suspension.

2010-02-28T18:44:00.000-08:00

Now this next week will be devoted to wire brushing and painting the frame with POR 15. I'll have more pictures as things progress

2010-02-28T18:38:00.000-08:00

Once I got them down to just the spindle coming off the axle they look indentical so I think with the new parts for the new brakes everything should work out fine. I plan to use the drums that I have. The brake assemblies for this trailer are 12 inch diameter by 2 inchs deep.

2010-02-28T18:27:00.000-08:00

On the 1958 they put hydraulic brakes on the rear wheels and electric on the front wheels. I am going to change over to all electric. I was surprised when taking them apart to find the hydraulic one looked as I expected but the electric brake had a huge magnet covering all of the inside of the drum and brake assembly. It was so big it necessitated the backing plate be attached to the axle with studs rather than bolts like the hydraulic. I still think that I can make this work with new electric brake assemblies because the old parts can all be removed from the drums and backing plates should come with the new brakes and then everything can be put back together with bolts holding the new assemblies to the axles.

2010-02-28T18:21:00.000-08:00

My friend Jim is helping me with the frame and to this point has done all of the welding because I do not know how to weld. We still have to weld on one more crossmember so maybe I'll try to learn some basic welding on that one. While jim was welding and grinding I took apart the hubs to inspect and measure for new brake assemblies.

2010-02-28T18:17:00.001-08:00

Here is a couple pictures of what the new metal looks like installed.

new crossmembers and outriggers

2010-02-28T18:11:00.000-08:00

Today we cut out and welded in the new cross members and outriggers. The new metal was manufactured by Steve Klohn's company Red Iron Construction and it turned out great we really had to only make minimal adjustments with the grinder and then we welded them into place.

Inside the shop because its cold outside

2010-02-17T17:32:00.000-08:00

This afternoon we pulled the bottom half of the 58 into the shop and removed the floor. If any of you have ever done this before you know that it seems like and endless number of elevator bolts holding the floor on. With a vice grip and a cutting torch we removed them all in about two hours and then removed the rotted floor to inspect the frame. The frame was in relatively good shape. There are three cross members that we are going to replace and two outriggers that we will replace. One of the cross members is cracked away from the frame rails but after discussing it with my friend Jim we will weld it back together and it will not need replacement. My friend Steve Klohn works for a metal fabrication company and he will be picking up one of the cross members so that he can use it as a template for the manufacturing of the new 3. After all of the metal work is done I will be wire brushing and POR 15-ing (not sure if that is an actual word) the whole frame and then it will be time for the new floor for which I'm planning to use Nylaboard. More to come hopefully soon

I forgot to mention the condition of the step assembly. It is awful. My first thought was to just weld it solid and use a portable step when camping but my friend Jim thinks we can repair the assembly and re-manufacture the step itself and I believe him so that's the plan. You can see in the one picture the step assembly as it is now.

2009-10-26T20:47:00.000-07:00

Well I finally have the whole 1958 gutted and removed from the frame. Here are a couple of pictures of it after we lifted it off and set it on some hay bales. We did lower it to the ground so it did not blow away or fall off the bales or who knows what kind of bad could happen. We have the frame parked in the field waiting for a place in the shop to start the process of removing the floor and fixing the frame. I did notice a couple spots where it is broken. I was considering also replacing the axles with new tortions. With the shell off of the frame I think it should be fairly easy. Easier anyway than when we put the one on the 1961 Caravel.

2009-07-09T15:41:00.001-07:00

I am close to having the whole 58 gutted I have left only the counter with the sink in it and the hot water system. Under the bed I found the cover for the ceiling light and I found these little handles or cranks. I was wondering if anyone knows what these are for? Thanks for any help

The Silver Musky's of Lac du Flambeau Wisconsin

2009-06-23T15:04:00.000-07:00

Well after getting the new axle on the 1961 caravel I thought I should tow it somewhere so my dad and I went to Lac du Flambeau WI to fish for the mighty Musky. The trailer on the new axle made it without any problems and this is the Silver Musky that I caught on Squaw Lake.

The gutting has begun

2009-04-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

Well finally I've had time to start gutting the 58. It seems to be going pretty smooth. There is a lot of rot in the floor but also some of the cabinets fall apart once they are removed from the support of the wall. I saved all of the cabinets so that when the new cabinets are made these can be used as templates. There is so much mouse and rat and squirrel poop and debris inside its almost amazing. Some I just swept out the door but I think I'm going to go through it with a shop vac to get all of it out. This week then its on to the street side and then the bathroom.

2009-04-04T19:39:00.000-07:00

It was still only 10 PM last night so I decided to look at the refer and see what will be involved in removing it for storage and testing. I thought that this was an interesting vent pipe.

Holding the vent cover on for the snow storm predicted

2009-04-04T19:27:00.000-07:00

I did not have any lifters with the vent from my 61 so we needed a way to hold the vent on as the weather man says there is a snow storm on the way for Sunday and Monday. We decided to use the inside control panel from the air conditioner tied it to a rope and then tied it to the vent cover and it weighs it down nicely. Hopefully the snow will come without too much wind. In this photo you can see the weight through the window.

2009-04-04T19:15:00.000-07:00

Once we got the 58 back to Waukesha I was able to take off the air conditioner. Once it was removed the vent opening was intact although the folks who put it on must have just hammered flat the ridge that the vent cover fits on. Luckily when I put the fantastic fan in my 1961 Caravel I kept the vent cover and the insert that goes into the roof and that the vent cover sits on so I will install this in the 1958.

Here is the picture of it without the Air. I think it looks better already. The second picture is the Air ready for the dump.

23 hour recovery mission

2009-04-04T19:08:00.000-07:00

Well last week Byamcaravaner (AKA Steve Klohn) and I made a 23 hour trip to Springfield Missouri to pick up the 1958 Overlander. It was a long trip but we did get to meet and have lunch with Soldier Medic (AKA Steve Burrows) in St. Louis. Seems kind of like I was surrounded by Steves on this trip. It was great to meet Steve he obviously shares Steve Klohns and my passion for vintage Airstreams. He also bought us lunch which was very much appreciated. After lunch he checked out the 58 a little closer. I think it made him feel a little closer to the light at the end of the restoration tunnel with his 53 Flying Cloud. Steve and I took off for places further north and I hung out the window to get this picture of the St. Louis Arch as we passed by. It was kind of neat in Missouri that the leaves were already coming on the trees and bushes. Maybe spring is not too far away from Wisconsin.

2009-03-24T07:50:00.000-07:00

The axle replacement is finished however I do not have the pictures yet of the new look as its been raining ever since we finished. It appears to have raised the trailer several inches. Maybe I'll have some pictures tomorrow after the rain stops.

2009-03-22T06:31:00.000-07:00

Here is the completed mounting plate attached to the frame and painted with rubberized undercoating. The belly skin is hanging down like you see it because we needed to pull it away in order to remove the nuts off of the bolts that we had cut, and had to be able to tighten the new bolts we put in. We used stainless steel bolts in this job. We decided to call it enough for Saturday and will return Sunday to finish it up with welding on the shock towers and bolting the axle in place and then I should be ready for camping.

2009-03-22T06:27:00.000-07:00

We decided that it would be double strong if we bolted it on as well so after 1/2 hour of drilling we were successfull. We were able to skip the gym after drilling these four holes throught the 1/4 inch plate and the frame.

2009-03-22T06:25:00.000-07:00

Here is are the mounting plates when the welding is finished.

2009-03-22T06:19:00.000-07:00

After removing the old axle and bolting the new one on to the mounting plates that we made we got the axle with the help of the floor jack into position, measured to make sure it was square and then tack welded the plate to the frame so that we could unbolt the axle and remove it before welding the plate on the rest of the way. A word of caution, when welding remember to remove the paper around the hubs so you do not start it on fire like we did. No damage as we got the paper off of the hub and the fire out quickly.

2009-03-22T06:17:00.000-07:00

This is the old axle removed from the frame and ready for the dump. We will be pulling it out in a few minutes.

The first day of the axle replacement

2009-03-22T06:05:00.000-07:00

The first step was using the cutting torch to remove the old axle. We ran into only one hitch and that was a hidden third bolt in the mounting plate at the base of the shock tower and behind the tortion arm. It has a flat head to clear the torsion arm and is very hard to see. My friend Steve was very observant otherwise we may still be there scratching our heads. The guy in this picture with the cool glasses is my friend Jim, a master with the torch, grinder, and welder.

2009-03-21T08:21:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of my 1961 Caravel and today we will be replacing the axle with a brand new axle from Axis Axle in Indiana. I ordered the axle through Colin Hyde at GSM. He was able to order it for me to my exact specifications and measurements. This is the first time I've attempted an axle replacement so I,ve enlisted the help of my friend Jim who is a farmer, and my friend Steve who is also an Airstream enthusiast. So it should be a crash course for me in cutting torches and welding. Hopefully it will go smoothly and by tomorrow I will be riding high on a 2009 axle.

2009-03-20T19:51:00.000-07:00

The 1958 Overlander

2009-03-20T19:40:00.000-07:00

Well it all started this past Wednesday when my friend and fellow Airstream enthusiast Steve emailed me a link to an ad for a 1958 Airstream for sale in Strafford Missouri. One thing lead to another and I ended up buying it later that day. Purchase price $1490.00, I think a pretty good deal. In a week or so Steve and I will depart for areas south and bring this beauty back to Wisconsin. I have several pictures sent to me by the seller and I'll post them if I can figure out how to do it.