The polshing has begun!

And it is much easier than I thought it would be.

Hue Value Chroma

I painted this lamp today, and two others like it. All three of these lights were rusted and looking like crap. I was having difficulty matching the right color. Ace Hardware makes a rustoleum like product that can be tinted and matched to any chip, even one the size of a dime. So I used my handy Munsell Book to find the right color- with the help of my chips, I matched it perfectly at 2.5Y 8/2.

This picture shows a swatch of the paint, painted on the original color.

May smells good. Happy Spring!

I keep forgetting to post, but we have been busy. Recently we removed the old water tank. It was disconnected already, and hogging all of the space under the front gaucho. We may rebuild the water system with a new tank, but for now, it only has water if connected to a hose.

I sewed up some curtains yesterday. Rather than hunt for the original metal curtain guides, I used some old button. They work perfectly, and it was an easy fix.

Next we need to attach the astradome, repair the running lights, get the fridge running and repair the front reading lampshades. (and a million other things :-)

Our air conditioner, first outing and new upholstery.

These are the original "gauchos". Not sure why they are called that? Anyway, the 47 year old foam was kind of gross.

I used an electric knife, (the same one used on Thanksgiving turkeys) to cut the new foam.
We are trying to keep her as original as possible. We have a long way to go, but I think that she is looking pretty good.





Putting the ac on the roof of this thing would be a big expensive job. 1963 was the year BEFORE they started wiring the roofs for AC, so not only would we have t cut a hole in her, we would have to re wire and then purchase an 800 dollar ac unit. This handy solution may not be the most elegant, but it is saving us both time and money. The triangle sides continue to inside, holding the unit in place without any screws or connectors.


We finally camped in our Airstream. I had not camped since about 1977, and that was in a tent- so what a treat it was. She is really not completely ready, but you will see by the pictures that she has come a long way.
I have named her Rosie because of her rivets. The kids call her Bertha.

working on the Astrodome

Today we were both up on ladders removing old silicone caulk and adding new vulkem caulk. just chugging away at it, a little at a time :-)

We really wanted to replace the missing astrodome with the correct replacement from vintage trailer supply, but after waiting all winter, they say it might be the end of summer before it is back in stock. We went with the dome that is offered by inland RV...Seems like a nice and sturdy option. We are soaking the old lifters in some wd40, and hoping that the old lifters become unstuck so that we can attach the astrodome next weekend.

These lampshades were pretty rusty. I like the stripe, and may put it back one of these days. For now, the almond paint looks so much better than dirty rust.

The fabric on the left is the original gaucho upholstery fabric. On the right is the new replacement. We also have all the foam rubber to rebuild. I just ordered the fabric today and will be sending it off to have it laminated before beginning construction. Apparently this is the step that I have missed with each of my upholstery attempts... the reason that my fabric stretches out.

I have been re-attaching the veneer on the drawer fronts and closet walls and doors. After the gluing, I am rubbing in the lemon oil. I am amazed at how well it is working- the wood was so dry and ugly before.

We have been winterizing. The autumn rains have shown us that there are a few leaks. We were waiting for the astradomes to be restocked before we bought caulk- and waited too long. I understand that Inland RV also carries a skylight that will fit in the astradomes place- but have heard that the ones at vintage trailer supply are better. Anyway, it is too cold to caulk now so Rick attached some plastic to her for the winter. I am hopeful that she will stay dry, and we can get busy on the interior restoration over the winter.