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CHAPTER 2

DISASSEMBLY

The least pleasant part of camper restoration is the teardown, but it’s one of the most important to document thoroughly. If you haven’t used a camera recently, it’s a good idea to brush up on some basics. You can find many online tutorials or community education courses to help ensure you’re detailing the restoration process with quality images. You will need to reference them many times throughout the rebuild. In addition, photos can be an important asset for potential resale.

Starting with the dinette, I worked my way clockwise around the Cruisette during demo. Here, you can see tiles that were hidden under a carpet. More noteworthy, however, is the damaged and rotted subfloor. The upper shell attaches directly to this component, and the fact that you can see light shining through is very disconcerting. Typically, rot resides by camper doors, windows, and vents.

Another important tip, which should come naturally for most, is to wear proper protective gear. You’ll be breaking apart components and exposing many harmful particulates that have most likely, due to toxicity, been banned since the original assembly of the camper. This includes adhesives, paints, and insulation. Be sure to use a respirator, gloves, safety glasses, and full-coverage clothing.

Safety First!

When removing old insulation and rotted members from a camper, airborne particulates travel. Be sure others nearby are not exposed to these dangers. When sanding and polishing, be sure that the dust does not scatter widely. Using drop cloths, tarps, and plastic to cover and contain debris is helpful in easing cleanup and preventing contamination.

After a full day of working on the camper, it’s best to immediately remove your dirty clothing and take a shower. Dust and debris remain on clothing and can transfer to your living quarters, where it affects not only your health, but that of your co-habitants.

Animal Contamination

Scat can be, well, scratch that, will be present during the teardown, which is also toxic. More noteworthy, rodent smells attract other rodents. If you’re working in the driveway or house, it’s not a bad idea to strip anything that’s been marked by rodents and dispose of it quickly to prevent attracting more of their friends.

A 1960s Airstream Bubble’s belly pan served as a happy home to many animals, based on the large quantity of feces and carcasses amassed. The sedentary state of abandoned campers is a welcoming environment for them.

Tanks, Stove and Fridge

A good plan of attack for disassembly is to start from the inside. This allows you to work in an enclosed unit, which is nice if you’re starting in inclement weather. Before the first interior screw is removed, however, ensure that there is no battery hooked up and the propane tanks are removed.

Although the Cruisette did not have a black-water tank, this early-1950s Boles Aero Ensenada did. Before removing the tank and toilet, I pulled the camper to a dumping station and gave both the gray and black holding tanks a good flush. If you’re unfamiliar with this process, plenty of tutorials are available online. Also, note the internal aluminum rib construction of this non-Airstream example.

If your camper has a black water tank, it’s a good idea to ensure that it is empty before beginning any work. If necessary, pull the unit to a dumping station or use a portable waste transporter to flush it out. After dealing with lead paint, insulation, and rodent scat, the last thing you want to address is human waste.

The walls of this 1980s Overlander served as a nest. The inside walls of old campers should be thoroughly examined for infestation. It’s best to remove any animal traces right away or they will continue to attract more visitors.

The stove/fridge/sink all-in-one unit in this galley was too big to remove through the door, so it was the last component to go when I separated the shell from the chassis. Surprisingly, this tiny Airstream had a toilet that, equally unexpected, did not drain into a black-water tank, indicating a welcome change of camping standards since the turn of the century.

This simple vintage Wedgewood range uses screws to mount to the galley. This one has been removed and reinstalled before, as evidenced by the modern wood-grabber screw used to fasten it. On ranges with an oven, screws are used inside the oven. These often require lifting out the grates and heat shroud to access.

Sometimes it’s easy to find the mounting points, such as this ice chest’s screws that are exposed on the front. Sometimes, however, the mounting screws are hidden inside vintage fridges, or on the backside, accessible through exterior maintenance hatches and vents.

Keep in mind that the order of disassembly is the reverse order of assembly, so it’s a good idea to note how things come apart. You may find that some appliances are too large to fit through the door. It’s common that a large refrigerator or shower/bath could have been installed then built around. With that said, start by removing propane components such as the stove, heater, gas lamp, and water heater. If you plan to restore these, be careful not to add any damage during removal.

Stoves are usually installed in the galley with screws hidden inside. First, you need to lift the top off and disconnect the liquid propane line under the range. Ice chests and fridges are secured in a similar manner; you need to locate the mounting screws retaining these appliances to remove them.

Galley, Bed and Cabinets

Once the equipment and associated plumbing/wiring are removed, you can focus on cabinets and large components such as the galley and dinette. On the Cruisette and other early Airstreams, these were secured using large sheet-metal screws. It’s important to loosen these slowly, and work your way along a line of perpendicular or parallel screws. If you release one screw all the way and leave others torqued, you could create tension and deform the camper’s interior sheet-metal walls, creating more work later.

Sometime in the 1960s, aluminum extrusions were riveted to the interior skin with cabinetry walls screwed to them, which became the main fastening system. When disassembling, take note of the camper’s original fastening system, as you’ll be reproducing this during reassembly.

Like any product of industry, travel trailers constantly evolved. Early 1950s Airstreams used large sheet-metal screws to fasten cabinetry, which were later replaced with more complex aluminum extrusions and blind rivets as technology progressed, shown here inside a 1960s Tradewind closet. Also notice the (probably original) patch with slotted pan-head sheet-metal screws and the Zolatone finish.

When disassembling, things can strip out and be stubborn. Before frustration sets in, avoid damage when prying, drilling, and hammering by using masking tape, sacrificial plywood, and/or cardboard to protect both metal and wood surfaces from gouges and scratches. Sometimes, screws can be hidden and difficult to access. Remember that someone put this camper together, and it does come apart. Once you’ve removed the galley, dinette, bed, etc., you have the start of a bare shell.

Interior Skin

Now is a good time to focus on wall preparation. As mentioned earlier, Cruisettes were known for not having interior endcaps to keep cost and weight down. But like other Airstreams of this vintage, the Cruisette does share the Zolatone coated aluminum common of 1950s models (but it was not the more-common speckled finish). Zolatone is a two-stage paint first used on Airstreams and automobiles where durability was needed, such as the trunk.

The vinyl-covered aluminum skin of 1970s and 1980s Airstreams accumulate a gross, sticky grime over decades of use. Take note here of the black mold and rotted insulation between the windows and even between the lap joints. To properly address this, discard and replace all insulation, seal interior seams, and clean and strip the panels of the grime and mold before reassembly and paint. Keep in mind that these conditions exist under most Airstream skins, and without addressing rot, mold, and grime, you’re only putting a bandage over a much bigger issue.

Zolatone can be difficult to remove. It’s still available today, but you need to get creative to match an original hue. You can find plenty of Internet forum talk on the process necessary to match an original finish if that’s your goal. Essentially, it’s going to take a certain amount of controlled chaos to achieve the splattered look. If you’re unhappy with the outcome, you can always strip it and start over. Practicing on smaller sample sets helps to dial in the density and size of splatter.

Airstream did not use Zolatone for very long and ended up replacing it with a vinyl covering applied to the aluminum skin. If you’re tackling a non-Airstream restoration, your camper may have aluminum or plywood/lauan interior walls. Either way, once the major interior components are removed, it’s time to address the interior walls.

In some cases, it might be easier to replace panels with new aluminum then to strip and prep for paint. Before deciding what materials and products to use, visit a painting specialist for recommendations on products and techniques. Painting and prepping vinyl-coated walls (there are special vinyl paints, if the vinyl hasn’t started to peel) differs greatly from prepping for a Zolatone topcoat.

In the case of the Cruisette, the owner wanted the walls stripped and repainted with a modern, low-volatile organic compound paint. With the panels in place, I began the time-consuming and hazardous task of applying automotive paint stripper to work through many layers of paint accumulated over the years.

Keep in mind that this was only a preliminary stripping and panel prep. You’ll be removing the interior panels to address electrical issues and to replace the insulation, so it is not vital to perfectly strip the panels in this step.

Paint Removal

1 The many layers of paint applied to this little Airstream were stripped with aircraft paint remover. This was a first step to prep the walls for removal. Roughing up the paint with a low-grit abrasive helps work the stripper into the paint. While a mask would have been preferred, once the stripper has dried, gassing is reduced and the open shop doors and windows provide adequate airflow.

2 Letting the paint stripper penetrate for five minutes helps it lift the old paint. The many layers and durable Zolatone coating proved to be difficult to remove on this job. Laying plastic over the applied stripper helps prevent it from drying too quickly in an arid climate and allows the stripper to better do its job.

3 A plastic body filler applicator was used to scrape the peeling paint off the walls. The scrapings can be cleaned up with a dustpan or vacuum once they’re dry and should be disposed of in a proper container.

Panel Removal

Once you have a good portion of the old paint removed, it’s time to start removing individual panels. This vintage Airstream did not have blind rivets. While the technology existed during the camper’s production, blind rivets were a relatively new technology and also required assembly, which would have slowed manufacturing. Instead, basic slotted sheet-metal screws were used. By the late 1950s and early 1960s, however, blind-rivet fastening became ubiquitous with Airstream interior assembly.

Lap joints are the simplest method of assembling aluminum panels; they simply overlap one another and are fastened with rivets or screws. You can see the lapped seams of this 1960s land yacht by the door (also visible is seeping mold and dirt from water intrusion). These lap joints indicate that the lower panel was put on first and the top last. So, for disassembly (once the interior is gutted), you start removing the upper panels.

The Cruisette’s wall panels terminated at the bottom, meaning the lower side panels were the last ones to go on and will be the first to come off. That might not be true for your camper, however. Some vintages and models finished skinning the campers with the topmost panel. By focusing on the lap joints, you can locate the last panel installed and remove that one first.

As with gutting the interior, you work backward from the factory assemblers. When drilling out rivets and removing screws, note what was used and where. You may find non-factory fixes throughout the disassembly, and if anything is out of the ordinary (e.g., weird fasteners, out-of-place materials, or panel damage), it should be earmarked for future attention to return to original.

You need to remove hundreds of rivets. Be careful not to let the drill bit walk and damage the panels if you plan to reuse them. To prevent the bit from walking, use a center punch and keep a stock of sharp bits and cutting fluid handy. If you need to go larger than a 1/8-inch drill bit, use a 5/32-inch, as those are easy to find from suppliers. Cutting fluid helps lengthen the life expectancy of your bits and enhances drilling.

This rivet on a 1940s Spartan Manor is one of many that need to be removed to replace a damaged panel. Specific rivet removal tools are available for shaving the head. While these help prevent a drill bit from walking, they’re not necessary to pop an old rivet. A center punch, appropriate bit, and a steady hand is all that’s really necessary.

The Airstream endcap is a defining feature of the brand and a time-consuming, yet essential, piece. This Cruisette has a 13-panel endcap on both ends. The left and right panels are close mirrors to each other and can be easily mixed up. Masking tape or a paint marker helps to keep track of which panels go together. If your plan is to remove all the panels, which can make prep for paint or polish easier because they lay flat, you want to use a 1/8-inch bit. Be sure not to wallow out the holes too much. As rivet hole tolerances increase, you run into problems such as tenting (peaks in between rivets), a loss of roundness or proper shape, and panel wandering during reassembly.

Panel Cleaning

Once you’ve accumulated a pile of interior panels, the next step is to clean them. I used a degreaser, medium or stiff bristle brush, and good water pressure to remove all fiberglass insulation and many other unrecognizable substances that accumulated on the Cruisette’s panels. Take your time to do a good job removing all the dirt and grime from both sides. Also, knock down any sharp edges with a file, sheers, or hammer as you encounter them.

The rivets on this camper already have a recess in the center, so they did not need to be punched. To cleanly remove the head, you need to use a bit that’s the same size as the rivet tail (usually 5/32 or 1/8 inch). If you’re worried about damaging the panel being removed, masking tape can provide a protective boundary around the rivet.

It’s easy to wash off any important markings, so be sure to keep track of (photograph) what you’re doing and to go back once they’ve dried to remark and organize.

It can be easy to crease large panels when handling them, so make sure to have a helping hand within earshot.

Aluminum rivets are pretty soft and the drill burrows quickly into the head. Because you’re using a bit that’s the same size as the rivet tail, giving the drill a slight rotation helps wallow the hole, separating the head from the tail. At this point you can remove the rivet head and move on to the next hole. Before a new rivet can be installed, however, the remaining tail in the rib hole must be removed with a punch or drill bit.

Washing old insulation and accumulated dust and grime from the aluminum panels is essential because you’re going to be handling them to patch, re-create, and prep for final finish. I used Simple Green and a medium-bristle carwash brush with a long handle to clean the old insulation and residue from the panels.

Storing large pieces where they won’t get damage is important. A quick option is to toss them under the shell or chassis, but they eventually get in the way. Mounting smaller panels to a chip board with screws or tacks is a good way to secure, store, and even work on them.

For wood-sided trailers, remove fasteners as necessary and save the hardware for restoration or to ease sourcing matches. A severely water-damaged panel is destined for immediate disposal, but you may want to retain pieces such as decorative curves and cabinet vents to aid making future templates. Panels that are still good can be saved for restoration. Be sure to note the order of placement and label accordingly.

Insulation

Once the interior panels are out, it’s time to remove the old insulation. Depending on the manufacturer, model, and period of construction of your trailer, any number of materials can be used. From 1970s foam to 1950s fiberglass, there is a good chance that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) do not permit these products to be sold anymore due to environmental and health hazards.

Once the interior panels are removed, it’s time to get rid of the fiberglass insulation, accumulated rodent nests, and mold. As with every other step in the demo/teardown process, this is another nasty step that requires proper personal protective equipment.

With the insulation gutted, you can now see some of the old surplus military aluminum (the fatigue green) that makes these early, post-war campers special. Also noteworthy is the handwriting in the upper right corner indicating that the panel was originally destined for an Airstream Bubble.

Take care when disposing of old insulation by using protective clothing, respirators, and eye protection. Once the old stuff is removed, it’s time to scrub the interior walls to further remove remnants. As with an Airstream’s interior panels, you want to use a spray-able, biodegradable degreaser and stiff-bristle brushes on the inside of the exterior panels to ensure insulation particulates are removed from the original aluminum.

Use water to rinse. If you live in a humid climate, a heater or fan helps dry the walls. After everything is dried, it’s not a bad idea to follow up with a vacuum on the floors and walls, too, to eliminate any particulates.

Building a Lifting Structure

Using various long lumber stock, such as 3/4-inch plywood, 2 x 4s, and 2 x 2s or metal-bar stock, you can now work on supporting the body for removal from the chassis. Use a cross pattern where possible and support the walls where necessary. Self-tapping screws come in handy when connecting the metal ribs to the wooden (or metal) support structure.

Before separating the shell, you might want to remove the windows. Keeping the window frames installed helps the shell retain its shape and can provide a semi-weather-tight storage space. On the other hand, removing the windows allows easier restoration of the camper. For the Cruisette, I removed the windows before pulling the shell.

In some instances, you can lift at the reinforced vent holes (or fabricate a lifting point through the vent hole to a solid point) with chain falls or an electric hoist. Another option is to lift using an automotive-style post lift (if there’s clearance) or a set of cable jacks like those used on truck campers. Make sure that jack points distribute the load throughout the shell structure, as aluminum folds easily with few pounds per square inch.

Next, locate the mounting hardware that attaches the shell to the chassis and floor. Typically, you’ll find lag bolts and screws.

Once the shell is free, simply lift and pull the chassis out. ■

The plywood lattice used to support this small shell was more than sufficient, but if you’re lifting a heavier model, you might want to use a thicker plywood or aluminum or steel extrusions. I also made a template of the floor print before removing the shell for the planned Marmoleum flooring.

A simple template helps ensure that the floor fits snuggly.

Here you can see the support structure attached by the door and adjacent rib.

To free the shell from the chassis, you have to remove the lower rub rails. On the Cruisette, these are attached with large pan-head sheet-metal screws. Newer models transitioned to blind rivets for attachment. You may also find rivets placed under the rub rail that helped attach the shell to the aluminum C-channel.

Lift the Shell

Before removing the shell from the chassis I made a template for the Marmoleum flooring. Your restoration goals and flooring medium will determine if a template is necessary or not. If it’s undecided at this point, making them now could help things run smoother in the future. You can use cardboard, template paper, or scrap plywood to build the template.