1963 Fireball back from the dead

Well, the fireball is back from the dead and I just sold it :( . This trailer has come a long way from the terrifying road trip. I was able to complete the framing, paint and do some upholstery. I added a quick self stick floor and removed the old fire hazard floor furnace. I upholstered the seats with vinyl and stapled it to a wood backer. My wife made curtains and decorated it beach style with bamboo curtain rods and beach party decor. Most of the old fixtures were salvageable and I was able to purchase a replacement tail light lens on ebay (not cheap). Stay tuned for a post on ovens. It took me some time but I tracked down a manual and was able to get it working. As you can see it's not perfect yet, but we have had some fun camping. I will post some description later and try to find the build photos. Have fun looking!!

63' Fireball Introduction

The story of my introduction to vintage trailers is quite humorous (now anyway). In 2009 a vintage 1963 Fireball was advertised for free on my local craigslist. It had turquoise appliances and it was free so I went to get it. It was about a 30 minute trip to the trailer which was hard to spot at first hidden in the trees. Anyway, when I opened the door the first thing I noticed was the collapsed roof and then the rot as the trailer sat uncovered for several years after a tree had fallen through it. Now I am a very handy person and can see a diamond in the darkest rough, so I took it. Towing home went quite well. There were no lights, tabs or title so I had my wife and father-in-law drive behind me. As I was cruising down the road I felt a jerk on the back and I saw a large shadow fly away from the trailer. I thought to myself... AHHHHH!!!! The roof had flown off!!!In a panic I took the first side road to think through my dilemma. Meanwhile my father-in-law stopped to pick up the 4x8 sheet of aluminum. He folded up the roof so it would fit in their car and jumped on it to make it fit tight. Good idea at the time. $300 to replace it not so good. Anyway, since my current condition changed to NO TABS, NO LIGHTS, and NO TITLE and now accentuated by NO ROOF it took a while to develop a plan. After awhile passed and no plan came to mind other than driving up a steep and narrow dirt road on the side of a hill which fell to a river we decided to take some roads that intertwined with the highway on the way home. It probably took an hour during which time my phone died and my heart was racing. Well we got her home and parked her in the driveway. I whimpered over my now 2x2 section of roof that was a 4x8 and evaluated the work ahead. The first thing I did was take pictures. This was to help in the restoration so take a look. As you can see from the pictures there a lot of water damage.The roof was completely collapsed in the front. It took a couple hours to clean this guy out. The key is to keep everything that isn't rotten wood or cloth. There a lot of hardware that fell off and you never know what you may be throwing away.

How to pack trailer bearings

Packing wheel bearings is very simple. It takes less than an hour for even inexperienced mechanics. Make sure to support the trailer at the axle and tongue as well as chalk the tires and support the back of the trailer. You don't want the trailer to tip over in any direction.The first thing to do is remove the wheel. Use an impact hammer or tire iron.

Next, take a pair of channel locks and remove the cap. You may need to twist it off as some are threaded or you will just need to gently wiggle it back and forth until it comes loose. You should have a tray or bucket close bye to put all of the parts. They need to stay clean especially the interior parts such as the bearings, seals and cap.

Once you remove the cap you will see the lock-nut and cotter pin. Bend the cotter pin straight and pull out the cotter pin with a pair of pliers.  You should be able to remove the nut with your fingers. You may need to use a wrench; however it should not be very tight.

When you remove the nut you will see a metal washer with a tab on it that lines up with a groove on the axle. Remove the tab with the help of a screwdrive and set aside. Remember to keep all of the parts free of dust and other particles that may get into the bearings.

It is not held in by anything at this point. To remove it gently pull on the hub until the bearing moves to the end of the shaft then push the hub back so you can easily remove the bearing. Put it in a clean place.

You are now able to pull off of the hub. Be careful, depending on the hub the inner bearing may not be held on tight. Don’t try to remove the hub while holding the outer bearing. Just put it down and keep it clean.

On this hub there is a metal ring seal. All you will do with this is clean it and lightly grease it before replacing the hub.

Now the the hub is off we need to remove the inner bearing.

Do this one wheel at a time and don’t get the bearings mixed. The first thing to do is find a socket that is just small enough to fit through the hole where the outer bearing was. Make sure that it is a large socket so that when you hit it with a hammer it will displace the pressure so that you don’t damage the inner bearing.

Drop the socket in the hole and make sure that it cove the inner nearing and does not hit the sleeve.

Find a hammer that will fit in the socket and place the wooden end of the handle in the hole. Hit firmly, but don’t overpower it. It will probably take a few hits to get it out. Make sure that you place the hub on a clean surface so the seal and bearing stay clean.

After the bearings are removed clean them by wiping them off with a shop paper towel. Inspect for any discoloration or pits. If they look suspicious replace them. If you put it on a dirty surface and its covered in particulates replace it.The easiest way is to use a bearing packer. They are about 15$ at the auto parts store. This one used a grease gun. If you need to buy a grease gun buy the big one. It is probably cheaper than the mini and the grease is a fraction of the price.

Place the bearing in the packer and screw on the top. Make sure there is a good seal around the top and bottom edges of the bearning.

 Attached the grease gun and pump the handle until all of the dirty grease is pushed out of the bearning and clean grease is coming through.

Use some of the extra grease and coat the outside of the bearing. Also lube lube the bearning seat pictured below.

Clean this part up as well. Don't use solvent.

Lube the backside of the bearning and clean up the metal ring seal.

To install the seal just tap it in a cirular motion with a hammer. It should sit level when done.

 Now, replace the hub. Make sure that any seals or sleeves the you took off are replaced before installing the hub. When the hub is back in place. Lube the outer bearing seat and replace that bearning. Replace the bolt, cotter pin & cap. Your done!

1956 Dalton Canned Ham Restoration

Showing 1956 Dalton Canned Ham Vintage Travel Trailer Restoration
She's all done and just got a bath.  Freshly stripped and painted with a professional enamel. This took a couple weeks to complete. I used 2 gallons of aircraft stripper because the previous owner had painted it with latex house paint and glue. The paint had to be scrubbed off with steel wool after it sat in stripper due to the glue. FYI: Stripper burns. It turned out great though. I took off the metal and replaced the rotten and warped cedar on the sides and roof. To do a vintage trailer properly any interior panels have to be replaced by removing the metal and then the cross-members. A shoddy restoration with have new wood nailed over old wood which doesn't address any rot. Trailers are built from the inside out. I took some rolled aluminum and covered the first vertical panel on the door due to all of the dents. Before this I filled the holes and I used epoxy to cement the panel in place. I also polished up the name plate and handles which were painted. The chrome looks great against the red don't you think. This side door had fallen off so the old owner just screwed on some gate hinges through the metal. He also attached a gate lock to the door by smashing down the door trim. I remove both and straightened them out. I filled the holes with body filler and sanded smooth. The utility door took 5 minutes to straighten and reattach. This is the stripped and sanded door. I scuffed all of the pinhole dents and patched the holes. The area by the door handle was especially bad and the bottom of the door was damaged. To fix this I bondoed all of the dents and my dad suggested covering the first vertical panel with new metal. I took his advice and lined up the edge of the metal with the first crease. I used epoxy to adhere it and used paint cans to apply pressure for drying. After it dried I bent the metal and epoxied the back. It turned out really nice as you can see from the next picture. I repainted the trailer following the original pattern.I also coated the tong and installed a battery box and engineered a bottom mount propane tank holder. I coated the frame and crank in a hammered finish xylol based paint. It is very durable and covers up imperfections well. My dad worked hard grinding the tongue down, which made the paint look great. The old owner came to me in a yard sale and told me that he had painted it with latex house paint and glue. This actually held very well, however when you strip house paint with glue it turns into glue. This creates a bit of a problem when trying to remove. Notice the dents in front. I hammered them out and filled what I could. I also added extra cross members and new insulation to help support the front. It took 60+ hours to prep this trailer for painting. I had to remove the glue/paint which took $80 worth of aircraft stripper. I sanded the entire outside and had to wet-sand parts of it due to an unfortunate reaction with homemade stripper. I even had to use a credit card as a sanding block to get in the grooves. Just removing the paper after spraying. I used a high performance rustoleum paint that I applied with my HVLP gun. It worked out well but not perfect as I am not a professional painter. The primer was a metal etching primer which is needed for aluminum to adhere properly. It put on 3 coats of white and 3 coats of red. Notice that the trim is not installed. Look at the final photo. The trim really adds that vintage flare. I sanded, primed and painted the wheels. I couldn't find the right baby moon hubcaps, so I ordered a set from iowa80.com which sells semi parts. they came with brackets that I riveted to the wheels. These tires came with the trailer and they are almost new. I used some tire cleaner/polish to get them nice and black. I hammered and filled what I could, but this trailer is 56 years old. There are some dents in the metal but it turned out well. You can see in the picture that the white paint is a satin and the red is gloss. This really helps the red pop. Kyle worked hard cleaning the windows and Ethan and Jake wet sanded the trim. They wanted some extra money and they worked hard. The back had a couple of large dents which I hammered out and filled. The arrows are part of the original design. I believe the tail lights are off of a 50's Ford Galaxy though they fit nicely. The glass on the back had to be replaced along with 3 other windows. The fellows at Community Glass did it quickly and it cost less than $45. I always assumed glass was more expensive than plexi, however plexi would have been at least $60 for the size needed and I would have had to cut it myself. I also removed all of the old black weather stripping and replaced it. 3 of the latches had to be replaced as well, so I found a piece of galvanized rod at Coastal Farm & Ranch and fabricated them using a vice, torch, grinder and file. I could have bought new ones, but it was faster and less expensive this way. Best of all they work! Check out the lights. I got the side lights and door light from Stan's. The door light runs off of the battery. I have also installed one 12v light inside and fitted the trailer with a new 12v pump and poly 10 gallon tank. It still has the old hand pump which works. The interior walls were stained a darker brown over the old lacquer. This meant that instead of just sanding off the old lacquer I had to sand the wood more. Since the old plywood is a thick veneer sanding did not damage it, however it took about 60 hours of sanding. Notice the rotten wood on the sides of the window: this had to be replaced. Take note of the cabinet hardware and look at it refurbished in other pictures. New panel in the front. What you don't see is the new cedar framing. I replaced all of the old wood and added some extra cross members for support. Finally finished sanding. This is just before putting on the poly. The new panels have been stained. We were ready for this moment. I used over a hundred sheets of sand paper and spent over 40 hours sanding.I used a Ryobi orbital and quarter sheet sander. I usually stay away from Ryobi tools but man these guys went the distance and still work great. To keep down the dust I attached a vacuum hose to back of the sander. This is a picture before just after staining. I put on a 3/16 sub-floor before installing the laminate. Notice the stove insert. I had removed the old plywood and installed some new stuff. This is the first coat of poly. Watch is get darker and more brilliant. Second coat of poly with the help of my beautiful assistant. The heat made it difficult to apply. We sanded between coats to smooth out the bumps. Melinda did the cabinet poly as well. She is amazing. Meet the old floor. I would have saved it but it was really cracked in places. I covered it with a 3/8'' underlay and some new interlocking laminate. I took a piece of cedar and cut it to follow the contours of the wall and floor. The flooring is a new locking laminate (sorry the brand escapes me). We were originally worried about multiple wood tones but it looks great. I added a rubber foot on the original table leg. The new poly gives the old wood a nice honey color. The lower front panel was replaced when the metal was off. After I triumphantly came back from Lowes with a stain that matched the old wood, my wife went back worked with the pant guy for over an hour to get an actual match. Thanks Jeremy at Lowes! The original table had a yellow laminate. I originally wanted to save it, but in my haste I cracked it just before I got it off. So I built this table out of birch plywood and red fur trim. It is coated in poly and looks awesome. I achieved the curve with a jigsaw and made it perfect with a belt sander. I bent the wood using glue and a large ratchet strap. My son Kyle worked hard helping me sand the trailer. He is especially proud of this cabinet and I am too!! This curved cabinet did not reveal its true beauty until I put on the poly. It looked like we had over-sanded the entire thing. However, when I coated it the nice Birdseye pattern revealed itself. This picture does not do it justice. The old owner had removed the old hinges and replaced them with some ugly black ones. I used the hinges off of the two interior storage compartments for this door and replaced those with an inside mount hinge. The rounded cabinetry looks great and the reconditioned vintage copper hardware really is a nice touch. Notice the trim on the walls. I bought a cedar 2x6 and sliced it up on the table saw. I gently rounded the edges and put a coat of stain and ply. The original trim was just strips of birch laminate that fell apart over time. The new trim (which also edges the floor) looks awesome. These cabinets are the best part of this trailer. It is what makes it stand apart from the ash models of the 60's and newer trailers. The wood around the hatch was destroyed and bowed in due to the weight of the cabinets. I replaced all of the 1x4 joists with 1x5's and added a couple more. The thing with these trailers is that the wood has to be put in before the ceiling joists. They are really laminated together. So I had to rebuild the sidewalls as well. Lots of work. See the yellowish patina on the hinges. This is lacquer from someone else's slop job. I stripped the hinges and used basso to bring out the copper. Now they really shine. To maintain the nice copper they need to be waxed or they over time they will acquire a nice green/brown patina. This is the old inverter. Though I am courageous I haven't tried to plug in this guy. The sidewall behind was rotten as well so I replaced it. Notice the light brown strip on the cabinet to the right. This is the original color and the brown is the stain. This lower panel was too damaged to save so I replaced it. The old cushions were fine. I gave them a bath in bleach water and laundry soap. I like to let the water sit in the cushion for a while and then squeeze it out, rinse/squeeze, and let it air dry which takes a couple days so the chemicals can kill any potential smells. The original upholstery was brown and yellow. I replaced the back panel with a new piece of birch plywood. Sanding is about to commence, though it went fast initially it took a lot of time to get the stain out from the previous owner. To check the color you can wipe the wood with mineral spirits. I used a wire cart to let the cushions dry. I gave them a chemical bath and it took 3 days to dry. The new and old wood look great next to each other. Melinda did a great job color matching the stain. Lowes was very helpful. They have a staining kit at the paint counter and they have tint-able stain. The curtains in the entire trailer are route 66 and the light is a vintage style light from. Stan's once again. I think the Wenatchee rule is if nobody has it Stan's does. Anyway, I wired up a rotary switch to the Stan's fixture and I attached it directly to the light. Melinda picked out the fabric and made the curtains. I had the cushions re-upholstered with micro suede and had them embroidered with "Dalton". They are amazing. If you need an trailer upholstery I know the lady. This bunk rolls up and will sit tight against the wall. It will hold a person and/or storage. My boys worked hard to scrub the metal trim around each window inside and out. The custom embroidery is the perfect accent to the new upholstery. The thread used is a red sparkle. This stove top was severely pitted from rust. I called the guys at Cascade Powder Coating in Wenatchee and they fixed it right up. We color matched the white and the top was sandblasted and coated. It still has some bumps, but it looks nice. While it was away I sanded and coated the area below the top with a high temperature paint. The burned side splash I removed and put on some aluminum sheeting for nice clean look and easy cleanup. I also replaced all of the wood on the side and behind the stove with new sheeting. It had been damaged by mice and moisture. The best part the stove top and oven work! Even after sandblasting there was still some bumps in the metal, however it still looks great. Powder-coating is great because it is very hard and will withstand temperature up to 400 degrees. The new stove top looks great next to the new upholstery. I left the original back-splash and counter. You can see the new stove top and side splash (kind of) I also had to reattach the sink with larger bolts and I sealed it up with silicon caulking. The counter and back-splash were both cleaned and then we used Gel-coat to give it a nicer finish. This is the canvas bunk. It is part of the original design. I bought a piece of painters canvas to recreate this bunk. It holds me (230iiiish). It is double layered and double stitched. I also had the upholsterer put an extra 3' of canvas that can be dropped down for a privacy curtain. The pillows are custom made. They have a route 66 fabric with embroidered names of the cities on each pillow. The top bunk pulls out to a 28'' wide bed and the couch pulls out to 48''. This bed is spring loaded and is 38'' wide. I had the back covered in felt so it wouldn't scratch the table. Notice the copper plated hinges in the cabinet. It took 3 hours to clean all of the hardware. Though I do like aging they were coated in stain/lacquer from the old owner. Meet the upholsterer (mom). She is a seasoned sewer and works at Andrew's Sewing and Vac in Wenatchee teaching classes among other things. She has used sewing machines her entire life (she used to make her cloths and other things). The memory of her mom (Grandma) gave her the inspiration to just do it. Grandma would just figure things out like re-upholstering couches and my mom is the same. She also did the custom embroidery work. If your looking to re-upholster your trailer it will cost around $1500-$2000. I took this light fixture and the one underneath the front cabinets and coated them with a copper hammered finish paint. It really goes nicely with the wood. The glass on this fixture is the same and the one above the sink. This one got broken by somebodies head knocking off the metal bar from the bunk. (oops) So I went to...Stan's and bought a new glass and I bought some wire clips to hold the bars in place. Notice the roof. It was replaced and color matched and I put on a new galvanized vent. I also sanded down the cabinetry and leveled out the countertop which has slid down over the years.