Where's Lucy?

We have spent the last few weeks stripping Lucy to the frame.  It is a little sad to have to take all of her original wood out but there was so little left that was any good, I decided to just start over completely. It is also a little hard to call her Lucy since all of her personality is now at the dump.

Before tearing the sides down, I hung up new plywood and traced the old wall. I am using 1/2" OSB for the outer layer of the camper wall.  Luckily I had some help hanging the boards.

After that, it was a simple matter of removing the rest of the wooden structure.  Once it was all down, I used a wire wheel on a grinder to remove all the paint and rust from the frame.  Make sure to wear safety glasses and a mask if you do this.  Grinding on the frame puts off a lot of dust.  Tomorrow I am taking the trailer frame to my uncle's house.  We are going to strengthen the frame in a few spots, fix a few cracked welds and add a hitch receiver to the back so we will be able to mount a bike rack.

 Cheers!

A little progress

This morning I got to work removing the AC unit from Lucy. I found the model online and it looks like it is a 1983 Coleman air conditioner and heater. The original documentation said it weighed 133 lbs. Way too much weight to be put on the roof of the Scotty. Anyway, the interior components came off pretty quickly. 

The plastic shroud came off the top pretty easy too. That old plastic was pretty brittle. I like the look of it on the ground much better than on top of Lucy :).

After using a putty knife to cut the seal between the unit and the roof it was just a matter of time and a lot of help from a neighbor before the AC was gone for good. 

I think Lucy feels much better after getting that weight off of her back. I put a temporary patch over the hole in the roof. It will keep her dry for a few days before I can get her into the garage. 

Lucy came with a few accessories hidden in her luggage compartment. Here she is with her vintage jacks and awning. I think she looks awful nice. 

Initial impressions

In the past 24 hours our Scotty has been cleaned inside and out.  She was very dirty because the camper had been parked under pine trees for quite a while. She also smelled pretty bad. Thankfully it was just a musty, mildewey smell and not an animal smell. She wasn't too pretty in the inside either.

Here is the front end dinette. I added the wood support before pulling her home in case the front wanted to cave in. I had read a horror story about that happening the night before. You can see water damage by the door.

Here is the back bed. The camper came packed with all kinds of extras. Coffee mugs, about 30 spoons, 15 plates, pots, blankets, moldy cushions and of course some TP. 

Lucy is feeling lighter and cleaner now. Emily and I washed her and got rid of all the junk inside. We've swept every corner and have gotten rid of every bug. 

We are now ready for the next step. The AC unit on top is not original. Someone added it and it has broken Lucy's back. The ceiling was never meant to support the weight of much more than a Dove. We will be removing the AC and putting a temporary patch on the roof. Then I will start to assess the severity of the water damage. It is really bad by the door but not sure how bad in the rear yet.