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Old 05-08-2014, 03:04 PM   #15
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Wayne, nice job in restoring the original Hybrid, the R-Vision Bantam.

by the way, what area of Central Cali do you live?
some of the pics of the beach and campground look familiar, since we lived in Ventura County for 17 years.
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Old 05-08-2014, 05:31 PM   #16
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The beach picture is from the coast line of Oregon. Some amazing places to visit up there. We had a visitor from Texas once that wanted to see where the trees grow to the edge of the ocean, he had heard of this, but just didn't believe it was possible. LOL

We now live in Novato, near the San Fran bay area.

We are trying to get the trailer ready for a visit to Yellow Stone in late summer. We will be doing a few smaller trips first. Rough plan is Utah for a couple of days, then Grand Teton for a few more days, then Yellow Stone for several days, then slide over to Montana and Idaho before heading home. I have not set foot in Idaho or Montana yet, so still working out some plans for that stage of the trip. All said looking at 2 or 3 weeks if all goes well.

-Wayne
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Old 05-08-2014, 06:03 PM   #17
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I had one just like that a long time ago. Loved it.

I used the space behind the propane tanks to mount a plastic storage box using a little angle iron framework bolted to the tongue. In addition to the storage box snaps I would add a bungee across it the insure lid stayed on while traveling. I put the spare tire inside somewhere, can't remember where. Needed some kind of jack down in the rear or the tongue would go airborne when you stepped in the rear of the trailer.
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Old 05-08-2014, 10:25 PM   #18
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I'll take a picture of our drawer mod under the sink next weekend when we camp. It works very well.
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Old 05-09-2014, 06:59 AM   #19
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looks like you got a nice little trailer there, and the progress is awesome! keep up the good work, I look forward to seeing more progress.
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Old 05-09-2014, 11:46 AM   #20
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Great to hear from some Bantam owners. Would love to see the drawer mod!

I like the idea of the storage box on the tongue. I towed the trailer the other day with no water, no propane tanks and no battery, dang, it was bouncing up and down all over the place. Glad I only had to tow a couple of miles. Was surprised it had no sway issues with a light tongue, just lots of bouncing up and down at the receiver.

I have a small car jack under the rear bumper right now to keep it from jumping in the air when I step inside. The new jacks for the rear should show up next week, they will be a little overkill for this trailer, but should hold up.

Hope to seal the roof seams this weekend. Maybe wax the exterior too. Not sure what to do with some of the old vinyl, most has pealed off, but still some nasty old dry stuff stayed behind. Not that worried about it I guess...

-Wayne
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Old 05-10-2014, 06:41 PM   #21
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Pics of our drawer mod:
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Old 05-12-2014, 09:50 AM   #22
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That will do the trick. Any idea what company made the plastic bins? They look to be a very good fit.

Will post the weekends update a bit later.

-Wayne
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Old 05-12-2014, 02:41 PM   #23
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I'll look this weekend and see if anything is stamped on them. I can also measure them if helpful.
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Old 05-12-2014, 03:49 PM   #24
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Thanks!

Well, I got some more work completed last weekend. Took on a few of the bigger jobs, and tried to wrap up some loose ends.

I started with the battery box, the box was OK, but the bolts that hold it in place were all but gone. I backed them out from below with some vice grips as the bolt heads were pretty much worthless from corrosion. Then cleaned up the box, remounted with new hardware and installed a new battery. I only have a picture from before starting the project:


Then it was onto the roof. I was a bit worried about the roof seams leaking, but on further inspection I think they were fine. I went ahead and sealed them anyhow. Here are a few pics:
Before


Then cleaned and sealed:


The plumbing vents were VERY BAD. Here is a shot of one during cleaning. Both vents were missing the top caps, but this one was missing most everything.


This was the good one!


Flange removed:


Cleaned up for new flange:


Both cleaned up:


Sealant applied:


And mounted:


Cleaned the old caulking from the roof vent:


And also cleaned and sealed the front seam. The front seal did not look as good as the rear seal. Was a lot harder to clean up and seal as the hitch was in the way. (I did all of this from a ladder, did not wan't to crawl on the roof.)


As the day started heating up I went inside and did a simple job, a new thermostat. This will be easier for my wife to use.
Very complex wiring, LOL:


I like a nice simple modification:


And then another nice shady job as it was getting hot out in the sun, a new screen on the screen door. Seems the PO's dog wanted to get a squirrel.




Turned out pretty nice for doing it on the trailer by my self.


Yeah, I know, I need to rake up all of those leaves.

-Wayne
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Old 05-12-2014, 04:09 PM   #25
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OK - I'm still waiting on my self leveling roof caulking to arrive and another vent cap, so did not complete all of the roof work yet, but I have some time. I do have a few questions.

The TV antenna is pretty beat up from the elements and time. I personally do not travel with a TV, the idea of camping is to get away from that sort of thing. I'd like to get rid of these items, but I think I will just unbolt the nasty bits to avoid making some sort of patch up on the roof. Here are some pics for reference:



Figure I'll just reseal the bases and get rid of the stuff that unbolts.

Anything special I need to do for the seal around the A/C unit? No signs of leaking, so thinking I'll just leave it alone.


Heck, I'm not even sure that the A/C unit works. I'll give it a try this afternoon as I was testing it in cooler weather a while back and could not tell if it was cooling down or not. If it is in need of service I am very tempted to pull it off and put in a normal vent there (or maybe a small swamp cooler if I can locate one for a fair price. I tend to camp at places that do not have hook ups and I do not plan to carry a generator. I prefer camp sites that are more off the beaten path and do not pile you in like a parking lot with picnic tables.

A friend of mine had a swamp cooler on his camper and it worked great in the dry climate zones I tend to visit. Best of all, they make less noise, and can be powered by the house battery.

The other issue I have is that I'm 6'4" tall, and the A/C unit limits my headroom. Not to mention the things weighs about 90 lbs and is more aerodynamic drag. (Am I stretching this out enough..?)

Thoughts?

-Wayne

p.s. What refrigerant do these A/C units run off of anyhow? R-34A?
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Old 05-12-2014, 07:29 PM   #26
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You did a great job on the sealing. Really nice work. I figured when mine needs it I'd pay to have it done, but you've made it look easy! Just for reference the color of the roof under the sealant you scraped away is the color of my whole roof. I think maybe I lucked out and got a unit that was stored under a roof and took much much less UV damage. My seals look nothing like yours did. No cracking at all, and all of the plastic parts on the roof were intact and not cracked. I'm wondering if your previous owners ever did any roof maintenance. I'm guessing they may not have.

You should also check the seals on all the sidewall objects like the water and cable ports and hatches if you haven't already. I did have to reseal around the fresh water port.

If it were me I would leave the antenna and AC unit alone, unless they are points of water entry. Removing them can introduce a leak if not sealed properly, even through a screw or bolt hole. Also I think your resale value would take a hit with them removed. Almost every camper that age and newer has these options.

It's nice to have another member with nearly my same camper model!
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Old 05-12-2014, 10:25 PM   #27
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Trust me, they did not do a single thing with this trailer. They just dragged it around and used it. It was all original, even the tires.

Resealing the roof is very easy, and you will know it has been done correctly. Pick a warm sunny day, and take your time. It will go pretty fast, and these trailers do not have many things in the roof to mess with.

I can probably get the roof white again, but I rather not damage the roof trying to get it cleaner. It is nice enough, and still seems to have a lot of life left in it.

Yes, still need to replace and reseal most of the side items. I started removing some of the caulking around the front house lights, but decided to mess with that later. The water fillers, cable, etc are all in very poor condition from the UV exposure. I have a few new pieces to put in their place. Will tackle those soon.

Storing a trailer indoors makes a huge difference! This trailer would be like new if had been stored inside, or at least covered.

Got my new jacks in today, but they are just to heavy duty for this trailer. I think the 2 of them weigh about 70 lbs! Get something a little more reasonable. LOL

I hear you on resale, but I don't know I'm that worried about the resale, I rather make it right for me. Funny thing is I have had a number of people offer me money without hardly looking at the thing. The antenna parts will be staying, just going to remove the stuff that extends up. I do not want to remove stuff that seals down to the roof.

Do you have some pics of your trailer somewhere? Would love to see another Bantam.

-Wayne
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Old 05-13-2014, 05:43 PM   #28
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I need to take more of the inside, but here are a few:

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If you ever need to see he something looks just let me know and I'll snap a pic .
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