Under the back end — September 2020#
The factory belly pan was sagging galvanized. I pulled it off to get at the plumbing and see what I had. The shower trap was the lowest point on the trailer, the grey valve hung just below the frame, and the black valve still needed an adapter to take a standard fitting. All three went on the winter list.
Polish — September 2020#
Years as a fishing shack on the Texas coast left heavy corrosion, and a brown haze had come back over everything since the last polish. I inherited my grandfather’s kit and added a high-speed grinder and Zephyr wheels. Brown Tripoli first, then moss green, then a finish pass with the Cyclo and Nuvite S. The front endcaps had the worst of it.
New axle — October and November 2020#
The axle was the last original thing underneath, and a single-axle trailer has no spare. New Dexter with a 33-degree start angle — better ride, an inch and a half of clearance back. Three bolts came out with a breaker bar, thirty inches of leverage and a torch. The fourth wouldn’t move, so it came out with a tungsten sawzall blade.
The new axle tube measured a quarter inch smaller than the old one, so I took an eighth off one side of the cutout and a half inch off the other. Cut both vertical shock mounts off the old axle and welded them onto the new one, floated it up on a motorcycle jack, and drilled four fresh holes with a step bit. Ten miles around the block, then three hundred to the Buffalo Point rally. Tows noticeably smoother.
Black tank and rear plumbing — January to March 2021#
The factory black tank measured seven gallons by bucket math, which is what limits how long you can stay put. I wanted the biggest tank that would go in without insane modifications.
It took the closet, the gaucho and every wall coming out — about ten hours just to get to bare floor. In went a corner-cut tank from Vintage Trailer Supply on a platform I built, close to double the old capacity. A 3-inch frame meant the 2-inch Valterra valve was too tall, so the drain came down to 1.5 inch and the grey valve moved up until it sits inside the frame instead of hanging below it. A HEPVO and a bar-sink drain took care of the shower trap. I re-ran all the water in crimped PEX rather than push fittings, moved several joints below the floor, and plumbed a black flush with quick connects. Pressure tested at 30 psi overnight before it went anywhere. The valve sits on a rubber coupler so pulling the drain puts no strain on a glued joint.
Safety and breakaway — April 2021#
Ten-year smoke alarm, fire extinguisher, CO detector, and a proper breakaway switch to replace the old one hanging off the tongue with clipped wires.
Micro blinds — April 2021#
The original blinds were ugly and frustrating to use. Micro blinds went in for about thirty dollars a window.
Roof and vent seals — April 2021#
The Fantastic Fan housing was cracked and leaking. I shaved the old lumps off the skin and laid foil-backed butyl over the whole flange — the foil blends with the skin and blocks the UV. From the ground it looks about as good as anything else, and it bought the fan years.
Rub rail — April 2021#
Taped off, run with 3M 540, smashed in with a gloved finger and the tape pulled. Several years on it is still holding and still looks tidy.
New belly pan — May 2021#
The pan came back as fresh .032 from Airparts, cut and riveted to fit.
Battery door — June 2021#
The original 1960s cargo door left the trailer on the highway, locked. I rented a brake and formed a new 17¾-inch door from 3003H14.
Bidet and pressure tank — June 2021#
We put a bidet in and use it daily. The pump pulsed on short draws, so a small pressure tank went in to smooth it out.
Shower tank and tank surround — February to April 2022#
The shower needed its own grey capacity for the times we camp somewhere urban. A second tank went up high with a boat-style bilge pump feeding it from the shower pan.
My grandfather set the bar inside this trailer, so the tank could not be a box bolted to the floor. I built a surround from veneered panel, prefinished in the shop to match his cabinetry, with a piano hinge down the length so the whole top opens for storage — the ends lift any time, the middle with the table out. The year-of-manufacture plate, the CO detector and the tank monitor went on at the same time. The new veneer is a decade behind the rest on ambering.
Sewer hose caddy — October 2024#
Sewer hose and fittings ride in a polished channel in the rear bumper, reached from below, with a tool box to go on top.
Marmoleum floor — August 2025#
The trailer had click-together vinyl in it, which should never be used in a trailer. I pulled it, cut Marmoleum from a paper template, and rolled it with a rented 100-pound roller — back half, then flipped and did the front. It runs right up onto the shower pan, which smooths the step into the bath, and the edge is caulked in at the shower. Cut and laid with the interior in place.
Missouri patch — August 2025#
An old antenna left a thumb-sized hole and several 1/8-inch holes, filled with sealant and streaking black and rainbow down the skin. I cut a Missouri-shaped patch and riveted it over the lot, the way the factory used to do state patches.
Repolish — August and September 2025#
Five years on, and with a roof over it, the whole trailer got polished and resealed again. Zephyr 10-inch Kwik Cut Airway with TR-2 Brown Tripoli for the primary — instant gratification. Then the 10-inch Smooth Kut Joker with Moss Green. Then flannel with Blue Moon, and the Cyclo with Nuvite S. The Cyclo is slower once you count cloth changes, but it leaves more pop and I do not turn black using it. Forty to sixty hours over two weeks, in a full Tyvek suit and mask behind the big grinder.
