Camper Renovation - Sledgehammers and Starburst

I sorta kinda had this idea to rip out the closets and make more room in the front of Camperrrr. Bigger fridge, yeah? Of course that would be a stupid amount of work and I wasn't about to push my luck. Then my cat went missing. And the first day I was this pathetic, bawling mess. And my dad felt sorry for me. Or something.

So at some point I mentioned what I really wanted to do and dad gets all happy camper on me and says, "LET'S DO IT!" with this gung-ho/get the sledgehammer/cheer up attitude. So we spent the rest of the day tearing out the front of the camper. And we found more starburst and rotten wood. Crazy hua?

Oh that's just my dad. Standing on the ground. In the camper. 

So the interior of the potty closet had this ugly 80's paneling and as it turns out someone had covered up original starburst paneling with it! It's too bad they used glue all over... it was totally ruined. At least we saved the bit of starburst that was above the sink and stove. And check out that rotten paneling. It was not fun taking out the original built in closets - there were only a gazillion nails/staples holding the structures in.

Yay for starburst! Btw, there was a giant pile of fire ants under the paneling just under the starburst - thank goodness the starburst was ok. So this is when the renovation gets crazy and it's just the tip of the iceberg.

Camper Renovation - Rear Framing and Stormy Weather

Stormy weather was in the forecast (and boy, did it rain!) Thank goodness we rigged up a makeshift shelter. It was a bummer that the camper would not fit in my dad's shop. This worked well though...  p.s. I referred to our first batch of rainy weather as monsoon #1.  Not quite expected for this time of year in North Texas.

New subfloor in progress...  as well as the bottom rear framing.  We painted it with some type of rubber coating to help prevent dry rot (hence the grayish color.)  We also painted the bottom of the subfloor (the part that is exposed to the ground) with the same stuff.

The camper is now decked out with all new wiring. There's even an outlet in the loft bed for twinkle lights and what not.

Camper Renovation - Let the Games Begin

So here's the thing: I knew what I was getting into before buying a vintage camper. I like style, my dad likes efficiency. Charcoal vs. gas?  Been there, done that. My dad wanted me to get a little Casita, a Scamp, a new RV. Something fiberglass with better towing gas mileage, less leaking, yada yada yada. But I would have none of it and bought an old camper much to my dad's dismay.

The goal from the start was to fix what needed fixing and to learn to do most of it myself. I honestly expected to spend a few weeks fixing minor things and decorating. My husband would help, but he's super busy with school and work. So it's pretty much just me and my dad. For me, it's a labor of love.  For dad, it's a labor of hate. How did he get suckered into this?  Oh you know, daddyyyyyyy I loveeeeee youuuuuuuu.

My dad is the best dad ever. Just thought you should know.

From what we could see there were two places to start. 1) the back window and 2) the floor by the door. You could tell there was some dry rot in both places. Only a couple of teeny tiny spots indicated damage by the back windows. There was a soft spot in the floor by the door as well as some obvious rot around the door edge. So we started with the back. Now to find out what's under the paneling you have to take down the back panel. And to remove the back panel you have to remove the bed framing. May the odds be ever in your favor.

So I learned how to use a drill. And we started taking Camperrrr apart! oh. my.

As it turned out there was an extensive amount of dry rot in the rear of the camper.  Specifically the framing under the windows, in the corners and the subfloor. When you're buying a vintage camper, remember... what you see isn't always what you get!

Actually, with an old vintage camper it's never what you get. The only part of this damage that we could actually see was very small. I got into this thinking we would just patch / rebuild the small areas that needed it. However dad pointed out it was just faster to rebuild certain sections and then we'd know it was solid. So the rear bottom framing would be completely rebuilt. And um, we ended up deciding to rebuild pretty much everything else. And this is when my 3 week project turned into a 8 month re-build.

We've used this SoniCrafter a lot during the rebuild. It's been quite helpful with cutting down and removing small / tight rotted areas. Of course we also happen to have a plethora of other tools as well. I picked mine up at Lowes - but you can also order them online at Amazon. 

We think that the original floor was just painted particle board. When we ripped up the old carpet it was there and it just looked like it was meant to be the floor. Very odd! I'm pretty sure it was the original floor but who knows...

The particle board subfloor had a honeycomb / cardboard layer underneath. My dad said it was designed to be strong but lightweight. It also served as a type of insulation for the floor. The honeycomb stuff was glued solid on the bottom floor of the camper. It was horrible to try and remove but then we decided to just go ahead and replace the whole floor so we just cut it out. Then we could see the ground. Yay. This just gets better and better! We have since replaced this with some supports and new insulation.

Here's the extent of dry rot damage in the rear of the camper. The subfloor was on top of the honeycomb stuff - then another layer of particle board was under that to make the base of the camper.  My cousin fixed a couple of spots under the camper, near the wheel wells where it obviously rotted out - but we went ahead and ripped it all out as more was on its way to rotting out. To get to the bottom corners and sides we had to peel back the outer skin. I was kinda freaked out and overwhelmed at this point.

So far we have been working on this camper for almost a month - spending anywhere from 60-80 combined man hours a week.

1966 Williams Craft Camper (Before Photos!)

As promised here are the before photos of our vintage camper. My affectionate name for her is camperrrr and my cousins called her little camper. I've fussed over names and I'm pretty sure her name is Libby. That's her formal name anyway. Camperrrr will always be #1.

So our camper is a 1966 Williams Craft, built in Arlington, Texas. This camper has such a great layout and so many windows. A lot of people have asked me if we will paint the outside, and I would like to. However I also really like the classic white and silver color scheme. So who knows? Maybe I'll pick a color for the exterior door. I think the silver rocks.

We will be painting the inside. The curtains that my cousins couldn't stand are gone and we've installed white roller blinds. Now that we're staying at my parents, my dad and I will start the process of fixing some dry rot, adding new insulation, wiring etc. B will help us when he can but he's got a lot going on with full-time work and college.

The layout is pretty much awesome for a camper this size. When you step in, to the left is the sitting area / beds and to the right is the kitchen. It's tall so if you're 6' you don't even have to duck which rocks. Very bright and airy with all the windows!

Here's a ceiling view and you can see the top bunk.  The bunk folds down to make a bed.

Just another view of the seating area. Quite a few people can hang out in here without it feeling too crowded. This also pulls out to make the main sleeping area. There's extra storage under the two left and right benches.

The upper bunk pulled out...

Full size bed. We may turn this into a queen size bed, it's an idea at the moment anyway.

There's a little table that sets up, you can put it on the left or the right. It's a great table for 2. I love to sit here, eating breakfast while looking out the windows. It will be a great place for B to have a cup coffee.

The dinette table top has the same material as the kitchen counter - a vintage confetti pattern.

And here's the kitchen!!  AKA the front of the camper. We also have a cute screen door.

All the cabinetry and paneling will be painted.

We'll be replacing the air conditioner. Also note the original kitchen lights and the vintage sconce on the wall. Very cool. There's a small closet on the left and then what we call the potty closet which is where the port-a-potty was.

There's that original starburst pattern backsplash! I die. It's the coolest.

A view of the counter tops (and the same pattern on the dinette table) and yes, this will stay.

Words can't describe how awesome the propane oven is. Not only is it super cool, but it works great.

Well kids, that's the "before" photo tour of our new camper. Stay tuned.