BOLER 1979 ?

[spaghettiroad]

I've been offered this as a purchase and jusat want to make sure I'm getting what I was told. Seller tells me the following:

1979
wood floor not fiberglass
NO step up to dining area ( floor area FLAT ) rare ?
says wood finish in kitchen is original and so is large cupboard by the door
NO key for door lock....
says frame and LEAF axle are original
My hunch seller hasn't had it long and his history on it is limited.


My questions for ALL:
Is the floor under lino wood ? I thought older ones were wood and late 70's figerlgass?,,,
frame looks beefier, built in Kelowna? Better frame? Leaf axle red flags?
wood finishings covering fiberglass?
Can an L400 blank key can be obtained from vintage trailer and fitted by a locksmith?
Hitch ball weld on bumper for ?.....
Thanks for any input and suggestions to look for when I inspect in a couple of days. I get it next week, if all checks out here !

[alan H]

Download the buyers checklist i believe it is in the document section
Have owner plug in refrig at least a day before you go to inspect ( they take awhile to cool down)

While i cant answer any questions specific to this brand, in my humble opinion the most expensive items and most important to check out are
Refrigerator
Axle / frame/floor for roy
A/c ( if it has one)
Tires / bearings & brakes ( again if it has them




Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

[WaltP]

I can't help with the floor question but there's a lot of Boler expertise here and you should get some good info.
Yes to your key question. That should be straight forward.
And only the PO can answer your rear hitch question for sure but probably the most common use is for a bicycle rack. If you use it, make sure it doesn't make the trailer too tongue light.
And from the pics, it looks like a real jewel. Good luck with it.

Walt

[Borders]

Nice looking Boler. It appears to be about the same color scheme as mine ('72 American) but that may be the photo or coincidence. Also that one looks to be in much better shape than mine when purchased. My floor was wood but glassed in around the edges. I believe it would be kind of a pain if you needed to replace the wood. I cannot say about later models having glass floors.

About the hitch on the back.... Is it a receiver hitch? Does it have the ball? I have seen the receiver hitches used for bike racks or cargo boxes but never a welded on, fixed, ball hitch. I suppose some experienced truck driver could hook two traiers up but as short as the wheelbase is, that would be a nightmare to back up. At least for me. It might not be legal in some areas. Perhaps a light, motorcycle type cargo trailer running behind that could be manhandled at the campsite?

It has me baffled. I would be interested in knowing if someone knows or figures it out.

Information only although kind of interesting. Around here, before everybody owned at least one 4WD vehicle some boaters used to put a fixed ball hitch on the front bumper of their vehicle. Most everything was rear-wheel drive and you could let a boat down a ramp and usually keep the rear wheels in the dry to help prevent spinning out. in my experience, it also helped me see the trailer rig jacknife and do damage to the front end of the F150.... BUT, at least I did not have to worry about getting someone to pull me out.

It would be interesting to know about that hitch.

Borders

"Never attempt to teach a pig to sing. It is a waste of your time and it annoys the pig"
L.Long

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by spaghettiroad

I've been offered this as a purchase and jusat want to make sure I'm getting what I was told. Seller tells me the following:

1979
wood floor not fiberglass
NO step up to dining area ( floor area FLAT ) rare ?
says wood finish in kitchen is original and so is large cupboard by the door
NO key for door lock....
says frame and LEAF axle are original
My hunch seller hasn't had it long and his history on it is limited.


My questions for ALL:
Is the floor under lino wood ? I thought older ones were wood and late 70's figerlgass?,,,
frame looks beefier, built in Kelowna? Better frame? Leaf axle red flags?
wood finishings covering fiberglass?
Can an L400 blank key can be obtained from vintage trailer and fitted by a locksmith?
Hitch ball weld on bumper for ?.....
Thanks for any input and suggestions to look for when I inspect in a couple of days. I get it next week, if all checks out here !

Boler came original with have a wood floor. Have never seen one with a fiberglass floor - doesnt mean there are not some.

If the trailer was built at Vangaurd in Kelowna then there frames did not have a drop down in the middle of the trailer which resulted in what appeared to be a raised rear section.

RE the rear bumper - attachment .... definitely a previous owner add on. done years ago? Not what I would expect to see for use as a bike rake etc..... what ever they used it for I sure wouldn't!

Blank keys for the old lock, it may be a bit hard to find. Might be easier just to change the lock set out.

[Ian G.]

Lots of unique qualitites with this boler. I have only seen a couple with the flat floor so not sure if this was original by some manufacture or a modification. Leaf springs are unusual, the front dinette is usually a owner modification, the large street side window. Even the tail lights are different, and the tail light recesses are more styled from the larger bolers than the 13'

My 1974 has a fiberglass over wood core floor, again the use of fiberglass on the floor seems to be based on the manufacturing location or plant.

I would not be concerned on what is orignial vs owner added, look more at the quality and workmanship of the components

[Kai in Seattle]

Whoever mentioned that it seemed like replacing the wood floor would be a big job--yeah, it sure is!


Love the pictures, looks just darling. Eager to see ours come together...wish so many of you weren't using the red and white color scheme; I love it but don't want to be a copy-egg.

[CA Douglas]

We bought a 1979 Boler 1700 in Oct 2015. With it we received all the papers from the original owner, which included a brochure for both the 1700 and the 1300. The 1700 does not have a raised section of the floor under the dinette, but the 1300 does. The 1700 also has a wood floor, but I do not know if the 1300 does.

[spaghettiroad]

Could the installation of the leaf axle allow for a flat floor ? Having a torsion axle requires the step to give space ft the torsion axle? Am I wrong ? I'm trying to figure out if the original was replaced and went flat with leaf axle installed; that is if leaf not original. Thanks

[CA Douglas]

We looked a bit more at our '79 Boler brochure and found "We designed a special leaf spring axle to smooth out what Mother Nature didn't." Also found "We also moisture seal the door and windows, sandwich the floor in thick layers of fiberglass and insulate the ceiling and walls with Tylon."

Hope this helps.

[Jay H]

I'm not a Boler expert (yet!). with a trailer of this vintage I am always surprised by what remains stock not by what has been modified. I agree entirely with Ian and I would be more concerned with the quality of any work and the overall condition of the trailer. I bought my trailer from the 3rd owner and each one had left a little something different, I think I made the biggest changes. I am not sure what the seller is representing it as but it looks good in the pics and if it looks good and feels right in person then you should feel alright about buying it.
I have a hitch on the back bumper of my 13. The PO towed a boat behind the trailer! I plan on removing it in place of a spare tire rack. Not sure what your was for but I don't advise towing a boat or putting bikes on the back.
As for the lock, You can buy Bargman sets for $400 plus, never seen blank keys for sale. I have seen lots of posts from people who have replaced the lock set completely. I had mine out a few times for cleaning and repair and I can see that replacing it with a different modern lock doesn't appear to be too difficult.
I figure if you are thinking of buying a vintage trailer of any kind instead of a brand new one you must feel pretty comfortable with fixing things on your own.
It looks great in the pictures and I love mine so, I wish you all the best.
Good luck and let us know.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Ian G.

My 1974 has a fiberglass over wood core floor, again the use of fiberglass on the floor seems to be based on the manufacturing location or plant.

Ian, where was yours built? Did they do it all years from that factory that you know of?

[spaghettiroad]

The welding as I see is unique to the Kelona factory. I think the curve bumper is a giveaway. I wonder if Kelona recognized some weak spots in previous models and made some alterations. Specifically there doesn't seem to be any curves in the weld from the tongue toward the middle of the frame. Somebody had hey dismantled similar frame I'm going to see if I can find it and post it

[Glenn Baglo]

Kelowna.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by CA Douglas

We looked a bit more at our '79 Boler brochure and found "We designed a special leaf spring axle to smooth out what Mother Nature didn't." Also found "We also moisture seal the door and windows, sandwich the floor in thick layers of fiberglass and insulate the ceiling and walls with Tylon."

Hope this helps.

Interesting!
Which factory was the brochure from?

[spaghettiroad]

I guess it depends if the cheese has holes ? Then you'd you'd want to know why some have holes and some don't !

[spaghettiroad]

FOUND A PIC...

[spaghettiroad]

The history is fascinating !

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by spaghettiroad

I guess it depends if the cheese has holes ? Then you'd you'd want to know why some have holes and some don't !

Not really. Knowing which factory built their trailers with fiberglass floors or without a drop in center of the frame in itself explains why some have holes and some do not!

Just nice to know in case someone asked again as to why their Boler does not have a drop down in the middle or it does not have a fiberglass floor

[WaltP]

I sure wish that kind of detailed information was available for Bigfoot trailers. That's one way in which Bigfoot really has let owners down. As near as I can tell, they never provided much useful documentation. And now, whichever explanation holds, even what there was is no longer available.

Walt