13' Boler Restoration (Gypsy Wagon) - Fiberglass RV
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Old 04-25-2016, 11:36 AM   #1
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Name: Mark
Trailer: 13' Boler
British Columbia
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13' Boler Restoration (Gypsy Wagon)

Hello all,

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This is my trailer.
It's becoming an increasingly hot 'spring' here and the weather as well as many of your threads have motivated me to, like many of you, work on my eggy. I have a camping trip already planned for the 1st week of August and would like to do only the necessary work for that and then the total renovations afterwards.

I bought this little guy in Alberta in decent condition, (Summer 2014)
Reinforced Tongue welded to frame
Entrance door gasket falling apart
Working stovetop
Clean
Not working 3-way cooler
Some loose rivets around closet and upper cabinet
Small crack on upper right of entrance but no leaks

Without any hesitation I took it out to Vancouver Island for the month of May and kinda.. well.. beat it up just a little bit.
Closet door hinges were falling off, cabinet latches snapping, and cabinet rivets loosening.
I signed up for another camping trip for last August and the road to the site was super bumpy, this led to the crack over the door to get a bit larger. The door swinging open while driving, and the closet door falling right off. The strike plate for the entrance latch also came right off.
I held the door shut by ratchet strapping it through a small lock hole in the door to the rear bumper. With the bumps on the road it put tension on the door and caused the crack to get larger.. Time to put the trailer aside for now.
I was really about to cut my losses and just sell the thing but I just couldn't. I know working on it will be more rewarding in the end.

I have a vision to work the interior and make it look like a gypsy wagon, with golden and brass trims, dark woods, foresty colours, velvety reds, detailing in the furniture, mosaics, mismatching cabinet handles etc. similar scheme to image below.
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I will be posting my project on this thread and share photos and hope to hear feedback and learn from all of you in this community.

Happy Camping / Restoring!
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Old 04-25-2016, 12:07 PM   #2
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Trailer: 13' Boler
British Columbia
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Replacing the wheels

After examining the tires and realizing holy crap, these need serious replacement. I found myself some new wheels!

The original wheel is a P165/80B13
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I opted to upgrade to a Radial tire that came with nice white rims, They are ST175/80R13
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I had to (gently) hammer out the rubber axel cap to fit the wheel on and then put it back once the wheel was fitted.

The trailer rides slightly higher and feels like a slightly smoother ride
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Old 04-25-2016, 08:59 PM   #3
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Name: Joe
Trailer: 1973 13' Boler
Ontario
Posts: 182
Assuming I am looking at your axle correctly, I believe it is shot. Your up angle is huge, should be closer to zero with no load on it.
Have you tested to see how much it flexes under load, checked it's resting position?
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Old 04-26-2016, 11:07 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Keaner View Post
Assuming I am looking at your axle correctly, I believe it is shot. Your up angle is huge, should be closer to zero with no load on it.
Have you tested to see how much it flexes under load, checked it's resting position?
Hey Keaner,

Thanks for posting. I agree my axle is shot for sure. When jacked up it only flexes about an inch, and its resting position under no load is over 10 degrees.
I'll shortly be in the process of pulling out the frame, measuring the frame, adjust the measurements so I can fit a 10 degree down trailing axle and then replace both the frame and axle.
I've been scoping out Ian's website and hope to have a frame of some similarity.
I am fortunate to have a friend that is a metal fabricator to lend me a hand with all this.

Please let me know if you have any tips or suggestions
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Old 04-26-2016, 12:02 PM   #5
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Put brakes on it while you're at it. I left mine leading arm so it was a straight bolt-on job. The brakes cost me about $100 at Princess Auto.
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Old 04-26-2016, 12:37 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Keaner View Post
Put brakes on it while you're at it. I left mine leading arm so it was a straight bolt-on job. The brakes cost me about $100 at Princess Auto.
Will put on brakes for sure.
The only reason I am leaning towards trailing arm and down angle is just for more comfort rolling through rough dirt roads, having that extra clearance.
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Old 06-01-2016, 12:54 AM   #7
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Hello everyone,

I'm just about to order myself a Flexiride axle from a fabricator in Langley. I understand and am stoked that this kind of axle is adjustable!

I am thinking about bolting on the new axle as a 10 degree up leading arm (Exactly where the old axle is sitting on the current frame) for a trip coming up soon. Then after the trip, I'd like to remove the axle, 'adjust' it to a 10 degree down trailing arm and then fit it to a new frame.

Has anyone had any experiences with the Flexiride axle?
Does its adjusting capabilities allow it to be adjusted that many degrees?

Thanks.
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Old 06-01-2016, 10:15 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fofobraselio View Post
I am thinking about bolting on the new axle as a 10 degree up leading arm (Exactly where the old axle is sitting on the current frame) for a trip coming up soon. Then after the trip, I'd like to remove the axle, 'adjust' it to a 10 degree down trailing arm and then fit it to a new frame.Thanks.
Got off the phone with the fabricator, turns out the axle has the adjusting capabilities to move from a leading arm to a trailing arm with ease!
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Old 06-01-2016, 10:49 AM   #9
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it's not as simple as switching it around. There's a height difference to deal with .. approx 3 in. You'll need a spacer and a way to ensure its centered properly.
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Old 07-03-2016, 10:58 AM   #10
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Wiring!!!!

My new flexiride axle is here and ready to install, I will probably have to mount the new axle on my old frame because my camping gig is happening beginning of August.

I realized at this point that if you ever budget for a project make sure to double that cost and you'll be close to accurate on how much things will end up costing you.

My shiny new axle comes equipped with 7" electrical brakes, So I did the research and taught myself how to properly convert the default 4 pin adapter on my tow vehicle to a 7 pin adapter and installed a brake controller.

Will be posting photos and details on my next post..

These instructions from E-Trailer really helped out alot!
https://www.etrailer.com/faq-install...m-scratch.aspx
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Old 07-05-2016, 10:28 AM   #11
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Below I am preparing my tow vehicle (2003 Jeep Liberty) for wiring a brake controller.
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After finding the hole in the firewall, I need to run the necessary cables through it to reach under the hood.
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The black wire (Power) from the brake controller to connect to a 20A circuit braker and then to the (+) terminal of the battery.
The white wire (Ground) to the negative terminal of the battery.
The blue wire (Brakes) to the 7 pin connector at the rear of my Jeep.
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Shoving the cables through the gasket was difficult.. So I grabbed a coat hanger, un winded it and taped the cables to it so it could better penetrate the gasket.

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Old 07-05-2016, 10:35 AM   #12
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Below is the coathanger and wires penetrated through the gasket on the firewall below the dash.
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On the other side, under the hood I removed the battery to better access where it should pop out.
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A pair of pliers and I've successfully pulled the cables through.
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Old 07-05-2016, 10:44 AM   #13
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Now, detaching the coat hanger from the wires, I carefully pull the hanger back through under the dash, leaving just the cables. I set aside the black (power) wire for now and grabbed the blue (brake) wire so that I can run it through safely to the back of the Jeep.
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I found a cable connected to the (+) terminal and used its loom to shelter and carry the blue wire through to the back.
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This is the view from the driver side front wheel. Be careful not to wire anything near hot or moving parts and keep cables tight and secured.
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Old 08-02-2016, 10:05 AM   #14
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Wiring the loom wrapped cables to the back of the tow vehicle.

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Old 08-02-2016, 10:10 AM   #15
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Removed the old axle and attached the new one. Using some blocks of scrap metal to mount onto old frame as the previous axle was an inch wider

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Old 08-02-2016, 10:12 AM   #16
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Wiring the brakes all nice and snug..

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Old 08-02-2016, 10:16 AM   #17
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Rear end view, foot on the brakes, everything works! yay!

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Old 06-08-2017, 10:30 AM   #18
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Removed the old fram

Another winter has come and gone, one hell of a good ski season.

With springtime hotter than ever, It's time to get back to the trailer renos.
This year I will start by the frame.

After finding and removing 28 screws and bolts from the inside of the trailer, I removed the wheels and jacked up the fiberglass body to reveal and separate the frame.

As you can see there is a crack on the front left of the frame.
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Old 06-09-2017, 11:02 PM   #19
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great thread Mark, not sure if it was you I met at Derby Reach a few weeks ago. I am interested in that new axle. Do you mind posting a price, or if you don't could you please message me. Looking forward to following your build
Jan
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Old 06-10-2017, 03:00 AM   #20
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Hey Jan, I've been laying low and working lots so it definitely wasn't me that met you . The axle I ordered Is a dexter flexiride adjustable axle fabricated from Pacific spring and axle from Langley B. C
It is equipped with electrical drum brakes and set me back about $850 CND including shipping. Thanks for following my thread
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