Rookie vs. 1990 Casita (Project Thread)

[Tom Haberski]

I'm assuming some variety of automotive paint would be most durable and spray painting being the best application. But for some large projects I've done and a friends school bus converted to canoe livery service repaint, one technique is to use your paint and a small (3"-6") foam roller and do a patch of paint, and then "tip" it off with a disposable 2" wide or so foam paint brush. You can cover large areas reasonable quickly, get pretty uniform thickness and avoid most brush streaks.

It would cost some coin, but a body shop could do wonders with that exterior.

[BARNEYCONE]

Jonathan,
rabun co.,ga. Is on the direct path of 8/21/17 full solar eclipse!!!
Great time to visit,be my guest,just saying.
Barney cone ii

[WaltP]

Barney
No fair. You're just saying that for the chance to get a first hand look at all of Jonathan's great work.

Walt

Oh yeah, what was that address again?

[BARNEYCONE]

WALTP,
AND SO?
BBCII

[BARNEYCONE]

Walt p,
and so? You are most welcome,also!!
Very ne tip of ga. Rabun co. For eclipse 8/21/17.
Bbc ii

[WaltP]

Barney
Thanks. I hope you took that in the tongue and cheek sense it was intended.

Walt

[BARNEYCONE]

Walt p,
all in good fun! Sw va. Is one of my faverty places to visit. Many fond
trips there.
Best wishes,
barney cone ii

[Tom Haberski]

It's been cold, cold, I've got a cold and took the time to go back and read all of the posts in this thread. My appreciation & admiration for all your work is exceeded only by my relief that I did not have to do all that work on my '96 LD. I did do a lot, over the course of several years, but not a gutting or cabin off of frame. You really have modified, restored and touched every square inch of your rig. No better way to know it...all of it.

Glad you've not removed the brake system. Some states require brakes over a trailer weight limit (2,000 lbs?).

Cool weather now. Doing any work?

[TheWanderers]

You're right about those edison lights. You have quite a little cottage look goin' on. Nice!

[shaggydoink]

Over the past few weeks I've worked on stripping the black paint on the exterior in small spurts. I won't go so far as to say it's making the poor old camper look much better, but by this afternoon I had at least managed to finish my first pass all the way around on both the top and bottom sections (leaving only the roof to do):





While working I noticed that the metal strip that clasps the top/bottom sections together has pulled away from the shell, so another small item to add to the fix list:



The other small project I've been working on over the past couple days are curtains. "My designer" helped pick out some killer buffalo check fabric which should add a nice pop of color on the interior. My sewing skills I doubt will win me any awards, but I managed to get all of the panels constructed:



I also spray painted the grommets with flat black and a dusting of metal bronze to hopefully blend in with the other weathered metal pieces:



I've got a day off from work tomorrow so should be able to get the finished, I'll post up a picture or two of the final result.

Jonathan

[WaltP]

Seriously anticipating seeing the results.

Walt

[Jennygdeans]

What did you use to strip the paint? I'm enjoying the skiiing this winter, but missing the tinkering.


Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

[shaggydoink]

Originally Posted by Jennygdeans

What did you use to strip the paint?

I've been using Citristrip. I suspect a stripper like "Aircraft Paint Remover" would have made the process easier, although not having to deal with the toxic fumes is what motivated me to go the Citristrip route.

A couple other items for this update, the first is the final steps of the curtain project. You really haven't lived until you smack 45 grommets into place:



The monotony was worth it though, here's a couple pictures of the finished product:





The only remaining items for this project are some straps to hold the curtains back when open, I would have gotten this wrapped up this evening if I had remembered to get Velcro strips when I was at Lowe's... oops.

The second is the window trims. With the carpet on the walls removed, there was a gap between the shell and the interior window trims that I wasn't happy with. The solution ended up being fairly simple and inexpensive, I ran a couple layers of foam weatherstripping around each metal piece:



It took a few coats of paint to saturate the foam, but in the end it created a pretty good end result:



More updates to come!

Jonathan

[WaltP]

Looking pretty classy there Jonathan. Yet more kudos.

Walt

[Donna D.]

I think you are better than I am at sewing Jonathan! The last time I tried, I ran the pressure foot over my thumb and essentially stitched myself to my project. Yep, needle went all the way through my thumb (and nail). So be loud and proud!

BTW: I think Buffalo plaid is neato!

[Tom Haberski]

Nice work, as always. There is a black (plastic)? Device in your rig, along the bottom cabinet floor line. What is it? Refrig?

[Tom Haberski]

The area is beneath the butcher block top cabinet, next to the sink. I am just curiuos.

[shaggydoink]

Thank you for the kind words everyone, it really means a lot to me!

@ Tom - do you mean this thing?



If so, then yes - it's a fridge, a Coleman PowerChill to be more precise. While it's admittedly not quite as effective as a more traditional fridge, it's considerably lighter in weight which is why I chose to use it. My tow vehicle is an almost 30 year old, 4-cylinder truck as a reminder... every pound counts!

Jonathan

[raddar]

Hey! How did you get the polypro and fabric to stick to the wall? I have the same
Issue of having no liner. Thanks!

[Tom Haberski]

Thanks for the info Jonathan. I understand your weight reduction needs as I did some trimming down of weight with all the Casita MDF cabinet covers. At the time I was towing with a Toyota minivan and was weight conscious. Now towing with a full size van and weight is the last thing of concern. You must be under 2K lbs with your weight loss program.

bon voyage