Hi, I am Patricia from Manitoba Interlake

[Patricia D.]

I have posted a few times already so decided that I should introduce myself.

I am retired and currently have a Eurovan Weekender. In the last few years I have traveled across Canada from Pacific to Atlantic and through much of the northwest US.
But now I want to be able to make meals without having to dig out food and utensils and to fall into a ready made bed at the end of a day's drive.
A teardrop was my first thought but they are expensive and I love designing and renovating spaces, usually houses, so this will be my new tiny home from home.

I bought a 1975 Ventura a few weeks ago after a very short search.
I had not intended to completely gut the trailer but closer inspection when I got it home revealed a number of serious problems. It had been fluffed and staged and I got taken.
It has been a blessing in disguise though, I am having a great time with my new hobby and am embracing the challenges.

I live a few miles from the town where my trailer was manufactured so I
feel like I have brought her home and am going to restore her youthful charm (with modern upgrades).

I have already read many of the posts and have taken copious notes but know I will have to mine the knowledge of the many of you who have much more experience than I do (basically none when it comes to trailer construction and mechanics).
Thank you for the wealth of information you have already generously shared.
Patricia

[BarbinBC]

Welcome Patricia.
Do you have any photos of your trailer?
What changes are you planning to make?

Exciting project. And I understand what you mean about having your cooking/food stuff all ready to go, as well as your bed. This is so much easier.

[Patricia D.]

Thanks, Barb.
I have only been at the project for a few hours a day for 3 days. I have some pics but have not figured out yet how to post them. Most of the inside is removed but it is too rainy to do much today.
I am hoping to move the kitchen to the front wall and add a pull out to the bed to make it a double if needed. I am waiting to have a clean slate to tape out a plan on the floor before I make final plans.
I am going to put propane back (it has been removed and add solar/LED/12v as much as possible because I want to dry camp whenever I can.

[ChriSarah]

Hi Patricia! We're in the Parkland area of Manitoba! We're very new to the forums and to fiberglass camper ownership; we've already taken lots of notes too.
Sarah

[Jon in AZ]

Welcome, Patricia!

It's always great to see one of these cool little trailers brought back to life. I, too, look forward to pictures of your progress. Post #7 in the "Forums 101" thread in the "Forum Administration, News, and Announcements" section has instructions. It's not exactly intuitive.

Will you tow your Ventura with the Eurovan?

[Bob in Mb]

I hope that you all plan to attend the Manitoba Rally in August at St. Malo. A link to info is along the right side of this page under Upcoming Events. It is a great place to meet other FG owners and see what people have done and find out how to do it!

[ChriSarah]

Hi Bob, we'd love to go, but the dates/schedule for our summer plans is still up in the air. If we can arrange it, we'll definitely be in!

[k corbin]

It sounds like you are having a lot of fun.

One thing to watch out for in putting a kitchen up front is that the weight of the components can add up quickly and create too much tongue weight. Putting the heaviest of items as the refrigerator over the axle is what is normally done.

As a visual image picture your trailer as being a see-saw with the wheels as the fulcrum point. How will you keep it level and keep the heaviest stuff over the fulcrum where it has the ability to bear the most weight? If you put a big grownup on one end it takes another grownup at the other end or a bunch of kids to balance it but the board is going to flex in the middle which puts a lot of stress on the board. But if you put a grownup sitting on the fulcrum and then the lighter loads at each end that won't stress the board nearly as much. That board is your frame. Frames are heavy, small trailers being pulled by small cars require lighter weight frames. So you can see the problem of having to pay a lot of attention to where you put stuff. Weight on the tongue is a little different that just an even balance and you can do more reading on that subject in the forum.

There are a lot of articles in the forum with discussions of keeping the weight properly distributed, be sure to read them and understand exactly why and how it restricts interior space planning. That way even if you can't have the perfect layout of your dreams you will be compensated by knowing you have the perfect layout that is going to keep you safe while on the road and make your tow vehicle and trailer have a long life.

[Patricia D.]

This website is a wealth of information but it is really interesting too to meet other travel and trailer enthusiasts, especially locals.
I will not be able to be at St. Malo for the weekend but is it okay to drop in for a day to meet other locals and see other trailers?
I cannot decide what to do about a tow vehicle yet. The Eurovan is more than up to the task but it is going on to 200,000 kms and I am thinking it might be time to sell. I don't have a hitch yet and am procrastinating with the decision, partly because my car is a diesel VW and is caught up in the emissions debacle. I want to see if they are going to buy it back before I make any decisions.
Thank you , K. Corbin for raising the issue of weight distribution. It has certainly been on my mind. Once I finish clearing out the interior, I am going to tape out my ideal plan on the floor and really think about the weight. I had done 4 preliminary designs each with the kitchen on a different wall and this seemed the most efficient. Then I saw the reno that Ian G (Proud Canadian) did on his Boler and another Ventura owner who did a front kitchen and thought it might just be possible. Looking back I now see that Ian made major modifications to the frame of his trailer and that may have helped? Nonetheless, the whole idea of ensuring that the trailer safety is not compromised is the most daunting challenge for me. I know that I am quite able to do the work itself but the technicalities of this are very complex for a newbie.
By the way, I think I saw in one of your posts the idea of not installing the propane stove permanently but having two hookups in the kitchen area in order to have more counter space. I thought that was a great idea, something I will probably do.
Thanks to you all for your responses.

[Bob in Mb]

You are welcome to come by the Rally for a peek. I know that Rick, the host, will tell you the same.

[emers382]

Originally Posted by Bob in Mb

You are welcome to come by the Rally for a peek. I know that Rick, the host, will tell you the same.

And to add to what Bob says, come for the day on Saturday, in the afternoon it's open house for the trailers, so you could tour and ask lots of questions.

Adrian

[Patricia D.]

Thanks for the invite to St. Malo. Unless life gets in the way I will be there Sat.
I have finally uploaded pics. The interior is as of today.
After 4 days of 3- 4 hours a day, I have the interior down to the framing and can see what I am looking at in terms of making waterproof. I will be posting more pictures of the problem areas in the problems forum.
There seems to be a lot of exterior lights, is this the norm for these trailers? The screen door was unexpected but I like it even if it is quite rudimentary.

[Cheyanna83]

You had a simmilar experance as me ,I bought mine from a used trailer guy..youed think he whould not of hid mine was a rolling mold factory!!
I've gone back to bone like you and rebuilt
So sucky we HaD simmiliar issues
Wish I could gontonthe rally near u but its. 5 hour drive (

[Roland H]

Hello Patricia and welcome to the forum and a big welcome to our Vintage camper rally in Manitoba, you will enjoy it.
When I started the rally 7 years ago we had 12 trailers show up and now we average 50 - 60 and this year could set a record!
Great people and ideas. If you have any questions ask Rick or I and we will be happy to help
See you in St Malo!

[Patricia D.]

If I manage to go for Saturday, where do I go? Can I just go into the campground? Will there be signs?
I really hope I can make it.
By the way, I have another thread going for my renovation, simply called Ventura Reno if any one wants to see where I am at with redoing my trailer. I should try to find a way to combine the two threads.

[Roland H]

Originally Posted by Patricia D.

If I manage to go for Saturday, where do I go? Can I just go into the campground? Will there be signs?
I really hope I can make it.
By the way, I have another thread going for my renovation, simply called Ventura Reno if any one wants to see where I am at with redoing my trailer. I should try to find a way to combine the two threads.

Patricia if you are coming to the rally just for the day on Saturday then go to Ricks site which is F4 and this is where we do registration, I or Rick should be there for more info.
Follow the camping signs in the park and stop at the park office for directions or to get a map. The trailer tour is early afternoon so you may want to get there just before lunch.
If you want to camp then sections F or G are quite good and have a lot of Vintage campers around this area. Reservations for camp sites are made by phone or the online service for the Provincial Campgrounds.
Hope to see you there.
Roland

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