Mine is a 76 Surfside - built in Winkler Mantioba.
One of my window frames was rotted and I repaced the frame with plywood (used old as a template). Painted them with a similar brown
paint and replaced the window with new stainless steel screws. SS is a little more expensive but will not leave rusty stains on the outside and threads will not rust like the ones that had been in there for 29 years. I used Butyl tape and it has worked well. Various RV people said not add any other sealant as it will crack over time and hold water. Be careful not to overtighten the screws. Go round and round the window tightening a little at a time. BTW, in my case the wood frame was over the ensolite.
Door hinges were loose and worn on mine too. Actually I broke my hinges when I knocked the tongue off its stand while the door was open. The
fall caused the door fell to the ground with a huge amount of noise but no serious damage to the door except the hinges. I found the same design hinges in brass in a marine store and just moved them off the previous holes enough to get new holes and put them on so they covered the old holes.
A few tips. If someone warns you not to use brass screws for such an application - take the advice. Two of them snapped off in the tightening process. I subsequently replaced them all with stainless steel. They don't match the brass hinges but I was too cheap to worry about it. When putting the screws in
use some kind of loctite to ensure they don't back out. Mine came sufficiently loose on the trip from Ottawa to Yellowstone, that when we arrrived at the visitor centre a ranger shouted out that the door was open. Scews had loosened enough taht the latch had moved vertically to the point that it was not retained by the plate it latches behind. Door was wid open - fortunately nothing fell out and I was lucky the door didn't
fall off. I reparired it with nail polish on each of the screws threads and they remain tight.
Since then I use a bungy on the inside to hold the door closed from the inside. It is hooked to the plate of the door mechanism and the other end is hooked to a cupboard handle under the gaucho bench. I can open it enough to unhook the bungy. Works well as insurance.
My
brakes didn't work when i got it. Easy fix reparing one wire and one brake. Whole asssemblywas $75 with new backing plate and shoes. Quick to install.
Brakes on a trailer are really a good thing. Makes the whole process much safer. Pay attention to the way you wire the controller -
sloppy wiring can cause all kinds of trouble. I think all Surfsides came wth electric
brakes and are wired for them in the round 6 wiring harness, so getting them working is usually a fairly minor expense.
Interior changes were to
paint all the ugly fake woodgrain walls. Several coats of primer to cover the brown, then an slightly off-white that makes the inside much brighter and more cheerful. Replaced the brown plasitic corner trim with brushed aluminum. and replaeced the hollow doors with
Russian plywood 11mm 1/4" approx (with simple routed edges) and finished with clear varathane. Brushed aluminum handles and hinges. This gets rid of the ugly platic embossed door edges. Thin ply is
light enough that vibration doesn't cause any trouble with hinges. Didn't change the ugly table/bed (blonde fake wood) or the counter top (same material). But may yet do that. Made a new door in
space under the clothes closet (otherwise space is uneusable). Put new door in the space under the gaucho bench (end near door).
Deep cycle battery goes in there along with a very good marine qualtiy charger. Put in a
fuse (breaker) panel under the gaucho next to the
furnace. Also a
propane alarm (just in case).
On the roof I replaced the originaly aluminum roof vent with spring loaded hinges and a chain with a
MaxxAir fan that pushes or pulls. Works well.
We are very happy with it. Tows nicely and drops fuel mileage by about 3-4 mpg on our Subaru Outback.
I can probably figure out how to attach pictures if you Surfsiders are interested in seeing how it looks.
Alan