Amerigo - Restoration / Remodel

[Kim H]

OK, My Amerigo arrived this week. The exterior damage was not as bad as we thought but the windows have all been sealed shut and they painted it with latex paint UGH!

I hesitate to show you these photos but ... here goes. I'm attaching a link to a bunch of photos I'll update as I go through the process. www.PictureTrail.com/gid20465869

Good news...
- Frame, suspension and axle are fine
- Original door & windows are intact (although some are covered up on the inside)
- Some original cabinets remain
- Exterior damage wasn't as bad as we thought. The fiberglass repair will be easier as all the pieces are still there.
- Original Cushions are still there

Bad news ...
- This will be an almost entire interior gut and redo
- Exterior has been painted with latex paint so it's going to have to be stripped before we can repaint
- Wiring seems to be new although it was poorly placed and the boxes are exterior mounted to the cabinets in many places
- They replaced some of the original cabinets with poorly constructed homemade cabinets.
- Stove and refrigerator were removed
- Sink was moved to different location and will be returned to its rightful home
- Walled placed over rear back and side window
- All windows caulked shut ... Uggg!

So, wish me luck... we start ripping out the interior tomorrow.

[Mike Watters]

What happened to it?!?

The body repair work looks like it'll be a pain - but the interior rebuild should be fun. At least you won't have to feel bad about ripping out the interior.

The big advantage is that you'll feel perfectly free to build the thing as YOU see fit without being constrained in any serious way.

[sherry loving o]

Good luck! Wow! A lot of work but, fun. I also have a 1973 Amerigo. They're nice trailers!

[Kim H]

Actually the body repair isn't too bad. It's like a puzzle and all the pieces are there. Luckily my business partner is quite skilled at the fiberglass repair so thats not a worry. The latex on the exterior... well, that's going to be alot of work.

We have an Preowned RV and Parts business so I'm able to grab whatever I need and retro fit it to the Amerigo. That's going to save lots of time (I think). All appliances and tanks have been removed.

What happened it it? Who knows! It's apparently had some sort of front drivers impact. We purchased it at auction so we were going off of photos until it arrived.

I just came in from taking out the mattress. It was a battle of wills and I won and then I started on the rear wallboard that was covering the rear and corner windows. I got most of it out and now have a handy box of screws for all the work.

I just updated the photos to show my progress. Slow but steady!

[Doug Mager]

DON'T TELL ME let me guess they PAID you to haul this hulk home?? ROTFLMBO!!!

MAN, its a good thing you have the resources to help restore this gem. It'd take me forever to get it just barely liveable!!! Good Luck and keep the pictures comin' .

[Scott S.]

I see the potential... but you have some work to do man! keep the pics coming, I'd like to see how it goes along.

[Loren G. Hedahl]

I have a sneaky hunch that anyone who would put latex on a fiberglass trailer, such as an Amerigo, would not have the presence of mind to do much sanding.

The way I would check, would be to try stripping it with a pressure washer. I'd start on the top where visual perfection isn't a hard and fast criteria. If it works, and the fiberglass resin isn't damaged during the pressure washing, then that may be the quickest, easiest way.

Just a thought.

[Kim H]

OK, We've been working on the Amerigo and while the latex paint comes off easy where it was applied over the silicone caulk (ugh!) it is not coming off very well any where else.

I purchased paint remover for automotive / fiberglass and left it on for only a bit and it took off the latex without a problem. I then began to sand it and that's working great.

And after 3 hours of working on the window (sealed with silicone caulk) we were able to get 2 of them open.


Here's the link to the progress.
www.PictureTrail.com/gid20465869

[Kim H]

A couple of additional items.

- All appliances and tanks have been removed.
- Windows all are ok


We are considering relocating the kitchen to the rear of the unit but leaving the "bathroom" as a storage cabinet.

1. We would gain more storage space
2. We could accomodate a Queen bed / Booth
3. The water tank and heater would be easy to put in

Anyone have any suggestions about that?

[Bobbie Mayer]

OK, We've been working on the Amerigo and while the latex paint comes off easy where it was applied over the silicone caulk (ugh!) it is not coming off very well any where else.

How about a heat gun to remove the latex paint?

[Kevin K]

If the paint won't come off with a pressure washer just sand it and paint over it with PERMA-WHITE®, Mold & Mildew-ProofTM* Interior Paint http://www.zinsser.com/product_detail.asp?ProductID=35

[gearyg]

We are considering relocating the kitchen to the rear of the unit but leaving the "bathroom" as a storage cabinet.

1. We would gain more storage space
2. We could accomodate a Queen bed / Booth
3. The water tank and heater would be easy to put in

Anyone have any suggestions about that?

Kim,

After seeing an Amerigo in person, I would be concerned about how much weight would be behind the axle.
The water tank being the major issue. Just my 2 cents.

Geary

[Kim H]

Geary,

Yes that's a very good point. Luckily the kitchen would be located on the front of the rig which will be better than the back.

• The water tank (which is now missing) will be placed under the booth in the back of the unit.
• The Kitchen will actually be in the front corner where the small sofa area was.
• The refrigerator will stay where it was originally located.
• The heater will be located on the other side of the booth.
• We've decided not to do a stove/cooktop but a microwave and a two burner gas cooktop.

Since this seems that it's going to be a total gut and redo, we figured we'd go for the most bang for the buck. Relocating the kitchen will allow for more storage since the wheel wells won't be in the way. We'll loose the extra sleeping space for one person but I can't imagine that will be a big deal as we'll make the booth longer allowing for a Queen bed instead of a full and more storage.

Also we are adding a exterior shower (outside next to the tank) which will allow for an exterior bathroom. My husband and I are not small people and that closet is just not going to work for a bathroom. It's just crazy to think of that as a bathroom. We are currently discussing leaving it for storage or removing it and just putting he kitchen at the front.

I appreciate your suggestion and we are looking at weights but with this rig having the kitchen at the front might be a better option that over the wheel wells. It's sorta all in the discussion phase as we are still removing paint ! Exciting stuff!

kim