Restoring Our 1972 Boler American

[Roy in TO]

I forgot to mention that Carol Ann had made a full set of curtains from a single King Sized sheet prior to Bolerama 2006. We had picked up an almost full set of cusions from the prairies that was better than the ones originally in the trailer. They cost more to ship to Ontario than they did to buy. We loaded up the truck and trailer headed off to Cape Breton Island. Here is a shot of where we stayed in Cheticamp on the Cabot trail.



The bearings felt a bit warm, so I had some bearing buddys installed in Cheticamp as a precautionary measure. We visited family and camped alone in a variety of settings. Meeting Luc and Tina from FGRV and their 13' Boler in wonderful campsite. Oddly enough we were both in a large feild surrounded by trees in a campground where the big rigs were stacked row upon row like a parking lot. It felt great to have all that room with our little trailers looking at the metropolis of humongous RV's.



On our way home, we stopped at the first PEI Glass with Class meet and got a great deal on a nice complete set of cushions. The rest of the way home we slept on a double set of cushions. Circumstances would not allow us to do any more work on the trailer that year other than create a wrap for winter storage. I've described how I did this in the thread <a href="http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/index.php?showtopic=30246" target="_blank">Wrapping a trailer for winter, using parts bought in the summer.
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[Roy in TO]

Spring 2007 came quickly and the 1st thing we did was bring the trailer in to have the propane system inspected, connected and tested. We brought the trailer up to Panda Propane Repair in Holland Landing, Ontario. They were originally in the NW area of Toronto. We had discovered them picking up some used window parts that were shipped to us via Greyhound Bus (they were a depot drop-off).

Mark from Panda took one look at the fridge and told me that it was originally out of a VW Westphalia camper. He installed all new lines, a change over regulator, pulled the fridge and furnace; bench tested them and repaired almost everything. He said I'd be better off getting someone else to do the other repairs and gave me the following list of things to do.

• Install a divider to separate the fridge from the rest of the sink cabinet and ultimately the inside of the trailer
• Get a metal shop to custom fabricate replacement parts for the furnace venting components that were rusted out.
• Change the outer fridge vents to provide better access and flow, add baffles and fans.

Mark made sure we both knew how to use the changeover, light the fridge and the furnace before letting us go.

To install the divider I used 3/4" tongue and groove pine flooring screwed to some 1x2 strapping on either side. I "toe nailed" with screws wherever possible. I avoided taking out the fridge or removing the cabinets by using the pine flooring. Here are views from inside and outside.





The outer furnace flange was rusted out as shown below on the left. I got Athlone Metal Products on Milvan Drive in Toronto, ON to make me a new one as shown on the right. The surface is rusty from being left out in the rain. The rust was removed and painted with some high heat paint before installing.





They did not have the right sized tools to make a replacement vent and suggested I just shop around for something stock before paying for a custom job elsewhere. I found a suitable size on the internet and got my local hardware to order it in.

http://www.imperialgroup.ca/product.cfm?navcategory=3&category=27&product=342





The new vent is an Imperial model RG0569 8" x8" White Sidewall Grill UPC 063467 128236.

It is a very close match for what was needed, but I think I will bend the vent tabs open a little bit more than the way it was fabricated to improve air flow.

[Roy in TO]

Continuing on with the recommendations of Mark from Panda Propane, I then changed the outer fridge vents to provide better access and improve air flow. Much of this project was done while at Bolerama 2007 at Emily Provincial Park.

That is part of the reason why we have been camping away from the group. Aside from annoying others with my noise, I need some space to work and I don't think I would get much completed if I were in the middle of the group.

<span style="font-family:Verdana">Here are before and after pictures.</span>






A more detailed explanation has been posted in the thread Improving fridge venting from bad to "almost good"

Edited to upload pictures that could not be recalled from previous posts.

[CliveAlive]

Nice work Roy. Looks like you cleaned it up a whole lot while at Bolerama too!

Seriously though ... it also looks like you did something to make a connection at the electrical outlet. Any pics?

[Roy in TO]

Seriously though ... it also looks like you did something to make a connection at the electrical outlet. Any pics?

Thank you Clive,

Yes I did do something for the electrical. I'll post that now because that is a lot easier than prepping my posting for the body/door fix which was a major undertaking. Documenting that will probably take me a few nights to do if all goes well.

Originally there was a 2 breaker panel attached to the inside of the outside wall right about where I installed the divider wall to separate the fridge from the inside of the trailer. The original plug was in rough shape. There was a gap between the plug end and the cable as shown in the first picture. The end of the plug was filled with something like silicone and the connection was flakey at best.





I picked up a HD contractor 3' extension cord with 3 female plugs on it on sale for less than the cost of a new replacement male end. I cut the 3X female end off and ran the sealed male end through the old opening attaching it to the breaker box I had relocated on the dividing wall. I installed a large box beside that and put a single GFI outlet in it, from there I rewired the 120 for the trailer.





I've attached the wires to the trailer with nylon cable clamps since the picture was taken. Everything is protected by the 15 Amp breaker, then by the GFI.

I retained the original connection to the fridge, cabinet outlet and under cabinet lighting. I added two new outlets. The one you see under the cabinet that can be used for charging things out of the way and one under the rear curbside bench that I eventually want to bring to the outside. Right now I'm hunting for a small single female outlet that can be put on the outside. I'm sure I've seen something that would would be suitable on an 18 wheeler, but have yet to find a source. Any suggestions?

[Roy in TO]

New tires and rims went on this summer when I swapped the axle. I'll post the axle swap later.

Princess Auto had some ST145R12's on sale mounted on a 5 bolt rim. I found the ST17580R13's to be a little too big over the original 6.00-13. I bought the ST145R12's then I ordered the new axle.

The first picture shows the ST145/R12 in the foreground, the original in the middle with the ST17580R13 in the rear.





The second picture shows the profiles, with the ST145R12 on the left, the original 6.00-13 spare in the middle and the ST175R8013 on the right.





Though the ST145R12 is a little smaller than the original, it is a lot closer to the original size than the recommended replacement (ST17580R13). IMO it looks a lot better on the trailer and I don't have to worry about getting it over the hub when I need to change it.

[Kenny H]

Looking good, gives me hope on my project, I started ripping it apart yesterday. (I'll be posting pics when I take some)
Will Kilz paint/primer cover smoke/fire damage? I know it's good a covering up stains etc.. While ripping apart the walls/ceiling I found more smoke/fire damage than expected (I was told it was next to a trailer that caught fire, judging by the damage (Black all over) I'm thinking they had a minor fire inside.

[Roy in TO]

Will Kilz paint/primer cover smoke/fire damage?

Thanks Kenny,
Kilz should cover it, you might want to try 2 coats. A little soot goes a long way in providing pigments to paint. Kilz has also come out with some premium products you might want to look into.

The pictures in post #16 of this thread show the difference with 1 coat of Kilz and 1 coat of 1 Shot sign paint. If I were to do it again, I'd use a 2nd coat of Kilz before the final coats.

[Roy in TO]

After almost 3 years of planning, making, fixing and finishing I can finally post the results of my door fix. The complete and lengthy post documenting the fix / mod can be seen on this thread here.



I took the sagging door with stress cracks and broken connections, added an aluminum frame to the body and did some fiberglass repairs to complete the job. I also changed the balls using the kits from Scamp trailers.












The door now opens and closes as it should and no longer opens while travelling. The gel coat still needs to be repaired. You can see the new ST145/R12 tires installed on the last picture, I really like how well they ended up fitting the wheel well and body.

[Tony O]

I've been asked by a few of the members here to start posting pictures.

Hi Roy

I'm a newbie on this forum having spent the past two months researching fiberglass campers. Two days ago I purchased a 1973 13' Boler. Yippie!

On your very informative series on restoring your Boler I noticed in one of your pictures that you have what appears to be a two or three way refrigerator installed. My Boler has an ice box that is in poor shape and I want to replace it with something similar to what you have. I'm not sure if the original camper has the wiring required to retrofit a new fridge but I'll be poking around and looking into that today.

Question: Is yours a retrofit or did it come with the trailer?

Many thanks in advance for any response from anyone on this fine forum. I'm looking to learn as much as possible about how you all have done such fine work resurrecting and reviving these great little trailers!

Holiday regards to everyone!

[April Wilcox]

Hi Tony,

This thread might help you out...

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/index.ph...erator&st=0

Congrats on getting a FG trailer!! YAY!

[Roy in TO]

I'm a newbie on this forum having spent the past two months researching fiberglass campers. Two days ago I purchased a 1973 13' Boler. Yippie!
...
Question: Is yours a retrofit or did it come with the trailer?

Welcome to FGRV Tony,
Congratulations on your new trailer! The short answer to your question is both. The fridge came with the trailer but it was a retrofit by the previous owner that I modified to make it work a bit better.

The fridge is a 3 way Dometic RM182B originally used in the VW Westphalia campers. Though no longer in production they can be found used. The VW's don't seem to last as long as our fiberglass trailers, the fridges outlast the VW's.

Here is a link to how I modified the original retrofit install to obtain better venting. If you get one of these fridges. Place the lower vent as close to the floor as possible. My propane guru even suggested putting the vent in the floor as was done in the original Westphalia installation. I had to work with an oversized precut hole that I did not want to make it any larger nor did I want to patch the existing hole. Good venting maximises your fridges efficiency and cooling ability.

[Roy in TO]

Once the majority of the door problem was completed, I proceeded to fix and refinish the floor and replace the floor covering.

Here are some before and after pictures.




[attachment=21569:Finish
ed.JPG]


Here’s a link to my full post on Fixing a Floor.



I hope to be able to compose and post my axle swap soon. That involves raising the trailer and changing from a leading arm axle to a trailing arm with electric brakes.

[Roy in TO]

The summer of 2008 finally provided the opportunity to change out the old leading arm axle and replace it with a new trailing arm axle with electric brakes.

Full details of the axle swap can be read here.

Pictures before.




And After




The trailer feels and sounds like it has less resistance towing now that it is a little higher. That might have something to do with one wheel not being severely out of alignment. Things no longer fly around on the inside while towing. I can definitely feel a big difference in stopping with the electric brakes. I am not as scared about having to stop fast while driving. It is a major reduction in stress.

The Dexter # 9 Torflex axle with brakes cost a little over $400 CDN including taxes from CERKA in Milton, ON. Installation $300 CDN, 3 new tires and rims about $300 more. Total cost was just over $1000 CDN plus a few hundred hours of researching, measuring and planning. That should keep our trailer towing smoothly for the next 15 to 20 years.

[james kent]

"I love it when a plan comes together" [Finally]
The "A" Team

[Rick G]

Hi Roy in TO,

I am going to be changing my axle on my 74 Boler this spring, so I was very interested in your thread. Great job on the renos, by the way, a lot of work. But what caught my eye was one of your interior pictures of your furnace grille. It looks exactly like the Wagonmaster 6000B grille that I am searching for, as mine is unlovely and broken (I ran a separate thread in the fix-it forum recently but so far it looks like I am going to have to get one made from scratch). Would you know where to get a front grille plate like that, by any chance?

Thanks,
Rick in Edmonton

[Roy in TO]

Thanks Rick,

PM sent on suggestions for the grille.

[Roy in TO]

Well we picked up the trailer from storage this weekend and took some pictures of the last few things we did last year. For the first time since I started this thread this post brings us up to date on the restoration. Here are a couple of shots of the interior.

The ensolite was reglued everywhere it was loose then primed with Kilz. The seams were caulked and seam tape applied over the gaps. The whole things was then painted with one coat of "One Shot" sign paint. Added a backsplash, front and rear end cabinets, replaced the doors on the upper kitchen cabinets.

Before the day we bought it:




And what it looks like now:

[Raya]

Ooh, nothing like a nice, juicy set of "before" and "after" photos

I love the Kleenex built into the overhead cabinet! When you mentioned it earlier, I pictured the Kleenex coming out the side, like in hotel bathrooms. But your way is brilliant! How does that work on the inside? Did you make a partition/holder for a certain sized box... or?

Also, can you tell more about the quilted backsplash? Is that stainless steel, or... do I remember you saying it was plastic?

And the last one for now: Is that a standard kitchen sized cutting board that fits into the sink? Or did you customize the size?

Again, very nice!

Raya

[Roy in TO]

Thanks Raya,

For the Kleenex, I put two small angle brackets spaced an inch or so wider than the box on either end into the 3/4" brace facing upwards. Then I took a piece of the (1/4" inch or so) flat white elastic used for sewing and tied it onto the brace closest to the wall. I dropped the box of Kleenex in place, snugged up the elastic a bit and tied it to the hole of the brace closest to the door. That should handle just about any changes the tissue paper manufacturers come up with.

The backsplash is plastic from Home depot, meant for walls and ceilings. The "J" channel that comes with it for finishing is a little finicky and does not want to stay put. That will be one of my little projects to tinker with this year.

The cutting board was standard from a dollar store. All I had to do was round the corners with a sand paper disk on an angle grinder to fit. Then I took some wet fine sandpaper to smooth the rounded edges a bit.