1985 companion reno

[Vpena]

So I think I may have gotten in over my head. Well just like most of my projects. I’ve had this 1985 companion for 2 years I purchased it knowing it needed major work. Finally 2 years later here I am. I’ve ordered all new electrical for both 120 and 12v. Then I started thinking I might as well do a little updating and now.. after finding all sorts of hot messes. I have an empty shell and I’m going to be lifting the shell off the frame to do a frame reno as well. I’m just wondering what the best way to go about this?

[Vpena]

Well here I am still at it. I’ve made it this far. Wondering if I should replace the axel or just clean up the one I have. I had to cut off the spare tire rack off so that I could easily get the frame off. It was a challenge but not as hard as I thought it would be. Grant it I made sure to remove everything including the door from the frame to make it more light weight.

[Vpena]

So I got the windows all off and they didn’t even put up a fight. Now the question is what kind of windows to replace them with

[Vpena]

I’ve been working on my camper a bit the exterior walls are getting sanded down and some bondo to fix the imperfections from previous lights and such. I’m also filling in holes from screws. I’ve also finished removing the rotted wood and the fiberglass floor. I would like to repurpose the old fiberglass and somehow glue it it the new plywood but we will see. It came out in pieces so I’m going to have to think about it for a while. The axle I was going to replace is special order and takes about 3 weeks to get made and delivered. I might just use the old axle which had nothing wrong with it. My goal was to raise the camper a bit but maybe I will have to do that some other time .

[k corbin]

if the windows you took out can be restored to useable condition with cleaning and some new gaskets and seals then that is the affordable option.



Otherwise you are like to have to contact a company that creates custom windows to your measurements. That is going to end up being a considerable investment of funds. This is one company that makes custom windows to the buyers dimensions. https://www.motionwindows.com/


Just be aware that for custom sized new windows the supply system to those manufacturers is very likely to have been disrupted at this time. A lot of companies now practice just in time inventory meaning when a crisis hits they do not have big stockpiles of purchased items such as the gaskets, latches, hinges and such on hand. Many times those items are made in other countries which is creating a disruptions in shipping. So if you can restore and reuse your original windows that is likely to be your best option for this year.

[Vpena]

I’ve actually decided to cut a larger opening for the side windows. The previous measurements were 18x 15 and I’m going with slide windows 24x 15. It will give me more of a view. The front window I am going to do a fixed Plexi window. The back I haven’t decided yet if I want to to a slide window or an emergency push out type of window. It definitely is an investment 😬