17 ft '79 bigfoot - restoration/modification thread - Page 2 - Fiberglass RV
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Old 11-04-2016, 12:35 PM   #21
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dlb.......All your pictures are not posting, just a bunch of X's.....
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Old 11-04-2016, 01:59 PM   #22
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that's odd, they showed up fine in the preview. am i able to edit my posts? i can't figure out how to do that.
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Old 11-04-2016, 03:11 PM   #23
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While i don't have the same make of trailer.... just thinking out loud but is it possible that is one of the fasteners attaching the body to the frame


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Old 11-04-2016, 03:30 PM   #24
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While i don't have the same make of trailer.... just thinking out loud but is it possible that is one of the fasteners attaching the body to the frame


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that's probably the most likely answer, but all three screws i've found so far stick well up above the floor -- perfect for tripping on, snagging fridges during removal, etc. if they are attaching the body to the frame, why aren't they snugged up?

ps, it looks like photobuck (the site i use to host my pics) is temporarily down for maintenance. my pics should show up soon, i think.
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Old 11-05-2016, 08:41 AM   #25
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I've not found any Phillips head screws in my trailer. They're all Robertson head. My guess would be work by a previous owner. Looks like you have tackled a major project. Keep the photos coming.
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Old 11-09-2016, 07:52 PM   #26
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Trailer: Coleman and Bigfoot
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Finding Robertson in the Bigfoot isn't surprising. The inventor of the screw head was Canadian, robertson screw head are the most popular type up here.

I have had more than one contractor family member gush over robertson and crap all over the horrible philip's head. Strange things us Canadians get proud about.

Anyway, that's your Heritage moment for the day.

Love the tread I just bought a 1983, in similar shape to yours. I'm starting big renos early feb. Good luck
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Old 11-09-2016, 08:10 PM   #27
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If you decide to change out the toilet I would really like to purchase the one you have.. I've got a Trillium 1300 that the previous owner removed the toilet and it was just like the one you have and there's not enough room under the camper to install any other kind in its place but one like you have there and they are no longer made..
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Old 11-09-2016, 10:03 PM   #28
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If you decide to change out the toilet I would really like to purchase the one you have.. I've got a Trillium 1300 that the previous owner removed the toilet and it was just like the one you have and there's not enough room under the camper to install any other kind in its place but one like you have there and they are no longer made..
randy, is this addressed to me? if so, you can have the toilet for free but shipping it from bc, canada to alabama will cost something ridiculous. i'll happily send it if you're willing to pay for it but just wanted to make sure you're aware of my location.

the toilet works fine, btw.

no progress on this since my last post. i am now busy helping my wife finish fixing up her horse trailer, then have to fix a leak in the front gas tank on our truck, and then i will be focusing on this travel trailer reno job. i'll keep posting as i work on it.
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Old 11-10-2016, 10:37 AM   #29
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randy, is this addressed to me? if so, you can have the toilet for free but shipping it from bc, canada to alabama will cost something ridiculous. i'll happily send it if you're willing to pay for it but just wanted to make sure you're aware of my location.

the toilet works fine, btw.

no progress on this since my last post. i am now busy helping my wife finish fixing up her horse trailer, then have to fix a leak in the front gas tank on our truck, and then i will be focusing on this travel trailer reno job. i'll keep posting as i work on it.
Yes I was asking you about it, and I'll pay shipping for it just let me how much and I'll send you the money by pay-Pal or how ever you want paid.
Thank you so much I've looked for a toilet like this for 2 years...My address is ....

Randy Bishop
28495 Al. Hwy 251
Ardmore, Al. 35739


Just let me how much I need to send.....
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Old 11-10-2016, 04:52 PM   #30
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Randy,
In case you didn't notice my mention in post #3, I put a Thedford Aqua Magic V in my 1980 Bigfoot and it was an exact fit with the same dimensions as the original.
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Old 11-10-2016, 05:54 PM   #31
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Randy,
In case you didn't notice my mention in post #3, I put a Thedford Aqua Magic V in my 1980 Bigfoot and it was an exact fit with the same dimensions as the original.
I seen that... but does it have a built in holding tank, in my Trillium there is no room to add a holding tank it must be a toilet/holding tank all in one due to ground clearance under the camper.. There's just not room to install a holding tank.... The toilet show in the pictures is just like the one in another Trillium I own therefore I should be able to renovate this one back to original condition hopefully....
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Old 12-11-2016, 05:26 PM   #32
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How is the reno going?? any updates?
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Old 12-11-2016, 11:34 PM   #33
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sorry, no updates. have been working on my wife's horse trailer. once that's done and the holidays are over, i will get back on the camper job. it started pretty well though so i'm excited and hopeful about the rest of the job. stay tuned!
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Old 06-20-2017, 07:56 PM   #34
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i've made a bit of progress on this that i wanted to document, and i am also seeking a few suggestions for practical design ideas.

first off, i finished mostly gutting the trailer several months ago. it all went pretty smoothly. the only things i have left in place are the interior wall just aft of the door (immediately on your left when you walk in), and the storage cabinet/upper bunk just aft of said interior wall. as of right now, i don't see a reason to remove either of those in order to complete the renos i'm working on but we'll see as this progresses.

i ran into a problem when i got down to the floor though. my dad was over and suggested that, based on the year the trailer was made, the linoleum might be made of asbestos. my heart sank because i thought that would basically make it a major health hazard to pull the stuff up. just to be sure though, i sent a small sample to a local company and had them test it, and yup -- 40% asbestos. i was bummed.

but the more i thought about it, the less concerned i became. the primary danger of asbestos is inhaling it, and unless you are grinding or sanding the linoleum, you are not going to be turning it into any measurable amount of airborne particles. i decided that wearing an N95 particulate mask while pulling the linoleum up was sufficiently safe.

also of note is that several hours of non-airborne asbestos exposure won't kill anyone. it takes many cumulative hours of high grade exposure (like asbestos mine workers had, way back when) to have any effect. this also helped me to feel comfortable removing the linoleum myself.

anyway, once i was comfortable with the idea, the next step was to figure how to remove the stubborn stuff. i looked on youtube and saw lots of people using way too much effort and questionable techniques. eventually though, i came across a few vids of people using wallpaper steamers to remove linoleum, and it looked like it worked well.

so today, i FINALLY got around to renting a steamer and giving it a shot. it went well. because someone had put 'peel n' stick' linoleum tiles on top of the old linoleum, this wound up being a 3 step job: 1 - remove the tiles, 2 - remove the linoleum, 3 - remove the paper under the linoleum. the tiles came up super easy. the linoleum and the paper are a bit harder but the trick is to let the steamer sit for longer on stubborn spots -- work smarter, not harder, haha.

another trick was using an exacto knife to cut the linoleum and paper into strips only as wide as the steamer's face. this made it easier to pull up the entire strip without moving the steamer up and down, with one spot cooling while the other one warmed up.

i spent between 3-4 hours on it today and had to take a few breaks because my back was getting sore but i got the first and second steps done, and am halfway through removing the paper. i'll finish the paper tomorrow. i've attached a few pics. you can see the tiles in one corner, the linoleum in a bag, and the paper in another pile. the paper and linoleum will have to be disposed of at a special dump that deals with asbestos. do NOT take it to your regular dump or you'll be fined, big time. that's how it is around here, anyway.

now on with my questions.

1) what should i do with the floor? i don't want to put down any kind of flooring that is going to a) hide rot issues on the plywood floor, and b) be a pain to pull up in the future if it does end up rotting out. i am thinking about simply painting it, possibly with a rubberized undercoating type paint, but am definitely looking for suggestions.

2) what should i do with the walls? most of the door skin under the windows was water damaged all to hell, i don't want to replace it because the stuff seems to get wrecked the second it gets wet. i want something more forgiving, and hopefully something that won't hide leaks. i have no idea what i could use though.
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Old 06-22-2017, 01:41 AM   #35
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In my Bigfoot, the prior owner installed interlocking flooring that can easily be removed. It's waterproof and insulating. Feels good underfoot.
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Old 06-22-2017, 09:53 AM   #36
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nice floor....

I've been thinking of doing something with the flooring in mine...."busy" pattern linoleum that looks dirty even after I've cleaned it VERY well....

looking for something that looks good, easy to install and does not add too much weight.....still looking
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Old 06-22-2017, 10:26 AM   #37
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In my Bigfoot, the prior owner installed interlocking flooring that can easily be removed. It's waterproof and insulating. Feels good underfoot.
whoah, that looks like it might work. is it glued down or does it just sit on top the plywood floor? does it just go to the edge of the cabinets seen in the picture or does it go right up to the walls?
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Old 06-23-2017, 01:01 AM   #38
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whoah, that looks like it might work. is it glued down or does it just sit on top the plywood floor? does it just go to the edge of the cabinets seen in the picture or does it go right up to the walls?
The floor sections just sit on the floor. Quite light in weight. Easy to move or remove. It just goes up to vertical surfaces (i.e. walls or cabinets).

I think it's readily available at a big box store in several colors.
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Old 05-13-2021, 01:29 PM   #39
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Name: Daniel
Trailer: 1979 Bigfoot b-16
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Did the thread die?

Hi there,
Was the last post here form June 2017 and the thread went cold, or am I just not navigating right?

I am doing the same mod 1979 bigfoot b-16... I am doing the full-meal-deal though in that the roof has 1000 pin holes in it and so I will be re-fiberglassing over it... this will be my first fiberglass project lol...and my first camper of any kind...

I have gutted everything except the floor, which seems to be in ok condition, but I might pull up the plywood too just because it is 40+ years old and I wont get such a good opportunity to do it again. The floor is 'wavy' (sags in between the frame joists) I thought I might weld more joists in...

I have also left some of the insulation on the walls (some of it was not coming off so I might just leave it there, but everything that was loose got ripped off).

I will put in a bigger fridge (2-way), make the beds as big as possible, and maybe make the bathroom bigger too (dry bath even...) This is going to come at a cost of counter space, and perhaps the stove may even become just a portable one (I don't really plan to cook inside anyways)

Pictures soon
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Old 05-13-2021, 01:55 PM   #40
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Hi, nope you are correct, this thread did go cold. I'll give a short update/summary of where I'm at. Last year I experimented with gluing thicker scraps of plywood to the styrofoam insulation so the screws holding the various cabinets would have more to bite into. I found Gorilla Glue was the cheapest and easiest to find option. I re-installed all the cabinets and appliances that I want and went for a test camp with it, and it all went well. I had nightmares of opening the door after a few hours on rough logging roads and finding the cabinets all in a heap on the floor but it all held up well. Looks like **** though, lol. The next step is to make it look less Mad Max industrial wasteland camper-ish, which my wife will help with. We plan to do that in the coming months.


In the end I wasn't able to do some of the mods I wanted, like moving the fridge to a more ergonomic working height. I realized that that would require cutting a big hole in the fiberglass for the new fridge location, and covering the old hole -- too much work. And I wasn't able to make the bed much wider because the load bearing wall at the back was limited as to how far over I could move it by one of the rear windows. I was able to add a support beam up front, which the dining table is now mounted on. This was important because the front roof had sagged quite a bit over the years -- I'm not sure how Bigfoot thought they could get away with no support there but considering the other unpleasant surprises I uncovered along the way with this, I'm not surprised. Like virtually all campers, I don't think these were made with a 'built to last' ethos.


I'm too embarrassed to post pics of it currently but will once it's finished. It will never be a beauty and I honestly wish I had just sold the thing and found something else instead of taking on such a big project that I had no experience with, but I will be happy with it soon.
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