Maintenance & Restoration

Kim Southwest · 01-31-2021, 10:59 AM

Nice job. Really like the idea of a clear rock guard! How did you get the Lexan to cut so cleanly?

Shanos · 02-01-2021, 08:22 AM

Thanks! I cut the lexan on the table saw with a sharp blade used for cutting plywood. I then used a template and a router with a flush trimming bit to get the rounded corners.

Shanos · 02-02-2021, 09:56 AM

Good progress on cabinets in the past week. I started with the most complicated ones so now it feels easier and goes "faster"

Sides of the bed lockers are fitted and in place. Will run water lines to the 10 gallon fresh water tank in the back locker at a future date. Next...tops for the 3 lockers.

Shanos · 02-02-2021, 10:01 AM

Back to pattern making...piece of 1/8" hardboard cut close to size and then small pieces of mat board butted up to the sides and adhered with double-sided tape. A bit tedious but makes a great pattern requiring minimal fitting!

Chris from Comox · 02-02-2021, 11:58 AM

Very creative solution to a very awkward task..
Nice work..

pedalmike · 02-03-2021, 02:31 PM

Shanos: your thread has been fun to follow. Such nice work!

Mike

Shanos · 02-03-2021, 11:30 PM

Thanks very much Chris..there has been a lot of problem solving requiring some creativity with this project

Shanos · 02-03-2021, 11:31 PM

Thanks for your kind words Mike...glad you've enjoyed following this thread

Eric Frye · 02-08-2021, 06:18 AM

Shannon I have to say I am very impressed with your attention to detail and carpentry skills. Since I am in the middle of doing the same with my Boler 17, so I can truly appreciate the difficulty of working with all the compound curves.

I kind of wish you were complete with your build so I could borrow some of your build techniques but at the same time I am glad that I haven't been able to because I would have spent a lot more time and money than I had planed.

. Not that my "Hunting Camp" quick build hasn't turned into a full blown renovation/reimagination.

Keep up the nice work and keep posting.

Shanos · 02-08-2021, 08:57 AM

Hi Eric, thank you! When this Boler was originally purchased, how I thought I would rebuild it to what it has turned into is FAR more (time, effort and $$) than I ever thought!! However, I can “smell the barn” at this point, I don’t regret what I’ve done since I’m never doing this again....lol!! It will be enjoyed this summer so head-down for the next few months! I’ll keep posting!

Shanos · 02-18-2021, 08:33 AM

Painting and clear coat on all of the locker pieces complete, support blocks glued and screwed in place and ready for installation! This is the part that feels like Christmas!! Lots of steps to get to where you transform things and get closer to finishing!!
Before.....

Shanos · 02-18-2021, 08:41 AM

After....
Panels to cover the access are cut and waiting for finishing. I'll have good access to the batteries and water tank through these openings. Next will be a torsion box to span the space between the lockers to support the mattress.

paulsonswest · 02-18-2021, 10:25 AM

what did you use rather than rivets?

Shanos · 02-18-2021, 10:39 AM

Hi Pete, if you look back at post #65, you'll see the wood "stringers" I've glued to the fibreglass. I attach everything directly to these or attach support blocks to these stringers that can be used to attach cabinetry etc. The little blocks on the walls for the lockers I just installed are glued and screwed to these wood stringers.

jstew · 04-10-2021, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shanos

After a bit of a break from the restoration I went back into Boler. To my dismay, I found that many of the blocks that I glued on were quite easily removed! I expect the small area of the blocks was inadequate to support against much force. Not wanting to fibreglass all of these blocks and not feeling very confident that the polyethylene foam or fabric were going to strongly adhere with the contact cement, it was time to go back to the drawing board! After further research into adhesives, here's what I came up with:
1) glue strips of 1/4" bendable plywood to the hull of the Boler with Sikaflex 252. The representative at Sikaflex assured me it would be more than strong enough for what I was doing
2) Glue 3 additional layers of 1/4" bendable plywood to the first layer using Titebond III and 23 gauge pin nails
3) Insulate with spray foam insulation between the 1" thick strips adhered to the interior
4) Use 3 mm bending plywood as panelling attached to the strips
5) Attach cabinets to the 1" thick strips

I have recently purchased Robert Johan's restored 1974 Boler. I see that you referred to her in the description of your rebuild and are familiar with his project. Seeing the impressive work you have documented here, I am hoping you might be willing to advise me a bit about some repair work I need to do.

We are having some issues with the upper cabinetry. As you may recall from Robert's thread, he initially tried to glue support blocks, but the glue failed. As a fix, he used carriage bolts to hold the blocking. Unfortunately, over time these have created dimples in the exterior. In addition, those upper cabinets are no longer tight to the walls and ceiling and, as a result, the upper shell now lacks the "skeletal" support of the cabinetry. This has recently led to the top of our front window popping out of its frame!

I have created a thread looking for help with this issue (and a couple of other issues that I think I have figured out). Link is here, if you are willing to check it out:
https://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/...tml#post810682

Anyway, since you found a successful methodology for gluing strips of plywood to support your cabinets, I thought you might have some insight about whether I could do the same to support our upper cabinets? As Robert's work on our cabinets is so beautiful, I would like to avoid taking them down (and perhaps damaging them) and would like to try to support them in place. I am wondering if you think the following process could serve to both: a) support the hanging cabinets, and b) provide strength to the upper fiberglass shell:

1) jack up the cabinetry up tight into the ceiling,
2) pull back or cut out the carpet and insulation from underneath the hanging cabinets,
3) sand the exposed interior fiberglass,
4) glue plywood supports around the base of the hanging cabinets, using your method quoted above
5) fasten the cabinets to the plywood strips by screwing down into strips and/or adding finished wood cross "beams",
6) finish the plywood strips (could cover with carpet, stain, trim, or paint)

Thank you in advance for any insight you can provide. And feel free to post on my thread link above so as not to disrupt/hijack your thread further! I tried to message you directly, but I'm too new of a member.

Shanos · 04-17-2021, 07:56 AM

Moving on to the upper galley cabinet! First job was to establish lines for the bottom and front of the cabinet on the wall and ceiling of the trailer. A stud finder helped me locate the location of the "studs" to attach the blocks that will serve as attachment points for the cabinet. Each one was angled to establish surfaces that were parallel or perpendicular to the top of the lower cabinet. In addition, each block has room for final adjustment when test fitting the cabinet and will then be glued (PL Premium construction adhesive) and screwed in place

Shanos · 04-17-2021, 08:11 AM

I made a table to place on the lower cabinet to place the templates for the bottom and front of the upper galley cabinet establishing a parallel and perpendicular reference. Same technique of using small pieces of mat board to make patterns for each piece.

Shanos · 04-17-2021, 08:21 AM

I've tried to keep the weight of the cabinets to a minimum without compromising on the strength. For the bottom of the upper galley cabinet I used strips and blocks of 3/8" plywood sandwiched between 1/4" and 1/8" plywood. The blocks are for placement of LED puck lights and hinges for the doors.