‘74 Ventura remodel

[philtripp]

I’ve recently started redoing a Ventura that I purchased out of a farmers field. Check out my previous posts for work up till this point.

Now that the trailer is gutted I’ve begun work on the rotten ceiling structure. Glued up the new curved supports last night! I ripped a 2x6 into 3/8” strips, then traced an arch using the front of the roof as a template. Then glued two strips together using PL Premium adhesive and taped securely to the arch (the picture shows all five new rubs on the template). Once they cure I will cut to length and install using a two part epoxy.

[Captleemo]

Good luck. It looks like you have your work cut out for you.

[Ev in Oregon]

I have never done major remodels to my Bigfoot, other than putting up a few shelves, etc. Simple stuff. I have never gutted or started from scratch with one, either.

So, I have a huge amount of respect for those like you who take on this kind of commitment. And, here you are doing this in Manitoba, which if I remember correctly doesn't have tropical winters! (We didn't in Ontario, either, LOL.)

Good for you. I think I can speak for more than a few others when I say that we LOVE watching the progress of you brave souls & your projects. I get so excited seeing these beautiful senior-citizen FG trailers out on the road, looking brand-new & spreading the love. Keep the pictures coming.

[philtripp]

Originally Posted by Ev in Oregon

I have never done major remodels to my Bigfoot, other than putting up a few shelves, etc. Simple stuff. I have never gutted or started from scratch with one, either.

So, I have a huge amount of respect for those like you who take on this kind of commitment. And, here you are doing this in Manitoba, which if I remember correctly doesn't have tropical winters! (We didn't in Ontario, either, LOL.)

Good for you. I think I can speak for more than a few others when I say that we LOVE watching the progress of you brave souls & your projects. I get so excited seeing these beautiful senior-citizen FG trailers out on the road, looking brand-new & spreading the love. Keep the pictures coming.

You are correct that the winters here are far from tropical lol. I’m lucky enough that have an overhead door tall enough to fit my camper through. The car sadly will be spending the winter outside.

The only drawback is that I missed my window for doing fiberglass work outside. This means I’m going to have to finish the inside before I do the fiberglass repairs

I will be posting a lot more pics as the winter progresses!

[k0wtz]

ev my sentiments exactly some hugely talented people here!

bob

[philtripp]

The frame has been separated! Time to remove the axle coupler and jack, have new coupler welded on and send the whole thing to get powder coated. Can’t wait to see what she looks like all shiny and new!

Separating the body was a piece of cake. Had to cut off the bolts because they were impossible to remove. Carriage bolts in plywood meant that any amount of torque on the nut just spun the bolts round and round. Tried nutcracker but to no avail, the grinder was my only option. Once the bolts were off and the other bits disconnected I had three friends and my wife lift the body while I pulled the chassis out from under it and replaced it with some wood beams for support. We figure the body weighs about 500lbs at this point (Incase anyone is wondering).

Anyway cheers for now.

[philtripp]

Side note. Have a look at that roof! Looks like fun hey? After the frame work I’m gonna tackle that beast.

[philtripp]

Here are some better pics of the frame for anyone interested. I’ve removed the jack and coupler already. Just need to remove axle and weld on new coupler then it’s ready for powder coat.

[Buggeee]

This camper will have no secrets!!! Great work Phil. Very Thorough.

[philtripp]

Originally Posted by Buggeee

This camper will have no secrets!!! Great work Phil. Very Thorough.

Hoping she will last another 40 years!

[philtripp]

Just got the frame back with a fresh coupler and powder coating. It’s so shiny!

For those wondering, I had the welding shop modify a 50 degree Atwood coupler to fit the 30degree frame by cutting the corners and bending in the side plates. Worked like a charm! The coupler was rated for 5000lbs but should be much stronger now with the added welds.

I’ve reinstalled the old axle, waiting until spring to replace it.

Next stop, reinstall the body and replace the floors/ceiling framing.

[philtripp]

Things are going a tad slow these days but I’ve managed to dry fit the new plywood on the floor along with the new ribs on the ceiling. It’s amazing how much headroom there is where the roof isn’t sagging!

Now for some resin!

[philtripp]

Well...I have returned! I’ve been busy working on the camper of course and I have lots of catching up to do.

So after the last post came all new wiring and I mean everything! Including the addition of an exterior door light, wiring for a fantastic fan as well as provision for some switches and USB plugs. Once that was completed I moved on to insulation, which was a 3/4” polyisocyanurate with a rating of R7. It worked well using a ridged foam since mostly everything in the thing is square lol.



That brings to cabinets, I chose to reuse the existing boxes and replace the skins with new 1/8” birch plywood (which is also what I used on the walls). The ceiling is 1/2” T&G pine which was used to add strength to the roof system. I nailed and glued each piece while the roof was braced inside and left it braced while the glue cured. Pretty sure I could almost stand up there now! This was the only area where I added weight to the build...





Managed to remove the trailer info from the old door. It’s in rough shape but I’m going to re-apply it to back of the new cabinet door!



Installing the cabinets went fairly well, I remade the table, doors and counter tops out of 1/2” birch plywood which was actually lighter than the partial board used in the 70’s. Once the cabinets were in place I finished up the 12V system and the water system with some new parts. Mounted an AGM battery inside with a fuse panel and a master switch. I’ve also got an on board charger to charge the system when connected to shore power (so far everything works except the fridge won’t run on 12V...I’m working on it lol). Both taps, water tank and hoses were replaced and I added a battery meter, USB plugs and a 12V plug.






I’ll add some more pics in the next post.

[philtripp]

At this point in the build the weather started to get a little warmer and I was able to move outside for some body work. The roof was in really rough shape with lots of cracks, pinhole and actual holes. I decided it would be best to strip the gelcoat, repair the bad areas and then add an entirely new layer of glass to the top side. At the same time I worked on patching the body. If you ever done this you know how much work it can be...especially if you mix a batch of body filler that doesn’t end up setting...oops!




After the body lead done I started priming with an epoxy primer that I picked up from Spectrum coatings up here in Canada. Had good success rolling on two coats and then sanding to prep for paint.



The paint used was a two part polyethylene paint from spectrum and I chose to roll it on rather than spray it. Cost being a huge factor in that decision. In the end I’m very pleased with the paint and the finish!!! Rebuilt all the windows with new cranks and weather stripping. That was a pain since several screws broke off and needed to be drilled out, learned my lesson and started soaking everything in penetrating fluid before I worked on them. Managed to get some strips from Vintage trailer supplies and lucked out finding the gasket for around the glass at the the local window manufacturing place, Berdick Windows. Berdick just happens to be the company that actually produced the windows for the Ventura back in the 70’s. And based on the amount of dust on the roll of weatherstripping I wouldn’t be surprised if it was also from the 70’s...






At this point I’m a little further along but need to take some more photos. I’m hoping to wrap up the project in the next few weeks and will post a bunch of finished photos then.

Hit me up with any questions you have and hopefully I can help you along with your reno.

[philtripp]

Here’s another photo(s) of the roof repair.


Don’t forget to look back at the progress pictures! It’s been a long journey!

[alan H]

Wow I’ve been following this
Looks great

[raccoon]

Great work! ill be copying a lot of this.
Ive got the same camper from 1975.
My roof has the same failed gel coat with water slowly weeping in.

[MiKris3113]

This looks great!

Thanks for posting so much detail. My daughter sent me a text about two of these today and I jumped on them. Purchased them sight unseen. They are 400 miles away. I am going to pick them up Saturday. I have been looking for a small (preferably fiberglass) trailer and am super excited about these.

I will be following the rest of your progress as I will be a while behind you but dealing with all the same issues I am sure. They have been sitting in the same sport since 1990.

I am sure I'll be picking the brains of everyone here for suggestions on [arts suppliers etc.

Thanks for the great thread. I look forward to more.

Michael

[philtripp]

Thanks everyone. All I can say is don’t underestimate the amount of work ahead...and use plenty of nutcracker on the screws when taking apart your windows!!! That last point can’t be overstated, you do not want to break those little screws!

[GerryP]

Looks very good Phil. Just started slowly gutting my Ventura. Where in Manitioba are you from. I am in Winnipeg.