Surfs UP.. surf side restore

[robeye]

Fiberglass trailer number three ( for restore) is this ugly little fella.


1976 Triple E Surf-Side TM14. Great winter project ... And mostly just needs some body work and a paint job.. Also some of the cabinets are missing and the rest is beat up . And of coarse I will not redo a fiberglass trailer without redoing the frame too. So off the body comes.


I have a dolly that the body will sit on for bringing it into the shop later. For now it's the frame that gets some love.

For the other two trailer I needed to make new frames ... not so with this one.. The frame is good just a few mods and some good paint.

[Berthaduniverse]

Boy does that look like fun...

[WaltP]

I love to see the nice oldies being restored. I look forward to watching your progress. Lots of pics, please.

[robeye]

Originally Posted by WaltP

I love to see the nice oldies being restored. I look forward to watching your progress. Lots of pics, please.

Oh you bet. There's a link in my signature for my blog. I made a quick video this morning..

https://youtu.be/fd7EWgN5QgM

[WaltP]

Thanks Rob. I watched both videos. You sure have a lot to do inside but you sound like it's going to be fun so carry on and keep us in the loop.

Walt

[robeye]

Originally Posted by WaltP

Thanks Rob. I watched both videos. You sure have a lot to do inside but you sound like it's going to be fun so carry on and keep us in the loop.

Walt

I see you have an Escape trailer.. I find it interesting that this 46 year old Surf Side has the "pontoon " molded into the perimeter of the bottom. Just like the Escape. Lower than the floor so any moisture has a place to go. And the plywood floor is NOT part of the structure like Bolers. Yes it ads to it but can easily be replaced with out any distortion of the body.. That was a huge challenge with the Scamp. Also the interior cabinets are wood. Not riveted through the body. So I'm anticipating an easier job of the interior too.

[robeye]

Well I've finished the frame, and kicked it outside.


Replaced it with the body.. Just fit under the 7 ft door.. with the roof vent removed.



Now comes the fun part.. Taking it all apart. Finding a power panel and a small water pump. Also finding that the wiring is butchered.

[robeye]

It's a lot of work, but I have nothing but time.. Got the interior all stripped out.. Now I'm working my way around the outside.


The rusty screws around the windows don't help.. Also have an issue with the roof sagging. Being as the kitchen cabinets were removed at some point ... there must have been a snow load too. Lifted it 2.5 inches !

[Out4Fun]

Nice work! Enjoying your documentary. Now that you lifted the roof 2.5 inches are you worried about getting it out of the garage?
What is your setup under the body while it’s off the frame?

[Richard McGuire]

I really enjoyed your posts here, as well as your blog and videos. You've documented this huge project so well.

I have the same model Surf Side, but a 1979. It's in better shape than yours was, but it still needs work. I don't have your mechanical skills, but hope to learn from your progress.

I'm an hour and a half away in Osoyoos and would love to see your work first hand once Covid is behind us.

[Jan Dyke]

What a great project. Having a shop to work in sure helps. Looking forward to seeing your progress

[robeye]

Originally Posted by Out4Fun

Nice work! Enjoying your documentary. Now that you lifted the roof 2.5 inches are you worried about getting it out of the garage?
What is your setup under the body while it’s off the frame?

This is a good thing to point out.. I could remove the dolly and use moving dolly's with casters instead of the 12 " wheels. The dolly is made from 4x4 posts


I've used it for the other trailers.

[robeye]

Here's a new video I did this morning helps with explaining the roof issues. And where I'm at with the work..


https://youtu.be/r1h1dRvI9tI

[robeye]

I'm starting the sanding today.. and what do know. I could see the decals under the green paint but a bit of sanding made them pop. Also a sales lot sticker shows up.

I would presume this is front and back ?


It clearly says Ashbury Boys 203 Bowness Rd Calgary. Is this dealer long gone ? Can't find any info. Also found the TM*14 decal on the door. Cool.

[robeye]

I start from the top down. Cleaning sanding & filling. Lot's of spider cracks up on the roof. Not a surprise, the roof had sagged from possibly snow ? I wire brush them and brush resin over them. One piss off was the TV antenna installed ( thankfully over the fridge cabinet) What a mess that made it was glued good and removing it was not easy and damaged the roof.


So I'm patching that with mat & resin... then some filler to make it look nice. I'm filling all the holes.. Except for the hole for the porch light wire.

[Jan Dyke]

Looking good. I spent nearly 2 weeks preparing my boler for paint including removing most of the PO paint job. It came to the point where my wife was ready to hide my power tools

[robeye]

Originally Posted by Jan Dyke

Looking good. I spent nearly 2 weeks preparing my boler for paint including removing most of the PO paint job. It came to the point where my wife was ready to hide my power tools

Oh I know that feeling.. The Boler I did had some kind of pool paint on it.. Tough as nails.


I sanded for more what seemed like a month. But it was worth it.



Treat your boler like a boat.. I use boat paint and only stainless steel fasteners. Cost about $300. to paint the Boler. In my shop ! Compare that to packing off to the bodyshop.

[robeye]

So the body work continues. The front left corner was a mess. Quite a bit of damage was done there and the fix was worse. But I'm messaging it out.


No choice but to fill this small grand canyon..

Looking better with every coat of filler..

[WaltP]

That's some tough work. So far so (very) good.

Walt

[robeye]

Originally Posted by WaltP

That's some tough work. So far so (very) good.

Walt

Thanks Walt.. Your no stranger to fiberglass trailers.. for sure. I look forward to each step of the restore. Painting will be soon. I do the outside first, then turn my attention to the inside. One of my secret weapons is my orbital sander hooked up to my shop vac. No dust !

But the poor vac needs emptying often.