| The
Restoration.
Used with permission. Copyright ©
2002-2004 ---- T. J. DeArk
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first things to be addressed are:
:: Seal the leaks.
:: Clean and refurbish the exterior.
:: Reattach side structure to floor.
:: Repair and refurbish the TV antenna and rotor.
Even though Bob had applied sealer to many of the seams, the
camper still had leaks. Water was showing up on the newly
replaced wood in the left wing and also at the galley counter
top. I couldn't see any voids in the sealer, but I began removing
it around the window frames/exterior skin intersection, since
this appeared to be the source of the leaks. After many hours
spent removing sealant and resealing with silver Parbond sealer,
the camper still leaked---almost as badly as before. There
was nothing to do except remove the interior skin and flood
the exterior with water while a helper watched inside for
signs of leakage. After many gallons of water and lots of
consternation, the source of the leaks turned out to be the
rubber seal between the window and the frame on four windows.
The rubber had evidently hardened and shrunk over the years
and failed to maintain a seal to keep out the water, which
followed a circuitous route between the inner and outer skins
down to the wood. I very carefully cut the exterior portion
of the rubber seal away and applied a bead of clear Parbond
to seal the junction between the window and the frame.
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| The exterior was cleaned
with a mild phosphoric acid product applied with #00 steel wool,
the faded Avion logos were repainted, rusty screws were either
painted or replaced with stainless steel, the city water inlet
was repaired, the radio antenna mast was replaced, the side
structure was reattached, the potable water fill was replaced,
the AC shroud was removed/repaired/painted/replaced, many exterior
skin seams were resealed, and many other small items received
the repair/refurbish treatment. Here is a photo taken after
most of this work was completed and an earlier photo for comparison. |
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| I had it in my mind
that repairing/rebuilding the original TV antenna and rotor
would be a good thing to do. It was a good thing, just not a
smart thing to do. The antenna was bent and broken, and needed
a lot of work. The rotor (which operates from inside the camper)
needed to be totally rebuilt. I couldn't find replacement parts,
so had to fabricate the parts that I could not salvage. It required
much more time than was prudent, but the result is a functioning
original TV antenna/rotor. Someday I'll probably do what I should
have done in the first place---intall a new "bat wing"
antenna with a booster. Oh, well. Here is a photo of the back,
with the TV antenna installed, and an earlier photo for comparison. |
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