jeepdreamer
Expedition Leader
SWEET! And a factory brush guard too... Nice!
1973 Wagoneer - Full Size Camping Goodness
- Thread starter Dr. Marneaus
- Start date
SWEET! And a factory brush guard too... Nice!
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
Awesome, looks like a good score!
Its funny that you say you haven't gone back that old before...83...its practically modern!
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
Well now...I got enough initiative to actually do something.
The front of my camper previously looked as such:
Judging by the fresh chips in my paint, and the way the thin aluminum sheeting looks like it was actually peppered with bird shot, i determined that this is from 30 years of having rocks flung at it by driving down dirt roads. Pretty sure I'm correct. Thats the only messed up part on the body of the camer, the rest is straight as an arrow!
So, I decided to fix this. A buddy gave me a chunk of diamond plate, and i went to work.
test fitting after the first cut and notch:
Now, i was retarded and traced the notch on the second side wrong, and cut it too far over (forgot to flip the template). I'll either leave it open or put the little piece back in, i dunno how much I care.
Got them both on there, and semi-permanently attached (drilled a hole in each corner, and used self-tappers to attach to the camper siding. i'm going to add 2 or 4 more screws to make sure its all secure. But here's they're just being mocked up.
Went back and chopped a hole for the crank handle, and mounted the door for that to the diamond plate itself. Dont mind the gap on the left, it isnt screwed down al lthe way, it sits more flush than that.
Got it all finished up, again, still missing the last few screws.
Now here's where I'm stuck. Not sure how to 'finish' them, and what to do about the notch i cut out wrong.
I'd like to fill the notch with the piece i cut out, i can just JB weld it back in and it wont be too noticable. But do i paint the diamond plate to match the camper, or do i leave it diamond platey?
If i paint it, it'll look better, but it'll still require touch ups to the paint because it will still get chipped. Plus, it'll cover up the incorrect notch i made when i repair it.
If i dont paint it, it wont need as much attention over time, but the notch will be more noticable, and i think it looks kinda bro-esque. Like I should have my 4 wheelers and dirt bikes on top of it or something, on my way to the dunes.
LETS JUMP SOME DUNES BRO!!!!!!!!
No, but seriously, paint them or leave them silvery?
The front of my camper previously looked as such:
Judging by the fresh chips in my paint, and the way the thin aluminum sheeting looks like it was actually peppered with bird shot, i determined that this is from 30 years of having rocks flung at it by driving down dirt roads. Pretty sure I'm correct. Thats the only messed up part on the body of the camer, the rest is straight as an arrow!
So, I decided to fix this. A buddy gave me a chunk of diamond plate, and i went to work.
test fitting after the first cut and notch:
Now, i was retarded and traced the notch on the second side wrong, and cut it too far over (forgot to flip the template). I'll either leave it open or put the little piece back in, i dunno how much I care.
Got them both on there, and semi-permanently attached (drilled a hole in each corner, and used self-tappers to attach to the camper siding. i'm going to add 2 or 4 more screws to make sure its all secure. But here's they're just being mocked up.
Went back and chopped a hole for the crank handle, and mounted the door for that to the diamond plate itself. Dont mind the gap on the left, it isnt screwed down al lthe way, it sits more flush than that.
Got it all finished up, again, still missing the last few screws.
Now here's where I'm stuck. Not sure how to 'finish' them, and what to do about the notch i cut out wrong.
I'd like to fill the notch with the piece i cut out, i can just JB weld it back in and it wont be too noticable. But do i paint the diamond plate to match the camper, or do i leave it diamond platey?
If i paint it, it'll look better, but it'll still require touch ups to the paint because it will still get chipped. Plus, it'll cover up the incorrect notch i made when i repair it.
If i dont paint it, it wont need as much attention over time, but the notch will be more noticable, and i think it looks kinda bro-esque. Like I should have my 4 wheelers and dirt bikes on top of it or something, on my way to the dunes.
LETS JUMP SOME DUNES BRO!!!!!!!!
No, but seriously, paint them or leave them silvery?
jeepdreamer
Expedition Leader
AIRBORNE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
I'd say leave them natural. Then you won't have to keep touching up the paint when it chips off.
And you may want to seal it up so water doesn't get in behind it (and dust/sand). Don't forget to seal the fasteners as well, maybe some neoprene washers would work there?
I'd say leave them natural. Then you won't have to keep touching up the paint when it chips off.
And you may want to seal it up so water doesn't get in behind it (and dust/sand). Don't forget to seal the fasteners as well, maybe some neoprene washers would work there?
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
yeah i had planned on doing a bead of silicon along the edges. Not super worried about the 2 rain storms a year we get here though.
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
took a trip up Mt. Charleston to go to the lodge for lunch. About a 120 mile round trip. Crap...i use like 13 gallons of gas.
Anyway, nice day trip. Dunno how the waggy would handle the ride pulling the camper. You gain about 5200' in 20-25 miles. I was in 2nd gear doing 50-55 the whole time, unladen. I'd be interested to see if I'd be stuck going like 25mph in 1st haha. The trip up to ely had a crazy climb at the end, and it did fine then, just put her in 2nd and went like 40-45 didnt skip a beat.
Anyway...pics.
Hi everybody!!!
Roughly 8200' i think
Went up to the ski resort to show it to Dani.
Then headed down a bit and turned off at Macks Canyon. I've been camping up here before. I dragged my old R/T Magnum out there, it was scraping at every rough spot, bad. Also, i backed it into a tree on that trip. Eek
This is where we camped previously...
Merry Christmas
Headed DOWWWWWNNNN
Anyway, nice day trip. Dunno how the waggy would handle the ride pulling the camper. You gain about 5200' in 20-25 miles. I was in 2nd gear doing 50-55 the whole time, unladen. I'd be interested to see if I'd be stuck going like 25mph in 1st haha. The trip up to ely had a crazy climb at the end, and it did fine then, just put her in 2nd and went like 40-45 didnt skip a beat.
Anyway...pics.
Hi everybody!!!
Roughly 8200' i think
Went up to the ski resort to show it to Dani.
Then headed down a bit and turned off at Macks Canyon. I've been camping up here before. I dragged my old R/T Magnum out there, it was scraping at every rough spot, bad. Also, i backed it into a tree on that trip. Eek
This is where we camped previously...
Merry Christmas
Headed DOWWWWWNNNN
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
come again?
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
Aite, here are the results of todays....stuff. You all probably saw that the master cylinder was shot on my trailer brakes.
good news was that the fitting was clean, and dripping CLEAN brake fluid.
Well, I searched and searched and eventually somebody on another forum mentioned that the MC looked like an early ford unit....well, i looked it up and it appeared very similar, so i went out and bought one. The master cylinder is an exact match. So, for future reference, this IS an early ford master cylinder.
The replacement unit cost me $17.99 at O'reilly
So, before I left work today (the camper is stored where I work, with our work trucks and whatnot) I went over and got adventurous. I pulled apart the whole actuator and brought the working bits home with me.
So, my initial observations were that while old and scudgy, everything appeared functional.
The damper/shock is nice and firm in both directions, smooth too. The bushings are nasty and old, but they are solid with no movement.
the spring is a spring, so its fine. not quite as yellow as it was 30 years ago though.
the bearings for the actuator are kind of messed up, but present. The "sides" of the top bearing are missing and its broken a bit, but should still function. I cant seem to find replacements, so if anybody knows a source for something similar, let me know please.
The actuator, pins, and emergency brake pawl ratchet thing are all fine.
Everything was together and functional, but the whole unit was full of dirt, dust, spider webs, and wasp nests. In my mind I like to imagine the wasps and spiders fighting for the territory, but there was no evidence of who the victor was.
I brought it home and laid it out, this may be helpful if you've never seen the inside of one of these things.
P.S. I've done my fair share of brakes on cars/trucks, but have never touched a trailer brake system before. So, if i'm wrong, correct me. I'm just going by what i assume to be correct, because it appears that if you have even a relatively basic understanding of 'how things work' this system should be incredibly simple to understand.
This was the first time i have ever seen something like this, and i had it apart and back together within a few minutes.
So, here we have everything laid out (except for the actual sleeve that everything goes inside) in the correct order, as assembled:
All that I would have to do is slip everything back into the sleeve of the actuator at this point (it goes in from both sides though)
Lets explode that view
This is everything in the right order, just separated a bit.
Lets explode it even further:
Again, still in order, this is how everything would go together, but broken 100% apart. still super simple.
I cleaned everything very well, and when it gets reassembled tomorrow or wednesday, i'll give everything a nice coating of white lithium grease as it goes back together. I may craft some sort of cover for this actuator for when it's in storage, or perhaps on the vehicle, to minimize the amount of dust and debris that gets caught up in it.
so at this point i have pretty much everything needed to get it back together, but i need a 90* fitting for the master cylinder. looks to go from 7/16 24 to 3/8 24, but i'll have to verify.
good news was that the fitting was clean, and dripping CLEAN brake fluid.
Well, I searched and searched and eventually somebody on another forum mentioned that the MC looked like an early ford unit....well, i looked it up and it appeared very similar, so i went out and bought one. The master cylinder is an exact match. So, for future reference, this IS an early ford master cylinder.
The replacement unit cost me $17.99 at O'reilly
So, before I left work today (the camper is stored where I work, with our work trucks and whatnot) I went over and got adventurous. I pulled apart the whole actuator and brought the working bits home with me.
So, my initial observations were that while old and scudgy, everything appeared functional.
The damper/shock is nice and firm in both directions, smooth too. The bushings are nasty and old, but they are solid with no movement.
the spring is a spring, so its fine. not quite as yellow as it was 30 years ago though.
the bearings for the actuator are kind of messed up, but present. The "sides" of the top bearing are missing and its broken a bit, but should still function. I cant seem to find replacements, so if anybody knows a source for something similar, let me know please.
The actuator, pins, and emergency brake pawl ratchet thing are all fine.
Everything was together and functional, but the whole unit was full of dirt, dust, spider webs, and wasp nests. In my mind I like to imagine the wasps and spiders fighting for the territory, but there was no evidence of who the victor was.
I brought it home and laid it out, this may be helpful if you've never seen the inside of one of these things.
P.S. I've done my fair share of brakes on cars/trucks, but have never touched a trailer brake system before. So, if i'm wrong, correct me. I'm just going by what i assume to be correct, because it appears that if you have even a relatively basic understanding of 'how things work' this system should be incredibly simple to understand.
This was the first time i have ever seen something like this, and i had it apart and back together within a few minutes.
So, here we have everything laid out (except for the actual sleeve that everything goes inside) in the correct order, as assembled:
All that I would have to do is slip everything back into the sleeve of the actuator at this point (it goes in from both sides though)
Lets explode that view
This is everything in the right order, just separated a bit.
Lets explode it even further:
Again, still in order, this is how everything would go together, but broken 100% apart. still super simple.
I cleaned everything very well, and when it gets reassembled tomorrow or wednesday, i'll give everything a nice coating of white lithium grease as it goes back together. I may craft some sort of cover for this actuator for when it's in storage, or perhaps on the vehicle, to minimize the amount of dust and debris that gets caught up in it.
so at this point i have pretty much everything needed to get it back together, but i need a 90* fitting for the master cylinder. looks to go from 7/16 24 to 3/8 24, but i'll have to verify.
marshal
Burrito Enthusiast
the cancer on your rear passenger quarter panel
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
Oh, nope.
probably never going to do anything about that. I may pack it full of bondo after i add 1" of body lift so my tire stops rubbing and messing with the edge of the fender.
probably never going to do anything about that. I may pack it full of bondo after i add 1" of body lift so my tire stops rubbing and messing with the edge of the fender.
Dr. Marneaus
Station Wagoneer
Most likely, this is the last 'real' run of the year.
Got my girl and her sister all excited to go camping with some friends, we picked Valley of Fire state park, I've never actually camped there and it's right in our back yard.
So, load'er up!!!
We hit the road, it had been overcast and we were worried about the weather but all for naught.
Headed in, it was looking gloomy, but the clouds starte dto break, and as soon as we went down into the valley and rounded the corner it was beautifully sunny.
Headed out towards Arch rock campground. The colors out here are amazing, these pics dont do it justice, when the sun would come out everything was just glowing red.
Picked a nice, secluded (we thought) camping spot, and backed her in!
We set up camp....
And as soon as we were done doing that, our "neighbors" came back. Turns out the next spot over was a group of kids (18?) that were loud as hell. Hootin' and hollerin' and back there in the canyon we could hear every word, forget about the "OOOH MY GOD's" and the "NOOOO WAY DUDE!!!!!'s" and the "BRO!!!!!!'s".
We dropped the camper, hooked up, and rolled back around the front of the campground.
All my friends, except for one, bailed for one reason or another. We set up the camper and went driving around a bit to watch the sun set.
OO look, 4000 year old petroglyphs!!
Ooooo, look, a petrified tree from 125,000,000 years ago!!!! but SSSSHHHHH dont disturb it, it's sleeping!
Here I am parked next to one of the "Beehives"
Kept driving, dun was going down
Got up to the top at Rainbow vista, and took a gander at the colors.
Headed back dowwwwwwn
And that was about it, the sun went down, we had a nice fire and some dinner, then crashed in the campah. It was nice, maybe high 30's at night. Stayed nice and warm in the bed under the blankets without the heat on.
My favorite part about the camper, is being "inside" and having room to move around. i woke up turned on the heater, and put on a pot of coffee.
Cooked up a delicious breakfast, all inside! (sorry, i'm still not used to the camper aspect)
And thats about it! We hooked up and headed home that day. Just a fun overnighter to get out of town.
Absolutely beautiful country out there, way better than Red Rock NCA. If you're ever in the area, I highly suggest visiting Valley of Fire.
Got my girl and her sister all excited to go camping with some friends, we picked Valley of Fire state park, I've never actually camped there and it's right in our back yard.
So, load'er up!!!
We hit the road, it had been overcast and we were worried about the weather but all for naught.
Headed in, it was looking gloomy, but the clouds starte dto break, and as soon as we went down into the valley and rounded the corner it was beautifully sunny.
Headed out towards Arch rock campground. The colors out here are amazing, these pics dont do it justice, when the sun would come out everything was just glowing red.
Picked a nice, secluded (we thought) camping spot, and backed her in!
We set up camp....
And as soon as we were done doing that, our "neighbors" came back. Turns out the next spot over was a group of kids (18?) that were loud as hell. Hootin' and hollerin' and back there in the canyon we could hear every word, forget about the "OOOH MY GOD's" and the "NOOOO WAY DUDE!!!!!'s" and the "BRO!!!!!!'s".
We dropped the camper, hooked up, and rolled back around the front of the campground.
All my friends, except for one, bailed for one reason or another. We set up the camper and went driving around a bit to watch the sun set.
OO look, 4000 year old petroglyphs!!
Ooooo, look, a petrified tree from 125,000,000 years ago!!!! but SSSSHHHHH dont disturb it, it's sleeping!
Here I am parked next to one of the "Beehives"
Kept driving, dun was going down
Got up to the top at Rainbow vista, and took a gander at the colors.
Headed back dowwwwwwn
And that was about it, the sun went down, we had a nice fire and some dinner, then crashed in the campah. It was nice, maybe high 30's at night. Stayed nice and warm in the bed under the blankets without the heat on.
My favorite part about the camper, is being "inside" and having room to move around. i woke up turned on the heater, and put on a pot of coffee.
Cooked up a delicious breakfast, all inside! (sorry, i'm still not used to the camper aspect)
And thats about it! We hooked up and headed home that day. Just a fun overnighter to get out of town.
Absolutely beautiful country out there, way better than Red Rock NCA. If you're ever in the area, I highly suggest visiting Valley of Fire.
spressomon
Expedition Leader
Very nice pics, storyline and destination! We've explored a good chunk of Nevada from Caliente north, up close and personal like, but not south. Its nice to be able to get out for even a night!
jeepdreamer
Expedition Leader
And you got women to share the adventure with you...! *props* hahaha! Great pics man... funny how cameras never seem to do mother nature any justice. She must have a heck of a complex...heehee!