1983 Man-O-War (My First Trailer - Requesting Advice)

[johnnylawless]

My first trailer:
1983 Man-O-War

My wife and I were coming back from the Florida beach and started talking about all the campers. Turns out it's been a dream of both of ours to own a camper! I've been a tent camper all my life, but I've got nothing to prove anymore 🙂

Barely had a chance to clean it, got it yesterday and me and my daughter went drive way camping last night!

Questions:
* The windshield screen/awning is old and cracked. It's a plastic insert in a steel frame. What is this called and what is an easy way to replace it?

* Should I cover or replace the rusted screws?

* The wheel wheel covers are just ruined. One side looks like it popped off and they just re-screwed it making new holes.

* The siding is aluminum and there is some silver shining beneath the white paint in places. Is it possible (and cheap) to strip the white paint from the siding and have a silver ham can?

* Any easy fixes to make it look less....old? We are going to go retro on the inside (think sky blue and lime green, maybe some polka dots). I dream of a Streamline, but this is a first run for $1500 to see if we even use the camper.





UPDATE 8/25/2014:
$40 paint, $20 stain, 12*2=24 hours work:



$35 for fabric, will make cushion covers this week:

[johnnylawless]

BEFORE:


AFTER (STILL WORK IN PROGRESS):
UPDATE 8/25/2014:
$40 paint, $20 stain, 12*2=24 hours work:



$35 for fabric, will make cushion covers this week:


Paint color is Sherwin Williams 6785 Quench Blue
http://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/SW6785-quench-blue/

Door stain color is Minwax Mahogany, lightly coated.

All hardware was spray painted with Rustoleum Metallic Silver

[700g]

Man O war's were made in Kentucky. I had one yrs ago. Nice trailers.....

[johnnylawless]

poncho62 wrote:
Looks good...Stripping all that paint would be a big job...I did parts of my 1st trailer, looked pretty good.

I can't tell which parts, it looks mostly silver to me! Great look, exactly what I was thinking. After stripping, are there additional steps to the care of the aluminum?

[johnnylawless]

Huntindog wrote:
Welcome to the TT life.
I remember my first TT well. A 1975 Prowler. I learned a lot with that old TT and had a ton of fun and memories from it.
My wife used to joke that we looked like the Beverly Hillbillys going down the road.

Don't got too caught up in trying to make yours perfect. One can easily spend a lot of money that way. Enjoy it for what it is and fix as needed.
If you end up liking the lifestyle, the things you learn now, about your needs and wants in a TT will serve you well when choosing the next one.
We are now on our third TT and each one has been much closer to our ideal. everyone's usage is different, so that part of the journey is up to you... But this forum will be a big help as you make it.

Yea, I'm focusing on low costs at the moment, or anything that might just be elbow grease related.

Here is my short list
* replace dry rot / find leak @ front window frame (it's not too bad)
* replace windshield cover with metal or fiberglass $100?
* replace rusted screws with stainless $10 + a few hours
* interior paint (sky blue & rustoleum white) - $50
* interior fabric/pillows - $100
* hubcap covers - $30?
* LED Lighting - $100

Other than that, I'm not to worried about the exterior, since I'm not going to leave it in the drive way anyways. We have some land right at the edge of town where it will be parked.

In the future, I'd love to add solar and some batteries. It has no hot water heater or furnace at the moment, which might be future projects.

I'm a huge fan of off-grid living, it excites me so much. I'd love to go solar/propane for all but he A/C, which is an investment that I can take over to a new trailer.

My daughter and I have camped out the past 2 nights, she loves the bunk bed over the dining table even though her nose touches the ceiling. My wife and the twins (boy & girl) were comfortable inside the house. It's funny doing the walk of shame in the morning, from the trailer to the house, making sure none of the neighbor see me (with matted hair) on their way to work and ask "why is he sleeping in the trailer, are they having troubles?"

[johnnylawless]

Mr.Beebo wrote:
I agree the name is awesome. I'd try googling or doing an online search to see if anyone has parts available for that model. If not, I'd almost consider having something aftermarket made with the name on it.

I can't find much on Man-O-War except for this reference:
"Man-O-War manufactured trailers in 1982, 1983 and 1984....Thoroughbred manufactured them from 1975 to 1981 and then Man-O-War took over the operations."
Reference: http://www.rvuniversity.com/article.php/20090421095308226

I guess they were short lived.

[gbopp]

Check Tin Can Tourists, it's a site for vintage TT's and RV's.

Maybe you can find some helpful information.

[Mr_Beebo]

I agree the name is awesome. I'd try googling or doing an online search to see if anyone has parts available for that model. If not, I'd almost consider having something aftermarket made with the name on it.

[poncho62]

Looks good...Stripping all that paint would be a big job...I did parts of my 1st trailer, looked pretty good.

[westend]

johnnylawless wrote:

westend wrote:
The front window cover can be mended with fiberglass mat and resin, it's too nice to just replace.

Removing all the old white paint and polishing it to a brilliant shine, then coating it so it won't immediately oxidize is not trivial. You would have 100's of hours into a project like that. A better solution is to leave the existing paint on, prime the exposed parts. and repaint. I repainted the bulk of my 22' trailer in an afternoon but I have professional spray gear.

At this point in your RV career, you should be looking at the roof, siding, and windows to make sure there is not ONE little leak. This will be the most important thing you ever do to keep the old gal in good shape. Look around on here to see what others do.

Welcome to the Forum!

I was afraid of that regarding stripping. If it were a collectible trailer I might consider it, but I will heed your advice on this one.

The front window cover is very brittle, you can poke through it with your finger. Thus, I don't believe it's worth saving 😞 I was thinking a sign company could cut a sheet of painted metal to fit, but am afraid it will rattle going down the road.

The bathroom has been redone, along with the door frame. I don't see any water damage under the sink or utility access panels, but the main floor area has been built "up" and covered with new vinyl, so it could be covering some damage. There is definitely a leak in the front window, the base of the window frame has dryrot. There's also a chewed mouse hole in my fresh water storage area!

Yeah, those fiberglass window covers do get brittle after sitting in the sun for that many years. Shame, cause the name Man-O-War is just too cool.

I replaced mine with vinyl coated aluminum panels:



If you need ideas about restoration, you can look through the link in my signature line, The Cowboy/Hilton. I've done just about everything you can do to a trailer in that thread.

Good luck, and congrats on the new trailer. It looks to be in pretty good shape.

[Huntindog]

Welcome to the TT life.
I remember my first TT well. A 1975 Prowler. I learned a lot with that old TT and had a ton of fun and memories from it.
My wife used to joke that we looked like the Beverly Hillbillys going down the road.

Don't got too caught up in trying to make yours perfect. One can easily spend a lot of money that way. Enjoy it for what it is and fix as needed.
If you end up liking the lifestyle, the things you learn now, about your needs and wants in a TT will serve you well when choosing the next one.
We are now on our third TT and each one has been much closer to our ideal. everyone's usage is different, so that part of the journey is up to you... But this forum will be a big help as you make it.

[azrving]

Welcome. Not bad looking for the year. Good for you. You will all love it.

[kearlms]

You could go down to Lowes or Home Depot and pick up some FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic) and cut it out to replace the front window cover.

[johnnylawless]

westend wrote:
The front window cover can be mended with fiberglass mat and resin, it's too nice to just replace.

Removing all the old white paint and polishing it to a brilliant shine, then coating it so it won't immediately oxidize is not trivial. You would have 100's of hours into a project like that. A better solution is to leave the existing paint on, prime the exposed parts. and repaint. I repainted the bulk of my 22' trailer in an afternoon but I have professional spray gear.

At this point in your RV career, you should be looking at the roof, siding, and windows to make sure there is not ONE little leak. This will be the most important thing you ever do to keep the old gal in good shape. Look around on here to see what others do.

Welcome to the Forum!

I was afraid of that regarding stripping. If it were a collectible trailer I might consider it, but I will heed your advice on this one.

The front window cover is very brittle, you can poke through it with your finger. Thus, I don't believe it's worth saving 😞 I was thinking a sign company could cut a sheet of painted metal to fit, but am afraid it will rattle going down the road.

The bathroom has been redone, along with the door frame. I don't see any water damage under the sink or utility access panels, but the main floor area has been built "up" and covered with new vinyl, so it could be covering some damage. There is definitely a leak in the front window, the base of the window frame has dryrot. There's also a chewed mouse hole in my fresh water storage area!

[westend]

The front window cover can be mended with fiberglass mat and resin, it's too nice to just replace.

Removing all the old white paint and polishing it to a brilliant shine, then coating it so it won't immediately oxidize is not trivial. You would have 100's of hours into a project like that. A better solution is to leave the existing paint on, prime the exposed parts. and repaint. I repainted the bulk of my 22' trailer in an afternoon but I have professional spray gear.

At this point in your RV career, you should be looking at the roof, siding, and windows to make sure there is not ONE little leak. This will be the most important thing you ever do to keep the old gal in good shape. Look around on here to see what others do.

Welcome to the Forum!