Avion truck campers - Hundreds of photos

[67avion]

Without going into too much painful detail, we had a mishap several week-ends ago. While working with sand bag crews on the Mississippi River, the truck and camper fell into the flood waters as a road collapsed. Because of a number of issues dealing with the wrecker truck, we had to release the camper as the truck was reeled up over the bank. The good news is that the truck is as good as new after a thorough rinsing, inspection of brakes, etc. The bad news is that the camper was thoroughly drowned. A lot of people had far worse trouble than we did, so we consider ourselves lucky. The floods are ongoing as I write.

Our planned trip to Montana in June is called off. heh.

However, I have now convinced my dear Jane that its time to really update the TC. After drying for several days we pulled out the interior. Amazingly the Zolatone paint that I had applied last year is good as new after a cleaning.



Without burdening the TC family overmuch, I'd like to ask some advice other than don't park too near a flood :-).

My DW was overjoyed that I had a plan for the bathroom: a composting toilet developed by Nature's Head http://www.natureshead.net/. Our holding tank was practically unusable and there was no real grey water tank on the 67 Avion. Our plan is to rip out the bathroom and install one of these and converting the blackwater to a greywater tank. Any experience with this?

Finally, the roof. I admit that I have not really done the work I should have. Now, I need to remove the various sealants on the roof and repair it. We are also setting up for a solar installation. Any advice as to this?



Here's hoping I have posted the pictures correctly. And many thanks in advance for your advice.

[cajunavion]

Howdy!
Rastaman,, I am crazy about these campers, but I know y'all
all know the ugly truth, they all LEAK. Even if you could stop those pesky seam leaks, damp air will infiltrate and condensation will occur. Soo, you best make sure your stucture can take it. I like following boaters strategy. Encapsulate your wood in epoxy and avoid water trapping voids. The original wood insulation wood does not do either. Hence, read all the posts about rotten floors.
Take note of all the work D1 has gone to not to suffer this.
D1 has your camper become a class c rv? Beautiful work by the way!

[D1trout]

Fellow Avionistas, just before I went off to sail my little boat around the San Juan Islands in Puget Sound, Gary and I finished the "hole" in the back of the big bad truck. I clamped Argo onto the frame and to the back of the "hole" and brought the whole rig home. Here are a couple of pics of the current status of Argo, the all-aluminum Avion...


And here's looking from the cab back into the camper...



Here's a detail of the edge of the cab and the edge of the camper. Gary welded a panel in each side of the back window opening to square it up, with a tab to bolt thru onto the square tubing of Argo's front frame. He also bent back 1.5" of the sides of the cab at a 90 degree angle to allow me to bolt thru into the aluminum frame. The gray primered panel is at the top, the white bent back tabs on the lower part...


Here's an outside view of the panel he welded in to square up the window opening and give me something to bolt to, as well as sealing the sides of the opening...

Incidentally, you can see the reflection of the truck cab roof in the shiny aluminum bottom of the cabover compartment...

And finally, here's a view of the roof thru the opening. It's a fairly straightforward task to bend a piece of aluminum sheet to fit the curves and corners and then caulk and rivet it into place. I'll have to lift Argo off the truck to prepare for the attachment all the way around, so I still have the jacks and jackstands attached. The whole camper weighs less then 800 pounds at the moment.


I'm working to get things securely attached and the rig completely waterproofed before the heralded "Godzilla El Nino" arrives...

Onward! Muley Point beckons...

Dick

[rastaman33609]

Thanks D1trout and ticki2.....I feel comfortable proceeding as recommended. I intend to seal up everything where water can enter from. I have already identified a leak from the vent, the stains on the bed cover confirmed that, I am also sure the front window leaks also I will also look closely at the seams etc.
Will report back when mission is complete...

[D1trout]

I have recently installed a rigid foam board on the inside of Argo. It is polyisocyanurate, which has the highest R value per inch. HD carries some of the thinner thicknesses.

[ticki2]

As D1trout said , use marine ply , not treated , unless you want to breath arsenic all night . I would screw and glue everything together , that is where the stiffness will come from , even the styrofoam , if you go that route ,which needs a special adhesive .

You also need to determine what caused the damage in the first place and fix that .

[D1trout]

Rastaman, ticki2 is right. Avion used 3/8 ply pretty much everywhere, doubling up where greater thickness/strength was required. 1/2 + 1/2 would be a good choice. Offset the joints. Don't use treated ply. Use marine grade ply. It has waterproof glue and no voids. Fir is probably the most economical. Make the joints with West Systems epoxy. If you want to waterproof the plywood, either paint with a marine grade paint or use Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealant. It rolls on easily and will protect the wood for your lifetime. Fastening with screws is fine; just remember that every penetration of the skin is a potential leak.
Onward!

[rastaman33609]

ticki2 wrote:

rastaman33609 wrote:

ticki2 wrote:
One other thought on the 3/4 and 1/4 ply . The bunk floor is more than 4 ft. wide so it will need a splice unless you special order 5 ft wide plywood , expensive . That means you will have a 1/4" gusset by offsetting the seams . I would sooner go 1/2" and 1/2".

not sure I follow...are you saying to use 1/2'ply?

What I'm saying is if you decide to go sold wood as Cayo suggests , 3/4" + 1/4" =1" , I would use 1/2" + 1/2" = 1" to make the splice stronger . BTW , I'm pretty sure the original was 3/8" ply + 1" styrofoam + 3/8" ply , same as the floor , which would make total of 1-1/4" thick . Perhaps someone who has taken one out can confirm .

ok got it..would it be necessary to glue them together or do you think screws would be sufficient? when I removed my original the top ply was cut in half and just laid on top of the 1"x and foam which made getting out easy. I am thinking of the bottom layer of ply(actually 2 pieces cut to fit the area) screwed from the outside under the overhang. Then the top layer of ply again 2 pieces with the joint offset screwed down to the bottom ply from inside. if for some reason it has to come out it could be unscrewed. I plan on using treated ply, with a coat of some kind of sealer?....any thoughts on this?

[ticki2]

rastaman33609 wrote:

ticki2 wrote:
One other thought on the 3/4 and 1/4 ply . The bunk floor is more than 4 ft. wide so it will need a splice unless you special order 5 ft wide plywood , expensive . That means you will have a 1/4" gusset by offsetting the seams . I would sooner go 1/2" and 1/2".

not sure I follow...are you saying to use 1/2'ply?

What I'm saying is if you decide to go sold wood as Cayo suggests , 3/4" + 1/4" =1" , I would use 1/2" + 1/2" = 1" to make the splice stronger . BTW , I'm pretty sure the original was 3/8" ply + 1" styrofoam + 3/8" ply , same as the floor , which would make total of 1-1/4" thick . Perhaps someone who has taken one out can confirm .

edit . I took the 1/4 + 3/4 from your post about Cayo . I see now that Cajun in his post stated Cayo said 1/2" + 3/4" , which would be 1-1/4" as stated above . That is where the confusion is coming from .

[rastaman33609]

ticki2 wrote:
One other thought on the 3/4 and 1/4 ply . The bunk floor is more than 4 ft. wide so it will need a splice unless you special order 5 ft wide plywood , expensive . That means you will have a 1/4" gusset by offsetting the seams . I would sooner go 1/2" and 1/2".

not sure I follow...are you saying to use 1/2'ply?

[Dave_Pete]

I'll add, my 3/4" original replacement was maybe going to be two 3/8" laminated (for the five foot width).

Also - the original 3/4" floor weighed ten pounds LESS than the new 1.25" (1/4" ply plus 3/4" 1 bys plus 1/4" ply) even with cavities filled with foam board. And that was BEFORE the extra paint finishes I added.

[ticki2]

One other thought on the 3/4 and 1/4 ply . The bunk floor is more than 4 ft. wide so it will need a splice unless you special order 5 ft wide plywood , expensive . That means you will have a 1/4" gusset by offsetting the seams . I would sooner go 1/2" and 1/2".

[ticki2]

rastaman33609 wrote:


Ticki2
that was my original thought, that the lighter the better, as long as it was strong enough to support the occupants weight. However some has said that Cayo has recommended 1/4 plus 3/4 ply...that's a lot of weight....now I am still undecided...

Either method will work , others here have built it solid . I think Cayo may be doing it their way for economics . To laminate it with insulation is more labor intensive . As a side note , my original floor is now 47 years old and flat as a pancake . Ya pays ya money and takes ya choice .

[rastaman33609]

ticki2 wrote:
Rastaman ,

I have not had to replace my bunk floor but if I did I would stay with the original design . As Dave Pete mentioned the floor is not supporting the structure above but rather hung from the structure above , so lightness is a plus . By laminating ( screwed and glued ) the plywood skins , 1x ribs and insulation , you will obtain the stiffness required , and it will be insulated whether your environment is hot or cold . Also lamination tends to warp less than solid wood .

Ticki2
that was my original thought, that the lighter the better, as long as it was strong enough to support the occupants weight. However some has said that Cayo has recommended 1/4 plus 3/4 ply...that's a lot of weight....now I am still undecided...

[ticki2]

Rastaman ,

I have not had to replace my bunk floor but if I did I would stay with the original design . As Dave Pete mentioned the floor is not supporting the structure above but rather hung from the structure above , so lightness is a plus . By laminating ( screwed and glued ) the plywood skins , 1x ribs and insulation , you will obtain the stiffness required , and it will be insulated whether your environment is hot or cold . Also lamination tends to warp less than solid wood .

[Dave_Pete]

Hello rastaman. I haven't an Avion. Mine is a stick and paneling built Travel Queen. However, what you described brought my mind to my own situation.

I just replaced the cab-over bunk floor in mine and it started life as a 3/4" piece of plywood. I went the other direction and sandwiched 1x4 pine boards between two plywood sheets 1/4" thick. In the created cavities I placed foam insulation board. But then I live and play in potentially cold country!

My bunk was held together with support from the sides and front having nails stuck all along the plywood edge. And at the rear on top of the vertical cab wall. But all in all, the bunk floor is suspended from structure around and above. The original engineered design lasted 45+ years and on my rebuild I think I improved on that design.

I much prefer my insulated and arguably stronger bunk floor for a number of reasons. Mostly how the supporting fasteners are now into 1x material instead of plywood and are screws instead of nails.

Pick up the thread here if you are interested in the details of the floor removal and originality, then go here to pick up the same thread where I start replacing the bunk floor with the new one.