projectmidge

Restoration of our vintage trailers. 1967 Airstream (Midge), 1957 Silver Streak, and 1961 Holiday House.

Built in Dog Crate/End Table

My super talented husband finished building a built in dog crate/end table for our little Ralphie Rose.  She is quite the chewer when we are not there.  We don’t envision leaving the dogs for more than a few minutes, but now Ralphie Rose will be contained and unable to damage any of our hard work.  He also finished the shelf that covers the fresh water tank and pump behind the sofa.  So glad I married a multi-talented man!

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A tuckered out Ralphie Rose

A tuckered out Ralphie Rose

The next major undertaking is stripping the clear coat and polishing.  I didn’t think we were going to do it, but the aforementioned husband took it upon himself to polish a small area on the back of the trailer and now we will have to do the whole thing….it looked so great!  He was just anxious to try out his new orbital polisher….why did I let him buy that stupid thing?!  Oh, well.  It will look awesome when it’s all shined up!  I will post pics of the polishing mayhem soon.

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New Axle!

This isn’t the sexiest of items or the most glamorous, but it was much needed.  My husband jacked Midge up in our driveway and over the course of a weekend replaced her worn out axle.  When he pulled out the cutting torch it made my heart stop (he had to cut a couple bolts that wouldn’t budge)….I had visions of Midge in flames, but he knows what he’s doing.   It made me quite nervous, but it went really well.  He will have to patch some of the belly pan, but not a big deal.  Midge is a couple inches taller….but what girl wouldn’t like that?

Taking out the old axle.

Taking out the old axle.

Dropping the old axle.

Dropping the old axle.

Old Axle....gone!

Old Axle….gone!

Shiny new axle!

Shiny new axle!

New Axle

New Axle

New Axle!  Midge is standing tall :)

New Axle! Midge is standing tall 🙂

Since we have gotten the new axle installed, we’ve scheduled our next trip with Midge.  We will be going to Estes Park and Grand Lake in Mid September!  Yay!  Hopefully, the leaves will have started to turn.  I love Aspens in the fall!

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Maiden Voyage Successful!

First trip out of the alley since arriving August 2012

First trip out of the alley since arriving August 2012

Loaded and Ready!

Loaded and Ready!

Midge in the side view mirror!

Midge in the side view mirror!

Our maiden voyage to the Starlite Classic Campground in Canon City, CO was a success! We headed out Friday morning, July 5th. We arrived at the campground around 1:00 p.m.  The campground is awesome!

Starlite Classic Campground

Starlite Classic Campground

The wild fire has drastically reduced the tourism in this part of Colorado.  It is sad to see so many empty campgrounds.  We had a blast, though.  The Royal Gorge is beautiful.  The amusements and bridge were closed because of fire damage, but you can still hike to the gorge.

The owners of the Starlite were great.  They have some amazing vintage campers for rent.

Cute Canned Hams for rent

Cute Canned Hams for rent

Spartan for rent

Spartan for rent

The Long Long Trailer for rent

The Long Long Trailer for rent

Midge looked quite tiny next to the big Spartan!

Midge next to the big Spartan

Midge next to the big Spartan

We may be making another trip to the campground in August for their “Trailer Trash Bash”.  Check out their website.

Everything worked great in the camper.  We had a small leak under the kitchen sink, but it was just a pipe that needed to be tightened.  The bed was really comfortable and we had plenty of storage.  Now we can’t wait for our next trip!

Here are some random pictures of our 1st outing with Midge:

Enjoying the view.  We could see the Royal Gorge Bridge from our campsite.

Enjoying the view. We could see the Royal Gorge Bridge from our campsite.

The awning actually worked!

The awning actually worked!

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Trying to get artistic...

Trying to get artistic…

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2 of the 3 weenies

2 of the 3 weenies

Us and the girls hiking at the Royal Gorge

Us and the girls hiking at the Royal Gorge

A tuckered out Ralphie Rose

A tuckered out Ralphie Rose

Nighttime for Midge

Nighttime for Midge

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Our neighbor the Spartan

Our neighbor the Spartan

Beautiful sky

Beautiful sky

The "Boneyard".  Trailers waiting for re-hab.

The “Boneyard”. Trailers waiting for re-hab.

Not sure why, but I like this picture

Not sure why, but I like this picture

I highly recommend checking out this campground.  Actually, any of them in the Canon City area.  The area is struggling with such a drastic drop in tourism.  There is still so much to do here:  Ride the train through the gorge, river rafting, hiking, helicopter tours.  We will definitely be back!

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Maiden Voyage is Scheduled!

We have a date for Midge’s maiden voyage!

We booked a few nights at The Starlite Classic Campground near Canon City, CO.  They had several cancellations due to the forest fires, and we figured it would be the PERFECT campground for our 1st trip.  July 5-7!!  I am really excited to see the vintage trailers.

I better get to work!  There are still several little things that need to be done before we ROLL.

I tackled the awning!!!!  No small feat,  let me tell ya.  I am not a seamstress.  Sunbrella awning fabric is HEAVY.  The finished product is 10′ X 7′.  It fit in the awning rail perfectly!  I don’t have a picture of it in service yet.  I still need to purchase some poles for it.  I will get some pics after our maiden voyage.  Here is a picture of the sewing in progress:

Awning in progress

Awning in progress

I need to thank my 16 year old son for assisting me with this.  I could not have gotten it done without his assistance in maneuvering and manhandling the bulky fabric.  I also would like to give props to my old Kenmore Sewing Machine!  The machine is a rock star.  I bought it on Craigslist a few months ago….and it is awesome!

I found do-it-yourself awning instructions online.  I will try to post a link to the site.  It was quite easy to understand.

I will confess now:  You know the side panels of the awning?  The short little sides that hang down and make the awning kind of cute?   WELL…I sewed one side on backwards.  I did not realize this until I was finished.  I am hoping that it is not noticeable when the awning is up.  The fabric is almost identical on the front and back, so I am just going with it as is.  I AM NOT RIPPING OUT THAT SIDE AND DOING IT AGAIN.  NO HOW.  NO WAY.

Now I need to get packing!

We will let you know how the maiden voyage shakes out….hopefully, fun and frolic and zero drama.  I am so excited to see Midge in the rear view mirror!

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We are still here!!!!

Exterior with window covers.

Exterior with window covers.

Well, I am back.  Finally!  Project Midge has been keeping us very busy this Spring!

We did not give up on her….although there were times we wanted to!

Here is a list of the things we’ve gotten accomplished over Winter 2012 and Spring 2013:

*GUTTED entire trailer.  The gaucho couches were not salvageable.  They looked ok, but did not function properly and the wood had some water damage from the windows leaking.  We saved the bathroom pieces and the overhead cabinets.

A mess of electrical wires

A mess of electrical wires

Old Water Heater

Old Water Heater

G U T T E D

G U T T E D

*Repaired a small portion of rotten floor in rear bath.

*Installed new subfloor over the old one.

*Installed yellow VCT tiles.  We got a great deal on them at Bud’s Warehouse in Denver.  It is an awesome place if you need small quantities of something.

*Cleaned and painted interior walls.

*Re-plumbed with PEX and ran new electrical with new main panel.

*Installed new water heater.

*New window seals and vent gaskets.

*Re-built walls, closets, and kitchen cabinets.  We stained all the wood black.  Some of the original pieces we kept had water stains, so we opted to go with a dark color.

New Closet

New Closet

Walls

Walls

Walls and Upper Cabinet

Walls and Upper Cabinet

*Replaced black tank.

*Original bath sink and tub were re-painted with Epoxy paint.

Reinstalling Tub

Reinstalling Tub

Bath.

Bath.

Bath Vanity

Bath Vanity

 

*New toilet installed.

*Installed new curtain track and hardware.

New curtain track.

New curtain track.

*I covered the overhead cabinet doors with fabric.

Upper curb side cabinet.  Doors covered in fabric.

Upper curb side cabinet. Doors covered in fabric.

*I made the curtains and the little window covers/awnings.  I need to finish the main awning.  We found Yellow/Gray Sunbrella fabric on Ebay for a great price.

Curtains & Portable AC

Curtains & Portable AC

Window Covers

Window Covers

*Made countertop.  We ordered some charcoal boomerang Formica.  We used it as a backsplash in the kitchen and also on the shower wall.  It worked out really well.  We thought about tiling the backsplash and shower wall, but were concerned the tiles would pop off while bouncing down the road.

Kitchen counter and backsplash.

Kitchen counter and backsplash.

Leaks are pretty much under control.  I will not say we got them all, because I have a feeling it will be an ongoing battle.

So, it turns out the original refrigerator was the cause of the electrical short that was making the trailer hot.  We junked it and have replaced it with a dorm type refrigerator.  We will dry camp with this trailer very little, if at all.  We also pulled out the original stove/oven and have replaced it with a small 2 burner gas cooktop.  We rarely use the oven, and I would rather have the storage space.

The fridge didn’t quite fit in the original spot so we moved it to the street side across from the galley.  I really like it there.  We now have a proper “work triangle” in the kitchen : )

Fridge and closet.

Fridge and closet.

Fridge.

Fridge.

We originally thought we could get by without an air conditioner.  After working in the glaring sun, we decided that we absolutely NEED AC.  We debated purchasing a roof mount, but we really don’t like how they look on the small vintage Airstreams.  We opted for a rolling portable AC.  We vented it out the floor.  It works pretty well!

Curtains & Portable AC

Curtains & Portable AC

I was originally going to sew the couch or dinette cushions, but we opted to buy a small Ikea L shaped sofa sleeper.  The color matches and it fits perfectly in the Globe Trotter!  It turns in to a bed very easily and has a huge storage compartment under the chaise.

Ikea L Shaped Sofa Bed.

Ikea L Shaped Sofa Bed.

Sofa made in to bed.  The weenies love it!

Sofa made in to bed. The weenies love it!

Here are some additional pics:

Black stain, charcoal boomerang Formica, and fabric.

Black stain, charcoal boomerang Formica, and fabric.

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Winter 2012/2013

Winter 2012/2013

Weenies

Weenies

We are almost finished!  We need to check/replace the gas lines, complete some finish work and trim, install new kitchen window (the current one is plexiglass), re-screen the windows, and get the new axle on.  Once finished with those items we can head to the hills and CAMP!

We had high hopes of getting the exterior polished and cleaned up, but that will have to wait for another year.  I’ve decided the 1967 patina isn’t so bad.

Stay tuned for more ProjectMidge!  Hopefully, from the road!

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