I just recently inherited 7 Vintage Silver Streak Trailers from Grandfather. These trailers are in original (exceptional) shape and were part of my Grandfather's private collection. My Grandfather married the daughter of Kenny Neptune, Owner of Silver Streak, and became one of the Lead Design Engineers, ultimately the head engineer for the company. During his time at Silver Streak he collected seven trailers and has had them stored for more than 40 years. According to my mother she was raised several miles away from the original plant in El Monte, CA. My grandfather retired when the company moved to Chino, CA.

I have decided to sell these trailers and found this sight through internet searches and was hoping maybe I might find interested buyers here.

The trailers are in perfect condition, with all the original appliances and materials in perfect working order. My Grandfather also has a large inventory of surplus parts and manuals for trailers from 1949 through the 1980's.

Please let me know if anyone has any interest in the trailers or extra materials.

Thanks
Benjamin Harper

By Tom Patterson on Thursday, February 17, 2005 - 10:51 pm:

Hi Benjamin,

I have sent your message out to the folks on the Silver Streak e-mail list advising them of your posting. Lets see what they have to say.

I would be possibly interested in copies of manuals or such that I could copy to post on this website.

By silverstreaker3411 on Thursday, February 17, 2005 - 11:42 pm:

Hi Benjamin,

Great collection and hope that you find a home for these rigs. As a member of the last remaining active Silver Streak Club in the country, we meet monthly at the Coushatte RV Ranch near Bellville Tx, I will pass this information along to our members. We usually have 15 to 20 rigs at our rallys. I have a 1985 Mod. 3411 and would be interested in a set of three door hinges and several of the small struts that hold open the interior cabinets.

Let me know what you have.

Thanks

Jim Dupree

By Tom Patterson on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 12:13 am:

Hi Benjamin,

You didn't provide your e-mail address, so no-one can contact you. Please either leave a link on this message board, or send your address to me at tomp@tompatterson.com

By Bryan Crockett on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 12:19 am:

Benjamin,

That's incredible. We'd love to see pics if you ever have any.

We are brand new SS owners, and are renovating our recent purchase (it's either a '74 or a '79, we havent' been able to tell for sure yet). We would VERY much love to purchase some door hinges and various other parts (but especially door hinges!). If you could please contact us directly at bryan@mailsoap.com to discuss this we would really look forward to it.

Thanks,

-Bryan and Tami Crockett

By thesl8s on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 12:36 am:

Well, not sure if you'll see this posting, Benjamin - but I sure hope you do! I have a '58 SS Jet that I just love, and hope to take on the road for the first time (for me) this summer. See http://www.thesl8s.com/silverstreak for pictures of the process, etc. It's REALLY close to being finished - and should all go well, we'll get the window coverings in over this long Presidents Day weekend. I'm sure I could never afford one of your Grandfathers rigs in that condition, but wouldn't mind something a bit larger than the Jet that I have since I have two kids that are still growing! Love to hear more about what you have, prices, etc. As for the brochures - I would really recommend a friend to some of us, Juergen Eichermueller. Juergen is American born, and his father sold trailers and ran a campground or two in Florida. Formerly an architect and still a long time trailer lover, he is now living in Germany, and because of a medical situation his main income is selling CD's containing a TON of great old trailer info via ebay and other avenues (his wife works outside the home - but what he has made from the CD's has been very helpful to him). Juergen has helped countless people identify trailers / dates / etc. at no charge, and is extremely helpful to any that ask. My understanding is that he once wrote Silver Streak and other manufacturers and requested some brochures for a school project, and Silver Streak came through for him - maybe the only to come through. If you'd like those old brochures preserved by someone who really cares, Juergen is the man! Now, I'd love to get any of that material myself - but even better if Juergen could get ahold of it as it would be preserved and very well cared for. There are a few parts I wouldn't mind getting ahold of - and would love to hear from you directly so we can chat. My email is steve@thesl8s.com. One last thing, and sorry about the length of this post. Many folks that I've talked to would love to learn more about the history and maybe some inside stories from Silver Streak. If you have any stories / information / "secrets" that people might like to hear about, I'd love to talk to you, type some of those stories up and either give them to Tom to post on this site, or put 'em up on my own. Not for profit - but for fun and general interest - preservation of history that many of us would LOVE to know. Thanks so much for your posting, and I think it would be safe to say that we ALL are anxious to hear from you! :-)
Steve in Colorado Springs

By johnmuller on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 06:51 am:

Benjamin,
I would like to know more about the '55-'68 trailers, do you have pics? I would be most interested in a smaller unit, but am somewhat open there. My email address is imp67cc64@aol.com

Thanks,
John

By Benjamin Harper on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 09:55 am:

Hello All;

First let me apologize for forgetting to include my email address in my original posting. It just simply slipped my mind.

My email address is benjamin_z_harper@yahoo.com

I am currently in the process of conducting an inventory of all the items stored in my Grandfather's warehouse. To date I have found the following:
1> MFG Electrical & Plumbing Schematics
2> Owners Manuals
3> Tail & Running Lights
4> Electrical Harnesses
5> Dometic Appliances
6> Ball & Hitch Assemblies
7> Original Linens, Drapes, Towels ( All Stored in air tight containers. (Approximately 300 Sets so far)
8> LPG Tanks (Not sure years yet, but have 60 of them)
9> Awning Arms
10> Silver Streak Winged Emblems
11> Aircraft Aluminum (For trailers built from 1952 - 1966 (Section / Pattern Cut by trailer model)
12> Half / Round Moon Hub Caps (Not sure if these are Silver Streak )
13> Trailer Steps (Mount Under Door / Fold Out)
14> Gauges (LP, Electrical, etc)
15> Architectural Drawings (Dimensional, Aspect and Cross-cut. (Thousands of Rolls)
16> Axles, Springs, Struts, Sway Bars, etc.

I have not posted quantities because I am not sure of the exact numbers as of yet. However, I can say that I have at least 25 of everything listed, or more. Well there is a lot more I have to sort through. I recently found out that when Silver Streak moved from El Monte to Chino they left much of the inventory behind due to changes in the construction. My Grandfather purchased all of the excess inventory / parts from Silver Streak, along with the warehouse and shortly there after he had a series of strokes and the inventory just sat there since then.

I knew that he had stuff stored there, but my Grandmother would never get ris of it.. So now I have to figure out how..

Any help is appreciated. I am going to be posting pictures of the trailers and inventory on a website I hope to have up and running in about 15 to 20 days.

Thanks
BZH

By Tom Patterson on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 11:27 am:

Thanks Benjamin,

I think that you are going to hear very shortly from a lot of folks. I posted your message on the Silver Streak, the Vintage Trailer and the Vintage Airstream e-mail lists, so a lot of people are going to be reading your messages.

As I indicated earlier, I would sure like to get at least one copy or at least a scanned copy of all documentation you might have to include on the Silver Streak portion of my website. Let me know what I need to do to accomplish this.

I am able to show any pictures you might have on my website right away, so that viewers can see just what all you do have. If you do want to do this, just let me know what you might have in the way of pictures, and I will be glad to upload them to my website.

By Jay Hitchcock on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 01:07 pm:

Ben,

I am in Orange County and even tho I have a busy schedule, if I can help in any way let me know. I have a vintage flatbed (6x9ft) 1 ton truck that needs a little work (trying to get to it this month) that may be of use.

Jay Hitchcock

By Timothy Lovitt on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 03:16 pm:

So very glad to hear about the existence of these precious parts!I have a '65 sabre, 20 ft. and live in it here at HSU (will graduate this spring in Forest Resource Management)and look forward to trailer life in the field. Awning arms and emblems are exactly what I lack.Might even buy one of those intact beauties.

By Benjamin Harper on Friday, February 18, 2005 - 10:40 pm:

Hello Again,

First, I would like to personally thank Tom Patterson for forwarding my posting to so many different vintage trailer sites, as well as providing such a great forum for vintage trailer owners.

I would also like to let everyone know that I have been receiving many emails, at a rate I wasn't quite prepared for, and that I am making every effort to respond to everyones requests.

In the last 2 days I have received more than 300 emails requesting everything from manuals to appliances, Linens to the purchase of the trailers.

I appreciate everyones patience while I sort through the emails. As I stated in an earlier posting, I will be setting up a website with digital photos of the trailers and a full accounting of the inventory.

I will post and email Tom Patterson when the site is up, seeing that he seems to be one of the foremost authorities on getting information out to all of the Vintage Fans.

Sincerely
Ben Harper

By Benjamin Z Harper on Saturday, February 19, 2005 - 09:36 pm:

I need a little help.

I have had several offers from restoration shops and private parties to buy all of the inventory, not the trailers, just the inventory.

Though I am very tempted to do so, I have a concern now about doing so after receiving so many emails from vintage owners and their needs for parts. I now realize that it is the inventory that is the treasure that everyone has been seeking and selling it to a single source may not be the best for the collective owners of vintage Silver Streak Trailers.

My major concern would be the the inventory would be jacked up to a very high and unfair price. Even though I know that the value of anything is the cost that the market will bear, I believe that my Grandfather would be very disappointed with the aspect of only a select few being able to obtain parts to restore and enjoy their trailers.

So here is my question to all of you Vintage Fans. How would you like to see this inventory sold / distributed?

After 3 days of emails, I now know that I want to take a very fair approach to the sale of the inventory.

Please feel free to email your suggestions to me. I will sort through them over the next several days and then post the process I feel most fair.

Thanks
Ben Harper

By Benjamin Harper on Monday, February 21, 2005 - 06:20 pm:

Thanks to everyone who has responded to my request for help / ideas on how to move the inventory I have inherited.

I have received many, many suggestions of many different kinds from many different sources. All of the suggestions have been helpful and I am sure will all ultimately lead me to a final decision on how to best manage this process.

I would like to let everyone know that at this time, and to many of your wishes, I will not be selling the inventory to a sole purchaser. Almost everyone expressed concern about what would ultimately happen to the inventory and what the final cost might be. So I decide that I will come up with a means to sell the invntory at a individual level with quantity limits on each type of item per purchaser. I am not sure exactly how I will set this up, but plan on having it sorted out with in the next 10 - 14 days.

At which time I will notify Tom Patterson (email / message board) of the process and the Web Address for inventory viewing and purchasing.

Some items are going to be held in reserve for Professional Restoration Groups, like Vintage Vacations, so that they can continue the ground up restorations with as much N.O.S. (New Old Stock) pieces. Items such as the pre-cut aluminum section panels, frame rails and other like items will be sorted out on a 50 / 50 basis. 50% for individual purchase, the other 50% for high quantity purchase.

I hope that everyone will find this portion of the process fair for all.

Thanks
Ben Harper

By Karen Johnson on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 05:22 pm:

Thanks Ben for sharing your great news with SS owners.

We own a 1964 17' Silver Streak Sabre. We are in need of side running light covers/lens; awning arms would be great and DECALS! Do you have any?

Thanks! Karen Johnson

By Tom Patterson on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 05:28 pm:

There was some discussion of replacement decals on the SS e-mail list. See: /Silverstreak/MHonArc/2004_12/maillist.html

By Benjamin Z Harper on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 07:03 pm:

Hello All,

I just wanted to let everyone know that I will be traveling for the next several weeks and that I will complete the task of creating an inventory listing upon my return.

I have settled on a process for liquidating the inventory. I am setting up a website, which should be up and running by 3/20/2005, called www.vintagestreak.com

The site will have digital photo's of all the inventory, oem part number of the part, quantities and a base price. I have taken everyones recommendations into consideration and have decided on the following as the best course of action and process.

Large quantity items will have a fixed price per item.
Low quantity items will be place in a bid pool (auction style) highest bidder in a assigned time frame gets the part.

Rare - unobtainable original stock - aluminum section cuts, axles, brake magnets, etc will be split, as indicated before, into lots. 50% for restoration companies 50% for individual purchase. These items will also go into a bid pool. Individuals will be limited to a quantity number, and restorers will not be allowed to bid on the individual pool items. I am working on a way to insure that these rules will be adhered to.

Documents, Drawings, Spec Sheets, MFG Construction / Repair Manuals, Owners Manuals, and Appliances will also be sold. But one copy of every document will be donated to the following sources / individuals for preservation and sharing. Tom Patterson, Juergen Eichermueller, RV Museum & Hall of Fame in Elkhart, IN., as well as I will keep a copy for historical preservation. As I stated before there are thousands of design plans, spec sheets, and Owner and MFG manuals so I believe that there will be enough to go around.

I hope that the process I have selected meets with most everyones agreement.

I would also like to let everyone know that the money that they spend on these parts will be going to a good cause. I have decided to donate all of the proceeds to charity. American Cancer Society in my Grandmothers name and Children Hosipital Systems in my Grandfathers name. This is something I know they would appreciate.

So again I would like to thank all of you for your suggestion, as well as thank you in advance for your patronage.

Sincerely
Benjamin Z Harper

By C Frederick on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 10:12 pm:

I am awaiting the listing also, there are items we would like to have if affordable. What a decent gesture for this man to make these available to Silver Streak owners.

By John Christiansen on Friday, February 25, 2005 - 11:09 am:

Bravo Benjamin,

Sounds like a great plan, and offering the proceeds to charity is admirable and extremly generous.

They will surely be thankful.

J.C.

By Benjamin Z Harper on Monday, March 28, 2005 - 06:07 pm:

Hello Everyone,

I am sorry for the long absence, but I have been traveling for business and for pleasure and have just returned in the past few days.

I wanted to let everyone know that the website should be up and running in the next week or so. I had everything inventoried and all of the Part # and SN # Recorded to make the process of selling and shipping easier. The web developer has informed that they will have all of the parts added into the database and the online store ready for test by end-of-week.

I also want everyone to know that all of the Vintage Trailers have been sold. A private party bought all of them lock, stock and barrel. All except two which that I am planning on donating to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago and to Smithsonian for the Americana Display. Both Museums have accepted the trailers as donations and will build displays centered around these travel travelers and their period of time in American History.

I will let everyone know when the site is up and running.

Benjamin

By Nan on Monday, April 04, 2005 - 02:40 pm:

Please add our email address to those you will notify when your site is up and running. We own a 1958 18' Chico model and need to find the large 'Silver Streak' name for the back (or front?) of our trailer.

By George Butts on Tuesday, April 26, 2005 - 11:55 am:

What a wonderful plan to provide these masterpieces to those Museums! And to also donate the proceeds to charity...A ture class Act.

I just got myself a 73 Silver Streak 28/Contintal Rocket and am ready to start fixing her up.

I may be needing replacement appliances, water heater, emblems & decals, trailer steps & sway bars. etc. and look forward to finding some "treasures" from this source or others.

Buy the way, where is the inventory located?

George, San Dimas, Calif

By Richard, Claremont, CA on Tuesday, April 26, 2005 - 06:20 pm:

George,
"Cool Fun" in Irwindale on Edna can help with your appliances.

By david bailey on Wednesday, May 04, 2005 - 07:22 pm:

I recently had a 1970 SS Sabre fall into my lap and I'll probably need a few things too.

db, La Crescenta, CA

By Darrell Alderson on Thursday, June 02, 2005 - 09:56 pm:

We were wondering if you would happen to have an original owner's manual for a 1974 Silver Streak Continental Rocket. We just purchased one and we need an owner's manual for it. Also, if there is a parts manual for the same trailer, we would be interested in one of those, too. We are also in need of the clips, that go into the end of the curtain rods. We would be interested in buying 5 of these if you would have them.
Thank-you: Darrell Alderson

By George on Friday, June 03, 2005 - 05:12 pm:

Does anyone have any information on What ever happned to Mr. Ben Harper and the pending sale. It has been over two months since the estimated start date.

I sure hope that the parts will be offered.

By Lucas Lucash on Tuesday, June 14, 2005 - 01:34 pm:

I was asked to post this message for Mr. Harper. He asked that evryone accept his apology for the long delay in getting the information on the trailer accessories and parts out to everyone.

Mr. Harper has unfortunately just lost his wife and two sons in an automobile accident and has been unable to attend to this affair as he would like too.

He wanted everyone to know that he hasn't forgotten about you or the need for these parts. And that he will attend to them as soon as possible.

Again, please accept his sincerest apology.

Sincerely
Lucas Lucash
Attorney at Law

By jack dahlin on Monday, June 20, 2005 - 12:40 pm:

Most sorry to learn of Mr. HARPERS family tragic losses, my sincere condolences and prayers
for wife and sons, as well as strength for future
for MR. harper.
We are fans of the SS line as well.

Jack Dahlin Mpls.Minn.

By Sherry Elgan on Thursday, August 11, 2005 - 04:42 pm:

I am so sorry for Mr. Harpers loss, and send him my condolences.


When you get his web site I would like to also have it, as we are interested in buying a SilverStreak, and will probably be needing parts and a manual also.
Thank you very much.
Sherry

By Tom Patterson on Friday, August 12, 2005 - 07:34 am:

I beleve that someone was playing games. I doubt that Benjamin Harper ever existed.