VAL Digest V1 #120

VAL Digest         Wednesday, January 7 2004         Volume 01 : Number 120




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Topics in Today's Digest:

Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
Re: [VAL] Camping spots down south some.
Re: [VAL] Camping spots down south some.
Re: [VAL] Camping spots down south some.
Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
[VAL] Re: VAL Digest V1 #118 - Trailer leveling
Re: [VAL] Re: VAL Digest V1 #118 - Trailer leveling
Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind
[VAL] Dura Torque name plate?
Re: [VAL] Dura Torque name plate?
[none]
[VAL] address request after hard drive flame-out

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Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 09:00:48 -0800
From: "chyde" <chyde@primelink1.net>
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

 You mentioned that the curbside is
> all scraped up, is there an aluminum louvered cover on the outside of the
> fridge? My reefer is running hot and a vent would certainly help. Thanks.

Brad,
I'm afraid you are out of luck. There are no louvers for the fridge, just an
upper and lower hatch type door 8" X12" to access the back of the fridge for
servicing. I think the fridge drew it's air from the  front panel below the
door. I have heard of people installing flat low amp computer fans to help
move the air over the coils. This may help your refrigeration problems.
Colin

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 12:07:24 -0500
From: gillguy@xxxxxxxxxx.com
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

  ----- Original Message -----
  Wrom: SNBOHMKHJYFMYXOEAIJJPHSCRTNHGSWZIDREX
  You mentioned that the curbside is
  > all scraped up, is there an aluminum louvered cover on the outside of the
  > fridge? My reefer is running hot and a vent would certainly help. Thanks.

  Brad,
  I'm afraid you are out of luck. There are no louvers for the fridge, just
an
  upper and lower hatch type door 8" X12" to access the back of the fridge
for
  servicing. I think the fridge drew it's air from the  front panel below the
  door. I have heard of people installing flat low amp computer fans to help
  move the air over the coils. This may help your refrigeration problems.
  Colin

  There is also a 12 volt fan available in RV parts stores.
  Cost anywhere from 20-30 bucks.
  Bobby

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 12:10:38 -0500
From: gillguy@xxxxxxxxxx.com
Subject: Re: [VAL] Camping spots down south some.

Jo Ann
What park/parks do you recommend.

Bobby

  Oh Chris - consider the outer banks. Ever so beautiful.
  Jo Ann

  On 5, Jan 2004, at 10:54 AM, Chris Tognetti wrote:
  > Hi All,
  > I know it's early in the year but part of the fun in camping is the
  > build up and planning.  So this summer the family and I would like to
  > go south to Virginia or North Carolina for a week or so.  Looking for
  > wooded, shaded, kid friendly, pet friendly, nice clean and cheap.
  > Would be fun to do hiking and site seeing.  If they have a web site
  > please list them.  Thank you in advance.

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 13:06:37 -0800
From: Joann Wheatley <jwheatle@xxxxxxxxxx.edu>
Subject: Re: [VAL] Camping spots down south some.

Bobby - That's way beyond my knowledge. I haven't been there in many 
moons but there must be a website - think?
Jo Ann

On 6, Jan 2004, at 9:10 AM, gillguy@xxxxxxxxxx.com wrote:
> Jo Ann
> What park/parks do you recommend.

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 15:41:38 -0600
From: "Dr. Gerald N. Johnson, electrical engineer" <geraldj@xxxxxxxxxx.net>
Subject: Re: [VAL] Camping spots down south some.

Web sites I've used for camping (besides the big Woodall printed
directory) include:
http://www.campsites411.com/
http://www.camping-usa.com/
http://www.altair7.com/cgi-bin/od.pl/altair7/Recreation/Outdoors/Camping/Campgrounds/North_America/
http://www.gocampingamerica.com/

And practically every state has a tourism web page with data. Try
http://www.state.sc.us or any other two letter 
state abbreviation in
place of sc. There should be a section on parks and in the parks
information on campgrounds.

These worked today, I have some others that didn't that when the did
they supplied useful information on some out of the way campgrounds like
the 4 slots in the city park at Leon Iowa. Guides like Woodall's and
Trailer Life claim to have inspected each camp ground they show and
probably do discriminate against the smallest of mom and pop operations
that might not meet their esteemed standards. I found some parks last
year that might have met their standards but lacking a restroom, they
failed my standards for dry camping. They had full hook ups though.
There are many more campgrounds than in the printed directories. Look
for those around Federal Forests, Federal Bureau of Reclamation
projects, power company lakes, county parks, city parks, and casinos.
Military posts often have camping for active and retired military
personnel though I suspect as an honorably discharged draftee I'm not
"retired" enough to qualify.

Gerald J.
- -- 
Entire content copyright Dr. Gerald N. Johnson, electrical engineer.
Reproduction by permission only.

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 21:27:10 -0500
From: Blair <hitek_airstream@xxxxxxxxxx.com>
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

The intake vent for the Frig is in the floor under the frig.

Make sure it and the roof vent are clear of debris and junk.

Blair

  At 12:07 PM 1/6/2004, you wrote:

>   ----- Original Message -----
>   Wrom: SNBOHMKHJYFMYXOEAIJJPHSCRTNHGSWZIDREX
>   You mentioned that the curbside is
>   > all scraped up, is there an aluminum louvered cover on the outside of the
>   > fridge? My reefer is running hot and a vent would certainly help. Thanks.
>
>   Brad,
>   I'm afraid you are out of luck. There are no louvers for the fridge, just
>an
>   upper and lower hatch type door 8" X12" to access the back of the fridge
>for
>   servicing. I think the fridge drew it's air from the  front panel below the
>   door. I have heard of people installing flat low amp computer fans to help
>   move the air over the coils. This may help your refrigeration problems.
>   Colin
>
>   There is also a 12 volt fan available in RV parts stores.
>   Cost anywhere from 20-30 bucks.
>   Bobby
>
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
>When replying to a message. please delete all unnecessary original text
>
>To unsubscribe or change to a digest format, please go to
>http://www.tompatterson.com/VAC/VAList/listoffice.html

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2004 22:07:50 -0500
From: "T o m" <tmeeker@xxxxxxxxxx.rr.com>
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

And if you have to replace the refrigerator and the footprint is no longer
the same?

I had this same situation with our 1969 29' Intl Ambassador when I had to
replace the stock Dometic with our choice of a new Norcold.  The screen vent
in the floorboard was only partially useful after the switch.

The top vent never was blocked but the wall on the interior wood wall beside
the refrigerator really got hot!  I fixed this problem once and for all.

Tom
WBCCI 5303

From: "Blair" <hitek_airstream@xxxxxxxxxx.com>
> The intake vent for the Frig is in the floor under the frig.
> Make sure it and the roof vent are clear of debris and junk.
> Blair

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 20:28:34 -0700
From: Brad Norgaard <stream2699@xxxxxxxxxx.net>
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

OK Tom, how did you fix this, because this sounds like you just described my
trailer? Did you put in the 12 volt fan? I bought one and plan on putting it
in this spring.

Brad Norgaard
Phoenix
'59 Trade Wind Twin
VAC #2699, TCT 



> And if you have to replace the refrigerator and the footprint is no longer
> the same?
> 
> I had this same situation with our 1969 29' Intl Ambassador when I had to
> replace the stock Dometic with our choice of a new Norcold.  The screen vent
> in the floorboard was only partially useful after the switch.
> 
> The top vent never was blocked but the wall on the interior wood wall beside
> the refrigerator really got hot!  I fixed this problem once and for all.
> 
> Tom
> WBCCI 5303
> 
> From: "Blair" <hitek_airstream@xxxxxxxxxx.com>
>> The intake vent for the Frig is in the floor under the frig.
>> Make sure it and the roof vent are clear of debris and junk.
>> Blair

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2004 22:38:05 -0500
From: "T o m" <tmeeker@xxxxxxxxxx.rr.com>
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

Brad,

Does your trailer have one of those doors (I call them plug doors) where you
can remove or open it from the outside which is also right behind your
refrigerator?  Can you access that area at all?  Have you replaced the
refrigerator or installed a new one yet?

Tom

From: "Brad Norgaard" <stream2699@xxxxxxxxxx.net>
> OK Tom, how did you fix this, because this sounds like you just described
my
> trailer? Did you put in the 12 volt fan? I bought one and plan on putting
it
> in this spring.
> Brad Norgaard

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 15:58:41 -0600
From: waymark1@xxxxxxxxxx.com
Subject: [VAL] Re: VAL Digest V1 #118 - Trailer leveling

According to the only travel trailer manual I have, for a Silver Streak, 
"The hitch ball on towing vehicle should be installed at a height of XX
inches to the top of the hitch ball when vehicle is unloaded. If it is
installed lower, tailwagging may occur."
Lower ball height means higher trailer tail height.

Another consideration:
Since Airstreams with rubber axles do not have equalization between the
axles (does not apply to single axle trailers of course) it is important
to get them level. If the trailer is low at the front the front axle will
be more heavily loaded. If the trailer is high at the front the rear axle
will be more heavily loaded.
[I put "XX" for the height as the specified height is only for that
particular trailer model.]

Al

> ------------------------------
> 
> Date: Sun, 4 Jan 2004 18:03:54 -0500
> From: "T o m" <tmeeker@xxxxxxxxxx.rr.com>
> Subject: [VAL] Joy re:hitch height
> 
> Joy,
> 
> Trailer stability requires that the tongue *not* be sitting high so
that the horizontal line is lower in the back than the front.  Lower in
the back and higher in the front from the horizontal plane of the trailer
is what causes "the tail to wag the dog".
> 
> Don't do that.
> 
> Tom
> 
> From: "Mr. Joy H. Hansen" <joytbrew@xxxxxxxxxx.net>
> Subject: Re: [VAL] Dexter Axle
>  
> > Hi Dr. G. J.
> >
> >Think towing heavy weight trailers requires a tongue high orientation
to be stable .
> > Joy
> 
> ------------------------------
 
> I don't know that any towing angle tongue up or tongue down affects
stability, though I suppose wind load with tongue down would be increased
a little because the wind load on the sloping roof would push down on the
tongue more. I don't think that a dynamically changing tongue weight that
changes with wind speed is a great idea. I'd rather fix tongue weight by
trailer weight distribution and have wind effects be neutral. And for the
refrigerator, its best that the trailer be level on the road, or when
parked.
........................................
> 
> Gerald J.
> 
> Dr. G. and others...
> 
> I recall sailing along somewhere in Monument Valley pulling the
Overlander with a steady 35-40 mile per hour wind striking the rig at 90
degrees imagining that I could feel the load leveler hitch torque the
Suburban over slightly.  I have preferred a tongue-up situation which
places more weight on the front Suburban axle.  Depending on the load in
the Suburban.
> 
> Now if you are pulling cows or horses you might prefer different weight
distribution on the tow vehicle to accommodate their movement.
> 
> For what it is worth....GAS
> 
> ------------------------------

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 22:37:19 -0600
From: "Dr. Gerald N. Johnson, electrical engineer" <geraldj@xxxxxxxxxx.net>
Subject: Re: [VAL] Re: VAL Digest V1 #118 - Trailer leveling

Making the hitch lower on a tandem axle Airstream with duratorque axles
will take away from the load the hitch ball needs for stability. In the
extreme it could make the hitch lift on the ball. That's guaranteed to
make the trailer squirrely.

I can't conceive how a trailer with equalized tandem axles or a single
axle trailer hitch weight or tail wagging could be affected adversely by
hitch height, until the tilt was so extreme the equalization or shocks
ran out of range.

Its my opinion that tail wagging comes from too light a hitch and that
lets the hitch ride loosely or rattle on the hitch ball. Sufficient
hitch weight holds the hitch tightly on the ball. And with the hitch
tight down on the ball the trailer won't wag its tail.

I've pulled farm machinery with a pin hitch that was loose in the hole
and it wagged at all speeds until I hitched up a ratchet strap from the
end of the truck bumper to the implement tongue to pull it hard to the
side so it couldn't rattle on the loose pin. Wasn't anything to do with
wind over the implement, it was simply a loose hitch. It had nothing to
do with the elevation of the tongue angle either.

Gerald J.
- -- 
Entire content copyright Dr. Gerald N. Johnson, electrical engineer.
Reproduction by permission only.

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 22:06:20 -0700
From: Brad Norgaard <stream2699@xxxxxxxxxx.net>
Subject: Re: [VAL] 63 Tradewind

Tom,

Replacing the missing fridge was one of the first things I did to the
trailer. Yes, I have a door but it doesn't give access to the bottom of the
fridge like on the old, missing one. New one is much taller. The access door
aligns mostly with the vertical center with the rear of the fridge. If you
would like to see photos, mine is the only '59 Trade Wind on the vintage
archive site:

www.vintageairstream.com/archives1/59Tradewind/59TW.html

Although both pictures of the curbside don't show the access door because of
the entry door, it is there and approximately 1 foot by 1 foot.

Brad Norgaard
Phoenix
'59 Trade Wind Twin
VAC #2699, TCT 

on 1/7/04 8:38 PM, T o m at tmeeker@xxxxxxxxxx.rr.com wrote:

> Brad,
> 
> Does your trailer have one of those doors (I call them plug doors) where you
> can remove or open it from the outside which is also right behind your
> refrigerator?  Can you access that area at all?  Have you replaced the
> refrigerator or installed a new one yet?
> 
> Tom

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 07 Jan 2004 00:12:42 -0500
From: John Sellers <sellersj@xxxxxxxxxx.com>
Subject: [VAL] Dura Torque name plate?

Gang,

I called the Airstream factory today to see about getting a new Dura
Torque axle installed on our 1960 Pacer.  (I know that conventional
wisdom is that Airstream didn't switch to Dura-Torques until around
1962, but that's what it has.  No springs, and a square axle tube with
trailing arms and shock absorbers.)  As a preliminary they asked me if I
could get the information from an aluminum nameplate mounted somewhere
on the axle.

I don't remember seeing any nameplate when I had the brake drums off
this summer for cleaning and repacking the wheel bearings.  Earlier this
evening I crawled under the trailer and had a pretty good look around
and couldn't find anything that looked like an identifying plate.  (Of
course, the fact that temperatures were in the single digits and wind
chill below zero, and I was working in the dark with a flashlight,
didn't help any.)

What am I looking for, and where is it usually located?  Is it a
full-blown name plate with a bunch of information on it, or just a
number tag with a string of digits?  And where did they usually put
them?

Of course it could be that there was a nameplate at one time, but it has
parted company with the axle some time in the last 44 years. . .

Thanks,

John Sellers
1960 Pacer
WBCCI/VAC #1587
Dayton, Ohio

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 31 Dec 2003 00:21:58 -0500
From: "Scott Scheuermann" <s.l.scheuermann@xxxxxxxxxx.att.net>
Subject: Re: [VAL] Dura Torque name plate?

John,

You are correct that dura torques were used on the '60 Pacers. All three
that I have seen had them instead of the leaf springs. Good luck.

Scott

- ----- Original Message ----- 
From: "John Sellers" <sellersj@xxxxxxxxxx.com>
To: "VA List" <valist@xxxxxxxxxx.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 07, 2004 12:12 AM
Subject: [VAL] Dura Torque name plate?


> Gang,
>
> I called the Airstream factory today to see about getting a new Dura
> Torque axle installed on our 1960 Pacer.  (I know that conventional
> wisdom is that Airstream didn't switch to Dura-Torques until around
> 1962, but that's what it has.  No springs, and a square axle tube with
> trailing arms and shock absorbers.)  As a preliminary they asked me if I
> could get the information from an aluminum nameplate mounted somewhere
> on the axle.
>
> I don't remember seeing any nameplate when I had the brake drums off
> this summer for cleaning and repacking the wheel bearings.  Earlier this
> evening I crawled under the trailer and had a pretty good look around
> and couldn't find anything that looked like an identifying plate.  (Of
> course, the fact that temperatures were in the single digits and wind
> chill below zero, and I was working in the dark with a flashlight,
> didn't help any.)
>
> What am I looking for, and where is it usually located?  Is it a
> full-blown name plate with a bunch of information on it, or just a
> number tag with a string of digits?  And where did they usually put
> them?
>
> Of course it could be that there was a nameplate at one time, but it has
> parted company with the axle some time in the last 44 years. . .
>
> Thanks,
>
> John Sellers
> 1960 Pacer
> WBCCI/VAC #1587
> Dayton, Ohio

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 07 Jan 2004 05:53:26 +0000
From: hex-n-tex@xxxxxxxxxx.net
Subject: [none]

Regarding the FAQ page at the VAC site: 

www.airstream.net/FAQ/FAQ_index.html

Very helpful and interesting stuff, Where did it come from? i.e. is a 
compilation of recieved posts or did one person or committee put it together 
etc?

How long since it has been reviewed or added to and who to contact about 
possible errors?

I was directed there by a link from another forum. When I later tried to find 
it I could not. finally found the original link and got back in.
Is it in a part of the VAC site that is private for members only? Maybe I 
just didn't see a link on the VaC pages that I can access??

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2004 05:52:17 GMT
From: bsshrink@xxxxxxxxxx.com
Subject: [VAL] address request after hard drive flame-out

Dear friends:
I took this (my wife's) computer back to BestLie for a soundcard problem & they 
threw away her hard drive & replaced it (there was nothing wrong with it, just a 
compatibility error msg from Windows XP).  Please remember to back up everything before 
you get your mouse calibrated at the chain stores.
For my good buddies on the List, would you please respond off list so I can re-establish 
my AS address lists.  Jim, Becky, Chris & all, a line would be appreciated.  If you
 are restoring an "avocado period" Airstream, (1969-70) please respond & let's start 
talking.  I have questions, I have parts, I have a digital camera or two.
Jeff Miller
69 Overbudget
03 SillyradoHD

------------------------------

End of VAL Digest V1 #120
*************************


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