1974 Franklin Hunter - V3356

[mike]

G'day all, ;D ;D ;D

Camec do have stores: there is one in Caringbah, NSW. Of no use to tassietiger at all!!
Caravan And Marine Equipment Company. (I thought it meant Caravan and Motorhome Equipment Co)

Cheers ;D ;D ;D
Mike

[philouise]

G’day tassietiger.
I found that Jayco caravan sales near me had a good range of parts and so did a non-branded van sales & repairs yard.
I think that all their parts came from Camec Brisbane and were the same price without paying postage.

If you van does not have a 4 seasons hatch, I did read once in caravan & motorhome where John Rooth (fixing his vintage viscount) simply removed the original hatch, fitted a 4 seasons into it and then secured the original hatch back.

Also, I had to make a new door frame anyway because the timber framing was very badly rotted.
Also again, speaking about frames not square, the window holes were nowhere near the correct size for the windows (obvious after removal) – I think quality control was a little missing something.

I don’t know when Franklin fitted the new panelling system (interior & exterior glued to about 30mm foam)
Yours doesn’t appear to have any rivets or screws in the exterior panels so the exterior walls may only be joined under the aluminium strips around the van edges (and the door). This may mean the walls are panelled and the aluminium also glued to the timber frame. The back and front don’t have the foam.
No worries though – yours looks pretty good.

I’m sure you will have lots of fun repairing and getting out & about – I saw lots of nice camping spots while we circumnavigated Tas. in 3 nights/4 days in a rent-a-car

Phil.

[groundedgypsy]

Ahhhh another one bits the dust.......lol well another person enters the world of doing up caravans. Well done Wayne and congrats on your purchase.

Nice part of the world you live in by the way, I spent four years in Hobart before coming back here, and often spent time tripping around the isle. Before I purchased my 4WD & van though, otherwise I most probably would have been tempted to trip around taking in the sites. Have friends heading down your way from here (Deniliquin) early next year, the sad thing is my son and I were meant to be heading down with them but life has overtaken us. Oh well, hopefully another time.
Chez

[tassietiger]

philou - thanks for that info. I suspect I will be getting a fair bit of stuff from the mainland as we only have one place down here that sells caravan parts and I suspect the prices will be high with the "freight to Tasmania" component added in. Still best check it out first before I judge them too harshly.

Interesting comment about the roof hatch. Not quite sure I understand what Roothy did. The current hatch is bigger than a four seasons so I suspect there will be infilling to be done. Have checked for rivets and screws in the exterior panelling and can't find any so still hoping it's not glue bonded.

Can't believe you did the "Sydney" trip to Tassie.
You'll have to come back and do it properly. Allow a minimum of a month as there is more to see than you think.

millieNme - Yes, still coming to terms with it all but plans are already formulating in my head. I need to find a big shed so I can get started See you when you get down here.

[kiwijim]

Howdy Tassietiger,
As you may know, we are in Hobart with our Thomson at the moment,

If you would like to have a "Curious kiwi" give you a couple of idea's on the repairs to that great looking Franklin, just send us an P.M. with your address, or if easier the Mobile No is 0458 828 226

We will be here until the 13th then we head further South/West as far as the road will take us, and returning through Horbart sometime in the future.

We are looking forward to meeting another Member ( Murray ) this evening, and anyone else who has an interest in the world of Classic Caravans.

So, if anyone is passing the Treasure Island C/van Park.......
you're welcome to drop in and say "G'Day"

Cheers kiwijim

[tassietiger]

Well, I have discovered that the "Hunter" does indeed have the "sandwiched" wall system.



I need to have an electrical circuit breaker installed to make it comply with the Oz Standard before I can have it certified for registration in Tassie so I was removing stuff in preparation for the sparky's visit when I made the discovery. The idea of removing the wall cladding has dropped to the bottom of the options list. I understand that this "sandwich" system was not used in the roof or ends so when I remove the roof cladding to put in a new hatch and some thermal/acoustic insulation will be when I add additional wiring for 240v and 12v. Well at least that is now the revised plan.

Hopefully by the end of this week the gas and electical certifications will be complete then I can book her in for the RWC inspection then go get a Tassie rego

Sorry I missed your message kiwijim. Perhaps we can catch up when you get back from the "deep south"

[philouise]

G'day Tassietiger.
My memory is pretty crook but i am "fairly" sure the insulation is in the roof as well.
When i removed rotted wall sheeting, i peeled off the ply in its layers so that the last layer was still glued to the foam. Then i put on a bit of glue for the new ply.
I did not remove any exterior side wall or roof aluminium, only the ends.
Hope it all works for you.
Phil.
P.S. You can buy from any Camec store by email or phone and they will add the postage. Their catalogue is on their web site.

[tassietiger]

Now come on Phil you are just saying that to make my life difficult

I have poked and proded around the end aluminium cladding and it is fairly loose so I am assuming there is no sandwich insulation in there. I guess I will have to bight the bullet now and remove some moulding from around the existing roof hatch to check if your memory is correct

Yep I have the camec site in my favourites along with a couple of others which I got details for from the Caravan and Motor Home magazine to which I now subscribe.

[tassietiger]

Well Phil your memory hasn't failed you. I just removed one of the light fittings from the ceiling and sure enough foam insulation.

It is also raining here at the moment and I have found that the roof does leak around the hatch. Surprise, surprise

As there is some previous water damage to the ceiling lining I was going to replace a sheet or two anyway so looks like the foam insulation will have to go so I can get to the frame. Anyway all speculation at the moment. I think I will have a cuppa and contemplate a revised schedule of renovation stages. I think the only thing that will remain at the top of the list is to get my head underneath her and renovate her chassis. While I am lying there I will contemplate the rest

[tassietiger]

Some progress on getting the "Tiger Hunter" re regoed in Tassie!!!

Got the gas system certified $100

The electrical system now complies with AS3001 see photos. $260





I had to pull the sink out so the sparky could get to the power point for the fridge to check for double pole and put a solid back on it. Note the red dust from the dust storm in NSW last year!!! Also allowed me to assess how the cupboards have been made.

The next step is a RWC at the local servo then rego hopefully in the next week or so.

A friend has suggested having the chassis soda blasted as it would be difficult to get into all the nooks and crannies of the c section frame with a wire brush. Will investigate the cost as a local guy has the facilities for doing it.

So some progess albeit most of it will not be seen.

[tassietiger]

Some further progress on renovating the Tiger Hunter. Finally got underneath her and removed the damaged water tank.





I have decided not to try to repair the tank I think it is beyond that The rocks that made the holes are still rolling around inside it. I have calculated that it is a 70 litre tank. The brackets holding it in place will also need replacing which will be done once I start the serious work of a complete chassis over haul.

Stay tuned

[millard1399]

G'day t/t,
Well done on getting the electrics and gas systems checked and certified! Money well spent in these areas, in my opinion!! ;D ;D

Water tank: these crop up on a fairly regular basis on ebay, and go for typically around $80 average. Plus the cost of freight down to you. Anything you decide to do could be compared with the ebay cost.

fibreglassing...can it be repaired this way? atog should be able to give his expert opinion

plastic welding...is this an option for repair?

Chassis: unless your chassis is really rusty, I personally wouldn't be bothered spending money to get someone to blast it. (Unless, of course, it's a 'friend of a friend' cheapy job ). By "really rusty" I mean that you can see flakes of rust on the surface, which when you hit them with a hammer, they flake off the surface. And there would need to be a fair few of them all over the chassis to justify getting it blasted. Generally it's not the exposed parts of the chassis that cause problems, but rather the hidden sections, and blasting can't get access to these anyway (unless you strip the van down to just the chassis).

On my Millard, and keelz's Viscount, the problem areas were along the sides of the chassis where the aluminium cladding fits over the side of the chassis rail. Any water able to get in behind the aluminium cladding will sit there and cause galvanic corrosion between the aluminium and the steel, with the steel suffering more. keelz's van had chewed out the steel, and mine had noticeable flakes of rust that I had to get rid of before painting.

See if you can see any evidence of severe rusting coming through on the inner surface of the side rails when you crawl under the van. Tap along the chassis rails with a hammer and listen for any change in sound to see if there's any thin metal. Look for any evidence around the floor level inside the van for water damage that might mean water got into the gap between the cladding and the chassis. You say the hatch shows signs of leaking and water damage...where did the water go? Stayed in the ceiling?...or found it's way to the sides of the van and then down the walls?

The nooks and crannies exposed around the chassis are really no big deal. Clean them as best you can, and then just paint them. Any chassis parts that are exposed to the air and can dry, should not present much of a problem over the years (unless the van is parked near salt water for a number of years). Even the inside of the drawbar boxed section shouldn't cause any issues as long as air can get in and dry it out after wet weather. The big killer of steel is where water can get in, but doesn't dry out after a couple of days of fine weather. My 20-year old 'used-and abused' box trailer is a great scientific experiment on corrosion of steel, and it's still holding together well.

If you are going to spend a bit of time crawling around under the van, make sure you check EVERY SINGLE weld on the chassis to see if there's any that have cracked. Particularly where the drawbar sections connect to the floor chassis, and also where the wheels and springs are connected to the chassis. Check the welds on the step framework, as these are another area that cop a lot of 'abuse'.

Doesn't cost anything for you to check it all out, but will help you plan any work that's required from your inspections.

Keep plugging away...

cheers,
Al.

[tassietiger]

Thanks once again Al. The basis of a great little "chassis reno" checklist there.

I have investigated the soda blasting further and found that the cost is way to much and on the advice of the "blasting expert" will proceed with the manual wire brushing and coating with some recommended Dulux products. A neighbour has a vehicle inspection pit on his property and I am hoping to get there over the Easter break to assess its suitability for use.

As to the water tank I think I would prefer the "security" of knowing my drinking water is in a new tank and not one that has been patched and not throughly cleaned after 37 years. A new one from Caravansplus is about $90 plus freight down here. However, we have recently seen the opening of caravan spares store down here that is also a Camec agent so will investigate prices with them.

Cheers
Wayne

[kylarama]

Hey Tiger,

The method Al described is the most cost effective and the best way of picking up any chassis problems. You spend that much time under there, you get to know every corner of the chassis very well.

This was without a doubt the worse job I had to perform on the van. Three days of lying on my back in the gravel grinding and painting. The thing that peeved me of the most is my Millard is a 76 model, had it been a 77 it would of had a full galvanized chassis.

Our old Millard had spent 25 odd years as a site van at Apollo Bay on Victoria's coast so the chassis was very rusty. So bad that we put a whole new drawbar on her. The rest of the chassis looked bad but was still structurally sound. Two spots on the sides where the aluminum cladding overlaps have rusted right through, which I'll cut out and replace later this year.

I used a wire wheel on a 4 inch angle grinder to attack most of the rust along with a couple of different sized wire brushes.

I used this type of wire wheel.
www.toolstation.com/images/library/stock/webbig/35654.jpg


Then a couple of coats of Septone rust converter. This just brushes on and I also put some in a pump spray bottle for the hard to reach spots.
www.septone.com.au/detail.asp?item_cat=11&item_number=357&page_num=1

Let that dry for 48 hours and applied 2 coats of Wattyl Killrust epoxy paint with both brush and rattle can.

Good luck!

[tassietiger]

Thanks for those references kylarama. Went and had a look at the neighbours inspection pit over Easter. It's about 1200 deep which would mean I would need to get down on my knees to work on the chassis. So the choice is on my knees or on my back Hoping to get it done this month either way as a couple of short trips planned for May ;D

[tassietiger]

Just come back from a few days away working on a house reno. I took the Hunter to camp in which was very convenient. Decided while I was away to get stuck in and make a few changes to the inside as a preliminary step to a full reno come winter.

Decided to remove the bolted down double bed. A heavy steel frame as you can see which had a piece of concrete reinforcing mesh on top with two pieces of 12mm mdf on top of that then a rather aged foam mattress.



Not sure what the timber battens screwed to the floor were for.

Anyway, one thing lead to another as they do when renovating and I decided to remove all the curtains and put them through the wash. Discovered the following:





The rear timber window sill is rotted through at both ends and copious amounts of builders bog has been used in a failed attempt to patch it up. Also discovered the flooring in the left hand rear corner is in the early stages of rotting but not too serious at the moment. Oh the joys of renovating. Still, removing the old bed has created an open space which will have endless possibilities and the renovating repairs....oh well that's what I'm looking forward to I enjoy making things new again!! And plans are afoot to get stuck into that chassis.

[ronaldjohn]

Hi TT,

I don't know if this will be any help, but I have documented the fun I had with an old Caravan

Wood rot is often deeper than you think.

australianvintageclassiccaravan.yuku.com/topic/38
It may be of some use.

Cheers,
Ron

[tassietiger]

The Tiger Hunter is now officially a Tasmanian I got a bright new blue and white number plate today in exchange for $201.28 They tell me the annual renewal will only be $114 Nice of them I thought Also bought some wire wheels as per klyarama's advice so now all I need to do is psyhc myself up for getting underneath her.

[tassietiger]

Well, things are a bit up in the air at the moment



Finally bit the bullet a got her up in the air to get my head underneath for a gander and this is what I saw



A new water tank is on the way but before that goes back in I think I have a lot of grinding and wire brushing to do

Watch this space!!!!

[tassietiger]

Here is the result of two weekends and several hours during the week of laying on my back, side and learning the backhand and lob shots in painting plus wire brushing with fogged up safety glasses

First the A Frame:


Having got the front of her up in the air here is the result on that end:


Then it was head down and bump up (both hers and mine!!!)



Then some anti slip protection for the step which was like ice when wet


The WRDs ( Weapons of Rust Destruction)


Off to AgFest this week so will get the wheels off when I get back and clean up the last remaining bits and check brakes etc etc.

[millard1399]

VERY, VERY, VERY NICE!!! ;D ;D

Congratulations...you are now a member of that exclusive group of people who have completed (almost) the backbraking work of restoring the chassis. ;D ;D

And doesn't it make the Franklin look a whole lot better, ay?!!

LOVE the idea with the step tread. The Millard was exactly the same slip hazard. I've put anti-slip tape in strips across it, but your idea is heaps better.

Good onya for the job you've done. Now you won't be satisfied until the rest of the van is looking as good!

cheers,
Al.

[kylarama]

Nice work on the chassis. Amazing what a coat of silver paint on a drawbar can do for a caravan.

May 2, 2010 12:19:20 GMT 10 tassietiger said:

Then some anti slip protection for the step which was like ice when wet

Like Al said. I like the idea. Especially the 'welcome' part.

What did you use to glue it down with?

[tassietiger]

Morning Al & kylarama and thanks for the compliments

Will do a second topcoat on the rear half today then put a temporary bed back in her for the trip this week. As I said will get the wheels off and derust and antirust the last remaining chassis components. I have already checked out the braking system and everything is working fine there.

The "welcome" mat was a purchase from a discount store for $4 cut to fit the step and attached with roof and gutter sealant. I was going to use liquid nails till I read the label. Amazing, you use a product for years and then read the label to find that it is not water resistant or suitable for non porous surfaces

The test for the mat will be the wiping and scrapping of feet and as there is plenty of slush around up north it will get a good workout this week

Next big job is to get that rear window out and fix the rotten sill but I will need to get her undercover for that and the replacement of the roof hatch.

Cheers ;D

[tassietiger]

Update/progress report.

The welcome mat stood up to all the scrapping of feet during the trip north. Me mate and his wife have decided to do the same to their step.

Finished installing the new water tank and filler cap today. I made a protector for the tank out of a left over piece of metal cladding that goes around an above ground pool. Came up all right I think and will provide protection for the front of the tank as that is where the major damage was on the old one.



The new water filler is also a vast improvement and will stop any nasties being deposited.



Another short trip away next week so will test it all out then.

[kezzbot]

Good job!

Am i right in saying that the tank sits in the middle of the van slightly to the rear?

The tank and cap look realy flash. well done.