Frame Damage

All of the frame had light surface rust which was treated with rust neutralizer. There were two damaged areas though which required scabbing in additional steel.

In the bathroom area, the top portion of the street side C-channel had significant rust damage due to the rotten floor. The aft-most outrigger on that side was also damaged. In both cases, the area was sandblasted before welding in additional angle iron. For good measure, additional steel was welded to the C-channel at the shell/frame union. Acting on advice from an Airstream Bulletin regarding rear end separation, 3/8” hardware was used for the shell/frame attachment. No pictures on any of this.

The frame around the step’s RH outrigger & the outrigger itself was a disaster. As mentioned on another page, varmints had taken up residence in that particular outrigger. I can only guess that they tried to chew their way through the main frame C-channel since the severe damage is so localized.

For the repair, I moved the wiring harness out of the cross member and mounted custom made ell brackets of ¼ inch steel plate on either side with Grade 8 fasteners. Sorry, no pictures of the repair. I would lie and say the camera broke but the truth is I made the brackets, and my welds, while strong, are not that pretty. The brackets were not welded in because of the fire hazard associated with me doing the welding.

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