Monday 31 May 2010

Wires and skin...


Insulation on the inside of the outer skin, time to run some wires

We'll be boondocking more often than not, so no need for a monster dual system


Just a good 12v one
The old wiring (see older posts) was in a pitiful and dangerous state, so rather than rubber grommets or short lengths of tube (as Airstream used), I opted for rigid cable outlets


That screw tightly on either side of the C channel frames
A bit of colour-coding too - Blue 12v, Orange 240v, Black 7 core trailer hook-up cable
The plan is to have a 12v circuit for lights and using the 3 core cable will allow a dedicated line for the fridge. The 240v circuit will consist of maybe 2 double outlet plugs at either end of the trailer - since we'll seldom be in a full-hook-up site we thought it easiest to have plugs to allow us to plug in appliances if ever we are.
We have tried to plan ahead and with solar panel technology improving all the time (& prices dropping too)
and wired a dedicated charging circuit to potentially link with two roof-mounted solar panels

I've recorded where the two wire coils are, so, in theory, I should be able to drill through the roof panels and pick up the cable - well that's the theory !
To keep things simple, and to have as few breaks in the cable as possible, I'm sticking with the old system of having light switches on the light fittings, so cable loops are left at the matching holes in the inner skin.
Now to get the inner skin back in

First a layer of the Airtech insulation on the inner side of the inner skin
Its pretty clear where the rivet lines are on the skin, so I taped the insulation to the skin in sections, leaving a good strip clear where the skin touches the C channel frames as both the Airtech & the aluminium tape tends to grab and snag any drill bit.
Then up she goes...
 a bit of a bit of a fiddle but with a couple of extra pairs of hands and a pocket full of Clecos
it was fairly easy to line up the original rivet holes
The double layer of Airtech should keep us snug, or should Britain ever have a scorching summer, cool !

 Starting to look like the old girl again
Pop rivet-tastic...
4mm x 12mm with the odd 8mm - you get through a few hundred faster than you think
Although the inner endcaps aren't comletely polished
we had concentrated on the edges, where it joins the Zolatone (or what will be the new Zolatone)


- a nice juxtaposition of my inner endcap & the 54 Flying Cloud's outer endcap
Now just the lower panels to go back in
then prepping for the new Zolatone
... and a tad more polishing.


4 comments:

  1. you are rolling now. I am pretending I did not see that Vickers in the photo .....

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  2. No axle, springs or wheels, so not quite rolling yet, Frank but hope to be soon. Yes, I like to tease you with those glimpses - actually its a Buccaneer.

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  3. Even your wiring is artfully perfect.

    My compliments!

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  4. Incredible renovation thus far.We will definitely be following the rest of your journey! Brilliant idea being future-ready with the solar. This makes our work over at http://www.airstreamcampers.net look like amateur hour, but we'll get there with the help from incredibly talented people like yourself!

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