Are very old Holiday Ramblers still well built?

[GM Guy]

hey all,

found a 1967 trailer, and wondering if I can expect stick built, or an aluminum skeleton? I know the newer ones are aluminum, but IDK if HR got their start with stick built.

thanks!

http://www.bishs.com/1992-holiday-rambler-27-7367b

this is the trailer. it is missing many appliances, but for our use as a harvest bunkhouse, that wont matter too much.

any input appreciated, thanks!

 

[THEFERMANATOR]

I'm pretty sure all of them were either aluminum or steel skelotons covered in aluminum skin. I know prior to the alumascape they were all aluminum skins, but early on most trailers were steel framed. Haven't seen inside of an older HOLIDAY rambler to see if they were steel or aluminum frames.

It's a wiki link, but it says they switched to the alumaframe in 61. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holiday_Rambler

 

[dangerousdave]

I'd inspect the roof carefully, inside then out. Then, the floors. Be careful not to fall through a weak spot. I think the price is high without the refer, but that's just me.

 

[GM Guy]

I'd inspect the roof carefully, inside then out. Then, the floors. Be careful not to fall through a weak spot. I think the price is high without the refer, but that's just me.

NO price on the link, the CL add says 1500, and a local friend said the guy he talked to said 800.

Luckily Idaho is 8 inches of precip in a year, but that is still enough to mess something up, so we will check it out before purchase.

 

[NVW]

buy it, the couch and curtains are you!

 

[GM Guy]

buy it, the couch and curtains are you!

Not quite

but If that is the original interior, it has had some love over the years. Not too bad.

 

[NVW]

It looks to be in good shape

 

[JayTheCPA]

Woodwork from that era is usually nice and overbuilt.

My vote for this rig is fair shape. No narrative of what works (unless I missed it), no pic of refer, oven / range missing (project to convert it to something else was abandoned), clearance light covers missing (possible source of leaks), no pics of the overhead (ceiling).

One thing to check pre-purchase is whether the horizontal slat windows work, and if not whether parts are still available; if parts are NLA, replacing the windows can get expensive.

If the price is $800, that seems workable as long as the frame and skeleton are in Ok shape. From there I'd expect nothing to work, start correcting PO's work, new tires, and watch the roof for leaks.

 

[GM Guy]

will the roof be an aluminum skin, and all we have to watch for is places where something is installed as a water entrance? (vent, a/c unit, etc)

 

[THEFERMANATOR]

It should be an all aluminum skin trailer, but you need to look for corrosion and PO repairs/work. Corrosion is a killer of old aluminum skinned trailers. on the plus side, if it is in decent shape and bare currently, you can always cover it over with a liquid rubber rook coating and seal it that way. If you don't plan on towing it, you can go with an elastomeric roof coating for quite a bit less money.