It's been several weeks since I have posted anything new on this blog. The summer holidays are over, and I have just a few more things to do to the Boler before winter. I know that I won't be able to do any major work on it until next spring or summer when I have saved enough money.
At present my Boler body is sitting on the newly rebuilt frame, but I haven't yet fastened it. I'm thinking about inserting a half-inch pressure treated plywood sheet between the old floor and the frame. While this would add a bit of weight to the trailer, it would give a little strength to it, too. The original plywood floor isn't in really bad shape, but it seems like the spruce plies are really dry and they've de-laminated in places. It will be tricky lifting the body and sliding the new plywood into place because, unlike the first time I lifted the body, I won't be able to push up on the old floor -- the supports would be in the way. You might be wondering why I wouldn't just replace the whole floor rather than adding to it. The answer is that the original plywood floor is laminated right into the fiberglass wall, and I don't think I'd be able to extract it and then attach a new plywood floor in its place. If I'm able to get the subfloor job done this fall, I'll post pictures.
I've also been thinking about what would be the best sequence of big jobs next year. My original plan was to get everything updated on the inside and then at the very last, get the exterior painted and install new windows and ceiling vent. I was going to replace the old rivets with new ones and then paint over them, just like the originals. But I have a new plan now. I'm going to deal with the exterior and windows before making the necessary upgrades to the interior, and here's why -- I've decided to replace the rivets that fasten the cupboards and closet with stainless steel bolts, and I've heard that paint doesn't adhere well to stainless steel. Which means that for the neatest finish, I'll want to have the body stripped completely bare for the painting. The interior cupboards will be removed for the body work and painting. The new front and rear windows will get new gaskets, as will the new ceiling vent, the door, and the old jalousie windows. This will make for clean lines and transitions -- no paint running onto the gaskets. Once the exterior is painted, and the new windows and vent are installed, I'll use stainless steel bolts to reinstall the interior pieces, and the bolt heads will simply be shiny metal bumps on the outside of the trailer.
