| The
Trials, Tribulations And Triumphs of restoring a neglected
AVION Truck Camper.
Used with permission. Copyright ©
2002-2004 ---- T.J. DeArk
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It
all started with some casual conversation between my friend
Bob and me. Over the course of several months and several conversations,
we talked about the truck camper that he had bought a few years
earlier, and the fact that he just didn't have the time to devote
to restoring it. One thing led to another and before I knew
what had happened I was the owner of a 1969 Avion truck camper.
Here is what it looked like when Bob bought it and brought it
to his house:
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It appears to be in decent shape;
however, looks can be (and are) deceiving. It will require
substantial work (and a few?? dollars) to repair/refurbish/replace/refinish/redo
all that needs to be done. Before I purchased the camper,
Bob had already begun to dismantle it and this is what he
found in the left "wing":
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Yup, it had leaked and rotted
the wood in the left wing. So badly, in fact, that it would
have to be repaired before I could load it onto a truck
for the 100 +/- mile trip to my house. Thank goodness Bob
volunteered to help repair this mess. I'm still not sure
whether he chose to help because he's my friend or because
he was anxious to get it moved from his house before I changed
my mind. After a couple of days work, the wood in the wing
was replaced and the camper was ready to haul.
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I sure wish we could have stretched
the work out for another few days------each day that we worked,
I had a good home cooked meal prepared by Bob's wife, and I
haven't found anything she cooks that I don't like. On May 3,
2001, my trusty brother-in-law (aka Tradin' Charlie) and I made
the trip to pick up the camper---and all of it's pieces, parts,
and cans full of screws from the dismantling that Bob had done.
We brought it to my house and located it next to the garage.
These photos were taken soon after I brought it home and started
some preliminary work---Since I live in a subdivision, I felt
that I needed to install the marker light lenses and wash the
outside right away so my neighbors wouldn't be too unhappy about
looking at it. |
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