Like almost everyone, we had always admired the sleek and shiny vintage Airstream trailers we had seen streaking by over the years.As dedicated tent campers however, we had always shunned the use of a trailer.When it became clear that this was going to be a trip of biblical proportions, it also became clear that we were going to need a place to live.The vintage Airstream leapt into our minds and we began a search in earnest immediately.While there was no shortage of trailers to choose from, the prices and conditions as well as the physical proximity were all over the map.As with anything, the trailers often looked pretty good in the pictures, only to be plagued with nightmares of rust, missing pieces, and all other types of expensive to repair damage upon inspection.As luck would have it, while cruising the Los Angeles craigslist postings, we found a vintage 1962 22' Airstream Flying Cloud for sale in our home town! We called "Tex" and within an hour we were drooling over what appeared to be the perfect trailer.Exactly the length we wanted, in excellent overall condition for a rebuild, and located right here.As a bonus, it was a "Flying Cloud", a rare model name that just seemed to fit with the theme of our trip.
We arranged to take our find to our shop where we gave it a full top to bottom inspection. Other than needing a few minor repairs, the trailer was even better than we had hoped for. The frame and body were solid and straight. There was only a small amount of surface rust on the non-aluminum parts,and the signature aluminum skin was in remarkable shape for 46 years. Plumbing, electrical, suspension, tanks, wheels and tires, all restorable! In the end we paid a little more for the trailer than we wanted and a little bit less than we could have, but we were happy. Having read some real horror stories about Vintage Airstream restorations, we knew how bad it could be!
On December 4th we paid Tex and took Doris Mae home for good. Thus began our journey! Click here to see the rest of story!
