Tuesday, June 30, 2009

1964 Cardinal 10 Foot Travel Trailer

Here she is; the 1964 Cardinal Deluxe 10 foot travel trailer. In need of work... but when has a little work ever scared us away from anything?
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In need of a paint job, and better patches. We'll keep the original "wings", but brighten up the yellow and silver a bit along with a brand new white paint job on the rest.
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The appliances all work, though the ice box does not keep things as cool as hoped. Perhaps a block of ice instead of those blue ice packs will help. The cabinets need sanded down and refinished, as the old finish is flaking off. We hope to match the paint on the icebox so we can repaint it, and perhaps fill a few dents.
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The eating area, complete with cowboy themed curtains and a "rustic" branded table. You can just see the bunk bed over the table; as three of the four inhabitants of the trailer this weekend hit their heads on this bunk (and we see no need for the additional storage), it will be removed and stored in our garage. It isn't original to the trailer; a cot was there. The carpet is likely original, and is very worn. I'd like to replace it with some of those commercial tiles in a checkerboard pattern.
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The benches and table folded down into a bed. A very comfortable bed, I might add, with more than enough room for two people and one dog. (Our other dog sleeps in a crate on the floor for her own security). You can see waterdamage on the edges and under the window. The trailer does not currently leak, but we may have to rebuild some of the frame if the waterdamage is too severe.

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A little floorplan of the trailer; just perfect for us!

Lots to do to restore it... but I promised I'd finish the house first. So... let's get this Tiny Old House finished up! (Or at least at point where there are no half finished projects!)

15 comments:

denise said...

that's awesome. As a kid I longed for a cute little trailer like that. My cousin's family always had one and I was sooo jealous!

For the floor, you might want to check into Flor carpet tiles too — lots of different options to choose from there.

sarah said...

I love the orange appliances! That trailer is so fantastic.

Andi said...

How cool!

My goal is to one day have a shiny Airstream to call my own. With a pink jeep to tow it. And flamingos. :D Oh yes.

Joanne said...

Oh my gosh, that's so adorable. My dream vehicle is a vintage VW bus, with cute little orange appliances.

Jayne said...

What a great little trailer! I love the orange appliances and the brands on the table. You'll have a lot of fun restoring that--and even more fun traveling in it!

pedalpower said...

Wonderful! I hope to one day pick up one of these to spruce up!

Anonymous said...

Jennifer:

over on the old house forum you said:

>>My aunt replaced the windows in her house 5 years ago with mid grade vinyl, and the seals are ALREADY broken, with lots of condensation and yellowing of the vinyl. They need replaced so often they don't save ANY money.<<

I'm trying to document cases where vinyl windows lasted only 4 to 6 years, in order to convince people that vinyl windows are no good. Would you like to help?

You could post a message about it over at my Forum:

http://historichomeworks.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1430

or contact me directly by email: JohnLeeke@HistoricHomeWorks.com

Why S? said...

It's amazing that this is still around and in such good condition. Imagine when it was new. LBJ was in the White House and the owners were seeing the West with their cowboy curtains and rustic tabletop. Giddy-up!

Debra said...

Oh, I love it! It was built the same year I was born, which makes me love it even more.

It has a lot of potential!

StuccoHouse said...

Adorable! I grew up traveling the US in a trailer (ours was a collapsible) with almost the same layout.

Remodelers Kentucky said...

It's always been a dream to try living (or riding) on a trailer. Since our parents wouldn't get me and my brother one, the latter once suggested our room be designed as such to the annoyance of mom.

Newburgh Restoration said...

This is just so adorable! I wouldn't even think to really use one of these things! May you get a lot of use out of it!

Cynthia said...

What a fabulous find! Love it :)

Jason said...

Killer. I can't wait to see your work on it (which I will selfishly use to convince my wife that *we* need a 1964 trailer)!

Anonymous said...

Hi, I am so happy to see your trailer. I own an identical Viking 1969 trailer with the same layout and I love it. Single axel and 12 ft. long including the hitch. For me, my present problem is that mice got into it and the kitchen area needs total tear-out and rebuild. Being a lady, I'm not sure how I'm going to manage this BUT, it offers the opportunity to change the roof line above the hitch. The present line pushes a lot of air and adds to gas consumption considerably (for me) counteracting the easy-tow light weight of the trailer. The top edge needs to be sloped back, curved into a slightly dome-shape. Just letting you know my experience. Good luck with yours. Theres' nothing so sweet.
Leslie in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada