Starting the back end cap

We couldn't wait to get to the trailer to admire Will's handiwork--lights! Omg! All the outlets and switches are wired in, too! He cut three holes in the interior skin for the addition of a switch, DC outlet, and AC outlet next to the bed, and it looks professional AF. Propane also looks stealth. Feel really lucky to have found someone to help us who does such great work! My sister stopped by so we gave her the demonstration--but she hadn't seen how far it had come since demolition so I think she was confused about why we were so excited. :P 

When we installed the axles, the shocks wouldn't reach the mounting bolt sticking out of the frame, so Peter called up our axle vendor for more information. He said because we had the frame up on blocks, there was no weight on the wheels to push the torsion arm forward. Peter took the frame off of the supports and sure enough, the first shock installed perfectly. 

Since Will tested the AC power, we were free to use the outlets inside the trailer for our power tools! I was nervous at first because the inverter was definitely running, but the battery level was unaffected, so I think it is indeed working the way it's supposed to. With the wires more or less squared away (I say more or less because we have lighting still to add in both of the endcaps, the bathroom, and above the sink), we were free to turn to the back end cap, the last piece of exposed wall! 

The challenge presented by the back end cap as opposed to the front is that there is less window and more wall; the back is so much bigger than the front. Peter was worried the aluminum might be too thin to provide its own tension and rigidity. He went to Home Depot and came back with an 8' aluminum bracket, which he cut in two and rivets between the closest rib and the window frame. Then he cut two 24" panels to rivet into that bracket and the original skin on the panel below. 

While he was doing this, I was adding insulation behind all the upper wall panels and trying to adjust the AC wires so they would press flat against the curve of the wall between the ceiling track and the inlet to the electrical platform. One of those fussy little jobs that took me a stupid long time. I also unearthed the tracks for the middle ceiling panel and attempted to scrape paint off of there--went a little rogue. 

I wasn't present for most of the construction of the front end cap, so Peter talked me through how the magic happens. He cut our remaining aluminum into 12" strips. We sorted them so that we knew which long side was the straightest: this would be the visible side. We pulled two pieces with the ugliest long sides to be the bottom pieces, because these guys were going to be cut again. We took one, cleco'd it into place, and traced the curve of the wall to the window frame. Peter cut along the line and then used it as a template to cut the other side. And these are the only end cap pieces that need cutting to fit the curve! 

Peter had made a rivet spacer out of an old campaign sign, so we clamped the 12" strips together and drilled holes along the straight, attractive long side. Then, piece by piece, we slid each panel behind the existing wall, anchored it with clecos at the rib, at the start of the curve, and at the window frame. Used the rivet holes we had drilled on the bottom edge to drill out rivet holes for the top edge of the piece underneath. Peter riveted while I laid insulation for the next level. 

There is almost too much tension in the pieces up so far, on the curbside because of the vent pipe nested in the wall and on the streetside because of the thick tangle of AC wires I couldn't fully tame. Some of the pieces we cut are longer than others (because we were at the end of the roll), and the longer pieces aren't sliding behind the existing walls quite right, they're hitting a rib or a rivet or something. When Peter would rivet the next piece on top, the tension would pull out of the piece below a bit, so hopefully this trend will continue up the wall, but so far this one is much more finicky than the front end cap. 

I was unraveling like a little baby, so we only got 4 pieces in before it was time to call it quits. When she was over checking out the Airstream, my sister had asked me if we fight at all during this project. Of course we get frustrated with each other, but on days like this when I am just a noodge, I am so thankful for Peter's kindness towards me! To finish the end cap we need to order about 8' more aluminum, which is a bummer because shipping is so expensive, but we have several interior patches to do also, so it will be put to use. 

We spent our ride home learning how to break the bead and change a tire, so that might be something we end up doing ourselves! It feels so empowering to be developing these new skills. 

Once the back end cap is finished, we have to cut out the Fan-tastic vent holes from the ceiling panel and figure out how to hold all the wires in the ceiling into their little slots so they aren't resting completely on the ceiling panel. Then we have to locate the paint sprayer at the farm. I was supposed to start sanding the walls this past weekend, but, you know how it be. Painting feels like the next frontier, and also a priority before it gets too cold out. The trailer doesn't look like much inside at the moment cos the walls are so ugly, but with a coat of paint on there I feel like the progress will be more palpable to outsiders. ;)