Bread loaf, sort of...

[48Rob]

Out of the blue, a message arrived from a fellow out in Ohio asking for information about values and marketing for a couple old trailers he and his dad needed to move off a property they had occupied for the last 45 or so years.
They had a 1947 Alma, and a 1937 Hayes.

I advised them as best I could, and made contact with people who could contact vintage trailer collectors to see if there was any interest.
There was very little, as the trailers were so far from most, and in poor condition.

After studying the photos and researching the 1937 Hayes, I decided that it was just too rare to ignore. Rare; not to be confused with valuable, simply rare as in there are so few left that to imagine easily or inexpensively finding another would be folly.

In the early to late 30's, during the infancy of the trailer boom, many manufacturers jumped into the game.
Using standard construction techniques of the day, they built trailers much like automobiles, with steel framework instead of wood, and welded steel panels to cover them.
Most had rounded corners where the sidewalls met the roof, and many used stamped "ball" corners at the 4 corners where sidewalls met the roof.
Other than using curved "ribs" to form the curves, they were very simple to build, and once one makes a pattern, the curved ribs are also very easy to turn out.
Many of the less expensive trailers used canvas stretched over the thin plywood or Masonite used to cover the roofs.
Once stretched and tacked down, it was treated with waterproofing compounds, and thus, complicated shapes could be created, and sealed.

In addition to the all steel construction, this trailer, and very few others, due to the complexity of the framework, and difficulty and expense of the metal work, used stamping machines to produce beautiful compound curves in the exterior skin.
This extra effort gave the trailers a fantastic Art Deco look, with smooth swooping lines that flowed from front to back, almost adding motion to the design.
In effect, they produced trailers that had the same look as autos of the era.
By using stamped metal parts, they were able to offer the consumer a solid, leak-proof trailer, without the trouble and expense of having to reapply coatings on the roof every year.

So, after much consideration as to what was wrong with me for wanting a rusty old trailer that would end up costing much time and money, I sent payment and committed to buy it!
I've been wanting to build another trailer from scratch for several years now, but haven't found a shape/design that moved me...this one did!<IMG title="woo hoo" alt="woo hoo" src="http://images.yuku.com/image/gif/27236c3548aa56e65e9b43e63b150dd932bfb1b2.gif" width=75 height=71>
After driving for 6 hours, I arrived; how cool it was!

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After looking it over in person, I had to stop and wonder what the heck I was thinking...
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I had known that it did not have an axle, and that there was some rust, but after peeling away some of the many layers of paint and roof coating that had been applied over the years as a means to preserve it, it became shockingly apparent that the trailer was rusted beyond recovery.

I had brought a slip axle, and special brackets to bolt to the trailer frame to allow the axle to be mounted, fully intending to pull that trailer out of the hole it had occupied for so many years.
But, much the same as pictures can hide important details, the mind can overlook problems that it doesn't want to see...
Seems I had fallen victim of my own desire...
So, I had to decide.
I called the owner and explained that the only way the trailer could be moved was in pieces, he agreed and I got to work.
But first, let me show you what drew me to this design;
The windows in the trailer, with exception to the two curved ones in the front are not original.
In this first photo, you can see the outline/shape of the rear window, as it follows the lines of the roof.
There was one in the rear, and front on both sides, it did not originally have the extra windows seen here.
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The cool blue/green running lights at the front are molded into the steel skin.
My wife thinks the front end looks like a train, and after some consideration, I believe she is right!
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The interior was nothing special, much is not original&nbsp;and is all pretty much shot;

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I wanted so badly to take it home in one piece, but 45 years of sitting in the woods and Midwest weather had taken too great a toll...
This is what I found after knocking loose the paint on the tongue;

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And here are some pictures of the rust and rot that appeared after removing paint and trim;

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Not only was the skin badly rotted, but the steel framing, and the steel chassis looked like Swiss cheese

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While dismantling (a kind way of saying destruction of history...) I made several interesting discoveries!
The first was an overhead cabinet, whose door had been carefully taped shut.

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I cautiously opened it up, figuring I'd find more hornets, as I'd already chased a few out of the trailer.

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It was dark inside, but it kind of looked like the remains of a hornets nest.
Then I decided I'd better get my flashlight.

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Turns out it wasn't a hornet nest, but rather a snake nest, or place where snakes had been shedding their skins. By the size of the pile of shed skins, it had been a popular place for a long time. Fortunately, no one was home!
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I also learned much about how these trailers were built; Though the majority of the framing was steel, true to the construction methods used in the automobile industry of the era, during the transition of wood framed bodies to all steel framed bodies, a mix of wood and steel was employed.
Here is a picture that shows some of the wood supports.

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They are interesting in that they are band sawed pieces, and are not just curved in an arch, but are curved in two different directions; a compound cut.

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Here are a few pictures of the general framing, and how the curved inside corners were paneled. Many trailers with rounded ends used bulkheads/cabinets to hide/make it easier to cover, but not Hayes. They used specially cut pieces tacked into the wood supports, and covered with special metal trim strips that used automotive spring clips that fit into a series of holes drilled into the metal supports.

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The original linoleum was still on the floor, and though the surface was so worn the color/pattern was near impossible to make out, the name on the back was well preserved.

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Of note too, was the 110 volt electrical wiring, still in pretty good shape for being 74 years old.

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I spent as much time as I could learning the construction details, and absorbing the history, but the time had come to get busy and finish the job, as after all, the reason I was here was to help remove the trailer from the property.

The owners, Rob, and his Dad Rich arrived the next morning to help. They were really nice people, and I enjoyed working with them!
We were all sad to see the trailer go, but it had to be done.
Here are a few pictures;

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I salvaged all the good parts and pieces I could, loaded them up, and after saying my goodbyes, started the long journey home.
After arriving home, I unloaded the parts and laid them out.

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Many of the parts were not original, but vintage nonetheless, and worth saving.
While we were tearing the trailer down, I decided to save a few of the body parts, just in case.

<IMG title=thinking alt=thinking src="http://images.yuku.com/image/gif/78326ad46650553445a3330660e5b31372fe4d51.gif" width=37 height=32> I set the end cap up on some supports;

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After staring at if for awhile, I toyed with the idea of doing a quick mock up of what was in my mind, before I lost all the critical details of how it had been constructed...

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A few bundles of 1 x 2's later left me with some visual stimulation...

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I want to build this thing for real! It will be very complicated, but what a cool shape! I have yet to figure out how to recreate the compound curves of the sheet metal, but maybe I'll figure it out...

Rob
PS. if anyone knows of, or has an old trailer like this, I'm going to need a lot of parts...<IMG title=wink alt=wink src="http://images.yuku.com/image/gif/c2b1634c5e514d3b0dbd635fa7776ec7994f960e.gif" width=32 height=32>

[tonyj]

What a heartbreaker! Sometimes time takes its toll and nothing can be done but to deconstruct and destroy.

If you attempt a build, please, please give us lots of pics and details. That shape is definitely uber-cool.

For the complex metal work, try to find a young automotive or motorcycle fabricator that is looking to hone his experience using an english wheel. Wouldn't those complex, compound body parts look fine in polished stainless or aluminum?

And Rob, after looking at the train pics (your wife was spot on with the train comparison), I would be so bold as to name the project "The Hercules.". No other name could do it justice.

[starleen2]

Keep us posted Rob - the mock up looks like it has potential. I see you already made some curved wooden spars

[doug hodder]

Rob when you mentioned this to me in your PM's I had no idea that it was in this shape. You are a trooper guy! The corner details gives me hope in that I'm not out of line in what I'm thinking about on a new build. You're lucky you got as much of the original hardware that you did. What a cool profile...gotta love the Deco type design that it has....I agree...it looks like a "Streamliner" train....Doug

[Alfred]

Hey Rob,

I really like the look of those retro art-deco 30's campers. Hopefully, you will be able to make something that retains the spirit of the original!

I found this page that has a couple of pictures of a restored '37 Hayes:
http://www.mikes-show-n-shine.com/2008/ ... -2008.html





Here's another one:


There is so much potential in the parts you salvaged. The mock-up looks great!

AL

[S. Heisley]

Wow...If anybody can do this one, Rob, it's you.

It is an attractive design and will make for a long and very interesting build/reconstruct thread. Thanks for sharing your find and its recovery process.

[cuyeda]

Rob,

You have a brave soul! Nice to see someone trying to bring the history back home, even if in the end may just be to document it. It just shows how deep rooted your passion is to save these old trailers.

[Shadow Catcher]

I do hope you can restore/recreate this trailer, and thank you for documenting its deconstruction so well, it is fascinating. It does come from the streamliner school of design and there were so many very ordinary appliances and constructions that got that treatment from toasters, to well trailers and cars.

[48Rob]

Thanks all!

It looks to be a very interesting project!

Once things slow down at work, I can get busy with this one!

Rob

[Oldragbaggers]

Thank you for your detailed post Rob. It was an interesting look at a bygone era. What a beautiful trailer. Looking at those lines, wow, so classy. They "just don't build 'em like they used to!!"

I will be anticipating your build thread on this one. Saving a piece of history is very rewarding and will be fascinating for the rest of us to watch.

Becky

[wagondude]

That is a wicked cool design. Will you be drawing up any dimensions and/or floor plans? I'm still gathering ideas and a variation of this could make a really cool foamie.

Bill

[48Rob]

Hi Bill,

I'm not qualified to "draw up" plans, but I was thinking that I might offer the curved ribs and curved body framing templates after creating them for the build.
The front and rear end caps, the side ribs, and the bottom edges of the front and rear walls are the only curved sections.
Everything else is straight framing lumber (or steel as it were...)

Once the challenge of engineering the curved framing is met, the real challenge becomes how to produce a metal skin that has compound curves (originally stamped out).

If one was good with fiberglass, it could be done pretty easily I suppose (I've never done curved shapes in fiberglass).


The design has cool possibilities for a small to medium sized ttt, and with a little adaptation, would make a really cool teardrop looking trailer.
The back may be a little too steep for a practical galley, but nothing says it couldn't be modified.
If you shortened it up a bit (from the top down) you would loose a lot of the excess bit that hangs out, leaving you with a more "tear" shaped rear.
Might also loose the "look" but hey, it sounds like it would be worth trying...

Rob

[gww25]

That was an incredible find and I really admire your tenacity in salvaging that old beauty.

[prohandyman]

Rob. I guess you got it home without needing a stop-over. By the way...what did the Alma look like?

[48Rob]

Hi Dan,

The Alma looked great from a hundred+ feet...
Up close, the tongue and axle was missing, there were hundreds of dents in the aluminum skin, the exterior had multiple layers of roof coating all over it, the interior framing was rotted, and the original interior was long gone.
Pretty much like most old trailers you find out in the woods.

The owners, having no luck selling it, tore it apart and hauled it away...

Rob