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Adventures And Restoration Of Our 1973 Travco 220 Motorhome

Monday, April 16, 2012

Progress - To Paint or not to paint?


It was my goal to sand off the multiple layers of additional paint applied over the years and repaint the travco. While sanding, it was to my surprise that the gel-coat while not perfect was not downright terrible either. In my goal to get us camping this season I have decided to sand off all the cracked and peeling paint down to the gel coat and buff to a shine.

The Process: Orbital sand the whole body with 80 grit then 120 grit, 180 grit, 220 grit, and 320 grit. Then hand wet sand with 400 grit and 600 grit and follow up with machine rubbing and polishing compound. Finally a coat of wax. 

The final result will be less than perfect but It will be very presentable for the season at a fraction of the cost and time of a new paint job


Cracked and peeling paint


Sanding off the old


In Process - Sanding off added paint 


Looking better - Original Gel-coat




2 comments:

  1. Can't wait to see what you do next! I'm getting a Travco here soon. So it is a blast watching you do this restoration

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  2. Thanks, Lots of updates coming. We just purchased all new fabrics for the interior and made a trip to elkhart, IN to pick up a bunch of small parts. Our goal to to be ready when the kids get out of school.

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