Jump to content

Polly Luna wakes up! A classic RV build story


Recommended Posts

  • Replies 292
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Posts

I think Polly Luna has always had nice lines and now they're even nicer.   The color combination is one of my favorites. Here's one of my creations, notice anything.  

Meet the newest member of our family, Polly Luna, a 1967 Dodge Travco motorhome.       We've always been big fans of vintage vehicles, and before our kids were born we camped in a 1972 VW Contempo ca

Before I dive into this one, I just have to warn you that I might turn up the cheese a bit in the next two updates. A bit more than usual, that is.   We've been working so hard on Polly Luna. Practica

You guys are so sweet!  That is one of my favorite pictures, made even better by Lou.   :)

 

Once we're done with the inside I'm considering doing something fun for the reveal. A video walkthrough of Polly given by the sisters themselves. Should be interesting...maybe we'll get another ghost story out of it?

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...

Today we took Polly Luna out to the tire shop where she got some very badly needed new tires. First new shoes she's had in nearly two decades.  

 

We're shifting back to inside work tomorrow. I am so glad about that, I'm anxious to finish what we started in there!

 

For now, here are some glamour shots we took of Polly on the drive home from the tire shop. You can really see how the paint color is affected by light. When it's shady, the paint is a dark teal, when it's bright out it's a true aqua. 

 

TravcoFall4_zpsd7534497.jpg

 

TravcoFall3_zpsc6a03af0.jpg

 

TravcoFall2_zps7910879c.jpg

Link to post
Share on other sites

This is a great story.  You guys have done something to be really proud of.  I can't believe all the work you put into this.  I wish we were staying at the Fort long enough to see Polly Luna in person.  The paint combo is very similar to a '57 Dodge that my aunt & uncle owned & my cousins and I beat the snot out of.  Those old Torqueflite trannys could really take a beating.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Thank you all for the continued encouragement! It really keeps us moving on this.

 

That is one of the coolest things i have seen in a long time.  I have a 1974 MGB that has been sandblasted and in primer for 15 years now.  You are inspiring me to finish that project.  I can't wait to hear more about your work and the upcoming trip to WDW.

 

I love those little MGBs!  The strange thing is that after all that work sanding and priming, painting was the really hard part because we were afraid to mess it up. So I can totally relate to putting the project aside. I can only say that spraying on the paint was the most rewarding thing we've done so far and worth the risk. You can do it!

 

 

This is a great story.  You guys have done something to be really proud of.  I can't believe all the work you put into this.  I wish we were staying at the Fort long enough to see Polly Luna in person.  The paint combo is very similar to a '57 Dodge that my aunt & uncle owned & my cousins and I beat the snot out of.  Those old Torqueflite trannys could really take a beating.

 

Thanks!  We definitely tried to stick with the classic look. The Travco had a very retro look for it's time, perfect for a 50's inspired theme.

Link to post
Share on other sites

We are officially back inside Polly Luna.

 

As you can see by my ticker, we are fast approaching the point at which all work will have to stop for the year. There are several things hanging out on our "must do/must finish" list so this weekend we thought we'd get some of those out of the way.

 

First up was to add the aluminum trim to the corners and hide the seams in the wall panels with strips of wood. This was an uneventful endeavor. Next we set to work trimming out baseboard. For this we went with just a basic shoe molding.

 

At least we thought it was basic.

 

You see, we bought the trim way back in June and stored it away while we worked on Polly's exterior. But when Josh went to install it Saturday, we realized that we didn't have enough and would need to pick up at least two more sticks.

 

The problem? Apparently, the shoe molding we had purchased had been cut incorrectly. There was not a piece of trim at two hardware stores that matched it.

 

So, we did what any conscientious DIYer would do. We bought the closest possible match and decided we'd just hide that piece behind the couch so no one would notice.

 

Done.

 

Next up on the agenda was a new backsplash. I don't have any before pictures of it, but the backer board that had been serving as a backsplash had a large ugly tear in the veneer. We decided to cover over it with one of those lightweight peel and stick tile mosaics that are practically made just for RVs.

 

I really, really wanted this brushed honeycomb aluminum style.

 

A9850_LS_1k.jpg

 

Unfortunately, those tiles are $20 a square foot. I would need eight square feet. Let's do the math:

 

8 x $20 = Enough money for me to have a Pandora bracelet.

 

So, back to the drawing board.

 

I found some sheets of faux-aluminum subway tile at a different hardware store and snapped them up as a good enough option. They were only $5 a square foot. Much better in price, even if it wasn't exactly what I wanted.

 

To anyone that is thinking of using these faux-tiles in their RV, here are some pros and cons.

 

Pros:

  • Super lightweight
  • Won't break like real tile
  • Looks decent

Cons:

  • Much more difficult to install than you would think
  • You will have air bubbles and they will not come out no matter what you do, not even yelling at them helps, believe it or not
  • Jury is still out about durability in the elements

I spent hours putting in that back splash and I have to say that I don't really like the result. At some point I'll probably tear it out and put something else there. It looks better than it did, though, which is becoming my new benchmark for success on Polly.

 

And now that you've read my ramblings, here is what it looked like last night before we left.

 

TC_Panorama_zpsc0064b04.jpg

 

TC_Detail_zpsb6ef625a.jpg

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...



×
×
  • Create New...