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Post by shazron on Sept 11, 2016 12:33:39 GMT 10
Attachment DeletedAttachment DeletedHi all we can't identify our model and would like to gather any information before me start a renovation I has Coppola Brothers labels and Adelma faintly showing.
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Post by Don Ricardo on Sept 21, 2016 21:11:24 GMT 10
Hi Don you have discribed my Adelma roof to a T. I dont know where to begin with restoration of the roof. Can canite still be purchased? I have read a lot of conflicting ideas about sealing them but there seems to be little specific information. Like can I let it dry out and leave it intact and just seal over or do I strip and replace the whole roof. The hatch has collapsed but the rest seems ok apart from being very wet. I get the idea that they a breething roofs? Can you point me in any direction? Hi Shazron, I see that you have been seeking information about your Adelma caravan by posting on a number of threads on the forum, but you have only had only one or two fairly brief replies. Part of the reason for the lack of replies is that some of the threads were quite old, and the authors may not be be around any more. In any case I apologise for not responding earlier to your post above, that was addressed to me on another thread. I am still catching up with things that happened while I was overseas for a few weeks, hence the delay. As you have read in the Down History Lane thread on Adelma, we only know a little bit about the history of Adelma caravans and don't have much information recorded about the different models they may have produced. However, it is possible to work out build dates based on some of the hardware and construction methods used, so if you can post some more photos of your van, somebody may be able to give you some idea of the age of your van. Regarding, the roof of your van, caneite is still available, but it may be difficult (but not impossible) to find sheets the size you need to re-roof your van. Regarding the outer covering of your roof, you have mentioned that it is calico. I would be a little surprised if that is the case (although I am by no means an expert on this point), because I am pretty sure that Roadmaster had converted to fibreglass on their rooves a few years before Adelma started producing what was basically the same design. Anyway, assuming that your roof is coated in calico, the answer to your question about it being a breathing roof, is that that is not the case. The calico roofs were applied with paint and had coats of paint on top which made them waterproof, and for that reason they did not breathe. If your roof has just a few holes, it may be possible to repair it, but it sounds as if it is pretty well cactus, so in that case you would need to strip the roof and apply a new layer of calico. There are several people on the forum who have done that and recorded the process in a fair bit of detail in their posts. One is Roehm3107 in the thread about his Rowvan which you can find by clicking here. Unfortunately his photos have disappeared, but you can still find out a fair bit by just reading the text. Other people who have replaced the canvas roof (or walls) are King Fisher, Franklin1 (his 1960 Walsh van), Geoff 'n Jude (Aerolite), Koala (Grandad's van), Sallyharris01 (Greythorne, which is a Roadmaster by another name), and Gypsy10, among others. Most of these were calico over bonfwood, but Roehm3107 and Sallyharris01's vans were over caneite. If you search for 'calico' using the forum Search function, you'll be able to find the threads on these vans. Also keep asking questions as you go, and yell out if you can't find the threads I've mentioned.  A question for you: Are you in South Australia? If so we might be able to connect you with some people there who can tell you a bit more about your Adelma, and give you some clues regarding refurbishment. Also a suggestion, now that you've started this thread on your van, post any questions and the story of its renovation just on this thread. It will help you and others if all the information and questions, etc, are in the one place. Good luck with the work on your van. We will all be interested to hear how you are going and give advice when we are able to (and you ask for it!). Caravan renovation is something you can learn by doing, as a lot of people on the forum can attest, and there is a lot of satisfaction in seeing it all coming together. Don Ricardo |
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Post by shazron on Sept 21, 2016 23:38:57 GMT 10
Thanks Don, we are going to Tarnagulla in October to check out some of the vans and chat with others. I read how to post pictures but can't remember what I did. I will read again and post. I have check almost everthing written on canvas roofing and yes it seems no one has recorded in detail a double cambered canite roof restoration. We are in SA. I have touched base with Road master caravans in Longsdale but am yet to visit them. The outer skin is thin and sounds like cardboard when taped, which leads me to think it is a painted fabric. It is possible that fiberglass was added to the paint. Our interor has the side kitchen and single wardrobe. The cupboard doors are all timber and not vineer which dates it as an earlier model. It also has a small sigle vent on the out side for the fridge unlike the others I've seen that have a grate type vent. I have it tarped untill the rain is past. Once I can dry it out I will have a better idea its state. Having said that the undercarriage is in fine condition.
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Post by shazron on Sept 22, 2016 21:29:48 GMT 10
Hi Don you have discribed my Adelma roof to a T. I dont know where to begin with restoration of the roof. Can canite still be purchased? I have read a lot of conflicting ideas about sealing them but there seems to be little specific information. Like can I let it dry out and leave it intact and just seal over or do I strip and replace the whole roof. The hatch has collapsed but the rest seems ok apart from being very wet. I get the idea that they a breething roofs? Can you point me in any direction? Hi Shazron, I see that you have been seeking information about your Adelma caravan by posting on a number of threads on the forum, but you have only had only one or two fairly brief replies. Part of the reason for the lack of replies is that some of the threads were quite old, and the authors may not be be around any more. In any case I apologise for not responding earlier to your post above, that was addressed to me on another thread. I am still catching up with things that happened while I was overseas for a few weeks, hence the delay. As you have read in the Down History Lane thread on Adelma, we only know a little bit about the history of Adelma caravans and don't have much information recorded about the different models they may have produced. However, it is possible to work out build dates based on some of the hardware and construction methods used, so if you can post some more photos of your van, somebody may be able to give you some idea of the age of your van. Regarding, the roof of your van, caneite is still available, but it may be difficult (but not impossible) to find sheets the size you need to re-roof your van. Regarding the outer covering of your roof, you have mentioned that it is calico. I would be a little surprised if that is the case (although I am by no means an expert on this point), because I am pretty sure that Roadmaster had converted to fibreglass on their rooves a few years before Adelma started producing what was basically the same design. Anyway, assuming that your roof is coated in calico, the answer to your question about it being a breathing roof, is that that is not the case. The calico roofs were applied with paint and had coats of paint on top which made them waterproof, and for that reason they did not breathe. If your roof has just a few holes, it may be possible to repair it, but it sounds as if it is pretty well cactus, so in that case you would need to strip the roof and apply a new layer of calico. There are several people on the forum who have done that and recorded the process in a fair bit of detail in their posts. One is Roehm3107 in the thread about his Rowvan which you can find by clicking here. Unfortunately his photos have disappeared, but you can still find out a fair bit by just reading the text. Other people who have replaced the canvas roof (or walls) are King Fisher, Franklin1 (his 1960 Walsh van), Geoff 'n Jude (Aerolite), Koala (Grandad's van), Sallyharris01 (Greythorne, which is a Roadmaster by another name), and Gypsy10, among others. Most of these were calico over bonfwood, but Roehm3107 and Sallyharris01's vans were over caneite. If you search for 'calico' using the forum Search function, you'll be able to find the threads on these vans. Also keep asking questions as you go, and yell out if you can't find the threads I've mentioned. A question for you: Are you in South Australia? If so we might be able to connect you with some people there who can tell you a bit more about your Adelma, and give you some clues regarding refurbishment. Also a suggestion, now that you've started this thread on your van, post any questions and the story of its renovation just on this thread. It will help you and others if all the information and questions, etc, are in the one place. Good luck with the work on your van. We will all be interested to hear how you are going and give advice when we are able to (and you ask for it!). Caravan renovation is something you can learn by doing, as a lot of people on the forum can attest, and there is a lot of satisfaction in seeing it all coming together. Don Ricardo |
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Post by Don Ricardo on Sept 22, 2016 23:05:12 GMT 10
Hi Shazron,
As you've intimated, resurfacing a double cambered roof with calico is a different kettle of fish to a single cambered roof, however both Roehm3107's Rowvan and Sallyharris01's Greythorn have double cambered rooves, so will give you some idea of the technique involved. As I mentioned to you, Roehm3107's photos have unfortunately fallen off the forum, but if you PM (Personal Message) him, he may be willing to send you some of the photos of how he did his roof or provide further information.
The previous list of calico rooves was off the top of my head, if I can think of other people who have re-done double cambered rooves I'll let you know.
Good to hear you're going to Tarnagulla. Hopefully that will let you check out a few rooves similar to yours. However the caneite and calico/fibreglass roof system was used very largely by South Australian manufacturers, so talking to Lazza (Roadmaster caravans) or others in the South Australian classic caravans group will connect you to people with the most knowledge of this type of roof. Let me know if you need some contacts in SA.
I'm interested to read what you've said about the sound of your roof, and will also be interested to hear what others can tell you when they have had a look at it re calico vs fibreglass.
To post photos on the forum, the most satisfactory method is to do it via Photobucket. There are instructions on how to do this in the 'Forum Guidelines & Helpful Hints' section of the forum.
Don Ricardo
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Post by kingswood308 on Sept 23, 2016 11:34:44 GMT 10
Lazza , formally of Roadmaster Caravans ..
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Post by shazron on Jun 15, 2017 0:15:09 GMT 10
 I waited for the rains to ease over summer but than the winter rains began. I thought this daunting project had little hope, but with a very large tarp we have began! After removing the roof one wandered why I was concerned about the rain as the van has serious water damage that had been bogged and siliconed every joint. Needless to say it had little effect for protection from the elements. |
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Post by Roehm3108 on Jun 15, 2017 6:56:42 GMT 10
Good to see you're back into that roof. Always surprising what you might find under the skin of any of these vans. Noq that you have the bare bones of the roof exposed, can I suggest you paint the ribs now if you want to feature them in a different colour to the rest of the eventual ceiling. I did that with my Rowvan and painted the softboard panels before installing them too. Made that job much easier and it looked great when finished.
Good luck with it all
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Post by Mustang on Jun 15, 2017 7:35:22 GMT 10
I waited for the rains to ease over summer but than the winter rains began. I thought this daunting project had little hope, but with a very large tarp we have began! After removing the roof one wandered why I was concerned about the rain as the van has serious water damage that had been bogged and siliconed every joint. Needless to say it had little effect for protection from the elements. Unfortunately the bewilderment on peoples faces when they enter the Bunnings silicone isle is one of despair. I try to help people out as they think one swipe of silicone & all their leaky prayers will be answered?? As my plumber friend often says, silicone in the hands of amateurs keeps more moisture in than it keeps out. Good on you for tackling this issue. |
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Post by shazron on Jun 24, 2017 19:16:18 GMT 10
Hey all, I have definitely bit off more than I can chew. It's not me alone but my young son Shem. He can build a house but this is frustrating him and I'm not much wiser We rebuilt the backend frame and the windows fitted. All was looking good. We thought we best lay the aluminum over to make sure it was lining up. But it DIDN'T AHHHH! Ok let's pull off the front skin and see what we have done wrong as they seemed to mirror each other. But they DON'T! More sadness!! So at this point do we try to sell her as a failed project or do we start again??? I'm going to post a picture if anyone can make a suggestion it would be appreciated. We are thinking we went about this the wrong way. We tried to replicate every piece of wood but that may not have been necessary. The main deal is the bowing of the outer 30×12 mil battens And then tying everything into it.
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Post by Mustang on Jun 25, 2017 19:50:35 GMT 10
Oh Dear, nothing is a failed project!! you have just hit a hump.
Ask away here as you have done, help will arrive have faith in yourself.
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Post by shazron on Aug 2, 2017 16:46:36 GMT 10
Oh Dear, nothing is a failed project!! you have just hit a hump. Ask away here as you have done, help will arrive have faith in yourself. |
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Post by shazron on Aug 2, 2017 17:03:13 GMT 10
Thankyou I have been watching heaps of videos from Mobiltec. The guy Larry is brilliant but the American vans are not like the adelma or road master. My stump has to do with framing. I cant remember how to upload pictures here.
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Post by shazron on Aug 2, 2017 17:03:34 GMT 10
Thankyou I have been watching heaps of videos from Mobiltec. The guy Larry is brilliant but the American vans are not like the adelma or road master. My stump has to do with framing. Does the side wall frame lock into the rear frame and than you fill in with strapping or is this correct as in photo. This way is impossible to shape.  |
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Post by Koala on Aug 3, 2017 9:45:32 GMT 10
It is hard to give correct advice based on just one photo but from what I can see the main problem is that what you are using to fabricate and laminate together to make the curve is too thick. I would use the thinnest marine grade plywood which I could buy and certainly no thicker than 4mm. If you have removed the side wall then you can do as in this post vintagecaravans.proboards.com/post/41258 which is a good description. You could laminate it together with the side wall still on but it would be a bit difficult to hold it all together. And use a good quality adhesive such as Sika Super Grip 30mins and heaps of clamps. Good luck with it. And a note on applying calico. Use heaps of paint/undercoat and do it on a cool day not in direct sun. Koala |
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