Ray's Rowvan

[Roehm3108]

After I got the van into the shed and saw the water stains inside, I ripped back some of the calico at the front to let the air get to it. Within 24 hours this worked a treat and you could see the canite drying out already.

But I felt that it should all come off, to give the whole ceiling a chance to dry.



The water marks around the cracked ceiling were particularly bad



After stripping all the calico off (not very difficult at all as the glue seemed to have dried out and the calico was really only being held on by the edge strip and the hatch frame, I got a pleasant surprise. The damaged section of the ceiling was a separate panel. You can see what I mean here:



So the whole question of how to repair this has been taken out of my hands - should be a very simple matter of splicing a new piece of canite into the section. Just gotta wait for it all to dry.

As mentioned before, it seems that the calico was glued onto the canite, rather than using the method Humpty2 and others used - using paint as the binding agent. But that was for a ply substrata. Has anybody had any experience of applying calico to canite? Would have thought that if I used Humpty2's method, I would need to apply a primer/sealer/undercoat before using the paint gluing method. Or should one use a glue to apply the calico and then paint over it to waterproof it? Don't want the calico lifting in a couple of years!!!

Your thoughts??

Ray

[Roehm3108]

Well I figured I could be waiting for a month for the caneite to dry properly and even then, I am a bit concerned about any possible damage I may have done to the integrity of the material by letting it get wet. So I made an executive decision that I would replace the caneite of the whole roof, rather than take the chance of putting new calico on the old surface and have to replace it all somewhere down the track.

Today I went and bought the softboard sheets and the work will begin.

Spoke to my Dulux Rep neighbour, and also decided to use a three-in-one sealer. I am using Zinsser brand, which is also a stain blocker, similar to the Dulux Prep-Lock. Have tested it on a piece of caneite and two coats gives an excellent cover for the calico to then be paint-glued on. Having the roof off gives the added bonus of letting me paint the ceiling separately before fixing it to the van and also painting the Tudor framing without the hassle of masking tape.

Now where is my colour wheel Only kidding folks, Rubik's Kube II she won't be ;D ;D ;D

Ray

[greedy53]

well i'll be buggered look at what i have

[smiles]

Hey Ray

can you ask your Dulux Rep neighbour about Dulux Silvasheen for me?
Maybe he knows about a secret stash somewhere!

smiles

[Roehm3108]

CAUTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The following pics may offend some people

Topless caravan pics ahead


Well, I've finally managed to get back to the van today and here's what she looks like at the moment from above:





I'm glad I made the decision to replace the whole roof as it was smelling very musty. Reckon it would have stayed with the van, had I kept the old caneite on. All the framing is in top condition with absolutely no signs of rot anywhere. What a pleasure not to have to worry about fixing rot damage. I reckon the framing is white cedar, as it's very fine grained and shows no signs of stress fracture on the front to back battens, which are one piece all the way. Great joinery work too ;D ;D ;D

[Roehm3108]

As many member know, I previously restored not one, but two Propert Folding caravans in the past. This resulted in my having a deep respect for Mr Tom Propert for the ingenuity of his design - of the folding mechanism and shells.

Well, yesterday I gained a similar respect for Mr Rowe and his double cambered roof. Laid the first sheet of the roof yesterday. No wonder nobody on the forum was forthcoming on laying the sheets. It was not an easy task!! Have you ever tried to put wrapping paper around a football without having folds in the paper or having to cut it in some way

In my previous thread you will get an idea of the roof's camber.

Here's what it looks like partly laying the first sheet

Left hand side:


Right hand side:



After much pushing down and almost 150 screws!



What the sheet looks like from inside:



Back to it again on Monday ;D ;D ;D

But I do have a question to all those "arty" people.

I will be repainting the interior of the van. Throughout the van are several of these type of transfers on the walls



I would really like to keep them if I can and would like some thoughts on how best to keep them there without it looking like I've just painted around them.

Ray

[seeshell]

Hi Ray

I think your decals will be far to delicate to remove, if experience is any guide. I've tried to move a few (ones I liked but wasn't too fussed over) and they came apart.

You could try masking it off with lowtac tape (the blue stuff) and painting over it, then removing the tape pretty promptly. But you'd have to be sure even the blue stuff wouldn't pull off the picture.

My recommendation would be to prep around it then use an artists brush with your preferred interior paint and come up to the edge of it by hand. If you left a wide enough band around it, the rest of the painting you do won't be likely to lap onto it.

Not a sexy solution, but probably the most reliable.

Pretty little birds for sure, and well worth keeping,

Seeshell

[DC3Td]

I`m with Seeshell on this Ray. Highly unlikely they can be removed effectively. A possible alternative is to check out the myriad of 'waterslide transfers' found you know where. Sifted through a few listings & whilst i saw none like yours there are others that may suit your needs. gordon

[Roehm3108]

There is absolutely no way the decals would ever lift off. They seem almost as though they are part of the paintwork. I would like to keep them though, as they form a bit of a connection with the original owners, rather than that I simply like decals (which I don't).

Your suggestion, seeshell, is along the lines of my own thoughts. It's just that my hands aren't that steady to do such fine work (never have been) and art brushes and I aren't very good friends. ;D ;D

[seeshell]

Hi Ray

Chemically speaking, the glue probably has migrated into the paint! In that case try the lowtac blue tape, scribe it to the edges of the decal, then paint over it.

If you do look for other decals and want them in the same style, there was a brand called Meyercord that produced a seemingly infinite number of patters. I believe I have seen the one you have (or something very like it) and it was Egret.

Cheers
Seeshell

[cobber]

G'day Ray,

That new roof sure looks better than a patched up effort would have, the inside looks great.

As for the decal...... do you think maybe it has been painted around once already, looks a bit like it from where I'm sitting ....and if it hasn't, it looks like it has so.... you wouldn't do a worse job if you do as seeshell suggested .

Cobber.

[kaybee]

Hiya Ray, it may be worth speaking to a few Signwriters , they are able to print all kinds of images on clear self adhesive vinyls thanks to computers......often all they need is a clear photo , probably able to download it straight from your camera too......regards, Colin.

[sportsman 1]

Three thoughts Ray.

Paint the walls to match the color of the transfer backing so it blends in.

Put a frame around them so they look like paintings.

Get a signwriter or artist or someone similar to do the delicate work around the image in the color you want to a point where you can blend it into the rest.

Good luck with it.

Leigh.

[Roehm3108]

Thanks for your thoughts guys and girl.

Cobber, I also thought that the cream under the decal was the original colour, especially as it matched the original outside colour. But I scraped back some paint and it looks like there is no other colour beneath what's there.

I will probably take up your suggestion, Carly and mask it, take the chance and see what happens. Might try it on one I'm happy to lose, first.

I do know a person here who is a bit (very) arty, Leigh, and she might even take up the challenge of what you suggest. Painting the walls to match the background of the decal would be a bit boring. Have already worked out a colour scheme and it wont be cream walls ;D ;D

Well, back to the shed of misadventure! Gunna wear my bike helmet today, after the number of times I bumped my head on the frames &/or garage roof last time.

[cobber]

G'day f/f,

Problem is....... I think ray wants to save the decals and re-use them, much the same as the stickers on the windows on my “Driftwood” that I would like to remove in one piece, still sticky, and replace on the new windows.

I think the ideas expressed on the Classic thread, particularly the hair dryer one might work for me, but not sure it would for rays decals.

Give it a try Ray and let's know how you go .

Cobber,

[raindrop]

Fabulous van, will be great when its complete.

Cheers

[griffin]

Do you know anyone with a portable hand held scanner? I have my order in for one for Father's Day so I can't give first hand info, but it's the sort of thing you can do with them.

I was talking about doing something similar recently with a friend who worked repairing instrument faces and she reckons todays sign writers can produce a self adhesive vinyl sticker from scanned artwork or a good quality digital photo at reasonable cost.

Good luck, will watch with interest for an outcome.

George

[Roehm3108]

And you thought I was joking about the helmet ;D ;D ;D



George, your suggestion is similar to kaybees - thanks.

It's not crucial that I have these decals, it's just that I wouldn't mind leaving what's there and working around them, for posterity. They are very ingrained into the surface and it would be very easy to simply paint over them.

Cobber, I'd rather you made the first attempt at removing what you have and seeing if it would work. After all, you have the (slightly) older head and would know HOW to do it PROPERLY

Only have two small sections of the softboard to put on (either side of the hatch) and unfortunately, no matter which way I did it, my offcuts will be about 2cm's too narrow and so tomorrow I have to visit the big green shed again and get one small piece, which will then need priming and painting Bummer

[seeshell]

Hi Cobber and Ray

You can get stickers off glass with a hairdryer but you will have a nearly impossible time on the paint - it's all about substrate. The glass heats up evenly enough and doesn't soften so you can lift the stickers carefully (very slowly!).

I'm afraid you might have a different result on a painted surface. Likely to soften up the paint as well as the sticker and get a bit of both off at the same time.

What you have are water slide decals - in chemistry, like dissolves like so oil (tea tree or WD40 etc) for petroleum based stickers, and water solvents or just warm water for water based glues. You could have a crack with a warm wet towel over it and let it soften.

This all works infinitely better on glass - hate to be a nay-sayer, but I think you will find removing them in one piece is not going to be possible.

I'll happily be wrong though!
Carley

[Roehm3108]

Been a couple of frustrating days. On Monday I laid the rear softwood full sheet, then a half (roughly) sheet (cut along the length), between the back of the front sheet (yes, it does make sense) and the front of the hatch, which left only two small bits on either side of the hatch to do. Would you believe I couldn't get enough width out of the remaining half sheet, to fit those small sections, by about 1.5cm

So had to make another trip to the big green shed Tuesday morning for more softwood panel, prime and one topcoat yesterday and second topcoat this morning (actually the ceiling coats) and ended up with this this evening:

From the top



From inside:



While I'm happy with the result, it's not a job for the faint-hearted, those double cambers are a wretched thing to work with and the final pieces had to be scribed in exactly, for a neat fix.

The next job is to finish off a bit more edge trimming, then I plan to use Sikaflex sealant/adhesive on all the joins and screw holes. For those who may not know, softboard is different from caneite (which you can't get anymore). Caneite is a sugar cane derivative, while softboard is from eucalyptus "mulch". I spoke to the tech people at Gunnerson's and they claim the softboard is as good as the caneite. Only time will tell. I am sealing with the Sikaflex stuff just as added security.

Hope all this isn't too boring for you, but it helps me keep on track with getting this roof done.

Ray

[Jennison]

Keep the story unfolding Ray. It's a great story and I love to watch it unfold ;D
jenno

[Roehm3108]

WARNING TO COBBER - TAKE YOUR HEART PILLS BEFORE READING

No, I really haven't been bludging over the past fortnight, but as the Victorians would know, the weather has been far from kind, especially as far as doing what I wanted to do.

If you look at the pics of the van as I got it, you will notice that the masonite walls have a lot of bits and pieces of crescent aluminium mouldings. They are laid on top of the cloth tape where the masonite pieces butt together. The tape, which is nearly 60 years old was showing signs of lifting in some areas.

So the question faced was: Do I reglue where necessary? Or try finding similar tape, borrow KB's pinking scissors which he didn't use and retape the joins? OR .... try something different?

After MUCH soul-searching about maintaining originality etc, I came to the conclusion that I didn't particularly like all those crescent cover strips, and preferred much cleaner lines. And the only thing I could think of that would stand half a chance of coping with any great amount of bouncing around when travelling, was to use ffffooooobbbbbeeeeerrrrrgrassss tape and do a bit of boat-building. Which is what I have been trying to do this past fortnight. Today, I finally got the last of the 20+ metres of 50mm wide tape laid. Did all the butt joints as well as the corners of the van. I had to do this job BEFORE laying the calico onto the roof as some of the joins went up to the roof itself.

Here's one of the last pieces laid this morning (still wet):



Here's another section where I've feathered the left-hand side from the corner:



Once I've feathered the lot, I will lay on another coat of resin and sand back again, before priming.

Personally, I think it will work and stick and be very strong too. Only time will tell.

Ray

[cobber]

I forgive you Ray because I know your heart is in the right place....... You at least used the words "maintaining originality" ....and let he who has not sinned chuck the first gooly.

You're doing a good job on that old van.....how did you go with the decals ?

Cobbler.

[hilldweller]

Wow that roof/ceiling looks great

[Roehm3108]

Well, since my last post, I feathered all the glass tape and added another coat of resin. Was starting to think I was almost ready to lay the calico. But of course, I had forgotten about the hatch!

It looks like the previous owner must have had a bit of an accident with his van at some stage. I think he may have driven off leaving the hatch open and hit a branch or something like that(sound familiar anyone??? ;D ;D) There was some repair work to the framing of the hatch opening as well as damage to the hatch cover itself. It was fixed, but it looks like a true cockey fix Three inch nails, a bit of tin and a hammer! Here's what the hatch cover repairs looked like:





Would you believe that the covering of the hatch was masonite with a coat of silver paint???

So I've now built a new frame for the opening in the roof and a new hatch, this time covered with marine ply Of course because of the double camber, every bit of framing had to but curved, didn't it!!!

Here's the result: