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84 Dolphin Restoration


JordanB5000

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Anyone else updating their interior?

Before:

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll9/jbzl2008/a097_4.jpg

During:

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll9/jbzl2008/IMG_0793.jpg

After pics coming soon. We are getting rid of the 80s shag carpet, doing "wood" floors and new paint, cabinets, hardware, etc.

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Anyone else updating their interior?

i have an 83 dolphin that i am re-doing inside...

have to snap some pics... i have the cabover really cleaned out aside from taking the windows apart... i bought a roll of reflectix insulation for the cabover.... it seems like a fantastic product...

I am waiting on affording a new escape hatch and 2 vents for the roof... then i can re-butyl tape everything and seal the roof...

then after that i have a few panels to cut back in.... put the windows back together...

I am going to try to fit a panel onto my ceiling that replaces some water damage w/o removing my cabinets...

with a little luck and a few hundred dollars i should be well on my way to a nicely refinished interior and i can start working on other stuff like a tune-up, tires, windshield replacement, deep cycle battery replacement etc... etc etc.... im on the hunt for new fabric for my cushions... re-upholstery sounds FUN... and mine is due...

you start to get the picture fast...

it takes alot... AND THEN>>> there is the WANT LIST!!!

(satelite radio/tv/lcd/solar/extra batteries/new fridge/frnt wheel 6 lug converter/ power inverter/generator/bike/storage rack/ETC ETC ETC!)

welcome aboard and keep showing us the pictures... :help: they are inspiring!

...

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This is how it looked when i bought it:

gallery_1558_138_103448.jpg

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and this is where mine is at NOW after some demo work

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if you look in the above pic there is a fresh board with a fresh white bead of sealant against it at the front of the sleeper... that had to be replaced... that replacement involved removing a weather strip on the exterior underneath the cabover... taking out 18 rusted screws that held in a rotted water damaged board... the board actually serves the purpose of securing two seperate aluminum exterior panels together... hence the 18 screws from the exterior and replacing the weather strip, resealing everything meticulously... it turned into a 4 man/hour job! just to replace that one board that served a hidden purpose... but when it was done and we started replacing the screws.... things fit back together more solid than previously and we removed a sag...

I now have to buy some butyl tape to reseal the windows and also some new vents and roof sealants... then after i get all that i can re-panel everything...

its worth it!

i just gotta keep telling myself that!

I did get some Reflectix Foil/plastic insulation to line the cab sleeper area with... I am very impressed with the product so far... thanks to whoever on this forum pointed me to that stuff!

sincerely,

:help:

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little things sometimes really do mean alot...

My 83 Dolphin had really rough looking mirrors... lots of rust, paint flaking... against white paint no less...

I spent a whole day just removing my mirrors, wire-brushing, masking, priming and painting them and i think it made a noticible difference...

BEFORE:

gallery_1558_138_305990.jpg

AFTER:

gallery_1558_138_57598.jpg

I decided to go with the highest quality rustoleum automotive GLOSS BLACK I could get... I used two cans on the Mirrors Project... and I barely had enough that I went ahead and painted the air filter cover as well...

gallery_1558_138_26192.jpg

Im sure my rig looks like a serious piece of Caca compared to some of the guys on the forum here but i sure am having alot of fun fixing her up...

one task at a time... sometimes i even get volunteer help...

I was totally inspired by YostFX's 'Rader and I really want to paint my wheels gloss black too... I hope he doesnt think I am jockin his style too bad but wow.. that looks real neat on his wheels...

Do I have to take my wheels off to paint them? something tells me i probably should.... but then i gotta torque em back down and all... guess at least then id know they were torqued to spec!!!

:help:

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JotS,

The mirrors look fantastic! I'm so doin' that too!!!!

s

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JB5000,

Most impressive!!!

shandamac

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that looks great! Did you just paint the existing wall covering with a regular interior paint?

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  • 6 months later...

Well you sold me I had threatened to paint some of the wood work in mine white it has some very nice wood work that I'll leave alone but the paneling is just too dark. Good job looks nice.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Anyone else updating their interior?

This is what we did with our old motor home. I sanded for about 4 hours and cleaned every thing up fixed some water damage around the front vent. The only place we left wallpaper is in the shower. Was not sure if it protected from water damage. It is acrylic paint and oil paint.

TJ3_8885.jpg

TJ3_8879.jpg

TJ3_8887.jpg

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i was was not alive in the 60's or 70's would not know

be careful... if you arent over the hill its possible that we will take your "motorhome-ing card" away...

wow on this forum and u dont even remember the 70s?

WOW...

u missed out cause the 70s rocked!

i think the retro interior of a 84 dolphin is tacky and ugly brownish orange and plaid AND I LOVE IT!

same with the way the above motorhome interior was painted with the red and black...

its so awful you gotta love it...

reminds me of a bar i used to get drunk at in athens ohio

one of they things they taught me in art school was not to make things "too precious" or clean... you gotta make some really rough, dirty and experimental marks to discover what the materials are capable of... (and never be afraid to paint over something you have already done if it doesnt fit with the whole, or you get a better idea...)

There is a term in art: "Gestalt" (means: The whole is greater than the sum of its parts)

looks like the red and black interior above is creating a gestalt to me...

if i look at just a small facet of it im not too impressed... but the way all of it works together is really pretty impressive and original...

Fantastic Job! I think Im going to paint mine soon.

:)

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  • 3 months later...

HI all...I've been doing over my 1983 Toy/Dolphin on and off 4 about 2 years now and it's finally starting 2 look like a real RV. It's been alot of work as u guys doing yours over must know. The snap together Pergo floors work great. After replacing all the rotted wood like I see you did Johnnyonthespot, I used this white pebble finish shiny vinyl sheet material for the ceiling. (Lowes) It's relatively thin (maybe 3/32 or so) and flexible enough to bend for the curved part up front. Your mirors look great. I to sanded mine down to bare metal and primed/ painted (white). Just the mounting brackets tho (couldn't save the actual mirrors). If any1 needs replacement mirrors check out Napa.com. They have exact replacements. I got 6x10 and there perfect (LIT97673). Had the engine SUPPOSEDLY rebuilt 4 alot of money and the scumball really ripped me off but I guess it does run a bit better. Gonna have the front part repainted next week. Hope he doesn't hose me too. If I can figure out how to post pics, I try to do it........Well, good luck guys in ur work. cul......

welcome aboard and keep showing us the pictures... :help: they are inspiring!

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Nice renovation i like the black carpet. Thanks for the photos its givin me hope and inspiration.hey sparky i was thinking of using that stuff from lowes about 32$ 4x8.I like that its fiberglass,NO ROT! I was thinking of using that paneling with a bead on it for the walls. It comes in two shades of white. Plan on backpriming as well. Go renovators!

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Nice renovation i like the black carpet. Thanks for the photos its givin me hope and inspiration.hey sparky i was thinking of using that stuff from lowes about 32$ 4x8.I like that its fiberglass,NO ROT! I was thinking of using that paneling with a bead on it for the walls. It comes in two shades of white. Plan on backpriming as well. Go renovators!

85mirage...I think you'll like the wht. fiberglass jazz. It can be cut with a pair of straight type metal shears and is easy to work with. Not cheap but then again u don't need much. I used PL400 heavy duty construction adhesive ( I think it's polyurethane) sticks like crazy and also some white button head square drive screws here and there. Where the sheets butt together , I used this t-shaped like channel (wht. vinyl) also from Lowes. that covers the edges nicely....good luck...

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I would like to thank buick and others that had enough fortitude to jump right in and rip and paint and overhaul their MH you guys have inspired me to redo mine. So here is my humble attempt to modernize mine. I have redone all of the counter tops removed the oven built doors painted and recarpeted. I had put wood floors in and did not like them so I went back to carpet. They say a picture is worth a thousand words so here is a few thousand.

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  • 2 months later...

WOW!!! I really want to get ours done now! How do you do the white walls and cabinets too.. is it just sanding and paint? Really impressive work and so much personality here!

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I love the work you are doing to your dolphin......I have the same unit, I've been picking away at it a little at a time......I love the white paint, I was going to paint my ceiling white, but now you have me thinking of doing more as well. I've been doing decopage on all my cabinet doors, that's slowly looking cooler and cooler.....it's a growing artsy thing, it becomes more as you go. I've picked out the material for my cushions and curtains, etc......I found a cool "real leaf" camo that I think will look sweet. I will have to post some pics sometime as it comes togeather, it's a slow process as I'm living in it and I'm a workaholic so there's little time to apply myself to it. Keep up the good work, we have to keep out toys alive......nobody makes them anymore.

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Anyone have a source for foam, our local place wanted $500!!! Is this what foam costs?? I may just watch CL for sikea sofas that get thrown out, I know they use foam...

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  • 9 years later...

this is inspiring! I REALLY want to do some work on my 87, but have not had the combination of time/energy/funds just yet. my biggest need/want is to get RID of the carpet- kiddo and i are both allergic to dust, and it makes it hard to sleep in the camper. I am curious- has anyone ripped out the carpet and actually camped like that, before installing wood or laminate or whatever floors? 

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2 hours ago, Notlostjustwandering said:

my biggest need/want is to get RID of the carpet-

I ripped out the nasty carpet on the floor just about a month ago.  Couldn't stand it any more.  It's worth the trouble to just go and do it.  The most time consuming part is removing all of the staples.   I used a small flat blade screw driver and some good large pliers but there really are a LOT of them.   Get the carpet off the floor and you will see how your wood floor is doing.  I was lucky that I did not have any water damage or other issues that needed attention.    I was looking at particle board type flooring.    It was possible to leave the floor like this and you can camp without a carpet as long as you are careful about getting all of the staples out (did I mention how tedious it is to get the staples out?).  Your floor may be different (hopefully not requiring repairs...) but most likely it's fine to just have the exposed flooring during a trip.  It's not an attractive look but it's functional.  You could paint the floor, but I'd suggest not doing that because the wood needs to breath in order to get rid of any moisture that might get in the wood.  Paint hinders this.   My floor was pretty warped and wasn't really flat (it walked like an inch over three feet in some spots).  I think many folks have had similar issues with Toy home floors.  This means that plank flooring will be a pain to get flat.   I have no plans to try and get that plank flooring to sit flat on my floor.  I know everyone likes the fancy laminate click together floors, but I say forget it unless you have a flat floor.  I plan to put a nice quality sheet of padded vinyl as a single sheet with some sort of sound isolating underlayment.  I've tried to install plank flooring on uneven floors before.  It doesn't work well in the long term.  The higher grade of vinyl sheet flooring is cheaper, looks pretty darn good, and can come with a padded layer on the back.  Easier to install too.   But I'm not going to spend the money on a quality sheet vinyl product until I do some other interior renovations like painting.  In the mean time I decided to go to Lowes and buy the cheapest sheet of vinyl I could find.  I bought a 5 foot length of vinyl from a 12 foot roll plus enough inexpensive quarter round  molding to go around the edges and hold the floor down.  Less than $50 spent.  It took only a few hours to cut and place the vinyl and nail in the quarter round to hold it in place.  I didn't glue it down, it's just floating and held in place by the quarter round.  I had to remove the table pole holders and toilet to install but that was about it.  I was surprised at how quick cheap and easy the whole process was (except for those staples).   Looks pretty good and works great.  WAY better than that nasty carpet.

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THANK you! I have been researching options, and was leaning towards vinyl, but was concerned about possible moisture- have you looked at cork? Someone else used it, and it seems good on first and second review, but I don't personally know anyone who has time-tested it. I am CHOMPING at the bit to get this remodel started, and trying not to get overwhelmed by:

1. my complete lack of experience

2. ALL THE THINGS THAT NEED DOING

 

I will most likely just start by ripping out ALL the carpet (and alll the staples) and go from there. Once I begin, I will be galvanized (assuming i don't find a black hole in the floor once I start ;p)

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