Use Stabond T-440 glue with a spray gun and only glue 2/3 from the bottom up and leave the top 1/3 unglued so it will bend easily. Trailer looking good !
Thanks. Very helpful. I like how much of your process you show. Good balance of getting to the point snd showing how much time the steps take (the timelapse parts)
Referring back to the last video, contact cement ONLY works if you coat both parts to be bonded and let them air dry first. I'm guessing the only portion that stuck was the piece that you used 'extra' cement on the other side at 16:11of the last video. Coat both sides and use a laminate roller to increase contact after placing the two pieces together. Awesome series of water damage repair.
Yeah I kind of figured it didn’t stick because I didn’t clean the cap well enough too. Probably a multitude of reasons (and not coating both sides) but I’m not mad at it because epoxy works great too!
whoo! amazing! great job, nicely done. thank you so much for the tutorials. very detailed. I'm sure will safe me lots of extra work. won't be able to do it myself but maybe my nephew will. 🙏
Your videos are so well done and organized. Really appreciate the thoughtfulness involved behind the presentation. Also love the content. You could do a PHD class on making UA-cam videos. Your skills are amazing.
I think the contact cement may have worked, but you have to coat both the front and under panels. Allow them to dry just enough that they are not sticky wet, then put them together. They should stick immediately.
I agree with the both sides, probably should have tried that. But it also immediately dried when I rolled it on, like it soaked into the paneling. Second time was better, but I think the problem is it’s mdf and it soaks up everything 😕
Nice job. I'm curious how the liquid nails worked out? after it cured, was there visible lines from the outside where every stringer was? I know some adhesive will shrink as it cures pulling the material tight. which can show when fully cured.
I am rethinking the whole vinyl screw covers for my RV rebuild project. Here's my logic, I noticed that the quality control of the assembly from the factory leaves a lot to be desired. On my RV during disassembly, I noticed that several screws were put in at an angle which leaves a nice little path for water to start seeping in. Also I feel that those vinyl covers are acting as a dam to channel water across a longer section of the trim and screws. It certainly is not watertight, nor does it look like it is designed to keep water out. Especially since most of the pieces I removed were green and nasty looking on the inside. So my thought is instead of replacing the covers, what if I just fill the channels with a waterproof sealer and smooth them out with a putty knife. I'm really curious about what others think. I've seen others put a small bead of caulk along the vinyl inserts or use Eternabond tape over the trim and vinyl covers. But why not just fill the trim with say white silicon caulk and be done with it. Personally, I have used Eternabond tape over the termination trim pieces on both the front and back of my RV, and it was a major pain trying to remove to prep the roof for repairs.
The trim cover isn’t meant to be waterproof. The corner or rails should be waterproof before applying the trim cover. You should have butyl tape underneath, and when the screw goes into it, it wraps itself into the butyl tape creating the seal at the screw. The trim cover is meant as an added protection in case the RV owner does not do regular maintenance (ie taking the corners off to replace butyl tape..for reference, my 5th wheel is a 2015 and I’m going to have to replace the butyl tape on my rails this year because it dries out). Wouldn’t suggest covering with anything other than trim cover, will make a huge mess and will be a pain when you have to take those screws back out. Water does not act as a channel if you seal it properly from the roof. Again, all about doing regular maintenance and sealing properly.
@@fallenintocamping I can't remember where I saw/heard the comment on the covers being waterproof, but I agree with you (they are not). Yeah, I get the part of the butyl tape forming a seal under the trim piece when screwed in properly, but it looks like in way too many spots, they either drove the screw in too hard which dimpled the trim and probably forced the butyl tape away from the screw or drove the screw in at an angle causing it not to seal properly. Do the RV manufacturers have any quality control in their plants?!? I get what you mean about using putty over the screw heads because I did try that on the front and rear of my roof. However, I believe the water had already found a way around the area which I thought I had patched successfully. Until I checked closely this spring and realized it was still getting in and was a major PITA trying to clean up that mess. Hence the reason I am working on this project this summer. One could sum it up as "I am not a happy camper!"
Contact cement would be a great adhesive for attaching the front cap to wood backing. You did not apply it correctly. Contact adhesive has to be applied to both the wood and back side of cap. A lot less expensive and will create a bond stronger than the woid.
If you ever feel like trying contact adhesive again, I use 3M 1357 for fiberglass to wood adhesion (not foam safe). It's quite a bit more expensive than others, but works really well. Once the two pieces go together, they will not come apart. A good and bad thing, lol... Do you usually recommend bonding the fiberglass to wood before putting it back on the camper? I've seen most people put the wood up first, then the fiberglass directly on the camper. So your method is really interesting and looks easier. However, I'm curious how would you do this with a larger sidewall where you can't screw in the panel to so many places?
I’ll definitely try that next time, thanks! I typically bond the fiberglass to the wood first because I really don’t like working in the air. It’s so much easier to just put the whole piece up rather than doing it separate, and making sure the epoxy lines up with the wood correctly. It’s 100% personal preference and you can do it either way, I just find it easier this way!
my wife and i are about to undertake a similar project with our 2013 travel trailer. does anyone know the specific type of board and thickness that was glued to the front cap? at my local menards i saw 1/8 x 4 x 8 sheets of hardboard that might work. anything 1/4 or more seems too thick. appreciate any help. on a side note your videos are awesome. we were torn on how to proceed and your videos are so well done you gave us the confidence to try on our own. Keep up the great work!!
I wish I would have found this before I did my front cap on my class C cap. Cap has some issues when sun's out. Like it didn't cure good. When cool outside cap lays flat. Will have to pull it at sometime. So you used paneling and not luon flooring for the cap?
No I didn’t, the curvature of the front cap puts enough pressure on the adhesive to stick. It pretty much curves along every aluminum framing piece on that front cap
My upper front cap has 2 holes in it from leaning a ladder on it,I was thinking about replacing it with the same diamond plate metal like on the bottom,would that work,it’s a toy hauler
@@fallenintocamping when I priced it ,it was actually cheaper than the original material,it was very thin but similar to what I have on the lower section of mine
Relief cuts are everything. Nice work. Humble recommendation to use a high speed buffer with wool pad and Meguiar’s #67 to polish out the cap and sides. You won’t believe the difference.
Hi there, really love your videos , we are renovating a trailer and have the front off right now and we ordered the same west system adhesive that you used in the video and have a couple of questions 1. What did you use to spread the epoxy2. How big of a batch do you mix at a time and how many did you need to make and how long of a working time do you have before it sets up? And is there any suggestions for us as this is our first time attempting this and the epoxy is very expensive here in Canada and I’d hate to mess this up lol
Hey! All great questions! I buy a couple cheap, large paint brushes to spread it. I usually do about 8-10 pumps to start (1-1 ratio), mix it really well, and pour it out onto the mdf and spread it. I’ve also used a mini foam roller to spread and it works well too, it just soaks up a little more of the epoxy and you would need a bunch of them (the epoxy makes the foam roller fall apart). I think it’s got a pretty long working time. You’ll be able to feel it getting hot in the cup if you’ve mixed too much and let it sit for too long. The only thing I would have done differently next time is apply the epoxy to both sides instead of just the mdf, but you’ll need 2 people for this (one working on each side).
I also work in small batches, so it will take a few trips back and forth of mixing to get it all on the panel. It usually takes me about 20 minutes total from start to the time I join the fiberglass and mdf and start weighing it down
I'm tackling this project right now. Have mine off and all apart just waiting on filon to be delivered from recpro. Specifically what paneling is that? HD or Lowes stuff? Model#? Thank you
Your friend has shared a link to a Home Depot product they think you would be interested in seeing. www.homedepot.com/p/32-sq-ft-MDF-Spartan-Oak-Wall-Paneling-48-in-x-96-in-x-0-118-in-00050/202765200
@@fallenintocamping does this stuff really hold up well? I've used this before on my laser printer just never imagined it good enough for a cap backer.
Help if my water system is drained and not hooked up at all. No faucets, no toilet, everything open. Do I need to somehow cap everything and winterize it anyway? Please & Ty
Contact cement would be a great adhesive for attaching the front cap to wood backing. You did not apply it correctly. Contact adhesive has to be applied to both the wood and back side of cap. A lot less expensive and will create a bond stronger than the woid.
Use Stabond T-440 glue with a spray gun and only glue 2/3 from the bottom up and leave the top 1/3 unglued so it will bend easily. Trailer looking good !
Agree Stabond 440 is the best option it’s meant for this purpose.
Thank you soooooo much for this video. My wife wants me to pull of the camper front and replace the rotted framing. This was very informative.
beautiful work, I have not missed a single episode of your beautiful odyssey. keep going. 😅
Thanks. Very helpful. I like how much of your process you show. Good balance of getting to the point snd showing how much time the steps take (the timelapse parts)
So wish I lived near you so you could do my roof.
But thank you for the awesome videos.
You keep on keeping on🙏
Referring back to the last video, contact cement ONLY works if you coat both parts to be bonded and let them air dry first. I'm guessing the only portion that stuck was the piece that you used 'extra' cement on the other side at 16:11of the last video. Coat both sides and use a laminate roller to increase contact after placing the two pieces together. Awesome series of water damage repair.
Yeah I kind of figured it didn’t stick because I didn’t clean the cap well enough too. Probably a multitude of reasons (and not coating both sides) but I’m not mad at it because epoxy works great too!
Thank you for showing us the mess-ups, it is so helpful to know that messing up is normal!
Will try the freezer trick when I do my vent fan this month. Thanks!
It’s life changing 😂
whoo! amazing! great job, nicely done. thank you so much for the tutorials. very detailed. I'm sure will safe me lots of extra work. won't be able to do it myself but maybe my nephew will. 🙏
Your videos are so well done and organized. Really appreciate the thoughtfulness involved behind the presentation. Also love the content. You could do a PHD class on making UA-cam videos. Your skills are amazing.
GREAT TIPS. LEARNING A LOT. WE ARE GOING TO TACKLE A REBUILD ON A SCOTTY SERO TRAILER IN JULY.
Sorry you had to take it down after getting it up but great job on not giving up and getting it done looks perfect 😁🙏
Where can I find a link to the whole series "front cap repair"?
WOW hard worker!! Thank you for sharing 💯🌟
I think the contact cement may have worked, but you have to coat both the front and under panels. Allow them to dry just enough that they are not sticky wet, then put them together. They should stick immediately.
I agree with the both sides, probably should have tried that. But it also immediately dried when I rolled it on, like it soaked into the paneling. Second time was better, but I think the problem is it’s mdf and it soaks up everything 😕
Nice job. I'm curious how the liquid nails worked out? after it cured, was there visible lines from the outside where every stringer was? I know some adhesive will shrink as it cures pulling the material tight. which can show when fully cured.
I am rethinking the whole vinyl screw covers for my RV rebuild project. Here's my logic, I noticed that the quality control of the assembly from the factory leaves a lot to be desired. On my RV during disassembly, I noticed that several screws were put in at an angle which leaves a nice little path for water to start seeping in. Also I feel that those vinyl covers are acting as a dam to channel water across a longer section of the trim and screws. It certainly is not watertight, nor does it look like it is designed to keep water out. Especially since most of the pieces I removed were green and nasty looking on the inside. So my thought is instead of replacing the covers, what if I just fill the channels with a waterproof sealer and smooth them out with a putty knife. I'm really curious about what others think. I've seen others put a small bead of caulk along the vinyl inserts or use Eternabond tape over the trim and vinyl covers. But why not just fill the trim with say white silicon caulk and be done with it. Personally, I have used Eternabond tape over the termination trim pieces on both the front and back of my RV, and it was a major pain trying to remove to prep the roof for repairs.
The trim cover isn’t meant to be waterproof. The corner or rails should be waterproof before applying the trim cover. You should have butyl tape underneath, and when the screw goes into it, it wraps itself into the butyl tape creating the seal at the screw. The trim cover is meant as an added protection in case the RV owner does not do regular maintenance (ie taking the corners off to replace butyl tape..for reference, my 5th wheel is a 2015 and I’m going to have to replace the butyl tape on my rails this year because it dries out). Wouldn’t suggest covering with anything other than trim cover, will make a huge mess and will be a pain when you have to take those screws back out. Water does not act as a channel if you seal it properly from the roof. Again, all about doing regular maintenance and sealing properly.
@@fallenintocamping I can't remember where I saw/heard the comment on the covers being waterproof, but I agree with you (they are not). Yeah, I get the part of the butyl tape forming a seal under the trim piece when screwed in properly, but it looks like in way too many spots, they either drove the screw in too hard which dimpled the trim and probably forced the butyl tape away from the screw or drove the screw in at an angle causing it not to seal properly. Do the RV manufacturers have any quality control in their plants?!? I get what you mean about using putty over the screw heads because I did try that on the front and rear of my roof. However, I believe the water had already found a way around the area which I thought I had patched successfully. Until I checked closely this spring and realized it was still getting in and was a major PITA trying to clean up that mess. Hence the reason I am working on this project this summer. One could sum it up as "I am not a happy camper!"
Between 9:34 and 9:48 you make reference to a tape. Starts with “B” and I’ve never heard of it before. Could you elaborate a bit on what this is?
Butyl tape? It’s basically a waterproof tape that goes behind any rails or under roof vents. It’s the first step of protection against water damage!
You have some mad skills 👍
Thanks so much for sharing your excellent video! By the way what type of nails did you use?
Contact cement would be a great adhesive for attaching the front cap to wood backing. You did not apply it correctly. Contact adhesive has to be applied to both the wood and back side of cap. A lot less expensive and will create a bond stronger than the woid.
Love all your videos thank you for all the tips
If you ever feel like trying contact adhesive again, I use 3M 1357 for fiberglass to wood adhesion (not foam safe). It's quite a bit more expensive than others, but works really well. Once the two pieces go together, they will not come apart. A good and bad thing, lol...
Do you usually recommend bonding the fiberglass to wood before putting it back on the camper? I've seen most people put the wood up first, then the fiberglass directly on the camper. So your method is really interesting and looks easier. However, I'm curious how would you do this with a larger sidewall where you can't screw in the panel to so many places?
I’ll definitely try that next time, thanks! I typically bond the fiberglass to the wood first because I really don’t like working in the air. It’s so much easier to just put the whole piece up rather than doing it separate, and making sure the epoxy lines up with the wood correctly. It’s 100% personal preference and you can do it either way, I just find it easier this way!
my wife and i are about to undertake a similar project with our 2013 travel trailer. does anyone know the specific type of board and thickness that was glued to the front cap? at my local menards i saw 1/8 x 4 x 8 sheets of hardboard that might work. anything 1/4 or more seems too thick. appreciate any help.
on a side note your videos are awesome. we were torn on how to proceed and your videos are so well done you gave us the confidence to try on our own. Keep up the great work!!
It’s 1/8. Can’t really be any thicker than that or else it won’t bend enough
Would a roller work better as an applicator?
Amazing !!!!!!!
I wish I would have found this before I did my front cap on my class C cap. Cap has some issues when sun's out. Like it didn't cure good. When cool outside cap lays flat. Will have to pull it at sometime. So you used paneling and not luon flooring for the cap?
Just curious, did you apply any pressure to the front to hold it in place while the adhesive dries? I am planning on doing this with my camper.
No I didn’t, the curvature of the front cap puts enough pressure on the adhesive to stick. It pretty much curves along every aluminum framing piece on that front cap
My upper front cap has 2 holes in it from leaning a ladder on it,I was thinking about replacing it with the same diamond plate metal like on the bottom,would that work,it’s a toy hauler
It would. I actually thought about doing that on this camper but once I saw the price of a big sheet of diamond plate I was like 👀👀🫣
@@fallenintocamping when I priced it ,it was actually cheaper than the original material,it was very thin but similar to what I have on the lower section of mine
Relief cuts are everything. Nice work. Humble recommendation to use a high speed buffer with wool pad and Meguiar’s #67 to polish out the cap and sides. You won’t believe the difference.
Will definitely try that!
What type and size of backer board did you use? It looks like one piece and bigger than a 4 x 8.
2 pieces and they were 1/8 inch paneling. Real wood is ideal but I can’t find that around my area
Hi! Just wondering where you got the square head screws? I'm currently in the middle of extendive repairs to my camper and can't find them anywhere!
Also wondering what size Butyl tape you used?
Amazon! I’ve got them linked in my amazon storefront, but just search for RV square head screws and they’ll come up!
What kind of wood do you use to glue the front to?
Hi there, really love your videos , we are renovating a trailer and have the front off right now and we ordered the same west system adhesive that you used in the video and have a couple of questions 1. What did you use to spread the epoxy2. How big of a batch do you mix at a time and how many did you need to make and how long of a working time do you have before it sets up? And is there any suggestions for us as this is our first time attempting this and the epoxy is very expensive here in Canada and I’d hate to mess this up lol
Hey! All great questions! I buy a couple cheap, large paint brushes to spread it. I usually do about 8-10 pumps to start (1-1 ratio), mix it really well, and pour it out onto the mdf and spread it. I’ve also used a mini foam roller to spread and it works well too, it just soaks up a little more of the epoxy and you would need a bunch of them (the epoxy makes the foam roller fall apart). I think it’s got a pretty long working time. You’ll be able to feel it getting hot in the cup if you’ve mixed too much and let it sit for too long. The only thing I would have done differently next time is apply the epoxy to both sides instead of just the mdf, but you’ll need 2 people for this (one working on each side).
I also work in small batches, so it will take a few trips back and forth of mixing to get it all on the panel. It usually takes me about 20 minutes total from start to the time I join the fiberglass and mdf and start weighing it down
Awesome job!
I'm tackling this project right now. Have mine off and all apart just waiting on filon to be delivered from recpro. Specifically what paneling is that? HD or Lowes stuff? Model#? Thank you
Your friend has shared a link to a Home Depot product they think you would be interested in seeing.
www.homedepot.com/p/32-sq-ft-MDF-Spartan-Oak-Wall-Paneling-48-in-x-96-in-x-0-118-in-00050/202765200
@@fallenintocamping does this stuff really hold up well? I've used this before on my laser printer just never imagined it good enough for a cap backer.
Is that 1/4 inch Luan that you glued to the back?
1/8 inch paneling. If you can find 1/8 inch luan that’s even better, but I can’t find anyone around me that sells them
@@fallenintocamping thank you!
Impressive
I used a magic eraser to clean the fiberglass
Great work! I need you to come help me! Ha!
👍🏻👍🏻
Help if my water system is drained and not hooked up at all. No faucets, no toilet, everything open. Do I need to somehow cap everything and winterize it anyway? Please & Ty
Contact cement would be a great adhesive for attaching the front cap to wood backing. You did not apply it correctly. Contact adhesive has to be applied to both the wood and back side of cap. A lot less expensive and will create a bond stronger than the woid.
I don’t remember if I covered that in this video, but I did end up saying that I didn’t apply it correctly so probably why it didn’t work for me