Art & Inspiration Custom Car pulling an old Airstream = Bad Idea?

I towed my 25' Airstream with a late model grand Cherokee. The aero dynamics do indeed make it easier to tow. Ditto on the Airforums as there are more than a few HAMB friendly tow vehicles posted there.

 

Uh, the title of the thread clearly states, "Custom car", which by definition, is a modified. Suspension upgrades, brake upgrades are part of that. So, don't get your knickers in a wad because I tow with "custom cars", because that's what we're talking about here. A high school kid can make almost any popular late 50's to mid 60's American V8 make as much, or more power than the bone stock Chevy truck engines I use, so, apples being apples, and oranges being oranges, how do ya like THEM apples?

 

If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. ;-)

 

Calm down sparky, I am/was in no way pooping on your choice of drivetrain, I'm an LS guy myself. I was simply pointing out that towing and hauling is going to yield much better results with a modern drive train opposed to a 50/60 year old drive train.

 

I did, and I edited my comment, which was a bit harsh. Nobody on this board who drives their car would consider doing so without addressing the braking, in the case of a custom, modifying the suspension, and, do a quick search on transmission upgrades, both to 5 speeds and modern 4 speed autos, it's still custom cars.

 

SO... this is a pic of it with weight on the rear axle... but it had a torsion bar hitch that would level it out and the damn thing road better down the road hitched to this with that hitch than without. It splits the weight between the two axles bridging them- for those that havent used them...

since then I've used a torsion bar hitch on my single axle too- its awesome. I've even blown a tire and just pulled over no handling crisis... I haul everything with my Kustom

 

Tuck, I had an Avion just like that a few years back, did a total restore on it. I have pulled a 31' Airstream all over the south west but with a Suburban and a 1/2 ton Chev pickup. I also owned a 57 Safari years ago. I see no problem pulling an Airstream with a Safari. Just as long as the brakes were updated with discs on the front of the Pontiac and you had an equalizer hitch and working trailer brakes.

 

Frick that's Kool......

 

I have put nearly 12,000 miles on my 63 Avalair, BUT I was pulling it with my 02 Crew cab Ford. I just never seem to have a hot rod or custom finished when I need to go. That will change soon, but the same principals still apply. Be smart, check your bearings, keep real trailer tires on it, trailer brakes, and I like torsion bar hitches.

 

I am watching this with interest.

I last slept in a tent 3 years ago, and I have decided I am getting too old and fat for that shit. So I want a bed and other cushy amenities and I sure as hell am going to get them!!!! When I retire (3-6 years from now, depending on my mood and how much I hate my job) I intend to see all of North America in an old car with an old trailer. I just picked up the old car, a 1960 Pontiac Catalina wagon. (Damn... I need to change my Avatar!) As for the old trailer, I am checking out all of the different canned hams from 1955-1962. I have my preferences, such as I like the warm wood interiors and not the fake wood paneling from the 1960's, I like the seating area in the front, and a full queen size bed in the back because I don't want to set up the bed and put it away every damn day. I am iffy on having a bathroom because it's shitty dealing with one, but then again it's nice having one so you don't have to go outside when its dark and cold, etc. In my head I've got the layout and the things I want in the trailer, so it's a question of finding it and making it mine. I do like the Airstreams on the outside, but I don't like them on the inside. I haven't seen enough of the Silver Streaks, Avions, Spartans, and other brands to see if I like them or not. That's why I have been kind of focusing on the canned hams.

As for traveling with semi trucks and dealing with the average douchebag out on the road, the one rule I have set for myself is to avoid the interstates as much as possible. It'll be slower on the back roads and more to 'see'.

It's been forever since I posted on the HAMB. I shall be watching again...!

Travis

 

Nobody's going to fault you for concealing a tranny temp gauge, and possibly an electric radiator fan.
The OT El got a little hot sitting in traffic recently. Was thinking hard how an electric fan with just an on switch would have been damn nice right then.

 

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...d-returning-home-from-back-to-the-50s.980685/

 

The trip is the adventure . What happens from the starting point to the finial destination is where the fun is . If the tow rig breaks down so what you have your home on wheels behind you. Safety first good brakes , wheel bearings checked and lights that work . My Uncle and Aunt had a $ 300,000 motor home that they bought brand new . It had to be towed into a shop a few times . All the electrical ,modern ,computerized fuel system and a few other things would act up every now and then .

 

After the brake upgrade and tranny cooler I wouldn't worry a bit. A 57 Safari should weigh in the neighborhood or 3800-3900 lbs....enough to plant the car firmly on the road.
I've owned 11, 55-57 Pontiacs and they're a fine driving car but you're right...a brake upgrade is mandatory even for a car with no trailer.
I used one of my 57 chieftains to pull my buddy's 18 foot wooden boat to the river...no problems. But I had a 56 chieftain with non power brakes and coming down a really steep hill on a super bad road, trans in 2nd gear on a 4 speed slant pan hydro, the brakes faded to nothing! I had a good pedal but the car would not slow down...good thing the car had the early trans! The next owner of that car blasted a truck in the back when the brakes didn't work.

 

The problem I see , is hanging adequate mirrors on my car without wrecking the paint.

 

my only reservation of towing my homebuilt airstream with my 56 f100 is insurance... none of the collector car insurance companys wanna mess with towing.

 

It can be done !

 

Load leveling hitches, you want to be careful when you adjust them, because you can take too much weight off the rear.

 

VERY COOL THREAD.
I WOULD LOVE TO HAV AN OLD SHASTA TO PULL WITH MY 61 CHEVY WAGON BUT THAT WILL BE WAY DOWN THE ROAD

 

We have owned two Airstreams, One Shasta, homebuilt teardrop. Currently own a 17' Avion and a 12' Santa Fe.
I have to say you can tow anything with anything, having once saw a six cylinder 72 chevy pickup towing a Spartan Manson, but what is safe?
And by the way Airstreams are not 'light weight', they are aircraft aluminum and are well built and once you add stuff like food, water, and other important family stuff the load gets heavy. The oldest vehicle I towed our Airstreams was our 74 short bus with a 350 and it was a struggle going up the grades here in So Cal.
Towing is easy, it is the stopping that is tough, so brakes on the trailer and better brakes on the tow vehicle.

Now to part B, have you ever torn into a vintage 'stick and tin' (as they are called in the business) built 50 or 60 year old travel trailer? If you are lucky, you will only have to remove the bottom half of the skin to replace the bottom half of the wood skeleton,, if you are lucky.
So you want an aluminum trailer,,, bring the wheel barrow full of money. With the RV shows on TV and movies the Avon we bought for $3,000.00 is now going for $20,000.00.
Are they great fun and you meet great people? You bet. The vintage trailer culture is a lot of way like the old car culture, with a lot of cross-overs.

 

I wanted to update that but it was locked. The driver survived for another 6 months but died in January of 2016. He was also a pilot. His obituary lists his many accomplishments.
http://www.wiscnews.com/baraboonews...cle_8ac6bdf8-fb8b-552b-af80-ba9d312c417f.html

 

Think about the amount of weight that puts on the tongue of the trailer.

 

Timely topic, I have the camper and the wagon both done. The '55 wagon is a good candidate with a frame off with strong v8 but the 4 speed, big brakes and sway bars but and lowering does affect it as a perfect tow vehicle (not to mention camps are not lowered car friendly). Our '49 Spartan is 3700 lbs dry and 24 ft long. On paper it works perfect, but things start to creep into your mind, like how good are those repop wheel bearings that could have been made overseas? Are my kids, wife and dog really safe? Add to that we do a lot of Highway driving around 65-70. Last fall when a deer jumped on the highway I barely stopped a new Chevy truck with swerve control braking technology, we wouldn't have been as lucky in the vintage puller. Your talking about a larger Airstream, pulling a small canned ham would be a definite yes, still last year some friends totaled their 16' slab side when a semi passed to fast. I know others pulling campers across 66 with flatty powered drum brake 40's trucks, but yes they plan and drive SLOW. I just learned of the Spartan Studebaker death, I could see myself doing the same so I'm going to learn from his tragedy. Add in the cost of replacing my Spartan and dealing with insurance so for me, short local, slow drives with the old car is my safe limit. Family travel with kids where a highway is involved we'll take the late model, kids are more comfy anyway.

 

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the Laurel and Hardy short "Them Thar Hills" where the boys pull a full-sized (for then) travel trailer with a Model T!

 

Don, t say I didn't warn you.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kvyJby-moUU

 

I owned Wally & Stella Byams own personal Airstream with a magnesium frame( yea, They knew magnesium would burn; but when the owner of the company(the Byams) wanted a light,magnesium frame,they got a magnesium frame). I sold the trailer15-16 foot Bambi to a dealer in the Bay Area, but I had to flat tow it to north Houston(about 80 miles) to be picked up by a trucking company to go to the West Coast. I was very nervous,but the light trailer pulled marvelous and I didn't even know it was back there behind the 90's F 150. I towed it to several rod runs close to the house(10 miles) several times with my 51 F-1 with a built flathead! The trailer should have gone to a museum,but I never found the right person with big money; I doubled my money and let it go after ownership of 10 months.

 

When I was a kid in the 70's, my friends and I would help the carnie's set up their rides at the exhibition grounds each summer when they came through. They were a rough bunch to work for, and I always found it interesting to ask where they were from. All you had to do was look at the licence plates on the backs of their cars, yes cars, that towed their huge trailers to see that most were from thousands of miles from where I lived in Medicine Hat AB. The cars were mostly big American autos, like Olds 98's, Cadillacs, and Buicks, etc. I don't remember anyone having trucks back then. Also, when I was a kid, you had to borrow a farmer's pickup to haul garbage to the dump, etc., as most families were one vehicle families, and they were pretty well all cars. This pickup truck craze didn't happen till a couple decades later. Now we seem to think we need a 4 wd truck to drive to the grocery store and back. That's how I remember it anyway.

 

Going to do 10000 miles this summer