I am a member of a group of camping women called Sisters on the Fly. I became a member about a year after I retired from my job and was looking for something fun to do with my girlfriends. My husband was watching a TV show about RV’s and saw a segment devoted to SOTF. We have classics cars and go to car shows so we appreciate anything old that’s been restored. We understand the work that goes into it! When I saw the vintage campers the women in SOTF were camping in and heard about the trips they take, I knew immediately this was something I would like. I got on the computer and found myself a vintage 1962 Little Gem trailer and drove to Kentucky to pick it up! The trailer had been restored but was not exactly the way I wanted it, so I started work on it immediately. Since then I have restored several trailers with the help of my husband. If I don’t have the skills to do something, he does. I am absolutely in love with vintage trailers now and camping with my girlfriends has given me a freedom and a sense of accomplishment I would not have had without joining this group.
This is one of my trailers. It’s a 1972 Lark called The Rusty Ritz. I found it on the side of the road in front of a chiropractor’s office. He had purchased it and installed a sliding window to sell hot dogs at his son’s ball games. However, he didn’t realize it wouldn’t meet health codes for dispensing food without a lot of extra expense so he decided to sell it.
The entire camper is now painted to look like a rusty old metal and wood shack. I had a picture in my head of what I wanted and hired a young artist to paint it out. It was by far much cheaper than having the camper professionally painted and restored. The top portion is simulated rust. Several shades of paint were mixed with sawdust and sand and put on like a mud paste. It’s hard as a rock now and shows no signs of coming off. The bottom was painted to look like wooden boards. The whitewalls on the tires were actually painted on too.
On the floor I used plywood and scored it every six inches to make it look like old wooden planks. I painted it with porch paint in a green similar to the shade you see on the outside and then used glaze to put in the cracks to give the floor a dirty worn out look. I furnished it with a twin bed and two other pieces that are bolted to the floor. By removing the wall cabinets the trailer looks huge on the inside. I still have tons of storage in the dresser and the table I made.
The inside walls looked too clean because the paneling was all new. So I stained them first then faux painted leaks running down the walls in the corners and on the ceiling….yes I said leaks! The whole theme of this trailer was to look even older and rougher than it is and every old trailer I’ve ever seen had leaks! When I’ve taken it to shows people have actually told me I’d better repair the inside leaks and I get quite a chuckle out of it. I’ve also had men touch the side of the trailer and comment that they’d never seen aluminum rust before and walk off with a puzzle look on their face!
To me this trailer represents what people can do with their trailers if they don’t have the money or the knowledge to restore it to original condition, but still want to have a great time camping. The freedom of this trailer is if a rock hits it and causes a dent or a ding in the paint it doesn’t matter one bit. It just adds to the look. . I would advise anyone to let a professional check out your trailer before you make a decision to alter it. It could be worth saving. In my case original was not what I wanted.
For me camping represents a simpler time in life. It offers time with nature and friends and there’s no better way to do it than in a vintage camper. When I’m driving down the road pulling an old camper people always wave, honk and stop to talk to me at gas stations. I look at the new campers made today and think only that they remind me of a giant loaf of bread going down the road. I don’t even wonder where they’re going because I know when they get there they will probably spend more time inside than out. Yet every time I see a vintage camper it makes me want to go somewhere, to be outside and to be with friends. Let’s face it; vintage trailers are just a lot cuter than what they make now! My young nephew described it best when we saw a tiny vintage camper on the road with a boxy style and he said “Look! There goes a box full of fun!”
Hope you enjoy the pictures. I love it when I go camping and people point to my trailer and laugh.
That’s what camping is all about!
Originally published in issue 23 of the Vintage Camper Trailers Magazine.
Photos by Carol Youorski
