Continuing the "rough out" cutout that I did with the Fein Multimaster I try to find a way to finish the not-so-neat cuts of the opening. I tried the Multimaster's rasp, it's wood cutting saw, even a spoke shave and none works. I then decided to use the 4" angle grinder fitted with a 80 grid sanding disc. I knew I have to be very careful as it is very aggressive. I have the angle grinder a long time and over the years I've gotten very good at it. I was able to make a very even result as if it was milled with a router.
the rather rough cut out - you can see the chipped edges
i use a wine box inside to catch the dust
I send the edge smooth and chamfer the edges with the small sander as well as the Fein. I decided that the plywood cross section is beautiful and would be a shame to cover it with an edging. I applied a coat of polyurethane top coat to waterprove it.
applying polyurethane with a small rag
everything is impeccably made - the hold down brackets for the black water tank are screwed down with machine screws to the steel anchors on the other side
similar steel anchors securing the toilet flange - note there are even staples securing the anchors
Once I am satisfied with the top side finish of the shower pan I reinforce the bottom side where the void is with layers of fiberglass cloth.
I needed a trip to Home Depot to get a tube of silicone latex (yes, not the pricier 100% silicone) caulking for installing everything in the bathroom back. I thought I would replace the ugly white duplex outlet inside the back door with grey one like I did in my Westfalia Vanagon Camper 20 years ago.
the one from Westfalia factory was brown but spec grade - the grey one i replace it with matches the light grey cabinet much better
this cheesy white one put in by Airstream's so called "upfit" - the brute who installed it tighten the screw so hard the faceplate is curved
the chainsaw massacre hack job on the otherwise pristine cabinet door
While I was at Home Depot ready to buy the grey duplex outlet and cover plate I thought to myself what am I doing. I am throwing good money after a poorly conceived feature. I will never use the outlets so spending even $5 is a waste of hard earned money. I think I would just remove the duplex outlet and the box and cover the hole with a blank cover plate.
the same hack job on the cut out for TV antenna outlet and 12V supply - another Airstream's "upfit"
WTF - please enlighten me what are the rationales of a landline phone jack and a cable TV jack!!! Yes, these are the "up market enhancements" for the US RV buyers
only a moron will implement a microswitch in this fashion
i will save my breath for these two eyesores - your days are number
solar assist accelerated curing
the shower pan is supported by a layer of polyurethane foam that is contoured to the slopes of the pan; while i can purchase and use the 2-part polyurethane foam sold at tap plastic I decided to save the money and use a different approach with a bit of yankee ingenuity
cedar shims - i can never throw anything away
the taper of the shims perfectly match the slope of the old foam
i glued them down with the polyester bonding resin - the void area should be strong enough to be step on by tiny
Now it time to tackle the loose ends on the sink cabinet. While removing the cabinet I have to struggle with the stiff braided PVC hose. I have to use a heat gun to soften the hose to disconnect them from the barb fittings. I just do not like the stress the hose put on the much more flexible hoses of the faucet. I want to replace them with better quality hoses that is more flexible. The braided PVC hose are totally unnecessary for the low pressure water system.
my hose of options
the last time I need the heat gun to work the the hoses
i settled on the food grade silicone hose - it is very flexible at any temperature
The reason that my faucet hose kept binding is because it has a larger bending radius than the width confined by the two steel hold down brackets serving as strain relief. I relocated the two brackets to provide maximum space afforded by the triangular cross section of the "tunnel". I have been waiting to fix this problem a very long time but didn't want to remove the sink cabinet just to do it.
the two brackets relocated - you can see the much bigger bending radius they allow the hose when fully extended
while i am at it i apply good quality american made (heavy duty scottch/3m brand) packing tape over the cheap german made ones by westfalia
the last thing is to replace the cheap chrome plated sink drain with a all stainless steel one; in my perpetual crusades for perfection i line up the cross of the drain to face the user
while the stainless steel drain assembly is well made the paper gasket really turn me off; when I replace the one in the kitchen sink I spent hours fighting the inevitable leak because of the stiff ABS drain pipe; the paper gasket got wet and just disintegrated; my solution was to cut my own gasket out of paper cardboard
When I am finally through with Brunnhilde she would be better than the day she left Westfalia's factory. The professionals that converts your everyday sports sedan into race cars like to refer to a well thought out and executed conversion as "very well sorted".
Update 05.06.2013 15:49 PST
I just realize I overlook one thing with the replacement of the braided PVC hose with silicone hose. I never camp at camp sites using "city" water connection. To maintain the ability to connect to high pressure water supply I cannot replace them with flexible silicone hose.
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