in good shape - brunnhilde part 9

I almost decided to not to mess with painting the North American specific RV utility ports. I was afraid of what I may regret of having removing the craps that Airstream put on and cause catastrophic consequences.

With a cup of coffee this morning I gather my courage. I dived head first into the challenge, but very wary of what curve balls Airstream may have in store for me as surprises.

The communication port is the prime example of Airstream's attention to details - the blatant lack of that is. Even the gasket is grossly misaligned with a fold. I carefully clean out the rust and brush on some silver metallic paint that matches the body's finish.

here is the quality of "upfit" workmanship of Airstream - they didn't give a shit

 the AC power inlet fasteners are through 4 penn nuts - all is well and i have no doubt this is part done by Westfalia

i used a mirror to see what is behind the "city water" port - not good

seeing what is behind the city water port, i decided to not try to remove it; actually i did but what that entails is more than i care to risk; i decided to forego painting it

love the working height of the kitchen counter; so often people complain the appearance of a modern kitchen being too sterile, or institutional; not me; i love the laboratory functionality

 the AC inlet cover is masked summarily with the aid of an exacto knife

 all ready for spray painting

 my trusty harborfreight paint gun

 my made in the USA air compressor with all cast iron piston cylinders

Staring at at the black "city water" inlet only infuriated me not being able to remove it to paint. I decided to paint it insitu. I cut out the plastic mask and masked it with masking tape in a few minutes.

 the temperature barely broke above 55-degree F and i was done painting

this extra work really cleaned up the look - making lemonade from lemon

before - the lack of clear delineation

the pleasure way with shinny bumper and skirt paint on the ground effect kit

more striking is this photo when brunnhilde still have the bad makeup, horrible tattoos, gaudy hair pin, and loud dress; someone loved this dress intensely, for just one night... and then threw it away

make marla singer look classy and infinitely more attractive

someone loved this dress intensely, for just one night... and then threw it away

now burnnhilde is just splendid

the shade side - after

a close up of the painted utility ports; that onan-cummin' generator's (and the low hanging exhaust pipe) days are numbered

the scratched up left-rear bumper cap - before

I went ahead and called up my local Freightliner dealer to order the MB wheel center caps for the steel wheels. I could get the Chinese made knockoffs for a fraction of the price. I won't because from what I have read, they don't properly engage the rims of the lug nuts as the genuine OEM ones. You get what you pay for.

cheap Chinese center caps for the wheels