I wanted an awning for the Scamp but professionally made was more than our camping funds could handle …so I ordered some awning material from www.Sailrite.com and made my own. Material, thread, needles, binding, rope and poles cost around $200.
The material was 46” wide …and I was sewing two pieces together……I had to roll it up to get it through my little portable machine.
I had enough material for a scalloped border on all 3 sides..but we opted to make it 8’ x 7’ instead of 7’x7’. I think we made a good decision. Less bending for Jim when walking under it.
I trimmed the scallops in black to go with the car. Trying to tie car..camper..and awning together.
Jim made the poles out of big dowels. We had seen one at the Tin Can Tourist meet that had been made this way and really liked it. The tensioners make it so simple to put up. Jim already had the rebar stakes made for a previous project. He painted them red for better visibility.
We didn’t have it drawn as tight as we could have since the track (rail) for the awning edge had been installed the day before and we wanted to make sure the caulk was dry around the screws.
Jim will be able to stand up under the awning when tightened up. ….not so inside the camper.
Sure looks tiny doesn’t it?
If we find we need them…I can make screens and a wind guard for it….only trouble is..everything extra is something that will have to be stored either in the car or camper.
Red is not my favorite color…but with the red on the wheels of the Hudson and the red S and stripe on the camper, I felt the only color for the awning could be red. White would be cooler but show more dirt and black just wouldn’t do in the heat.
Dual exhaust? No….Jim mounted these under the camper to carry the 6’ awning poles.
Jim has spent the last week fixing spots on the car. There were several places where rust was bubbling up and he wanted to remove the cruiser skirts that came on it…that meant filling in the holes for the magnets and bolts. Once you do that you have to repaint.
Dressed and ready to help if needed.
Temperature is in the 70’s and not a hint of a breeze…perfect for painting.
Having roll up doors on the rear as well as the front helps for ventilation. You can see the screened area between the sides and roof. They also help with air flow.
Jim prefers to work on the engines…not the body and not painting…but he can do it.
There is a knack to getting a good paint job besides having the paint mixture right…..You have to have your timing down pat. Too fast and it goes on too thin…too slow and it’s too thick and runs. Jim moved at the same rate of speed over the whole car.
Hard on a bad back…you cannot stop…stand up and stretch…just keep moving at the same pace.
It is wet and looks very shiny….but will dry to the flat satin finish it had before.
All dried and ready to ride.
Jim picked up a set of fender skirts and will get them fabricated to fit the Hudson. He doesn’t like the squared wheel well. The body had so much work done to it he doesn’t feel Hudson skirts would fit it anymore.
Friday we go to a Hudson car show…..dry camping at the site. Gives us a chance to use our new awning and see how it works and what else we’ll need. Then we have another Tin Can Tourist meet a few days later. All these little camping trips should get us in shape for our VA,NY and VT trip. For now we will be staying in the little thing for a few days at a time….wonder how it will be for a month or more?…..with a dog and a bird, but of course, they go everywhere we go, whenever we go.
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