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View Full Version : Need Advice b/f Purchase of 2619


09-22-2002, 06:38 AM
My wife and I are looking to purchase our first camper - a Trail Manor.  I looked at a 1998 2619 this past weekend that had a few problems.  Would like to get advice from members as to how to make repairs if I purchased the trailer.

Problem 1: Hail damage on roof.  Damage was noticable, but I don't think think would cause problems with opening or closing the unit or with water leaking into the cabin.  Can hail damage be repaired?

Problem 2: Scratch in the side.  About 18" scratch in side of the trailer which was not very deep (1/4") from brushing up against something.  Didn't break through the aluminum shell, just dented it.  Again, wondered if this could be repaired?

Problem 3:  Letters were peeling off.  How do you reattach letters to camper?  Is there some type of adhesive that works well?

The price on the camper seems quite good, so I don't mind spending some time on these problems if they are correctable.  Any advice would be appreciated.

tipper
09-22-2002, 09:10 AM
Your damage is cosmetic and hopefully your price is adjusted to reflectxc this.  Repairing this would be difficult and probably not worth the expense even if possible.  You can try to paint match the side scratch if this bothers you but it certainly won't rust.  The roof damage is visible only while the unit is down.

The Al skin is soft and thin.  Dents will happen with use.

Call the factory regarding the decals.  I'm surprised these are peeling.  

Happytrails
09-22-2002, 09:27 AM
Hail damage is typically repaired via a "roof-over". That is basically putting a new aluminum skin over the existing roof......very expensive and again, only really noticeable when the trailer is down. Mine has a deep gouge in the side of the rear clam shell where someone tried to break into it at one point in time and cut it fairly deep (did break the skin). I'm wondering if plain ol bondo and a paint match up will fix it.......

Happytrails.........

dirtfan
09-22-2002, 11:35 AM
Hi:  

Your experience seems similar to ours.  We traveled from Mo to Colorado to look at and purchase a used '96 2720 Trailmanor.  We had been told it had slight hail damage (very common in that locale..even the dealer's new ones on the lot had it).  We were somewhat disappointed and almost didn't take it but decided to buy it with some of the other little things corrected for a pretty decent price.  We even inquired about having it repaired/covered etc. and were told the hail damage repair places couldn't do it due to the aluminum and all the Trailmanor experts on this site advised not covering it because it would affect the weight and the torsion operation.

We have had it only a couple of months and are sure glad we bought it.  The hail damage doesn't bother us at all.  We also had a dinge in the side and the white part painted over nicely with some auto touch up paint.

Should you get it hope you have fun with it.

Dirtfan

Gene
09-22-2002, 01:57 PM
Hail damage is typically repaired via a "roof-over". That is basically putting a new aluminum skin over the existing roof......very expensive and again, only really noticeable when the trailer is down. Mine has a deep gouge in the side of the rear clam shell where someone tried to break into it at one point in time and cut it fairly deep (did break the skin). I'm wondering if plain ol bondo and a paint match up will fix it.......

Happytrails.........
I have used UV Bondo to repair dents. Works well. I am trying to find a perfect match for the white paint. Home Depot and Mernards couldn't match it. Any advise?

Denny_A
09-22-2002, 03:31 PM
I have used UV Bondo to repair dents. Works well. I am trying to find a perfect match for the white paint. Home Depot and Mernards couldn't match it. Any advise?

Eugene (you genius; couldn't resist ;) ),

A professional paint store should be able to custon mix the color for you if you can supply a sample. Sherwin Wms, or Pittsburgh Paint, or.........


Denny_A

oilspot
09-22-2002, 11:15 PM
For paint matching, try an autobody shop.  My trailer has been repainted in sections and the color match is very good.  

Of course the paint won't stick to the crystal kote without some type of surface prep...  This might also be true for the bondo...

tipper
09-23-2002, 09:10 AM
If it were me<

I'd ask the factory for a snippet of the aluminum material and have it color scanned.  Of course the tint could have shifted a bit on yours or with TM's material supply but it's a cheap try.

Come to think of it the factory could probably help you here as they must do touch up rework in house.

Happytrails
09-23-2002, 12:43 PM
As far as matching paints, I would guess TM would know the paint number and brand. All you have to do is call them for that number, and go down to an auto supply paint store and ask for it. I wish I hadn't just closed up my TM or I could tell you a pretty spot on match for the interior......I don't know the exact number, but it's "heirloom white" by American Accents I believe, but the can's in the TM right now where I can't get to it. It's a bit lighter than the outside paint, but the inside walls and ceiling, it's perfect. It does however match the travel arms though on the outside. This can of paint happened to be sitting around the house when I bought it, and checked it out and it happened to match up.......after I ran out, I went down to my local hardware store and bought another can with the same number, "herloom white".....they had it in stock although my first can was years old and looked different!

Happytrails.........

Bruce
10-04-2002, 03:03 AM
Our TM got hammered by hail at the Black Hills National Rally in the summer of 2000. Our TM was almost new and at first I was dismayed by all the dents in the roof and the broken vent cover. Luckily we had full coverage at the time and my frown turned to a happy smile when I received a big check from the insurance co.
I replaced the vent with a nifty Fantastic Fan assembly and the dents don't bother me at all now. Why go to the bother and expense or repairing this purly cosmetic damage when it is likely that we experience hail again sometime in the future?

Bruce

10-07-2002, 05:25 AM
Thanks to all of you who replied to my original post.  We purchased the 2619 and are in the process of getting it ready to use next season.  May even get one weekend trip in this year if the weather cooperates.

10-07-2002, 01:01 PM
FYI
for filling dings, scrapes and other major blemishes. Just ran across a product today called "Lab Metal". It is as pourable, spreadable, liquid metal. It is aluminum based, no mixing required. Haven't had time to see if they have a website yet. It is available from Fastenal. It reminds me a lot of the old lead we used to use to do body work with. It is probably too expensive to use for repairing hail dents, but I would use it for deep gouges. It is drillable, machineable, and paintable once it completel dries. I will post a web site if I find one.

Aaron

10-07-2002, 01:44 PM
Found It!! ;D Here is the website for Lab Metal...www.alvinproducts.com/

Aaron

Gene
10-09-2002, 02:37 PM
I have used UV Bondo to repair dents. Works well. I am trying to find a perfect match for the white paint. Home Depot and Mernards couldn't match it. Any advise?
I talked to Jimmy Davis, from TrailManor. He said that I can purchase the interior or exterior colors in a spray can for $21.00. Kind of pricy, but I ordered the white paint. He said that they get the touchup paint  from the the manufacturer who supplies TM with the aluminum skin.

hal
10-09-2002, 03:03 PM
I bought a can of white paint from Walmart.  It was to be a temporary cover.  It matched so well that you cannot see any difference in the whites.  It cost me about $2-3.00 for the can.  

Hal

Gene
10-09-2002, 04:32 PM
I bought a can of white paint from Walmart. It was to be a temporary cover. It matched so well that you cannot see any difference in the whites. It cost me about $2-3.00 for the can.

Hal
What brand of paint or how does the label read?

10-15-2002, 03:57 PM
hi everybody,
we bought our 1997 2619 TM  for $8,500 from an ad on rvtraderonline last week, the seller dropped it off at Las Vegas after 17 hours from Colorado, we lucky just drove 5 hours from sounthern california to pick it up. we could not beleive this trailer so lite...our 2001 Nissan Pathfinder with brake module installed a day before at a local U-Haul store($180) and w/o WD we towed it back to california with out a  problem. first 100 miles we took easy on it, we remain @55mph then we go up to 60 mph to Barstow and then remain around 65-68 mph for the rest our trip.(half of our trip we put our SUV in cruise control) . MPG not too bad at all!!! just needed 3/4 tank to make all the way from Las vegas to sounthern california.....we stored in our gagare(our neighbors did not beleived it, until we open our gagare). anyway...we still need to learn about our fisrt trailer and still have alot of unanswer questions in our minds....thank all informations/tips/advises on this chat room...we love our TM....