1993 Revcon Trailblazer - Project Overhaul

Xtreme XJ

Adventurer
WOW !! Well done... I spent some time in Baja in the 90s with a old time racer from the 60s and we saw a Revcon and I drooled...
He said that Condor raced a 4WD motor-home years ago in the 1000... had a seat belt on the crapper... I just thought how cool...
How are y'all still married... I know if me & my wife tried to do together what you two are... I'd be living in the Revcon... not by choice.
Keep up the good work... again well done...
 

AdvWife

Active member
WOW !! Well done... I spent some time in Baja in the 90s with a old time racer from the 60s and we saw a Revcon and I drooled...
He said that Condor raced a 4WD motor-home years ago in the 1000... had a seat belt on the crapper... I just thought how cool...
How are y'all still married... I know if me & my wife tried to do together what you two are... I'd be living in the Revcon... not by choice.
Keep up the good work... again well done...

Hahahaha! This isn’t our first foray into restoration. He built a 1970 Chevelle and we were working on my 1961 F100 before this came into our lives. It’s kinda our thing. ?
 

AdvWife

Active member
It has been a hot minute (literally) since I've updated. Summer is in full blast here in southern AZ, so we're only fitting a few hours of work in the evenings. Usually, it is at sunset or early morning.

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But we've been plodding along with the rear of the Revcon. We concentrated on the fiberglass sections first, before moving onto the aluminum sides. The rear cap needed additional rivets, holes filled with fiberglass, and of course loads of sanding, prep, primer and paint.

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It was over 100 by 8:00AM yesterday when Mike finished. Too hot to actually paint, but he finished off the rear cap and roof. While he was painting, I scraped, sanded and painted the rear window so when it is time to install, they are a crisp black, as opposed to scratched and faded.

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Summer slows us down tremendously. But we're trying to get her dried in before monsoons arrive.
 

AdvWife

Active member
The heat is starting to take it's toll. It hasn't been below 105* in over a week. It has been pushing 110* quite a lot which limits our time on the Revcon.

The more we work on it the more of a puzzle it is. Can't reinstall the windows without interior walls. Can't install interior walls before replacing the rotted floor because some (not all) of the insulation sits directly on top of the floor.

So we ripped up the floor. But a funny thing happens to steel screws when their imbedded in aluminum and become rusted. They don't turn. Mike had to rip the ¾" plywood by brute force alone. Then we could grind the screws out.

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Once removed and cleaned, we were able to insulate the floors.

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Then we could start, in earnest, on the walls. Mike made patterns, then cut out the front cap walls out of birch. We were hoping that the birch would look good enough to clear coat and be finished walls, but the ply is too fragile and it just didn't look finished. So we made the decision to move forward with laminating bamboo to them.

This is the first time we're trying this laminating thing out. It was tedious, but I got both walls cut, fitted-ish, and glued. I have no idea what they look like since it has been 110 everyday this week when we get home from work. I really hope it works out.

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While I was doing this, Mike was working on the floor panel for the rear of the Revcon. The back wall couldn't be fitted without the panel in. Once fitted, we covered it with sealer and set it in place.

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We're hoping to get as much progress done as possible before our camping trip. Two weeks from now we'll be in cooler temperatures in the quiet northern desert living out of our teardrop and Jeep.
 

Fatboyz

Observer
Wow 110 degrees! Being in Northern Canada I can't imagine that. My build halts over the long winter as it's -30- 35. Weather is our enemy but opposite ends of the spectrum. The construction is coming along great though, good job!
 

AdvWife

Active member
Wow 110 degrees! Being in Northern Canada I can't imagine that. My build halts over the long winter as it's -30- 35. Weather is our enemy but opposite ends of the spectrum. The construction is coming along great though, good job!

We just hibernate during different months of the year. Haha!

Thank you!
 

AdvWife

Active member
But it's a dry heat!

Where did you get the Bamboo at?

Also, 67 Mustang on the lift?

We got the bamboo in Portland from the guy who was storing the Revcon for the previous owner. Great dude.

Bamboo Revolution
Mike Pullen
503-914-6262
Mike@bamboorevolution.com

It is 1970 Chevelle. Or, the other woman. Here’s a link to Mikes most recent event .
 

AdvWife

Active member
It's weird how excited I am that the three windows we took out in May are finally back in. All three bamboo walls came out beautifully, which meant the windows could go back in. The two front windows went in with little effort.

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The rear window, on the other hand, fought us tooth and nail. For some reason, it seemed like the fiberglass shrank. We just couldn't get the window to fit. But in the end, with a lot of effort, it too was in, which meant we are finally dried in.

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And shiny new tail lights.

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We still have both sides of the Revcon to repaint. But reaching this milestone feels pretty good. We know what to expect now with the two aluminum sides, and they'll be done independently of one another so only one side is exposed at a time. We're getting there. Slowly.
 

AdvWife

Active member
We went on vacation....

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Trip write up is here!

But now, monsoon season is in full force, so we haven't had much motivation to go outside in the humidity. I can report that we only have one tiny leak on the newly installed rear window that a little bit of sealant cured.

We found out today that Mike is being sent to New Mexico for work until late November. So unfortunately, this thread will go dark until then, but when he returns, we'll be in a great weather window and have fully restocked bank accounts to plod on further with the project. Not quitting but going on a hiatus!

Thank you all for following along, and I promise, we'll be back in a few months.
 
I too was disappointed that this thread is still on Hiatus. But then again it is 2020 and man this year has just sucked so I will continue to anxiously await the return of this project.
 
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