The Dixie Range is a classic in many 1950s travel trailers. Here's a great ad for them.

Conspicuity Rules for Travel Trailers

Customers occasionally write in asking which of their clearance or marker lights should be red and which should be amber. The government regulations are in place to keep everyone safe and to indicate at night whether a trailer is coming toward you or going the same direction you are.

In the US and Canada, at least, the general rule of thumb is that everything on the front 2/3 of the trailer should be amber and everything in the back is red.

Here's a poster from the NHTSA that is helpful. Unfortunately, they haven't produced a guide specific to travel trailers, but this will give you the general idea. If you click on the link you'll go to their website where you can read more details.

Dura-Torque Torsion Axle

In light of Robert's leaf spring axle rebuild description, I thought it might be interesting to see Wally Byam's sales pitch for the torsion axle he introduced in the Airstream line in 1961. Click on the photo to see it large enough to read.



A few thoughts. Mostly, Wally's promise of a better ride and less maintenance has proven to be true now 47 years later. We still see original axles on early 1960s trailers having had no maintenance at all through the years. Although they last a long time, the promise of never having to replace a torsion axle is not true. Most torsion axles from the 1960s and 1970s should now be replaced. They have lost their suspension and are now sagging.

Fortunately, three companies now make torsion axles. GKN, the current owner of the Dura-Torque brand still makes torsion axles in Jackson Center, Ohio. They bought Henschen, the original Dura-Torque maker sometime around 2005. Dexter Axle, the largest and best known trailer axle company in North America also makes torsion axles. Finally, Axis Products, a less known company manufactuers a torsion axle. Some experts believe the Axis product is the best choice among the three brands, but I don't think a definitive side-by-side comparison has been done.

Leaf Spring Axle Restoration

Robert Hasselmann has a great old 1948 Mobile Sportsman trailer. He did a really great job restoring it and documents in great detail the way to rebuild a leaf spring axle. Take a look...

Roberts' Vintage Trailer Axle

1960s Airstream Front Window Guard Reborn

In 1967, Airstream started offering a new rock guard made of a transparent plastic called Butyrate (derived from cellulose). In 1968 it became a standard feature.



From the 1968 Airstream brochure:

"Front window guard of tough transparent Butyrate. Protects window from flying rock and gravel yet maintains visibility straight through the trailer's rear window. Used as an awning, the window guard allows full light to enter yet diffuses direct rays of the sun."

They were a great design. The only problem was the Butyrate. It turned out to be crap and the transparency degraded. Today, the few originals that are left are somewhat translucent, but not transparent. The original goal of "visibility straight through the trailer's rear window" is lost.

I decided it was time to resurrect the original window guard. I borrowed an original from one of Colin Hyde. I sent the yellowed and cracked original off to our thermoformer and had him create a form based on the original. We knocked a few out in Lexan and sourced out all the hardware and trim. I hired Colin to assemble them and we're offering them on our site. I don't know if they'll be popular or not, but I think they're pretty cool.

My Favorite All-in-One AC/DC Power Center

Progressive Dynamics makes great power converters. We sell their 9200 Series converters. As far as I know, they're the only converters that include a desulfation mode which spikes the voltage for 15 minutes every 21 hours while the trailer is in storage. This increased voltage mixes up the battery electrolyte and prevents battery stratification that leads to premature battery death.

Now, Progressive Dynamics has come out with the 4500 Series. The 4500 Series is the 9200 converter PLUS a 12-volt fuse box PLUS a 110-volt breaker panel all in one box. It makes wiring much easier AND it is less expensive than buying the components separately. We sell the 60-amp version and it is already becoming popular for trailers that are undergoing complete electrical rebuilds. I'll be installing one in my Caravanner.