Local company restores and renovates vintage Airstream and other travel trailers

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June 1, 2008

Local company restores, renovates vintage travel trailers

By DAN HEATH The Press Republican Sun Jun 01, 2008, 12:00 AM EDT

Passing motorists and incoming air travelers may wonder why a large collection of shiny silver Airstream trailers is sitting next to Plattsburgh International Airport.

Much like the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base, they are being prepared for a return to their former glory at GSM Vehicles, owned by Colin Hyde. The company is dedicated to custom restoration or renovation of vintage Airstream and other travel trailers.

"We can take a vintage shell and rebuild it to better than new standards," he said.

Hyde said there are about 40 Airstream trailers on the site, and several vintage trailers from other companies. About 90 percent of the trailers were brought to Plattsburgh from other parts of the country, while a few came from abroad.

In the beginning, people called GSM when they acquired a vintage Airstream. Lately, more and more are calling to see if GSM has one available for restoration.

Some let GSM handle all aspects of a restoration. They can direct the process, but the work has to be done at the Plattsburgh shop.

Others have GSM restore their Airstream to a solid base and then do the interior renovations themselves.

The boom in restoration of Airstream and other travel trailers is largely a phenomenon of the computer age, which makes it easier to find vintage parts and allows people to keep in touch through chat rooms, Hyde said.

People can usually find a vintage Airstream and buy it for a few thousand dollars. It's the restoration that gets expensive, sometimes in excess of $100,000, he said.

Hyde and his crew are also working on restoration of a 1952 Airstream Cruiser for actor Matthew McConaughey. The project, named Vintage Thunder, has been the subject of several articles in Airstream Life magazine.

The trailer is presently gutted, but an interior design mock up has illustrated several interesting features.

At McConaughey's request, portions of the interior will feature bamboo veneer. Hyde's wife, Susanne Brown, an interior design specialist, also found a brass sprinkler at a local antiques shop that will be used as a rotating shower head.

A pair of 1928 LaSalle driving lamps will receive a new layer of chrome and used as reading lamps, while door handles from a 1935 DeSoto Airstream automobile will serve as coat hooks.

Brown came up with the idea to use two shorter refrigerators side by side to provide the same space as a large refrigerator while keeping sight lines clean, a design feature that has proved popular with other clients.

McConaughey also asked that a classic poster of singer Bob Marley playing soccer be incorporated into the interior. Hyde and Brown found a way to print the poster on an aluminum panel that was attached to the trailer door, viewable in the canopy are when the door is open and in the interior when the door is closed.

Hyde is also involved with an attempt to make the lightest Airstream trailer ever, hopefully less than 1,000 pounds. He has shortened a 1956 Caravanner from 22 feet to 11 feet, and put it on a new chassis and installed a new floor.

"I'm calling it a Mini," Hyde said.

He said it will have to have everything found in a larger model, but in a 9-foot by 7-foot body with room to sleep three. That includes a gaucho (couch) that pulls out to a queen-size bed, a hammock-style bunk, removable refrigerator, hot-water heater, shower, port-a-potty that will fit in the shower pan, sink and a two-burner stove.

When everything is stowed away, there should be enough room to store a motorcycle inside.

Vintage Airstream trailers are much lighter than today's models, Hyde said, which is important considering our ever increasing fuel prices. The largest Airstream model made in the 1950s, at 30 feet, weighs about the same as a 16-foot model built today.

Hyde said models from each era have pluses and minuses. He and his crew can put all the modern touches into a vintage trailer.

Some of those modern touches, such as solar panels, multiple storage batteries, LED lighting and grey tanks for wastewater help travelers to camp entirely off the grid.

United Solar Ovonic makes flexible solar panels that can be bonded to the roof of a trailer. Those will also be used on McConaughey's trailer.

Hyde said certain of today's generators can also run on propane, which can be used to power the larger appliances where no hook-ups are available.

GSM uses a combination of insulations. The interior wall is first covered Reflectix, outer layers of metal-coated mylar that sandwich a bubble wrap-type material that blocks up to 97 percent of radiant heat.

Hyde said he and his wife bought their first vintage Airstream in 2001. They now own seven, in varying stages of restoration.

"It's worthwhile to fix up something that's quality to begin with," he said.

The couple and their son travel extensively, racking up more than 10,000 miles last year and more than 6,000 so far this year. That includes winter camping, as the trailers are well insulated.

Hyde also takes part in a vintage airstream podcast, www.thevap.com. It's now heard in 22 countries, and gets about 5,000 downloads a month. He joins host Tim Shephard and co-panelist Rob Baker in discussions of various vintage Airstream topics, such as restoration, rallies, appliances, polishing and more.

Hyde will have his 1959 Airstream Ambassador International at the Vintage Trailer Jam, to be held July 11-14 at Saratoga Spa State Park in Saratoga Springs. The trailer still has a lot of original equipment, such as the curtains, counters and an Ogden Water Filter that contains a charcoal canister for use when traveling the world.

Hyde was able to find a Dometic refrigerator, the same type used in that era Airstreams, and Melmac dinnerware that was popular at the time. He even found a copy of a June 1957 National Geographic, which detailed an Airstream caravan that traveled Europe led by Airstream founder Wally Byam.

The show will feature 100 trailers, with 80 of those spots reserved for vintage trailers that are at least 25 years old.

The event will include seminars by industry experts and restoration workshops, a vintage parts and travel accessories flea market, door prizes, entertainment and more. For more information, go to www.vintagetrailerjam.com or call 800-644-4620.

GSM has five employees in the shop and one in the office, as well as two other part-time employees.

"I'm looking for more people," Hyde said.

Specifically, that would include people with skills in metal fabrication, woodworking, cabinetry and electrical work. Those with abilities in more than one field are highly desirable, he said,

Hyde said to work in a field he's passionate about is a bonus.

"It's been fun, it's been great, it certainly is a lifestyle," he said. "There aren't many people who get to do their passion for a lifestyle."

dheath@pressrepublican.com