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So our build is officially underway. Finally!
Some of you may be familiar since have a few posts kicking around but will now keep everything here in this thread.
First, the backstory: Currently own a 50 yr old travel trailer that we call the Shasta Disasta. Turned out to be way more than was ever expected. A total, down to the bare frame rebuild. You can see all of that here https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...a-rebuild.html It's been a blast to own and the attention it draws never ends. It's been dragged around exclusively by my '65 F250, and so far has been thru 26 states racking up over 10,000 miles. It's been great and we continue to use it all the time. But, it does have it's shortcomings. At times the wet bath is less than ideal and not having permanent sleeping quarters tends to get old. So, even tho I swore I'd never do it again, me and the Mrs. set out to find something that would better fit our needs. Since wasn't interested in a larger trailer we set our sites on a motorhome. After bouncing some ideas back and forth, decided on a class C since have always liked the ones built on the F series chassis as opposed to aaaallll the other ones. Would've loved a '65 to match my daily but early versions were built on the 3/4 ton chassis and don't offer any more space than the Disasta so just wouldn't make sense. So here we are. A 1975 Roll-A-Long. Built on a F350 chassis with a 175" wheelbase gives us almost what we want. Will take a bit of work tho.
They're not extinct, but can be difficult to find. Nationwide you may see 1 come up for sale every 4-5 months or so. Actually bought this 1 from an FTE member back in January. If ever there was a legit example of "ran when parked", this was it. Had been sitting 10++ years but was well loved in it's better days. Made a trip out to meet with the owner and first had to see if it would even run. Eventually, agreed on a price and then returned a second day to do some brake work and install some new tires. This first round of pics are the day we drove it home. Over 400 miles. A few snags here and there but alas, we made it home.
Last edited by AZSCAWPION; Dec 13, 2025 at 01:32 PM.
We lost the power brakes within the first 50mi. Lots of mountain grades between Long Beach (where we picked it up) and Prescott AZ (where we call home) so were held up a day waiting for parts. Further into our trip it developed a pretty good oil leak as we discovered most of the pan bolts were loose. Tightening everything up kept things manageable. Aside from that, this thing ran and drove great. 0-6000ft was a breeze for the 460/C6. Impressive since it scaled at just over 9500lbs.
As the 3rd owners of this rig, the clock shows just over 84k miles and everything mostly original. Inside the cab, the swiveling buckets do little to keep you comfortable but are in good shape. New foam and some custom upholstery will take care of that. Factory A/C doesn't work but it's all there so I don't care. Beyond that, the living quarters sports green **** carpeting (which was likely the optional up grade) with original linoleum underneath. A brand new (installed 10yrs ago) never used refrigerator is in place of the old. I would have chosen a generator over **** carpeting but the original owners didn't and the rear ladder and rooftop deck were left off the options list as well. Besides the microwave and "updated" ceiling lights, you'd be hard pressed to find anything that hasn't been there since it was built 50yrs ago. Best of all, everything still works! Pics after initial clean up.
Plan for this project is to do complete tear down and rebuild. Would like to keep as much of the original framing as possible. Have noticed some water damage but nowhere near the Disasta. Coach will be stretched up to 2ft to accommodate rear sleeping quarters and new bathroom layout. Haven't decided yet if going to lengthen the frame (has already been stretched) or just add it to the *** end. Of course, modern amenities throughout, new cabinetry, air suspension for leveling, new electrical, solar, etc,etc. Will still keep the vintage look with the goal of making everything seem original. These rigs carried a price tag of about $21k when new so the challenge now will be keeping to the all in budget of $15k. On paper, compared to the Disasta, having 3x the number of wheels and tires, an engine and complete drive train, etc. it should be impossible. Have already acquired a ton of stuff for the rebuild and am nearly halfway thru my budget already. I'm confident tho since to date am nearly 30% under budget.
So first day demo not too bad. Taking way longer than we thought. Partly due to fact that I had surgery on my hand a few days ago so definitely not a big help. My wife tho, she's a trooper. Never afraid to get her hands dirty. Was kind of a given when she agreed to marry me So back mostly gutted, tomorrow plan to attack the kitchen area. Am very surprised at how well this thing is constructed. When we bought the Shasta everyone told us how well built they were. Truth be told I couldn't believe that thing lasted 10yrs let alone more than 40. It was a joke. Part of the reason demo took so long today is the fact that this thing is very well constructed. All the cabinet skins are glued, and framing is screwed and stapled.
So there was a noticeable seam that had separated in the floor that had just figgered was due to no support at the seam. Couldn't really tell for sure tho. Well tuns out that the floor was actually grooved out so that left and right holding tanks could be piped together. It seems that was the separation that had noticed. Buuuut, the fun part is that when removing some of the dinette framing found this screw that went thru the water line. Been there since day 1 and no signs of any water damage. 50 yrs later I pull the screw out and now of course have water leaking everywhere.
Never a dull moment...
Was amazed that for how long this motorhome sat there was absolutely no signs of any rodents. Nothing anywhere. However, during initial cleanup had noticed what looked like poppy seeds all over the place. On cabinet shelves, on the bathroom counter top, etc. Didn't make sense. Now finding more of it. Everywhere! Huge pile under the shower, whole bunch around the cabover. What I thought was water damage at the front corners turns out not to be. Sure seems obvious now. Termites!
Piece by bite sized piece is how the interior is coming apart. Even counter tops glued to cabinets. All that's left is the fridge cab and pantry. Fridge doesn't fit thru door so will see if doors/frame can be removed or maybe just leave till we start tearing down the walls. It's new so I know it wasn't born there. Can't say same for the shower. I think it might'a been born there since will have to be cut in half in order to fit thru the door. The new layout will have just a shower pan so not concerned about reusing. Next up is gonna have to be peeking inside the walls to see what we're up against as far as the termite situation goes. Haven't seen any live activity so far but everyone I've spoken to says they don't just disappear on their own and since burrow into wood are very good at going undetected. We'll see. Biggest challenge may be just keeping everything contained. Don't need these buggers spreading to anything else on my property. Aside from all the agida, carted just under 700lbs of cabinet parts to the dump. At least I know I can build them back better and lighter.
Wow, what a project! What are the plans for the truck? Did you out new tires on it?
Thanks for bringing us along!
Everything on the truck will be redone. Once the coach is torn down I'll be able to fit the truck into my garage. Planning to start with engine/trans rebuild, then some fresh paint. Threw a set of used tires on for the ride home and for the time being. Figgering likely a 2yr project, so new shoes will be one of the last things I do.
So since hitting the termite road block I've become an expert in the field. I now know more than anyone should about termite infestations and can now move forward. The only way to effectively eliminate the buggers is to fumigate. As luck would have it, seems to really be only 1 company in the state of AZ that will not only do it, but will do it on a motorhome. The next hurdle was figuring out where to do it. For them to come to me would be nearly 4x the cost of me bringing the mh to them. So, decided to drive 100+mi. down to them. Fortunately a friend offered up a place on his property for a few days. Pics so proof it did happen since most don't believe it when I tell them.
Now back at home can really start tearing into this project.
Lots of progress if anyone's interested. Not much traffic here lately but oh well.
Now that we're deep into this project can really see the extent of the damage. Quite unbelievable actually. My initial plan was to reuse as much of the framing as possible, figgering that would have to repair/replace some areas as needed. Turns out not an inch anywhere that was salvageable. Managed to keep a few sections for templating only, but other than that, every stick of wood is trash. Another 700lbs to the dump. Gives me a good indication of what all this weighed so can figger on how to lighten things up. Will be adding at least a few hundred lbs with the changes we're making so would like to offset as much as possible. A bit of clean up still to do, then removal of deck and whatever last bits of wood remain.
So back mostly gutted, tomorrow plan to attack the kitchen area. Am very surprised at how well this thing is constructed. When we bought the Shasta everyone told us how well built they were. Truth be told I couldn't believe that thing lasted 10yrs let alone more than 40. It was a joke. Part of the reason demo took so long today is the fact that this thing is very well constructed. All the cabinet skins are glued, and framing is screwed and stapled.
