I just bought a 1977 WW 2 horse bumper pull. On the outside, it's mostly cosmetic (crappy paint peeling off). On the inside, the wood in the walls and doors is rotted (also floors, but that part I've got the solution for--pressure treated pine lumber with a rubber mat on top). I think, as suggested in another post, I'll have to have someone cut the top lip off to put something back in there, though the wood is rotted enough I think it will be easy to just pull out with a crowbar--sticking my fingers in there makes it wiggle). The whole thing is going to be stripped down and gone through, also will be rewired, new tires, etc, etc.I've played with a couple of ideas for what to replace it with, as I'd really prefer NOT to have slatted wood walls, but the amount of materials out there is staggering. I was thinking thin rubber matting over a thin piece of plywood, or, if we could figure a way to make it stick, thick rubber on the walls (no wood to rot), or, maybe fiberglass (but then I'm worried about kicking holes). Then I saw this PolyMax, which looks like it's slick and shouldn't cause any damage, but, again, a million choices and I'm feeling overwhelmed. I was wondering if you could provide your experiences with how you've rehabbed your horse trailers.My other question is the frame. Obviously, after nearly 40 years, there's going to be some rust on the frame (though it has original tires on it right now, so it probably wasn't heavily used). What's the best way to prevent it happening again? Primer and Paint? A Rust-oleum type of spray? I'm doing it myself with help from folks who have the tools, but I also want to be able to bring them ideas that are workable, they can then teach me how to do it, and I go back for more help at a stuck point/next step.Thanks in advance for the help, and sorry for the novel!
Posted 2016-05-16 7:28 PM (#167066 - in reply to #167065) Subject: RE: Rotting wood and reasonable replacements
Expert
Posts: 1989 Location: South Central OK
Nothing beats a good paint job from someone that knows what they are doing. A local Junior college with an auto body department can fix you up for the cost of materials. The walls could be lined with a marine grade plywood or that heavy plastic they make cutting boards out of would work wonders. I would in both cases still line with a spray glued matting that will protect your material and offer some cushion to the horses.
Rotting wood and reasonable replacements
