Stainless Steel!

C

Cal429

Novice
Given the amount of work to maintain the aluminum finish, I would love to have had an option of all stainless steel instead of aluminum sheeting. Two months into ownership of my new 560, the stainless fenders look absolutely perfect, while the aluminum is beginning to display its known issues. Not sure whether stainless steel's practical from either a technical or financial standpoint, but this is a wish-thread and I'm just wishing.
 
I was thinking more about some potential difficulty in working with stainless. You are certainly right that weight would be higher with stainless -- steel weighs about three times as much as aluminum, and it may be that the optimum stainless thickness is either more or less than for aluminum. Expense? Absolutely, but I'm talking wishes here, and I'd certainly today be willing to kick in an extra thousand or two (maybe even more) to know my trailer would look as good ten years from now as those stainless steel 18-wheelers' tanks on the interstate.
 
Jim,

After determining the correct gauge size, material & price I talked to Cary about this opportunity. With a thinner gauge than the aluminum I figured it would add about 40#'s to a trailer and about $400 to the cost of materials for all SS. A $1,000 option would have been a no brainer to me. I was ready to do just the side walls when it was up there, but no go.

The issue is reported to be the equipment for the cutting and forming of the SS. Hand tools can be used for the aluminum but quickly become labor and blade intensive for SS. A serious capital investment would be required to go all SS. DeLorean tried it, but the return on investment didn't work well. Repeat: This is part of the CI deal.

Hilditch
 
In my line of work, we do 99% aluminum work. The rare SS job is a gigantic headache - especially if you don't have tooling for it.
 
Hilditch,
A friend came over last weekend. It was the first time he had seen the CI. He said "Its brand new." Its just over a year old. After we return from a trip I wash with Woody's Pine Wash. I towel dry. I then spray a cloth and apply the Woody's Wax. After an hour or so, I wipe off the Woody's Wax.
Time: Wash and towel dry....30 minutes or less.
Apply Woody's Wax.....15 minutes
Wipe off Woody's Wax..45 minutes or less
It looks very clean and the finish is consistent. It still gets some stains, but Woody makes some killer polish.
So after a week on the road, about an 1 1/2 hours clean up. This is less than the time to detail the tow vehicle.
Steve
 
By using the Woody Metal Sealant over the wax I don't get any stains and don't have to get the wax out but every 6 months. I just wash it with the Pine Wash when we get home.

Glad you like it Steve. A few minutes and a coat of Woody's under the bra might have saved Jim a lot of work.

Hilditch
 
Well, as one politician said when he was caught in a contradiction, "I always reserve the right to be smarter today than I was yesterday." I'd love to have my trailer's virginity back so I could apply those protective coatings, but that's not gonna happen. "Get over it." It still gets those lustful looks from passersby.

Given Hilditch's cost/weight stats, stainless would have been a wonderful improvement. But I guess I was also right when I surmised above, "I was thinking more about some potential difficulty in working with stainless" as being the primary drawback.
 
Jim, You might want to call Woody. The polish they have is amazing. They sent me a sample. I was so amazed, I thought it was over shined because it was so much better. Try it on a spot and you can always let it go back.
Steve
 
Having seen both a weathered, and a polished CI, unless a really noticeable streak or spot develops, I don't see a problem with the "patina" that develops. mho
 
Thanks, folks, those are good suggestions. But they'll have to await my return from my coast-to-coast trailering trip, which begins tomorrow. San Francisco vicinity to Albuquerque for a couple of days, then on to New England for four weeks, then back via Albuquerque to California.
 
What a great chance for an artistic endever! Here lies an opportunity to turn a well seasoned tear into a unique piece of camouflage art with three cans of rattle paint in flat light colors. This covers items 1 through 4 above also.

Bear, thank you for your recent informative posts.

Hilditch
 
Heck, at the moment fibre glass exterior is appealling - anything durable that doesn't have to be routinely bathed, polished, and buffed would spark my interest. When I bought the Raindrop, I wanted a reliable, low maintenance and easy to keep trailer.
 
I am liking the way our 500 Special is "weathering". Of course it is kept garaged here in central Florida. We just "shampoo" it and towel dry it! Perhaps you should check out a Lil' Snoozy.
 
Of course, if you do nothing the aluminum oxidizes and takes no maintenance to maintain the finish. Of course it will no longer be bright and shinny, but just think about how many people’s eye sight you will be saving who will not be blinded by a specular silver globe that they see on the road.

Fwiw, this was a response to a question about aluminum oxidizing: “Yes aluminum does oxidize just like any other metal. The difference is that aluminum oxidizes the same color as the metal therefore you cannot tell that is oxidizing. Once is oxidizes a little bit, the oxidize protects the metal and it does not oxidize any more.”
 
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