Bed ends and base repairs.

We thought we had better start getting our new Dandy 6 ready to rock and roll so we have started to do a few repairs.

When we bought it we noticed the bed ends needed a bit of sorting out, the frame work was broken and repaired with an angle brace and rivets on one and the other was broken and not repaired. We also noticed the ply had got damp and de-laminated on the bed ends in places and one had been damaged at some point. One of the bed bases had also gone a bit wavy so as Mrs P likes a firm bed we decided to replace that as well.

We replaced the bed base with 6mm ply instead of 4mm as we think the difference in weight is negligible. When we took the ply off the bed ends we noticed they are only welded on 2 sides of the box section probably to allow the ply to sit flush, so we have welded up that side too and ground it flat to give it more strength and stop them twisting when putting them up.

We tried to source some new hinges but can't find any at the moment so we have repaired the old ones and zapped a weld on them to stop them opening up again.

Wavy bed base:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Broken corners:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Corners before and after welding:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Job done:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Looking good Mr and Mrs P, very thorough as always. I know where to bring ours when they need new boards.

Bet it ends up as phoenix two

mike wrote:Bet it ends up as phoenix two

There can only be one Phoenix.

Mrs P has called the 6 Dylan. As it is going to be the chill out wagon for longer breaks.

Mr P called it other things over the weekend.

has anyone tried, or thought about fixing that foil type insulation under the beds to possibly stop condensation under the mattress?

Krist0n wrote:has anyone tried, or thought about fixing that foil type insulation under the beds to possibly stop condensation under the mattress?

Morning Krist0n,

No we haven't. Mum and Dad used army surplus roll mats to line the ply under the beds, these do a really good job of stopping the condensation even down to sub zero temperatures.

Ben

Krist0n wrote:has anyone tried, or thought about fixing that foil type insulation under the beds to possibly stop condensation under the mattress?

Not tried it i know some say it works but its the wrong thing to do in my mind,fixing anything would hide any problems that may start,we had condensation in the delta when we started,tried the camping mats under the mattress and they helped but didn't cure it,them i got a self inflating air bed 5cm put it on top of the mattress it cured the condensation and made the bed more comfy,Nancy gets too warm in bed she now uses a proper air bed on top to help her keep cool and it stops condensation.

I've been trialing those foam type roll mats myself, but they don't do much to help. I think I will try the self inflating mattress if I can't get hold of the insulation cheaply.

Phoenix wrote:We thought we had better start getting our new Dandy 6 ready to rock and roll so we have started to do a few repairs.

When we bought it we noticed the bed ends needed a bit of sorting out, the frame work was broken and repaired with an angle brace and rivets on one and the other was broken and not repaired. We also noticed the ply had got damp and de-laminated on the bed ends in places and one had been damaged at some point. One of the bed bases had also gone a bit wavy so as Mrs P likes a firm bed we decided to replace that as well.

We replaced the bed base with 6mm ply instead of 4mm as we think the difference in weight is negligible. When we took the ply off the bed ends we noticed they are only welded on 2 sides of the box section probably to allow the ply to sit flush, so we have welded up that side too and ground it flat to give it more strength and stop them twisting when putting them up.

We tried to source some new hinges but can't find any at the moment so we have repaired the old ones and zapped a weld on them to stop them opening up again.

Wavy bed base:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Broken corners:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Corners before and after welding:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Job done:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I noticed that my bed frame was twisted and need to fix but have noticed that there is welds on it already ..my question is how many times can you weld the same spot ???firstly I know I must check that the top bar is not twisted rather than me thinking that the weld on one side has given ???

Caz said

I noticed that my bed frame was twisted and need to fix but have noticed that there is welds on it already ..my question is how many times can you weld the same spot ???firstly I know I must check that the top bar is not twisted rather than me thinking that the weld on one side has given ???

Read what you have asked then read Phoenix's comment:

Phoenix wrote:
We thought we had better start getting our new Dandy 6 ready to rock and roll so we have started to do a few repairs.

When we bought it we noticed the bed ends needed a bit of sorting out, the frame work was broken and repaired with an angle brace and rivets on one and the other was broken and not repaired. We also noticed the ply had got damp and de-laminated on the bed ends in places and one had been damaged at some point. One of the bed bases had also gone a bit wavy so as Mrs P likes a firm bed we decided to replace that as well.

Phoenix was talking about the bed ends that are made in steel. Now a secure bed end will provide a square frame to help prevent the end of the bed from twisting.
You are talking about the bed frame being twisted and asking about the welds on that. Now if the welds are intact I'd look at why things are twisting. If the hinges are secure and the bed ends are solid what is allowing the twist?
Phoenix has welded up a broken bed end. that is made in steel. Steel is relatively easy to weld up. Even a numpty like me can do it. The weapon of choice with steel of this section is a MIG welder. Everyone, his best mate and his ugly friend has one. The bed frame is made out of aluminium. Now welding up aluminium is adifferent thing all together. The tool for this is an AC TIG welder, this is oh so much more expensive. Now a weld can be achieved with a MIG welder with specialist wire but I've never tried this. The quality of aluminium MIG welding is something someone more knowledgeable than me would have to asses.

So my answer is in two parts: Why is your frame warping is it lacking support from one of the ends, or is it a lack of regidity in the frame itself. A broken or weak weld? If the frame itself needs fixing then you need the assistance of someone who can weld aluminium a significantly more specialist job (or requiring more specialist equipment) than welding steel. If wondering about grinding out a weld and making a decent job of it; on steel no problem, on aluminium the only problem is finding someone with suitable kit to make up the weld. You might even have to pay for this.

its my 6 that I've got problems with when folding down the ends she wasn't clipping in then I noticed that the frame was welded and one corner was split on the weld so assumed it was because of that but thinking about it I need to investigate more into it so will be bringing her back out and take photo's so you can see what i am talking about I know its odd she seems to be behaving oddly since we repaired the side hinge..ie.. bed not folding straight,window catches gouging the table when traveling .. I have to put the referb on the 5 on hold until I'm happy with the 6

Caz1960 wrote:its my 6 that I've got problems with when folding down the ends she wasn't clipping in then I noticed that the frame was welded and one corner was split on the weld so assumed it was because of that but thinking about it I need to investigate more into it so will be bringing her back out and take photo's so you can see what i am talking about I know its odd she seems to be behaving oddly since we repaired the side hinge..ie.. bed not folding straight,window catches gouging the table when traveling .. I have to put the referb on the 5 on hold until I'm happy with the 6

Not knowing what the side hinge repair was I'd be curious did you relocate any hinge and leave the bed frame out of square to the tub, but then the bed would not explain any issues with the windows that are mounted on the sides.

If a bed corner is broken the standard repair is an alloy or steel brace pop riveted into place. I was going to link you to [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] but I see you should know all about this as you added the last comment. If you have a break and know an alloy welder all well and good but if not I am given to believe that the brace and pop rivet works more than adequately.

If you need any alloy welding done Caz numbers, or any one else come to that a good place to start looking would be a local motor bike shop/garage. Especially if they do a frame straightening service, as most modern motor bike frames are made of alloy. If they don't do it I'll bet they know a man that does!!!

Tow Itch wrote:

Caz1960 wrote:its my 6 that I've got problems with when folding down the ends she wasn't clipping in then I noticed that the frame was welded and one corner was split on the weld so assumed it was because of that but thinking about it I need to investigate more into it so will be bringing her back out and take photo's so you can see what i am talking about I know its odd she seems to be behaving oddly since we repaired the side hinge..ie.. bed not folding straight,window catches gouging the table when traveling .. I have to put the referb on the 5 on hold until I'm happy with the 6

Not knowing what the side hinge repair was I'd be curious did you relocate any hinge and leave the bed frame out of square to the tub, but then the bed would not explain any issues with the windows that are mounted on the sides.

If a bed corner is broken the standard repair is an alloy or steel brace pop riveted into place. I was going to link you to [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] but I see you should know all about this as you added the last comment. If you have a break and know an alloy welder all well and good but if not I am given to believe that the brace and pop rivet works more than adequately.

I would be happy to buy the kit he was talking about but I def got my wording wrong I put "I" instead of "you"
on my 6 on the window only side I noticed on the left hand side the hinge was loose so aligning it back we pop riveted back into place so didn't think the problems would be related but can't understand why everything else is now happening .. must get her back out in the next couple of weeks and take photos and have a good look to see what is happening

Phoenix wrote:If you need any alloy welding done Caz numbers, or any one else come to that a good place to start looking would be a local motor bike shop/garage. Especially if they do a frame straightening service, as most modern motor bike frames are made of alloy. If they don't do it I'll bet they know a man that does!!!

thanks what a good idea I didn't think of bikers but will get her out to have a good look might end up with a list of things them to weld

Giving this a bump

I use the multi layer insulation under my self inflating mattresses, best thing in the world.
No condensation at all, but I haven't fixed it down in any way ,I use a as a blanket just laying on down on the wooden base.
The piece I use , bought an off cut from some body on ebay,  left over from insulating there roof .