Re: [SilverStreak] Anodized finish

[<waymark1@xxxxxxxx>]

"...it was the "New rage" to try to resolve the issue of hard work and maintenance of the beautifully polished trailers."
There is also the "issue" of blinding other drivers with sun reflection off the mirror-like finish!!

"I have to admit that the exterior finish does not fail and is extremely corrosion resistant. It just cannot ever be polished. People who have tried to grind off the anodized layer and polish the skin are generally disappointed."
Good reason: the anodized coating is corundum, aluminum oxide, which is what sapphire and ruby are composed of. It is one of the hardest materials, second to diamond (corundum is one-fourth as hard as diamond).
The anodized finish does "fail" when the underlying aluminum is bent sharply or abraded severely enough to break through or scrape off the finish. In place as the skin of an RV it is not repairable (re-anodizable) except by replacing the skin panel.

Al 

-- "Eddie" <Eddie@Huffstetter.com> wrote:

Ralph,
Tom Patterson's site has rather complete narrative info on the SS Sterling, history, and anodized trim change. 
http://tompatterson.com/Silverstreak/History.html . I am pretty sure the polishable period is much like the Streamline.

Streamlines thru 1966 are not anodized and are polishable. I have never seen a polishable 68 as all 68 and newer seem to be anodized. I have yet to see a 67 anywhere or one being sold. Neither has Tom or so he said when I repeatedly pester him. So we don't know about that one year. I have a 66 and a 68 Countess. I have a 65 and a 68 Count. Tom's Duchess is a 65. Tom also has a 72 Streamline anodized unit. Carol Smith's Prince is a 66. Tom has pictures of Tom Vannozzi's Countess but again it is anodized and is either a 67 or 68. The change periods are certainly interesting. The interior aluminum skin of the later models is polished and a unit being scrapped is loaded with interior skin panels that can be great for use on early model exterior skin repairs or fabrication of things like water heater and missing access doors. I have not had any interior skin off a SS so I don't know if polished or anodized is used.

I think SS followed this similar date range for anodized skins as it was the "New rage" to try to resolve the issue of hard work and maintenance of the beautifully polished trailers. Advertised as a gleaming finish that would not fail or require maintenance other than washing, the expensive process was basically a success in marketing. I have to admit that the exterior finish does not fail and is extremely corrosion resistant. It just cannot ever be polished. People who have tried to grind off the anodized layer and polish the skin are generally disappointed.

The Streamline polished trailers used a clearcoat to keep it nice and 
polished. It worked great. Spartan did not. I don't know about SS. There is so little information about SS and maybe some of you who interacted with Bob Ashby would recall if he ever spoke about years polishable and if clear coated. Tom Patterson said Bob did not do the internet or computer thing and was so busy it was difficult to even have a phone conversation. One thing is certain in that Bob Ashby would have known as much or more than anybody about SS. He was geographically so close to me, and Carolyn he was practically your neighbor. I am sorry I never knew him or met him. Now it is too late.

You are correct that the serial numbers do not indicate total numbers made or other specific data. I still think an evolved registry would be useful for additional albeit limited information. Would beat what we have now.

One of the goodies that came with non-polishable anodized skins was the gold anodized accent trim. Except for Streamline, you probably would not like the SS polished era as I don't know of any that had the gold trim accents. Tom's 57 Streamline does not have the gold. The 64 thru 66 polished Streamlines did have the gold. I don't know about 62 and prior. It share your interest to know about SS, when anodizing started and which year began the gold anodized trim. One thing is certain in that if you see a Streamline that is anodized it cannot be a 66 or older and must be at least a 68 or newer. That one year of 67 remains for now a mystery if any 67 actually was made. I will keep watching.

Generally Juergen's works pre-date much of the so-called later models of the 60's and 70's, but I wonder if this is something Juergen would know and have archived.
-Eddie-
Houston, TX