Time invested and budget: '64 Scotty Sportsman - from simple dream to economic reality

Purchased this cute '64 Scotty Sportsman from an Oceanside, CA motorcycle dealer for $900.

We purchased this little trailer almost 3.5 years ago, dreaming of a fairly easy fix and a resulting cool little trailer made in the same year I graduated high school (1964).

It's become more of a project that I ever dreamed; made all to easy to put off by our purchase of a cute little '58 Scotty Junior teardrop, a finished reproduction version, three summers ago. We have been across the US twice with the Scotty teardrop, up to Canada twice, and made dozens of shorter trips throughout the west.

With the aluminum skins and roof removed, the dry rot on the right side was quite extensive (was able to push what was left of the 1/2 plywood out by hand)! Yes, that right rear end was almost completely dry-rotted - most of damage due to roof seam leak. If you are ever perusing a trailer to purchase, take a hard look at the underside, and any patches on interior!

But, my spouse and two good friends have kept after me, and in recent months we're finally rebuilding the '64 Scotty. You'll see in the three previous posts how far we have come, and our current state (new floor down and finished, side up, beginning work on rebuilding the interior dinette and rear Gaucho/bed area - and installing the new cabinets made by my wood-working good friend, Tom Wilson).

I thought some of you might be interested in the "real budget" of both time and expense.

Grinding off the nailheads/removing the 200+ screw nails became a bit easier with a new Dremel tool.

Time invested: So far, I would estimate I have put in maybe 300 hours; my wife, 40: my pals Tom (the expert woodworker who rebuilt all three of the cabinets with only a bit of help from me) and Gary, another 100 hours or so.  When finished, I would estimate about 600 to 700 hours total.


Actual spending: It's noted below...

Purchased (item, supplier, cost):
’64 Scotty trailer, Southern Cal motorcycle dealer, $900
Dinette cushions, RVDoctorGeorge.com in Sacramento, $200
Roof and running lights, Amazon, about $40
Interior LED roof lights, Amazon, about $35
Roof vent, Amazon, $50
Hand pump for sink, Amazon, $56
Small corner silver fan, RVDoctorGeorge.com in Sacramento, $8
Three rolls butyl tape, Vintage Trailer, $20
New hinge for dining table, Vintage Trailer, $26
Door hinges, chevron door pulls, RVDoctorGeorge.com in Sacramento, $15
Used 30 amp power box, eBay, $20
Used Bargmann door handle, eBay, $90
Replacement Jalousie window for door installation, RVDoctorGeorge.com in Sacramento, $75.
Set of used Scotty hub caps, eBay, $75
Atwood two burner cooktop, Amazon, $145
Used Humphrey propane lamp, eBay, $45
Century Porta potty, Amazon: 11.75 inches tall, 16.25 inches deep, 13.5 inches wide, $90.
(2) 4X8 sheet of ¾” waterproof chipboard for floor, about $80.
(3) 4X10 sheets of ½” A-C marine plywood special ordered through Home Depot, about $130.
Misc. pine lumber, about $130.
Misc. paint, undercoating, about $70.
Misc. other stuff, about $100.
Total to date: $2,400.

Still to purchase:
(5) 4x8 by ¼ plywood for roof panels, additional pine 1X4s
Paint for the exterior of the trailer.
Wiring for the trailer
Two new trailer tires
Battery and inverter for the trailer

About $700 more to come.

Total, estimated when finished: approx. $3,100.

This is another '60s Scotty - we hope to look like this by late summer!

We think it will be a marvelous investment, loads of fun, and large enough in the interior that rainy days won't spoil an outing!

For more insight into this rebuild, connect with rebuilder Tim at tviall@msn.com, follow his Scotty-rebuild blog and check the web site for the National Serro Scotty Organization, nationalserroscotty.org, offering a huge resource to Scotty trailer owners and rebuilders!

Footnote: I am also the travel writer for the Stockton, CA, Record newspaper.  To read more about our travels, most of them with our Scotty teardrop, read Tim Viall's travel blog, follow him on Facebook or Twitter. Happy travels in your world!

Hopefully, we go from this stage, a few weeks ago, to the one above!