I Bought a Vintage Camper: 1962 Shasta Astrodome!

Some may call it crazy, but it has always been a bucket list item of mine to restore a vintage camper... well, this last weekend I finally took the plunge and bought one! Do I *really* have time for this? No. But will I love the heck out of every minute I spend working on it? Absolutely! I guess I've decided some things aren't always about logic and sometimes it's worth taking a risk just to follow your heart. I mean, if not now, then when? Below is a picture of me driving it home!

I've obsessively been looking at trailers for years. I originally really wanted to do an Airstream. I even went to go and look at a few, but none of them ever felt right. They were usually really expensive, even for a gutted shell and the timing never seemed to line up. Then, one day a 1962 Shasta Astrodome popped into my Facebook Marketplace feed and this one was only 50 miles away!

Love at first (camp)site!

“Will this make you happy? If the answer is yes, then let's do it!” -My loving and supportive husband, Torrey.

Torrey was at our office after hours studying when I sent him the text, "I think I want to look at buying this trailer! It's only in Chatham, and it has WINGS!" Below is the picture I sent him.

Torrey, the supportive (or enabling) husband that he is agreed to go look. I spent the rest of the evening researching everything I needed to know about buying a vintage Shasta. The next day we took a little drive to go and take a look.

When your nerves take over, everything is a second guess.

I've definitely realized something about myself. When I am outside of my comfort zone, I can easily talk myself out of anything. Once we got to the trailer to take a look, my nerves instantly kicked in. Although it was mostly in workable shape, it definitely was still a PROJECT. But wasn't this what I wanted, a project? Was this crazy? Do I really have time to do this? What if THIS? What if THAT... How in the hell will we get this home safely? WHAT IF THE WHEELS FALL OFF!?! My anxiety tends to get the best of me in these situations. Luckily Torrey is much cooler under pressure. "The tires look good... If this is what you want, let's get it home!" he said. We mostly had everything we needed to tow it home, but unfortunately the safety chains wouldn't attach to our truck. The seller let us know there was one place open in town that might have what we needed. Fortunately it was less than a block away! We walked down to the Chatham Co-op and were able to purchase what we needed and soon we were hooked up and ready to go! Of course Torrey made me back it up out of the site and drive it home! "This is what you wanted, right!?!"

The first 15 miles I was hesitant to drive over 45mph. This camper hadn't traveled much further than around the block for the last several years. Although the tires were good, we had no idea the condition of the bearings and the lights didn't work. After about 15 minutes on the road we stopped at a nearby park and ride to feel the wheels. Luckily the bearings weren't hot and we felt good continuing on! We made it the rest of the way home, even if I had a small caravan of vehicles behind me. Thank goodness for passing lanes!

The adventure begins!

My first priority is to get the camper safe, sealed and weather tight. I'm honestly a little overwhelmed at the moment, but it's just like any other project I guess. One piece at a time and lots of learning as you go. I've joined a bunch of trailer restoration groups on Facebook and have begun chatting with other fellow trailer owners who have rigs from the 1960s. The more I learn about this process, the more I realize I didn't really know what I was getting myself into with this journey. Luckily there are a ton of resources available to help along the way. Here's the camper parked in front of The Koenig House.

The interior is still mostly all original. The cabinet, lighting and appliances are all in-tact. My plan is to keep the warm birch paneling, replacing it where necessary. It's one of my favorite parts of the camper's vintage charm! We will be upgrading all the electrical and plumbing in the camper as well.

I have the original fold down tables for the front dinette. I also found this cool Shasta advertisement online when searching for info on this specific model. Take a look at the cool features in this camper!

I'm excited to share my journey with you while working to restore this piece of American history. I'd love to hear from any of you that have taken on a vintage camper restoration. Tips or advice? Wish me luck!

xoxo- Michele