Little Guy Silver Shadow Finish?

Does anyone know what the finish is on the Little Guy Silver Shadow? Is it painted or bare aluminum with a clear coat? The ones I have seen have a very uniform finish. I committed the sin of taking off my alcan cover, got me thinking.......

 

Hi!

I've only seen one on the road, an older model with a nice patina. So originally it appears they were raw aluminum.

Looking at the pictures on the Little Guy website, I'd guess it is now made of some sort of composite panel - aluminum colored, but probably not aluminum.

 

I have owned my 560 for 4 years now and have never taken off the Alcan cover. I undo the sides when cleaning as recommended but that is all.

 

The shell is a composite of some form with a silver finish. Not an aluminum shell.

 

Thanks, that would explain why it looks so uniform. There is something wonderful and at the same time painful about the organic nature of the milled aluminum. This winter I plan on walbernizing the area under the alcan cover and giving the sharkhide a try. It's pretty ugly under there after less than a year and I am concerned about permanent damage. If the sharkhide works out well in that area I will eventually do the whole camper. I did woody wax the whole camper this weekend. Didn't do anything in terms of removing scratches or color variations but will hopefully add some protection. Still waiting for that all stainless steel option!

Randy

 

You can see in my picture that my TD has the aged look. Bought it used, 2008 and was never walbernized. I tried the walbernizing and then I tried the Flitz. Flitz works much better so far from what I can see. Don't have the whole TD done yet, but what I have done looks pretty good. Will have to update my picture once I get done - still have a ways to go and the low areas in the back really required more work than the high areas.

 

FWIW:

Little Guy says the Silver Shadow "is constructed with high-gloss, UV resistant Silver Alufiber."

"AluFiber" is manufactured by Amerimax Fabricated Products, which describes it as a product that "fuses fiberglass reinforced plastic to light-gauge aluminum."

 

Very interesting GO, thanks. I wonder if that material has a downside vs. Raw aluminum. I've only seen pictures of the Little Guy. Would be interesting to see on in person. I'll check out the Flitz, thanks RG. Post some full size pics when you are done. Are you using an electric buffer?

 

I have been going over a area twice. First with a low end buffer - wipe clean - re-apply and wipe by hand - have found that a very
light dusting of flour helps finish off that final wipe to get the haze off. Saw a shop doing that on an airstream.

I had a Silver Shadow before the 560. No complaints - but the CI is designed much better as far a space. Both have a 5 x 10 footprint, but the 560 seems much roomier inside and the galley is designed/layed out nicer.

 

I completely agree, CI wins hands down on design and build quality, I gotta admit though, I like the look and easy maintenance of the Alufiber. That stated, there may certainly be advantages to the milled aluminum.

 

Randy keep us posted on the Sharkhide, also the baking mats in the galley were a great idea! Love them....thanks for the suggestion. Also found if you clean the stainless with stainless steel cleaner and put them down right away the adhere great....R

 

Ron and Missy,

I ended up applying Elmer's Repositionable stick adhesive to the back of the mats covering the storage bins. It's a "Post-it" note type adhesive that allows you to remove the mats if needed and put them back. Works great. For the mat behind the stove I use two suction cup hooks to hang it off the back wall when cooking.

Randy

 

I wouldn't be concerned about permanent damage due to the oxidizing under the alcan cover. A neighbor recently bought an old aluminum skinned Shasta trailer that had sat for probably decades before he attempted to get off the oxidation. It only took lots of time and effort, but it did clean up well, and no signs of excessive damage due to corrosion. It's my understanding that BIRD POOP is a different issue. Always get that off your trailer ASAP or it will etch the aluminum. If it stays on long enough Walbernize won't solve the problem (at least not completely).

It is my understanding that the primary reasons for the raw aluminum on Camp-Inns are 1) the ability to shape it around the teardrop shaped front windows (on the 550s) and 2) the ability for it to be shaped as a skin for the galley hatch (it has to be curved along the entire length and folded on the edges - creating curves on a curve).

Supposedly Airstream has an aluminum skin that has a protective plastic coating. The upside is from a distance it always looks shiny and new. The downside is that up close after lots of use, the panels on the front of the trailer can become gravel chipped, causing oxidation to occur under the plastic coating. There is no cheap way to fix that, whereas with raw aluminum it all comes down to time, effort and Walbernize.

I, for one, wish there was at least an option to have the sides of the CIs to be a composite finish, sort of like the T@Bs that had highlight colors on the sides. It should look sharp, as long as you didn't try to make it look like the raw aluminum on the remainder of the trailer, and it shouldn't have much of an installation impact for the guys on the factory floor, since it would likely be a similar thickness to the raw aluminum. Since it is on the side, if the main use was on highway trips, there shouldn't be much problem from gravel chipping.

 

I personally don't care for color or RV graphics, but I would bet you could get the sides "wrapped" post production if you wanted to go that route.

 

I agree that an option for an alternate exterior would be a definite plus. A different all round exterior (not just on the sides) that offers ease of care and all-weather durability for worry free year-round outdoor storage would be definite selling features. I have defaulted to the eas(ier) patina route, but that isn't the only "ease of care" consideration. My trailer is parked outside and I go through great pains to do the best I can to protect the trailer from snow and hail stones - with very little that one can do about the latter. Even light hail storms (slightly larger than pea sized hail) will leave unwanted dints on these trailers.

When I was in the trailer market, I didn't realize just how soft and prone to scratches/hail stone dints the exterior is on these trailers, but I sure do now. Some on the forum might say that with each scratch and (hail) dint is a story/memory that makes the trailer uniquely yours . . . surely memories need not be made of this!

I realize there may be very good reasons that Camp-Inn hasn't gone to a different siding - all the same, as a customer I wish for what I wish for: a durable weather resistant exterior. As it is I cringe and fret everytime storm clouds roll in.

 

I wonder if anodizing would improve longevity of the finish?

 

It seems the main reason for no exterior options is mainly the teardrop windows. But it would be possible to have just a band of aluminum where the windows are to still allow the distinctive windows (perhaps it would even be possible to use a heavier gauge of aluminum?). Of course that adds two new seams to worry about (above and below the band). I like the windows in the front (easy way to check the weather before stepping out), but for my money, they don't have to be teardrop shaped. And I like the diamond plate steel on the T@G trailers vs the Alcan Cover.

I suspect there are ways to deal with the curved hatch when using a composite material, but I don't know how well it would work with the hatch's current wood ribbing and paneling. But of all the places where there is a nice wood finish on these trailers, the galley hatch would be one place where I wouldn't miss it, as long as it is possible to have some kind of attractive finish on the inside of the lid. That'd probably even shave some weight and cost off the trailers. I suspect more than a few people would appreciate a hatch that is lighter and easier to open. But it may be a challenge to keep it from looking 'tacked on.'

We've been a few places where nasty thunderstorms with hail have crashed through. We've been lucky enough to dive under trees or to move our Alcove shade cover over the trailer to avoid damage thus far. But in many parts of the country it is inevitable that you'll be out in the open in a hail storm if you own the trailer long enough. I don't look forward to all those pock marks when it happens...