1972 31 foot Excella 500 shell-off restoration for sale!
Asking $143,500
Current location: Vacaville, California
It’s come time for us to sell our Airstream and move on to our next adventure! Over 1,350 hours went into this shell-off restoration project plus countless hours of maintenance and upkeep over the past three years to keep her looking sharp. This is a 31’ 1972 Excella 500 resto-mod ideally built for a young professional couple on the move, empty nesters looking to travel the country, or for full time living. No luxury item was spared, and all upgrades are supported on the beefed up frame and axles.
The sell of the trailer includes literally everything you need from dishes to linens, appliances to hook-ups, towing accessories to receipts and users’ manuals. I have over 1,400 pictures documenting the build including all receipts, build diary, and itemization of 1,145 items of material.
History: We began this journey in 2018 when we bought the original shell. After two years of careful renovation, we both got stationed in Korea starting in August of 2020. The airstream was kept in storage near Destin Florida for two years under the watchful eye of my parents, who kept it plugged in 24/7/65 with the A/C or heat on and provided weekly well-being checks on the interior. All regular annual maintenance was performed during this time.
We returned from Korea in the summer of 2022 with new assignments in California and an opportunity of a lifetime: a cross country camping trip to our new destination!
I have towed this trailer nearly 6,000 miles in the past 10 months with a 2009 Chevy 2500HD with no issues. I outfitted the TV with the Andersen No-Sway Weight Distribution Hitch (included with your purchase of this trailer) and have had flawless results every step of the way.
Since August 2022 I have spent nearly 122 nights in the trailer and have worked every system and they all perform perfectly!
Most recently, I spent 80 hours repolishing the trailer, resealing all joints, applying Capt Tolly’s to the rivets, and giving her multiple thorough baths.
Empty weight is 7,740 pounds verified via CAT verified scales. I towed across country with a loaded weight of approximately 8,860 pounds (difficult to verify because of items in the truck bed).
Below is a detailed list of work items included in the trailer:
• 3/4 Marine grade plywood coated with 3x coats of Thompson’s water seal on painted, sealed, upgraded and modified frame
• Shell off restoration with new aircraft grade aluminum rivets utilized to reattach shell to C channel
• Interior aluminum walls removed, cleaned, painted and rehung with new and larger aluminum rivets
• Insulated walls with reflectix and Woolrock premium insulation
• Insulated floors with 2” foam board
• All seams and rivets sealed from inside and out with a thorough water check completed
• BusKote ceramic coating applied to roof (2x coats primer, 3x coats paint)
• All extraneous holes and gaps filled with LocTite brand spray foam insulation
• 2x new Dexter 3500lb torsion axles with 2” lift for better ride with newer tow vehicles
• 4x new E rated Goodyear Endurance tires
• 4x new Aluminum wheels
• New 10,000 pound hitch and safety chains
• New trailer stabilizers (5000 pounds per jack)
• New large trailer sight level (side to side and front to back)
• New MicTuning 7 pin pigtail for trailer to truck connections
• New breakaway trailer brake controller
• All new exterior trailer lights with 4x new lights for added safety
• All new LED brake, rear, and reverse lights
• New license plate light and holder
• New Husky 4500lb electric jack with remote key fob
• New belly pan aluminum and banana wraps coated with a thin “skim coat” of professionally applied undercoating for added road grit protection
• MicTuning under-belly lights (multi-color with blue tooth controlled app)
• Auxiliary remote KC light located inside rear lower hatch
• New front window valance (on order)
• All new marine grade 12 volt LED wiring
• New custom 12 volt lighting utilizing puck lights and yacht grade directional lights (many equipped with USB charge plugs)
• All new 80 amp Intellipower converter
• All new 120 volt wiring
• 4x 110 volt outlets equipped with built-in night lights
• 2x hydraulic assist popup outlets on counter tops with 4x 110 volt outlets and 4x USB ports, each
• New 50 Amp WFCO electrical distribution box with 15 slot 12 volt blades
• 50 Amp Marine Grade Furrion power inlet
• Positive power indication light on exterior of trailer
• New 40 gallon fresh water tank
• 2x new 34 gallon grey and black water tanks
• 3x 12 volt heated tank pads
• Custom sewer manifold featuring rubber boot joints for easy disassembly and access for troubleshooting clogs
• New Valterra blade valves
• All new ABS sewer piping
• All new 3/4” PEX piping with fresh city inlet and gravity flow inlet
• New 12 volt water pump
• New coax Cable inlet
• New sea level monitoring system for black, grey, fresh, and battery power
• Norcold 7.1 cu ft dual fuel refrigerator with stainless steel inserts
• Furrion 21,000 BTU stainless steel range
• 12 volt stainless steel vent hood
• Summit 900 watt stainless steel microwave
• Fisher Paykel 24” drawer dish washer
• Guyser single-handle kitchen faucet
• 9” deep double basin stainless steel undermount kitchen sink
• 30,000 BTU Suburban propane furnace
• Girard tankless gas hot water heater with remote panel control
• Dual 105 Ah Duracell deep cycle marine batteries
• Progressive Industries HW50C Hardwired EMS Surge & Electrical Protection- 50 Amps with Electronic Management System and digital display
• 2x new 15,000 BTU Coleman Mach 15 air conditioners
• 2x wall mounted thermostats
• Warm Floor heated electric floors with programmable touchscreen thermostat
• Sweep-O-Vac kickplate mounted vacuum cleaner
• Glass vessel sink in lavatory
• Tile floors in lavatory
• Dometic 310 Series Standard Height w/ Hand Spray, Bone
• All walls constructed of premium 1/2” cabinet grade birch plywood
• 42” tall coat closet
• 42 individual cabinet doors or drawers
• Custom shower with 3/8” thick Corian custom marble slabs accented by stainless steel and glass tile with custom cut white plexiglass shower door and CRL heavy duty hinges
• Flex Tile adhesive and grout used for tiles, specially made for fiberglass pools and RVs
• Oatey pre-pitch shower pan for floor and Kerdi-Schlueter foam board for walls with AquaGuard roll on sealer for water proofing
• Blue Ocean 52″ aluminum shower panel with rain head
• Custom built cabinets by SLE Faircrest: Heritage White collection, heavily modified
• Custom epoxy pour counter tops with ProMarine epoxy, with oak in main area and pine in lavator
• Walnut tops in bedroom
• 2x custom built doors for lavatory and bedroom stained and polyurethane to match
• 3x deep full extension drawers in kitchen
• Drawers outfitted with roll-o-matic drawer slides and 15 pound magnetic latches
• Bedroom, counters, and kickplate feature remote controlled LED mood lighting
• Allure brand water resistant floating LVP flooring
• Custom cut live edge walnut trim pieces for windows, front shelves, living room shelves, and bedroom
• Custom baseboards and door trim
• All interior wall paint is premium Infinity Series Semi-Gloss Promenade, trim is Infinity Series Gloss Brilliant White
• Seismic series by Thomas Payne reclining couch, main seat is power recline with massage, heat and light built in
• New 1/2” (5/8” outside diameter) copper braised LP lines protected with 1” road armor sleeving, auto changeover regulator, and new shut offs at every appliance
• 2 New powered Fantastic Fan 7350 with rain sense technology
• Lift up full-Queen size bed with 2x 120 pound hydraulic assist pistons for under bed storage
• 10” Gel foam Queen size mattress with sheets, pillows, blanket and duvet
• 2x USB chargers (one on each side of the bed)
• 12 volt 22” 720p TV in bedroom
• 32” 720p TV in living room mounted to hydraulic stand for convenience
• Custom Yacht stereo head by Fusion, Apollo II Series with touchscreen controls and Bluetooth app
• Stereo and main TV connected via Optical Audio
• 7.1 surround sound with 6x kicker marine grade speakers in custom housing and Polk 35S signature center speaker
• Sirius XM Satellite Radio on board
• 400 watt 12” Rockford-Fosgate sub/amp combo under desk
• Pull out cherry table with 2x fruitwood chairs
• Polished exterior, including all trim pieces removed, polished separately and reattached
• All emblems rehabbed or replaced with period correct emblems
• Polished windows, frames and new latch hardware
• All windows except front and rear window are dual pane for added R value
• All windows have ceramic tint, heavier in lavatory and shower area
• Custom curtains
• Custom 500 pound capacity pullout drawer at rear hatch for gear storage
• New doorbell with light up ring
• New Zip Dee Main awning and small side awning (including all hardware) with custom color pattern
• Outdoor carpet included
• Outdoor small tabletop with Cabela’s stainless steel portable grill with 12 feet of quick disconnect line, 3/8” Y splitter, and outdoor gas firepit
• All homegoods including decorations, pots, pans, appliances, dishes, silverware, cups, mugs included with trailer
• Appliances include Hamilton Beach coffee grinder/brewer, portable powered hand mixer, InstaPot, and table top ice maker
• Anderson trailer leveling kit, Bal trailer X chocks, stabilizer pads, sewer hose with Slinky sewer hose support, 30 and 50 amp cables and 110 volt cable adapters, freshwater hose, and cold weather freshwater hose
• All locksets and latches work and have single set of keys
• RV rated GPS, TPMS with 8x sensors and repeater, backup camera and 7” screen with 2nd mobile backup camera mounted to battery pack
• 2x spare tires mounted on 15” flat grey aluminum wheels