Newbie questions

[sodly]

Hello, all. I've been infatuated with vintage Alaskan NCO campers for some time now. But I've never seen one in person. Happily, I found your forum and have been gradually going through all the posts trying to answer some of my basic questions. I've never owned a truck camper before (or any camper for that matter) but I collect all-original 60s camper pickup trucks. I have a 1966 Chevy C20 Custom Camper and a 1966 Ford F100 Camper Special. Both are low-mile original trucks. I'd like to investigate the possibility of putting an 8' Alaskan from the 60s on my 3/4 ton Chevy. Obviously, wouldn't be doing any hardcore camping with such a vintage rig but I think it would just look so perfect on it. Here are some of my questions. Sorry if these have been answered before.

1.) Width. It seems like in photos I've seen (both period photos and contemporary photos) the width of the 8' NCOs seems to vary. On some trucks they hang way over the bedside whereas on others there's not nearly as noticeable an over-hang. Did the widths vary over the years?

2.) Visual age ID. What are the tricks for telling Alaskan age range just by looks? Things like triangle marker lights or crank awning windows might be clues, I suspect. Obviously, I'm interested in something period-correct for the 60s. Just need to know for sure what visual cues to look for.

3.) When were the CO Alaskans introduced? My guess is the 70s.

4.) What years had the classic "curvy" rear silhouette? The ones with the radius profiles between the fat part and the skinny part, if that makes sense. You know, the shape of the Alaskan serial number tag (I think).

5.) What kind of power does an 60s Alaskan require? Is it a 4 hole plug? My truck has a 6 pole outlet on the rear bumper. Would that be adequate to plug into?

6.) Is there any way to anchor an Alsakan down without drilling into the truck bed and/or frame? I like the look of the old stake pocket anchors. Will these work? The camper should fit inside the bed with the tailgate up for travel, right? Seems like that alone would go a long ways toward keeping the Alaskan put in the bed. As I mentioned, I would never be going off-road or at interstate speeds (like that's even possible, lol).

Sorry for all the questions. But this seems like the place to find answers. Thanks for the help!

 

[sodly]

Here are a couple of pics I've collected of Alaskans mounted on trucks like mine. These are 10 footers but this is the look I like.

 

[Buckwheat]

Welcome

 

[Rusty]

Welcome sodly....sounds like you've already got the bug

Alaskans were originally designed in 1953 by RD Hall and were manufactured by a number of different facilities all sanctioned by Mr. Hall.

The width may seem to vary but they remain alike in their dimensions....some truck beds however, varied...and photos taken askew will exaggerate the overhangs appearance

Not sure what you mean about the "curvy" section between the "fat" part and the "skinny" part. There were a few fiberglass units made with different design features and radius curves the aluminum campers didn't have....other than that the Alaskans all look pretty similar from the back. Avions, however, have the radius curves...different animal.

ID's on the older models are as you indicated....three window sides with louvers are the oldest...teardrop clearance lights as well

some of the first models had standard cabinet hardware, soon changed to thumb latches...counters were first made of mycarta material...like Masonite with a glitter finish...many today still have it if they were kept dry and lightly used.

Power demands are dependent on need these days but the original electrical had a 12v system and a single 110v 15 amp circuit. Original connections were made to the truck through a wire harnes which plugged into the forward, drivers side of the camper...many of the first campers found that if you left something on in the camper it drained the battery in the truck....my grandparents being one of those.

8 foot models will fit in the bed with the tailgate up, 10 footers extend to the end of the tailgate....attaching was originally done by bolting to the bed but these days happi jacks or any number of methods of securing them in the bed can be used....

again...welcome to our obsession

 

[thisoldcamper]

Greetings sodly, those are some good looking trucks – I think an Alaskan from just about any year would look good on one of them.

Here are the measurements on my 1978 8 Ft NCO (top down) the one variable could be whether or not it has the behind the wheel well storage.

I’m guessing, but I’d say that those measurements could be pretty standard from the 1960's through the early 80’s? Since they didn’t change much over the years, a 1965 Alaskan will look pretty much like a 1975 Alaskan. Older Alaskans had the double awning style Hehr side windows before changing to sliding windows. The picture that you have of Henry Wallace’s 1965 Alaskan has sliding side windows, but there are member pictures on here showing 1970’s campers with the awning style. I think it depended more on where they were built than when.

I don’t know anything about the “curvy rear, but that won’t be an issue for you on an 8 footer.

The guy that I bought my camper from had been all over the US and Mexico with the camper on a bed mat with the tailgate up – never had a problem.

Where do you live – there might be a member that lives nearby that would be happy to show off their camper to you.

 

[sodly]

Thanks for the welcome and replies. As for the "curvy" rear, see the photo in the post above for what I'm referring to. I call one style "curvy back" and the other style "square back". I highlighted the area I'm talking about in the photos below.

Thisoldcamper, do you have any more photos of that white 60s Chevy above? Is that your truck.... or the truck your camper came from? Love that look and it's just like my truck. Gotta have the hunting Sportcals on the back, too! The overhang on this photo looks really large. Guess they're all that way, though, depending on the photo perspective, huh?

 

[thisoldcamper]

Your mention of the curvy rear and the 1965 truck reminded me of one of my favorite websites for lusting after vintage campers, so I started a new thread for people to check out and add to: http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/12201-links-to-alaskan-web-pages/

The truck that you're looking for is here: http://www.thewallacecollection.net/Truck_Campers/1965_Alaskan/1965_alaskan.html

 

[sodly]

Aaah, I see the white Chevy is indeed the Wallace truck. I am familiar with it. Would like mine to look like that!

So, what's the deal with the curved rear vs. the square rear? And can someone post pics of the various window styles?

 

[Rdy2Roam]

Alaskan lover myself.

 

[sodly]

So nobody knows the reason for the rear profile difference? I figured it was a difference in age, no?

 

[Rusty]

no....somebody got a little swupy dupy...to tell you the truth that's the first one I've seen like that....in closing on 30 years with one

one you get into them....try and figure out why the plumbing is so different on them....??...some perfectly common sense....some...not so much

 

[sodly]

Weird. Then why are the serial number plates on Alaskan campers made with that curvy profile? At least some of them were. I thought that was their signature shape? Maybe it's just the older ones. However, that Wallace camper above (I'm pretty sure) is the same vintage as the Chevy truck it's mounted on, which is 1965. So they clearly used that shape on the lower part of their campers during the mid-60s (at least on some campers). Now it's got me really confused/curious! Was it perhaps an 8' vs 10' thing? Seems like I've even seen some slide-out cargo/toolboxes with that curved taper, too.

Also, does anyone know when the cab-over Alaskans were introduced?

Thanks!

 

[Denver Alaskan]

In the 1960s and likely into the 1970s, Alaskan Campers were built at perhaps 5 to 8 different factories located throughout the U.S.A. and Canada. As shown by its serial number data plate, the Wallace 10' Alaskan on the 1965 Chevy was built by Mobile Living Products. Ltd. in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada. I don't know whether these independent factories were licensees or franchisees, but they had permission from the Halls to build Alaskan campers based on standard plans. Besides differences over time, I imagine each factory had its own peculiar way of building campers within the general framework of the overall Alaskan design. Canada may very well have had slightly different building codes for recreational vehicle electrical and plumbing systems than existed in the U.S.A. at that time. I know that from 1958 to about 1962, California applied its stationary mobile home building code to travel trailers, such that Airstreams built in California had different floor plans layouts and plumbing than their Ohio counterparts of the same years.

Beyond different building code requirements, differences seen among Alaskans of the same year or same decade may also be due merely to the different ways different factories built the same model. Note, for example, the Wallace 10' Alaskan has a 4 wire plug for it 12 volt system whereas my 1966 8' NCO Alaskan built in Fort Lupton, Colorado has only a 2 wire 12 volt electrical system (only for side marker lights). Were 4 wires due to Canadian building codes? . . . or simply Canadian custom?

The unusual curved rear end might have been built only by that one Canadian factory, as reflected in the shape of its data plate. It also may, or may not, have been limited to that company's 10 footers as opposed to it 8 footers; we presently don't know. But based on its peculiar shape and the blank space for different models, I imagine it was used on every Alaskan made by Mobile Living during those years and that even the 8 footers had those rear end arches, which may have been a "signature" feature on Alaskans built by Mobile Living. My original factory data plate was a paper sticker plastered on the rear exterior, and it has since faded to illegibility. But my camper's serial number was stamped in the rear door sill, so remains legible. My Alaskan never had a metal data plate.

Because of the different Alaskan camper independent factories, I don't think you can generalize too much on construction details as I imagine there were slight differences in execution even though all the factories presumably worked from the same plans. Camper appliances and hardware may have been purchased locally to each factory and also might have differed among campers built in the same year but at different locations. In non-critical areas, each factory might have had slightly different ways of doing things or placing appliances, etc. Like Rusty, I've never seen those rear arched ends on any other Alaskan, but they might have been particularly useful in the Canadian climate.

Unfortunately, there is not any large data base of Alaskan camper photos posted on the Internet to use for research. And when owners do post a few photos of their Alaskan, they rarely, if ever, mention its year and/or the factory where it was built. The sparse sales literature gives some clues as to Alaskan camper evolution, but there still are many gaps there too. You ask good questions, but the fact remains there are very few definitive answers available, so we offer only very broad generalizations based on very limited data and just a few personal observations. Nevertheless, keep asking away.

 

[sodly]

Thanks for the thoughtful and thorough answer, Denver Alaskan!

So does anyone know when the cabovers came to be? Surely that should be something we can pin down fairly closely, right?

 

[sodly]

I went to the source and asked Bryan at Alaskan. He said he's never seen the curved rear end in 23 years. How odd! And he said the cabover came out in 1971. So, there ya go!

 

[thisoldcamper]

I was given a book this weekend written in 1962 by John Gartner entitled “All About Pickup Coaches and Campers”. The excerpt on Alaskan campers says that it was offered in two different models: 8’ and 10’ and the manufacturer stated that the unit was being built in seven different factories throughout the country. It also had a picture of an Alaskan with the “curvy” rear end.

There was another maker that built a camper that looked just like an Alaskan;

I looked on Google for the book, but only found it referenced not scanned.

So to sum up what I found from my new old book: In 1962, Alaskan built 8 and 10 foot (non-cab-over) models at 7 different factories and the curvy rear existed at the time.
(edited to add pictures)

 

[Rusty]

does it say anything about the fiberglass Alaskan...and where it was built?

I always found them an odd duck....but there are a few still around

 

[thisoldcamper]

No, it didn't have anything about the fiberglass units - the 1962 book also didn't have any information about Avion, Cayo or Silver Streak truck campers - I guess they hadn't started production yet.

 

[sodly]

Thisoldcamper, please contact me off-list. I would like to know more about this book. Sounds really interesting. Are there many photos?

 

[thisoldcamper]

159 pages and a picture on almost every page! The book was published by the "Trail-R-Club of America" out of Beverly Hills California. Keep an eye on Ebay for John Gartner under books, they have a couple of his on there now, but not the pickup camper book. I'll pm you.