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This post means a great deal to me, and that’s because it marks a distinct turn in work on our 1965 Clark Cortez motorhome. See, when Andy and I first got our motorhome in 2019, Andy and I made a promise to ourselves (and to you — those of you who have been kind enough to follow our antique motorhome overhaul); and this promise was that we would do all the work ourselves.
We made this decision for a few different reasons: First, Andy’s goal is to restore a vehicle. Second, I want to learn all I can about vehicles. Third, we are willing to pay for parts, but we are not interested in paying for labor.
Saying all of this though, when it comes to the next job on our steel relic, we fully admit we more than considered hiring someone …
We did, in fact, hire someone.
After Andy and I found significant rust in multiple places, we knew our only option was to cut out the old metal and weld in new metal. I realize I’m biased, but Andy is brilliant when it comes to the work we’ve achieved thus far (and work we will achieve because I’m writing the post more than two years later). This is why it comes as no surprise to me that when the topic of welding came up, he — of course — knew how to do it.
It should be noted here that Andy would be amiss regarding this post if I did not point out his welding skills (according to him) are basic; and while he is extremely interested in learning how to weld as a professional, we did question whether the time and effort to get to that point was wise.
And, to cut to the chase, it was not.
Know in advance this does not mean from here on out that Andy and I hire someone for jobs — Quite the opposite. We have labored to the extremes with our Cortez so much so that we both are avidly writing to catch up on our posts to tell you how far we have come. For now though, we are focusing on welding — one job where we did (happily) hire someone to help …
On a hot September day, we invited a mobile welder to my aunt and uncle’s farm to give our girl a good long look. This was the first time our Cortez had fallen under the scrutiny of a professional’s eyes and, knowing that, it changed the way I saw her.
Before, our prized lass appeared an adorable classic; but when I looked now, I saw her rust, her dents, her wear, her age.
I suddenly realized the truth: We were proudly showcasing her at her worst state and that felt not only odd but wrong. I wanted to protect our Cortez, shield her from those that point out her faults, and present her only to those who find her equally beautiful. The realization that I wasn’t doing this was unnerving.
I wondered if Andy felt the same way to so I turned to him and pointed out the seriousness of this moment. “This is the first time we’ve actually had anyone come and look at it,” I told him.
“I mean your mom’s seen it,” Andy said back. “My mom and dad have seen it.”
He didn’t seem to understand so I tried again. “I meant experts who will help us,” I said.
“Josh and I see it all the time,” he immediately touted … which proved my point. I was alone in this awkward-nervous feeling.
Still, we waited together — Andy, confident and ready to move forward; me, nervous and unsure; and that’s when Paul pulled up.
Paul is the founder and owner of RVA Mobile Welding Services. There are many amazing pluses about Paul: One, he is a mobile welder, which means he comes to us since our beast is in no state to tackle true drives. Two, Paul immigrated from Ukraine years ago and is genuinely one of the nicest people Andy and I have ever encountered. In fact, after meeting him, my second doubts disappeared; and we consider ourselves lucky that he is our welder. Three, we would come to find Paul is willing to work with us, and by this I mean Andy and I would work alongside of him by prepping locations that he would then weld. This also keeps costs down and allows us to “chunk” jobs, paying as we go, so that we do not have one massive bill. Four, we would find as well that Paul is a great welder — He is methodical, technical, talented, and precise. And did I mention he okayed me shoving a camera (for both picture and video documentation) at him as he worked? Bless everything about Paul, whom Andy and I quickly nicknamed ‘our hero’!
Stepping from his vehicle and immediately heading to ours, a couple of handshakes and introductions later meant it was inspection time.
Andy and Paul flitted around our Cortez, their words making it back to me in buzzes as they paused to land at her faults before flying again to another area.
We had a long list of what we wanted welded, including the front passenger’s side corner where heavy rust wraps around after a collision. I even started to angle grind the at-least one-inch thick body filler here to see how far the rust spread but, from what we can see, wherever my stripping wheel went, rust was uncovered …
This collision also impacted the passenger footwell. Here, heavy body filler had cracked, which allowed moisture in and rust to spread …
The next welding location is the interior battery compartment — that maybe we should also call an exterior battery compartment because the area is not sealed so anyone can see straight to the ground. Essentially, Andy and I are a more modern Fred and Wilma Flintstone — Hum, hold that thought. What about the name Wilma for the Cortez? Okay, I digress …
The true exterior battery compartment also has a view from the ground but this is due to severe rust which ate through the metal …
The rear passenger panel is covered in body filler two inches-thick, which makes us suspect something more happened that could lead to welding …
The driver’s side roof lining the area above the gutter has many holes in through corroded metal …
The passenger’s side roof above the gutter also has holes due to major rust …
The front corner above the grill is split and starting to rust, along with two holes that need filling above the grill …
The front bumper has two places where the metal was pulled up when the Cortez was towed in the past …
Moving inside, many supports no longer supported our roof because the base of the supports had corroded. Therefore, Andy cut out one rib so that Paul could determine the best way to replicate it before welding.
The wheeltubs inside also need addressing due to many small holes from various fittings …
Lastly, we needed to address the roof holes that were left behind from vents, fans, and air conditioning units that were damaged/we removed. To make our Cortez water-tight (while we determine the best layout), we want new metal welded over the holes …
Finally, our Cortez’s inspection was over, and we parted ways with our welder, Paul. I walked around the Cortez re-analyzing the areas Andy and Paul wanted to remove, and I re-touched the areas they had pulled apart. I bent to pick up pieces of our lass that lay on the ground — body filler and paint chips. Maybe she wasn’t as beautiful as I saw her previously, but she was still strong. She still deserved to be saved …
and maybe that’s why Andy had not been nervous about having Paul join us.
Our Cortez did deserve a new life, and that should be celebrated.
At the same time I thought this, Andy walked over to me and grabbed my face for a massive kiss. He was right all along — Having professional help to restore our motorhome faster should be a celebration, and so we welcome Paul back to work beside us on this quirky retro vehicle we love.
