I took a break from the Winnebago project this past week to attend a family reunion in northern Minnesota. Of course, this was a good opportunity to watch for classic Winnebagos on the road. Having driven a few thousand miles this summer, this was the first trip I actually saw a classic “eyebrow” Bago, like the Radio Nomad. This style was used from the mid 1960’s through 1977. A big change to the body style in 1978 eliminated the eyebrow. On this trip, I actually saw three eyebrow models. The first, pictured above, is a 1970 F-17. I found it near Itasca state park at the Pioneer Farmers Show.
The second two were actually seen in the state of Kansas. One was broken down on the side of the road on I-35. The second was rotting away on the side of US-81 south of Concordia. The owner was nice enough to let me poke around. This is a Brave model (as opposed to my Indian), and I believe it’s a 1977 D21. The owner said he wanted to redo the inside, but he’s got too many projects going on now. At this point, about his only hope will be to part the vehicle out.
This experience is a good reminder of how relatively rare these vehicles are in running condition – at least in the Midwest where they’re subjected to water damage, which seems to be the big killer.
Another update coming next week as we get back to work!