This Gorgeous 75-Year-Old Polished Aluminum Camper Is Cheaper Than A New RV And Looks Way Better

Aluminum is one of the coolest materials that you can build a camper out of. The metal is durable, lasts for a long time, and give it a polish and you can get a camper that looks like it was ripped right from the pages of a sci-fi comic. Airstream is the most famous purveyor of riveted aluminum, but if you’re looking for something a bit different, there’s this rare 1950 Silver Streak Clipper Model 22. This trailer looks like a million bucks, but when the hammer falls on its auction, the new owner will likely spend way less than they would on a new trailer.

The RV builders of nearly a century ago reached a breakthrough in camper construction. The same riveted aluminum monocoque construction that made aircraft of the 1930s strong and durable can translate to RVs for the same effect. RVs of back then actually weren’t all that different than many of the units of today, where builders slapped a wooden box on top of a steel frame. However, even back then, wood did the job, but wasn’t known as the strongest material to build a camper out of.

One of the most famous early aluminum trailers was the 1934 Bowlus Road Chief, a product of the mind of aircraft engineer Hawley Bowlus, who is known most in history for supervising the construction of the Spirit of St. Louis. Wally Byam’s Airstream Clipper was built not long after.

While this camper resembles one of those early aluminum trailers, it came from a company that didn’t attain nearly the same fame. This is a 1950 Silver Streak Clipper. It’s a neat alternative to an Airstream or Bowlus, and in some ways, might be even cooler. It’s rolling across the Bring a Trailer auction block right now, too.

That Looks Familiar

Some of you might be scratching your head here because, gee, this camper does look a bit like an old Airstream. As Airstream notes, this camper was the creation of the Curtis Wright Company. However, before you get all excited, this isn’t the aviation icon Curtiss Wright.

According to Airstream, company founder Wally Byam had to halt Airstream production at the start of World War II as materials like aluminum had to be redirected away from non-strategic businesses to support the war effort. During the war, Byam started writing down notes in a book. These notes, Airstream writes, suggested that Byam might have been planning to open an outdoors-oriented store. Yet, after the world, Byam got back to making trailers. Now, you’d think that Byam would reboot Airstream after the war. After all, that’s what pretty much every other business did.

Instead, for reasons that not even the Airstream of today could explain, Byam decided to get into business with one Curtis Wright, who is believed to have contacted Byam in mid-1945 after Germany was defeated. Airstream continues:

Curtis Wright had the financial backing and experience in manufacturing trailers to open a new company. Wally had the design knowledge that built the Airstream Clipper. The all-aluminum, rivet, and aircraft designed trailer was the goal of Curt (as Wally called CW).

In 1946, the Curtis Wright trailer was born. There was a second line more closely related to the Airstream Airlite.

Why did Wally leave Curtis Wright Manufacturing and start up a post-war Airstream factory? Apparently financial promises weren’t kept by Curtis Wright and Wally drew a cordial line in the sand, with full knowledge that their relationship might come to an end.

Byam would go back to Airstream, never fulfilling his idea of an outdoor store. Meanwhile, Curtis kept on building his own campers. As the Tin Can Tourists Vintage Camper Club writes, the Curtis Wright Clipper was introduced in 1947, and it was reportedly designed by Byam with some inspiration from the Airstream Clipper of the 1930s.

The Curtis Wright Company would close up shop in spring 1949, and a new company, the Silver Streak Trailer Company, opened in 1949 and kicked off its production by scooping up Curtis designs, including the Clipper. Silver Streak would manage to stick around until 1997, and one way it set itself apart from Airstream was in its construction methods. Airstream says that its frame is constructed separately from the camper shell, with holding tanks built directly on the frame. Completed riveted aluminum shells are then lowered onto complete frames.

Silver Streak built the body directly on top of the frame and filled out the interiors by bringing in parts through the entry door opening.

This Clipper

Based on this history, this 1950 Silver Streak Clipper is one of Silver Streak’s earlier campers. Allegedly, Silver Streak built around 6 trailers a week, so most models built by the company are considered to be rare nowadays, decades after they were all built. This seems to be supported by the fact that these Clippers don’t show up for sale on a regular basis.

A brochure I found for a 1950s model shows that Silver Streak was quite happy with the riveted aluminum construction of its trailers:

The lightest and strongest trailer of its size in the world. Designed
for travel and living. It is built by aircraft engineers and craftsmen especially for those experienced trailer enthusiasts who appreciate what light weight flexibility means.

Here’s amazing strength of construction! It’s so perfectly stressed and designed with a minimum of air resistance that you zoom over hills in high… over straight stretches… as fast as you care to go. Don’t worry about furnishings or built-in features for bracing or balance of any kind. Place the furniture wherever you want it. The velvet-smooth Clipper takes the hard knocks as easily as you expect. Easy to hook on… unhook… push around. Unless you look behind, you hardly know the Clipper is there! Travel luxury at its peak! You can be sure with a Clipper!

According to Silver Streak, the Clipper features heat-treated aluminum ribs for and heat-treated aluminum tubing for support. The windows are made of Lucite, and plasticized spun glass is used for insulation. Something interesting about these trailers is that they do not have a typical camper frame. Instead, there is a heavy steel central spine that runs the length of the bottom of the trailer with steel stringers for extra support.

Other neat notes from the brochure include two layers of flooring and an inner painted aluminum skin for the interior. Another interesting detail about the Model 22 is that Silver Streak did not advertise these as having bathrooms. Instead, the brochure pointed to the Model 25 if you wanted to take a shower or use a toilet in your trailer. It would seem that the expectation was that you’d take the Model 22 to an improved campground with bathroom facilities.

Another neat bit from the brochure was the claim that everything in these trailers was made of metal, but the cabinet doors and the floor.

This trailer is not an original example. However, whoever did the refresh did seem to keep the trailer’s interior somewhat faithful to the time period. The Bring a Trailer listing notes:

The interior was refreshed under prior ownership and has a tile entry step, woodgrain flooring, and textured walls with exposed aluminum panels as well as ceiling vents, residential-style power outlets, and overhead lighting. The forward lounge area has a round table and wraparound seating with cushions trimmed in burgundy vinyl.

The galley is equipped with a woodgrain countertop, a sink with a cover, a Montag three-burner range, metal under-counter cabinets, and overhead cabinets with wood doors. The range has not been tested for functionality. The bedroom is located aft and is outfitted with a platform and mattress. Other details include under-platform storage, high-mounted cabinets, and closets flanking the entryway.

The selling dealership didn’t bring a lot of other information to the table, and attempted to use AI to fill in the gaps. The brochure is a better source. The brochure notes a total length of 22 feet, a body length of 20 feet, and an interior height of 6’21/2″. The trailer’s empty weight is quoted at 2,424 pounds with a tongue weight of 175 pounds.

The selling dealer also isn’t sure about holding tanks. The brochure says that the Model 25 has a water tank. However, such equipment is not noted for the smaller Model 22, which this unit is. Once again, this doesn’t appear to have been designed as a self-contained camper. Ideally, you’ll park somewhere with a water hose or have your own source of water. It looks like this trailer also just dumps gray water directly onto the ground, which makes sense because the only source of water in this trailer would be the kitchen sink.

All of this might sound weird, but it was actually pretty common for campers of the first half of the 20th century to need to be tethered to actual campgrounds to make full use of their features. They still had propane for cooking and heat, but needed help in those other crucial areas.

It probably wouldn’t take much to make this Clipper a bit more modern. Connect the drain hose to a tank and now you have a gray tank, and hook up another tank and maybe a pump to give yourself a fresh tank. A power station could provide electrical power.

Hopefully, A Cheap Way Into A Classic

Of course, buying an old camper is a commitment all in itself. Getting it fixed won’t be as easy as scooting down to your local Camping World. Likewise, you’re working with decades-old equipment and parts that may not be readily available. But if you can put up with all of that, I think going vintage can be pretty fun. This trailer looks so much cooler than most trailers built today.

The price might also end up being pretty attractive. This same trailer sold for just $7,700 in the 2025 Mecum Indy auction back in May. The Bring a Trailer auction is currently at $7,500 with less than a day to go. The auction doesn’t say that the current owner made any changes, and it looks the same as it did in that May auction. I cannot imagine that this trailer will return much more money in just over a month. One of the more expensive Silver Streak Clippers that I’ve seen sold for $27,500 back in 2021. So, it’s likely that this will sell for a price that’s cheaper than something like a new Airstream, which is awesome.

That low weight also means that this trailer can be towed by a variety of vehicles. I’d tow it with something period-correct — it would be a perfect pairing with my Plymouth — but the trailer is also light enough to be towed with a plethora of crossovers and even small trucks. So, if you’ve been thinking about getting a vintage camper and don’t want to spend a fortune on having a piece of history, this rig might be the ticket. At the very least, maybe you won’t be able to stop looking at it. I know I can’t turn away.