Motorhome Madness

Alaskan Itasca · June 26, 2013, 05:56 PM

The repairs were more than double what I paid for it lol....It is true I do own it outright, I own all the new parts, and all the repiars I made before. Now I need about 3 new tires (both fronts and a spare), I took a gamble and made the trip with no functional spare (the spare is in use, the old tire has steel belts showing) since I couldn't fit a new tire in the M3 and tires in Tok make the transmission look cheap. I paid $250 to replace two 14 inch trailer tires in Tok when one of the dolly tires devoloped a bubble on the way there.....I would have had to buy a 8R19.5 inch tire there, and they are $259.18 each here in Anchorage. Tire rack would be $342.54/ tire when you add in 2nd day air shipping to here...

My wife is happy the RV is fixed.
I even found this, ( http://anchorage.craigslist.org/rvs/3839506555.html ) I'm waiting for them to contact me so I hope it hasn't sold, these almost never come up for sale here without an included RV. I'm hoping those measurements are wrong because mine is 86 inches wide where the pull down bed used to be. (and my wife said go for it since the dinnette is actually a bit small for two kids)

Oz · June 27, 2013, 12:50 AM

Sometimes, the repair bills can really be an "ouch" when you simply have to "pay the piper". This and modifications and upgrades are why one of the accepted kredos of vintage RV ownership is knowing that we very well may end up spending several times what we paid for the RV in repairs, upgrades, and modifications so we can get them running right and getting them the "way we want them". It's a labor of love, and money too.

That is why I provided the RV buying checklist to help prospective RV owners a tool to help them discover if they're getting a good value or if they're buying an "alligator" - anything which simply eats your money.

But, we all live and learn, and that's all part of the experience too.

Elandan2 · June 27, 2013, 01:56 AM

When I look at the picture of the road, I remember a quote I read at the Mile "0" museum in Dawson Creek BC. A construction worker on the Alaskan highway said "There are miles and miles with nothing but miles and miles". Rick

LJ-TJ · June 27, 2013, 06:41 AM

If it wasn't for this site and the many who volunteer their time and expertise a hole bunch of us would be in big trouble. Thanks to the few who have taken me by the hand and led me through repairs I've been able to save thousands of dollars on repairs not to mention learn tons of stuff. This is one of those times when thanks just doesn't seem to be enough.

Mytdawg · June 27, 2013, 10:16 AM

Mine still isn't operational and it's almost then end of June. I got it started finally but for the most part I've been waiting on a mechanic since spring. And it's only 30 miles from a main town. I'm hoping the price is inversely proportionate to the speed at which it's been worked on but who knows? I knew it wasn't going to be driving it out of a field it's been in for 10 years and directly into the sunset. He thinks we'll have it back next week but wants to talk about it first. And that was several days ago then he wandered off again. It took 3 years on the Vette. Things are looking up.

LJ-TJ · June 27, 2013, 10:41 AM

Holy Cow it can't be that bad. i?? What's he saying is the matter with it. I see you in Michigan. LJ and I just spent the weekend in the Wal-Mart in Port Huron.

M & J · June 27, 2013, 10:49 AM

Yeah Mytdawg, what's the problem with the coach?

Mytdawg · June 27, 2013, 11:02 AM

Back brakes, shocks all the way around and u-joints and I don't have any brake lights at this point. I filled both gas tanks before I stored it, front one now shows less than half and back one doesn't register at all. Found a minor line leak but lost 15+ gallons somehow. I don't know if the switch works but the gauges are still coming and going with Scotchlock McGee's under dash work. I still got one manifold with a significant leak too and the entire exhaust is pretty flimsy. Even after I get it back I still not no A/C (rooftop air may work but no generator). With one senior Newfie I'm concerned about breaking down on the road in the heat. And I still got no spare or mount for it.

Haven't even started with the "home" part of motorhome. Keep in mind I work full time, commute 300-500 miles a week and I'm not a particularly good backyard mechanic. If I tried to pull that driveshaft out they'd be removing it from my forehead most likely. I played out most of my tough guy cards early in life.

DaveVA78Chieftain · June 28, 2013, 02:48 PM

Well the up side is rear brake parts for a 76 are easy to find. Just a matter of having the right lifting equipment and tools.

Dave

Oz · June 29, 2013, 01:24 AM

Sounds like you have a lot of the common "ailments" that are provided free to new owners. The good news is, we have topics and resources for all these things! And, whatever help you need, we've got the greatest bunch of people to help. You may need a mechanic's help and hopefully, he or she is well versed with these vintage RVs. It would be good to read-up as much as you can before having work done and check what your mechanic tells you with the folks here to be sure you're not wasting your hard-earned cash.

Mytdawg · July 01, 2013, 11:36 AM

I've got a great mechanic in town here (several in fact - I'm a frequent flyer! :)rotflmao ) unfortunately my motorhome is 60 miles away in a little berg. They are familiar with heavy equipment, they service box trucks and have wreckers etc. The term M300 was not foreign to them. But I'm about ready to recover it in any fashion I can and bring it back to my guy. They don't seem to be crooks or bad people, it just keeps getting pushed back for other things. I was trying to use the local resources so I didn't have to drive it so far to store it then back to service it etc.

My purchasing decision making is not good anyway. I buy vehicles like most people buy gum at a check out lane, purely on impulse.

It started and moved under it's own power, plus it's old and funky. I'll take it!

LJ-TJ · July 01, 2013, 12:30 PM

i?? Ok so were do you want to start. You can do the shocks yourself for the cost of the shocks. The U-joint just block the wheels remove the drive shaft four nuts. Don't for get to mark it and take it to the local shop and have them put a new one or two on. You save on the labor cost and you can put that to the new rear brakes. The exhaust you can fix yourself and maybe you just have to re toque the manifold gasket. See how easy that was.

Mytdawg · July 01, 2013, 01:49 PM

I appreciate the offer and when I get to something I can tackle I'll take you up on it. But I don't even crawl around under cars anymore except to change the oil and sometimes that's a challenge. I can bust my butt and knuckles and still have to pay someone to fix my mistakes. 40 year old rusted bolts and parts I just don't have the upper body strength to wrestle anymore. I had a bizarre combination of death wish and thoughts I was invulnerable when I was a young man. I was a lot closer on the first than the second. And it's amazing how cheap mechanics work when you fix their computer systems...

M & J · July 01, 2013, 01:52 PM

My purchasing decision making is not good anyway. I buy vehicles like most people buy gum at a check out lane, purely on impulse. It started and moved under it's own power, plus it's old and funky. I'll take it!

Ditto for me amigo, except starting, running and moving under it's own power are bonuses for me - not a requirement.

Mytdawg · July 01, 2013, 03:09 PM

Sorry about the thread hijack. It seemed relevant... W%

Oz · July 11, 2013, 10:06 PM

Oh, it's absolutely relevant... most new purchases of previously enjoyed vintage RVs follow the same story... tons of issues and lot's of work, sweat, frustration and money are spent to get them the way we want them to be.

Okay, awesome! This is where so many of our great topics come from... "motorhome madness". And they naturally lead right into specific, mechanical questions. I'm sure you're going to post the different questions on the appropriate message boards as you get deeper into the repair process so they don't get all jumbled up into one, confusing topic on the General board where nobody will ever find them again so, I'll help and move the ones already going on... you'll find them on the corresponding message boards so you can keep discussing them!