Buying another Class A

Rickf1985 · August 18, 2015, 08:30 PM

OK, So I may be getting divorced on my 25th anniversary but I am buying another class A. Appears to be a 1989 Pace Arrow. Story is that they bought it and the son took it to his place to store it there and was too impatient to wait the help backing it in. Backed it into a hole. And there it has sat for unknown years. I am guessing about three or four years from the looks of it. The son recently went to jail and the township wants the place cleaned up. NOW!!!!! A friend of mine just bought an old CJ-5 Jeep with PTO winch and post hole digger attachment for 350.00 from this guys mother! Did I mention NOW?! He told me about the RV so I looked at it and made an offer of 600.00. Accepted.

I am of the mindset right now that this is going to be a parts unit. It is pretty rough inside, the ceiling is down front to rear. I though this was due to water but when I looked at the roof it seems to be in pretty good shape, there are a few leaks but nothing bad. I talked to a neighbor who has a Southwind which is also made by Fleetwood and he told me the headliners in these fall down from the heat and age, just lake cars. Hmmm. Well, the drivers window was left down because they ran the battery down trying to start it and could not figure out which battery to jump so they just covered the window with plastic. Needless to say plastic does not last long, there are birds living in there!

And mice. And possibly a transient due to the sleeping bag. I got a quote of around 300.00 to tow it depending on how hard it is to get out of the hole it is in. A friend is going to let me keep it in his field for a while so I guess the first thing I need to do is try to get the generator running so I have power to work with. I am only assuming the generator is there since that side is very overgrown and I did not want to go jungle exploring today.

Can anyone tell me of any experience with Pace Arrow? Good, Bad, Junk?

Rickf1985 · August 18, 2015, 08:37 PM

A few more. I like those cabinet pulls, you just pull out and it unlatches the cabinet. No yanking on a closed loop handle and then when it opens it traps your fingers! Those are keepers!!!

M & J · August 18, 2015, 08:52 PM

Dibs on the fridge Rick. Maybe.

DaveVA78Chieftain · August 18, 2015, 09:09 PM

Looks like many reusable parts there.
Biggest diff with Pace Arrow is the battery control center mounted under the hood in front. A central House distribution center.

1989 Pace Arrow Owners manual

Fleetwood Service and manuals

Froggy1936 · August 18, 2015, 09:19 PM

Other than some cleaning & the ceiling . If it runs and pulls I think this is a keeper It has a domed roof and a fiberglass body . All the rest is repairable Frank

JessEm · August 18, 2015, 09:27 PM

One vote here for parts unit. If there was any doubt, the pink interior and front seats seal it.

My only hesitation would be, this looks modern enough that most of these parts might be readily available? However, on the flip side of that coin, more modern = more of them on the road = more demand for parts? I dunno. i?? Something to ponder I guess. ... If the fridge works, you already got a good chunk of your $$ back. Between that and the awning, you should about be whole again.

Another thought is to get it road worthy and flip it. Maybe just fix the headliner, then get up on it with a pressure washer inside & out. Don't want to spend too much time or money. Let the next guy make it perfect. You could easily go upside down if you stress the details. With your knowledge, you're the perfect guy for this type of thing.

LJ-TJ · August 18, 2015, 10:52 PM

Well a good scrubing with Spray Nine, some Pinesall and a good vacuming and you might be suprised. Once you get rid of all the junk inside and giving her a good cleaning, she just might be worth a reconsidering. Hm?

TerryH · August 19, 2015, 12:14 AM

Wow.
If you are parting it out, two roof A/C's, whole or parts.
If you are patient and careful, as you appear to be, total inside and outside access should allow you to remove both windshields without damage.
PM me should you like some written assistance.
Windshield moldings are difficult to find.
Ladder and roof storage material is in demand.
Exterior hatches are at times priceless.
Etc., etc., etc.
As I am sure you know.
Great find.

Rickf1985 · August 19, 2015, 07:03 AM

Don't worry gang, It will be cleaned out and completely gone through before any destruction is done. The mileage is a bit high so I have that to think about also as far as motor and transmission. The transmission is easy enough to pull and rebuild but the engine in these things............................. without the access to a large area of concrete to work on which I do not have, changing engines is out of the question. If it turns out to be in pretty good shape I may just flip it but that kind of defeats my whole purpose of buying it. I don't even know how long it is, anybody here able to decipher the Fleetwood serial numbers in the pic?

Rickf1985 · August 19, 2015, 07:34 PM

Note change in title, told them I would buy it. I figure I need round wheels for mine and if the generator is there (I hope) then I am ahead of the game money wise. Plus I could use a second air conditioner on mine. So if I do not fix it up I can part it out and recoup my money. If I fix it I will have mine for sale soon.

Rickf1985 · August 19, 2015, 07:43 PM

Oh, The 66 is for sale also if someone wants one. Brand new interior.

Piraterik · August 19, 2015, 08:10 PM

With the Price of Scrap Metal with today's market. It is practically not even worthwhile messing with, is it. I called today to see what vehicles are getting for scrap. I was told $4.50 p/ 100 lbs. That was what I was told by Newell Recycling. they bought out Blaze Recycling about a year ago.

Number 1 clean Aluminum was only bringing $0.60, per lb. I don't know if it is any higher up your way Rick. (Closer to the Ocean Port). to get it to china. As I'm North East outside the perimeter of Atlanta, GA. But this Recycler is right on the CSX rail line, that shreds it onsite. And then ships by rail to Savannah, Ga Port.
Are Prices any higher up in NJ ?

Rickf1985 · August 19, 2015, 08:54 PM

That is spot on as of Tuesday. Most of the scrap now is going to England. None of our stuff is going to China anymore, they are buying from Europe from what I am told. I have not had my boat in for the last couple years but I used to see the Chinese ships loading shredded at Fairless Hills Steel in Pa. on the Delaware River. That is back when it was 14.25/100! The scrappers around here were rolling up peoples chain link fences at night!!! I am not looking to make anything on the scrap, I figure I can sell enough parts to get mine back. My biggest worry is without that scrap value is getting a scrapyard to take the carcass. That is a long ways off, I am thinking it may not come to that.