North Carolina, 2013

[ClydesdaleKevin]

The carpet installers came out today and did an amazing job!!!  They couldn't do the doghouse though, or a couple of metal kick panels that need the carpet glued in place, so I'll be starting that tomorrow.  So yep, once again I'll be gluing and stretching and clamping carpet over a doghouse, so I'll get lots of pics and post the project in the projects board, since the pics of the one i did in the Itasca got lost.  Hope this one comes out as nice!

After the installers left, I went down to Home Depot for some supplies, like the carpet glue and more foam puzzle sided tiles, and protective carpet film, then got home and got to work.

I covered the whole new carpet in the film...which is SUPER hard to work with by the way and many cuss words were used...then put the foam tiles over the entire floor.  Paladin isn't completely housebroken yet, although he's getting there, and I just invested 1500.00 bucks for the new carpets and solid rubber padding and the install, so I don't want them ruined!  He's almost there, but he's still a pup.  Karli is pretty much completely housebroken now.

Once that was all done, I checked the mail and the door kit for the new tankless water heater arrived!

So I'll be doing the install tomorrow, and working on the carpet job in between...and hopefully have time in the afternoon to get started on catapults, but we'll see.

Otherwise, its going to be 2 long days on Thursday and Friday to get them all done!

Lastly, we had to bring Paladin to the vet for what we thought was going to be his last battery of puppy shots (parvo and all that), to find out that he was given his first shot too early by the breeder, so he'll need another in 4 weeks.  So he's still in quaranteen from other people's dogs until then.  That sucks!  I want to start socializing him with other dogs soon!

Anyhow, it was a long busy day, and tomorrow is going to be a super busy project day!

kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

About to get started on the doghouse and water heater.  First thing I've got to do after my coffee is go to an auto parts store and buy a length of heater hose and hose clamps so I can close off the loop at the engine that went to the old water heater.  I'll be putting a bucket under there to catch as much coolant as I can to keep the animals safe, and work quickly to minimize coolant loss.

Coffee first, then on to the projects!

i'll let y'all know how far I get this evening.

Kev

[M & J]

Did you find a new home for the old water heater?

[ClydesdaleKevin]

One of the members wants the circuit board, once I pull it off the heater. 

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

What a nightmare of a project!

Long story short, its finally in, but I broke a propane line during the install, didn't have the right water hookup fittings, and the shutoff I installed before the heater is defective...so no water and no propane!

Glad Patti found the cord to the electric perk pot!

The carpet install on the doghouse is going well, but its a long way from being fully stretched.  I'll probably have it finished tomorrow, in between building catapults.

First thing early tomorrow I have to run to Home Depot for a gas shutoff valve, more copper tubing, flare fittings, some more Pex tubing, and the right fittings to attach them to the heater.

Then finish the water heater install tomorrow.  These Girard tankless water heaters are WAY more complicated to install that a standard one!

Pictures have been taken of the projects so far, so when I have time I'll post them to the projects board with good instructions.

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

The water heater is installed!  Its finally done...whew!  No wonder the instructions warned that installation of these things wasn't intended for the home tinkerer!  Not the most complex thing we've done to the RV, but it was up there!

I think what really added to how hard the job was was the fact that our original Atwood had the recessed frame so the heater would sit flush with the outer wall of the RV...and the Atwood replacement door was just a little too big, by around 1/4 all around, to fit in the recess...which required me to remove the frame, section it in 4 quarters, paint it, then put it back in with the 4 corners spread out further.  That gave it JUST enough room to fit.  And aligning the door with the exhaust vent was a bloody challenge as well...I ended up screwing the door down at the 4 corners to make sure the vent stayed in the hole while travelling.

It works great too, although there will be a learning curve getting used to how water flow affects temperature...and this thing can put out some hot water!

And the doghouse is almost done as well, although with this doghouse I did have make one cut, but its barely noticeable.  I'll be doing the finishing touches tomorrow in between building catapults, and then we'll be able to put the dinette cushions back where they belong...they are covering the engine compartment to keep nosy puppies out of it...lol!

And now its almost 4pm...and its going to be a LONG day of catapult building tomorrow to have enough stock for the weekend...and a long week of nothing but catapults next week to play catchup.

Now for a good book for a while.

Kev

[M & J]

Pictures man! Where are the pictures!?

[LJ-TJ]

   
• Pictures man! Where are the pictures!?

[M & J]

You're jealous cause I said it first.....

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Note one post up...lol!  Pictures and a detailed installation procedure will be posted to the project board once I have time...which might not be for a while!

Big storm coming in, so I have to get all my cutting and routering done before the rains hit...then drill and sand in the tent and assemble everything, then stain it all.

Hope the rain holds off for a while...still gotta finish the detail work on the doghouse!

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

The doghouse carpet is finished, and its back in place.  It came out great!  I did have to make one cut, but its on a flat and is invisible.  I was able to use my air staple gun and compressor all along the bottom edge with 1 inch staples, which I folded over with needle nose pliers, so it can't possible come up at the bottom edges. 

Yep, pictures coming later...lol!

I got the last cut and routering done just as the rains started, and was able to retreat to my workshop to finish the drilling and sanding and assembly.

Before going to the workshop, I had to go down and get more dog food...and they were all out!  The distributor they use didn't have any...geesh!

So I went to Petco and got them a case of Merrick Venison Holiday Stew...uh oh!  I hope they don't mind going back to Taste of the Wild!  They REALLY love the Merrick!  I ordered them more of their usual ToTW from Chewy.com, but they needed some in the mean time.

Catapults all got done by around 5pm, then it was off to the store for marshmallows and whatnot.

Time to go set up the booth now!

Our friends the blacksmiths, who are also talented welders, are going to install the new lazy susan bearings in the passenger seat pedestal for us, so I have to bring that over as well.

Off I go!

Should be a great weekend!  The weather prediction is awesome for both days!

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Super busy day at faire yesterday, and it should be another great day today!

The blacksmiths said he'd have the chair pedestal finished by next weekend, so I decided I'm going to pull the dash this week while the chairs are out of the way, and we are going to reupholster it ourselves.

So now its time to feed the pups breakfast, then get to work!

Let the marshmallows fly!

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Great over all weekend!  More vacation money stashed away!

Lots of catapults to build this week, but manageable, so I'll begin pulling the dash today and doing the reupholstery job on it with Patti.  We already have the vinyl, so with the chairs out of the way, this is the perfect time to do it!

First though, I have to run to Tractor Supply and pick up more Taste of The Wild for the pups.  The novelty of the Merrick wore off quick, and they definitely like the ToTW better.  I ordered more, but it won't be here until Wednesday.

Also have to pick up materials, short staples for my air stapler for the upholstery job, a small electric heater for the bathroom (composting only takes place above 45 degrees, and we've been getting some COLD nights!), and a few other various odds and ends.

Gotta go!

Kev

[LJ-TJ]

SO WHERE'S THE PICTURES?

[JDxeper]

Kev  Your email box is full.  Have question? Where is the magic Junkyard in AL, name and address please?

[LJ-TJ]

Here's a good one

[ClydesdaleKevin]

I emptied my mailbox a few days ago, so I have no idea why its saying its full.  I mean its totally empty!

I have no idea where the junkyard in Alabama is though.

After running around and getting everything yesterday, then taking Patti grocery shopping, it was too late to start the dash project, so today is the big day for that!

I did do some recon on the project though yesterday.  The wiring part is going to be a snap, since the dash face with all the gauges and controls screws on from the inside of the dash, so I can just leave it hanging without having to disconnect anything.

I think I've located most of the screws that hold it down, though I'm not sure how it attaches in the front along the windshield.  I'm hoping it just rests on a shelf, or there are screws under the defroster vents...otherwise it means there are screws behind the front grill, and removing the grill will certainly add to the complexity of the project.

Either way, I'm about to get started on it!

I'll take lots of before and during and after pictures.  Right now, we have one ugly dash!

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

EPIC FAIL on reupholstering the dash ourselves!   

Getting it out was no problem at all really.  It was all out and ready to start reupholstering by 11am.  But this is not the flat dash of The Ark, or the flat panels in our old boat...this thing is full of angles and weird shapes, and we tried to stretch the vinyl and staple the new stuff down, but no matter how hard we tried, we couldn't get it to stretch around the odd shapes without a plethora of wrinkles, and it was looking like it was being done by a drunk teenager by the time we decided to call in a professional...lol!

We called a couple of marine/boat upholstery places, and it looks like this guy named Charlie can do it for around 200.00 since we already have the dash pulled.

Another problem we ran into was the front section under the windshield.  (The dash came out in 3 sections, the box over the instrument cluster and where there used to be a TV first, then a 2 piece section that contains the glove box and the long curved flat piece that goes up tight against the bottom of the windshield).  That front section is all wet and dryrotted from years and years of soaking in condensate from the windshield. 

So long story short, we had to turn it over to a pro.  He laughed when I talked to him on the phone...he said yep, you'd never get it to stretch without cutting and stitching and gluing, which is exactly the way Holiday Rambler did it originally.  He's coming by around 5pm this evening to take a look and give us a solid quote, so after my coffee I'll be running down to Lowe's for a piece of plywood, then stopping by the fabric store for more vinyl, then coming back and using the rotten piece as a template, I'll be cutting out the replacement piece.  Hopefully he'll just be able to take the pieces with him and get it all done by next week.

Patti is going to call a couple of other places today to see what they say, but this guy seems pretty much on the up and up, and doesn't seem like he'll charge us an arm and a leg.

We'll be reinstalling the dash ourselves of course, since that's the easy part!

So gotta go get the plywood and vinyl, then its back to camp, cut out the plywood, reassemble the dash piece to the TV box (I took it apart in a vain attempt to be able to stretch the vinyl enough, but it needs to go back together if a pro is going to do it right), then cut out all my catapult parts needed for this weekend, and then get them all drilled and routered before calling it quits this evening, then cut and router more tomorrow, and get everything assembled, then on Friday build some trebuchets.

Lots to do!

Kev

[LJ-TJ]

 i?? Where's the pictures D:oH!

[ClydesdaleKevin]

LOL!  Lots of pictures will be coming once I have time to breathe, and maybe a better internet connection!

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

AWESOME NEWS!!!

After getting the new piece cut out for the dash and coating it in spar varnish, and after cutting out and drilling all the catapult parts today, it was still only just after 5pm.

Around 6pm we met up with Charlie, from Charlie's Custom Upholstery, of Terrell, NC.  He drove down to the faire site to give us a quote.

150.00 bucks!  That's it!

Not only that, but for an extra 100.00 he's going to make a custom quilted dash cover of this stuff that's puppy paw proof on one side, and the same color vinyl on the other to keep the dash looking new.

So 250.00 for the whole shebang!!!

If you get a chance to look at his website, he does top quality work.  If he does as nice a job as we think he will, then next year we'll have him reupholster the seats and side panels.

AWESOME!!!

He he took all the parts with him and said it will take him about a week or so.

Happy happy happy!!!

Kev

[M & J]

Pictures man! Where are the pictures?!?

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Pictures will probably be along once we are on vacation.  Yes, we are that busy...lol!

Gotta get back to work on the catapults soon, right after I finish another cup of amazing perculator coffee!

Kev

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Massive amounts of prep work was done today, so tomorrow morning its just the final assembly on 75 catapults, Patti is almost done with her 26 mousetrap catapistols, and then I have to knock out 5 trebuchets and get everything stained before dark.

Its doable, but its going to be a long day!  I was so busy today I forgot to eat!

I did manage to find time to remove the dinosaur board and cover and thermostat and eco switches from the old Atwood before throwing the rest in the dumpster.  Someone on the forum said they wanted it, but I lost the email.  Anyone?

I called it quits at 5, so now its time to relax a bit, and do it all over tomorrow.  Supposed to be great weather this weekend!

Kev

[M & J]

I sent you a pm about the water heater but was hoping to get it intact. I could use the tank however.