jetalkington

Linda, I already saw the video. I ordered the tool they were using. It looks like it made it a lot easier. I slept in it while it was storming so I know there is no water. at least then. But we haven't had rain for few weeks. Thanks for the heads up on the Maquires. Good idea on the tape. I will clean up the decal and the whole area while I am at. I am curious why it would bulge out in the first place. I am guessing the person that put it in did not get it fully into the corner. Thanks for the help.

Ok, got the pictures this morning. You can see that the corner is bulging out from the fiberglass. i took from another angle hoping to get a better idea and it looks like it is bulging forward. I don't think this is the original gaskets. When I did the timing belt it was not the original timing belt. The belt was actually in great shape and did not need changed. So in this sunraders 28 year life someone has been working on it. Is this what your seeing? I am hoping once I get it out I am not going to see a hole that has been cut larger.

I am not sure what picture your asking for. I looked at the curve of the window and it does not look bowed out. I see what you mean by the corner looks sort of cut in. Like some had trouble getting the corner in and cut a little fiberglass away to make it easier. Tough to tell until I move the windows out. Let me know what picture your looking for and I will see if I can get it. Thanks

I guess this means I will be pulling my front windows after all. I just finished most of the basic maintenance on my new Sunrader and I came out this morning and saw this seal pulled away from the fiberglass. It was not that way just two days ago. I am not sure why it would choose now. Based on the dirt line it looks like it was barely on the fiberglass. I figured I will have to start though the windows. I had seen where they resealed all the windows in 2009 but they must have done a crappy job. Thanks to this forum I ordered the new seals from Amazon. I am also looking for the seals on the rear cargo box. The seal between the two halves is badly chipped and the top is bad. Any leads would be appreciated.

Interesting article on someone who is using Lithium: http://slowboat.com/2018/04/422-nights-on-lithium-batteries/

Only on Stark Power, and a couple others. I know what your thinking and your right. To get an equivalent power I would have to spend around $1800 and is it really worth it. What started me down this bunny trail is my desire to change out the power distribution center for a progressive dynamics 4500 so I can have a charge wizard when I am on shore power. I have used these before and they are great. I noticed on their site that the lithium batteries require a different power center. I am sure it is because they use a lithium charger. So, I started looking at the benefits vs cons of lithium. The only down side is the cost. I have been giving some thought to installing the regular PD4500 with a good AGM. Then down the road, when lithium is really main stream and cheaper swap out the charger. I do not know a lot about lithium and just started looking at my options. I can buy a deka or similar AGM for a lot less and have more AH. I am not sure if you have to vent AGM batteries as you do wet cells. If not I can put it/them inside and swap out later when I can afford it. I am guessing they have to be vented as they are still a flooded battery. I finish my timing belt this week, which turned into more than just a belt, and want to plan the interior. The electrical is a major consideration along with how to insulate and should be planned and mapped before I begin. I am just starting to think it through. I appreciate any input from this group.

My wife and I boon dock quite a bit. We spent 10 days in a National Heritage site in New Mexico last year. We have our power use down pretty well. We have a 180 watt panel and two trojan 105 6v batteries. We camp mostly in November so we have to use the furnace and take an in house shower. Even with laptop use for netflix we wake up to a battery of 60%. We turn the heat down, all the lights off and go hiking or site seeing for the day. With out fail we return to a battery at 100%. We had no trouble for 10 days. I am hoping to get my sunrader up with the same efficiency. So, for us, the solar panels are a necessity.

Because they are lithium I am planning to keep them inside. I may even find a way to duct a vent to them. Just in the planning stages.

Sorry, I should have mentioned I am only taking about the house batteries.

Does anybody have any experience with this company: http://lithionicsbattery.com/ All the batteries are designed and built in the USA. I am designing my electrical system and have decided to go with lithium. The have a full complement of batteries. I have never heard of them.

Over the years types of sealants have always been confusing to me. What to use where. A few years ago I stumbled upon this article about sealants on boats. I think much of what works on a boat works on RVs. Plus this article has a link to excellent butyl tape and a sidebar on how to use butyl tape. It has helped me a lot and so I am passing it on. It a great article and a must read for anyone contemplating rehabbing a RV. I have purchased and used the Butyl Tape from the link in the article and I can attest to its quality. http://www.boatus.com/magazine/2013/April/how-to-pick-the-right-sealant.asp

Don't forget to read the container on Gorilla Glue. It is a water activated glue and on some materials it requires you to dampen the material before applying the glue. I am guessing that is not the case for their construction glue but I have not used it.

I have several friends that swear by Gorilla glue. I just have not gotten around to trying it. It gets really great reviews. I may see how it is on my Sunrader.

I am going to throw this out to the group. About 5 years ago I started working on a travel trailer that turned into a much bigger project than I had planned. it was one of those that you wonder what the h*** did I do this for. I knew it was bad but not so bad that by the time I got home the frame had cracked and the only thing holding it together was the floor of the camper and some cargo straps I out on it. It was a small 13 ft egg camper. Really cute. I thought it would be fun. I ended up renting a storage unit to work on it. I knew the people running the units so they let me have one for $25 a month. To get to the point I ended up taking the shell off and replacing the entire floor while the frame was at a weld shop being rebuilt. When I built the new floor it had to be in 4 pieces. I planned to rabbit edges and glue them together as I installed them. Putting screws in the rabbits until the glue dried. Then remove the screws and glass over the seams. The problem I had was the storage unit never went over 50 degrees and at night was colder than that and I was concerned the glue would not set proper. I envisioned the floor separating driving down the road. My favorite wood glue is Titebond III. I have used it for years and never had any trouble. I called Titebond to describe what I was doing and they said it may or may not work but they would not recommend it, unless I could get the temp up to 50 degrees for 24-48 hours. Maybe maybe not. I decided to call Liquid Nails. Again glue I have used and never had any trouble. So you can imagine my surprise when the lab tech told me they do not recommend using any of their product in motorhomes or travel trailer. I have admit I was pretty shocked. I bring this up because many people on this forum rebuild many of the motorhome and glue is a primary tool. I did some research and decided to call loctite. Again, I have used their product with out problems. They passed me to their lab. I told the tech what I was doing and she said they had just came out with a product called power grab 8X and it would work with no problem as long as I could get my storage unit above 40 degrees for a couple hours. It would take longer, and I would have to leave it clamped longer, to be sure, but it would work. She also said that it would be impacted by temps below freezing once the curing started. It would just take longer. Really great people and spent some time on the phone with me to be sure what I was doing would work. It did and trailer was fine.Turned out really pretty. So, more to the point I only use loctite products and still titebond III, properly clamped. I never use liquid nails in my trailers and will not when I get to working on the inside of my Sunrader. Sorry for the long backstory.

Thanks, I did that before I bought it. Two different dealers and all they had were a couple sales when it was in dealer. Minimal service work must have been done at Toyota. Plus in 2010 it was bought by the owner of a Toyota dealer 80 miles from here and all they had was the their service records and the records of the work the owner had done. Which was quite a bit. New hot water heater and all the windows were resealed. That doesn't mean it was never done. If I had it and didn't know about the recall I would probably fix it myself or have it done by a non Toyota garage. Toyota wouldn't have any of those records. It ran great for 2700 miles. Did not loose any antifreeze. So, I am just going with it and keep an eye on it. Not much else to do anyway. No symptoms of any problems. I will finish the timing belt and water pump by early next week. I am curious what shape the belt is in. Thanks for all the help.

I checked on the Toyota website: https://www.toyota.com/recall It came back with no open recalls or service campaigns on this vehicle. In looking at what you've posted my number is between the numbers on the policy adjustment but below the numbers involved in the service campaign. My number ends with 0012801. So, it looks like it is involved in the policy adjustment. I am guessing that means they gave it the special extended warranty but it was not directly involved in vehicles that had the problem. Again I am just guessing at what I am seeing and could be out in left field. In doing some more research it looks like some early 1990 did not experience the problem and that is started in late 1990. https://www.justanswer.com/toyota/3kmlf-toyota-recall-cylinder-head-gasket-issues.html Maybe I lucked out. That would not be the usual for me.

Thanks for this. My local Toyota dealer is terrible. So, it is likely they knew the number fell in the range and did not tell me. What exactly is the campaign. I knew about head gasket issue but I can not find any evidence of a leak or any issues.

Thanks for the welcomes. This project should be fun. I was fortunate in that this one is a 1990 on title and from the mfg. It also missed all the recalls. I check the VIN with Toyota and was told by them there is never been a recall for this vin. So I start on it after I get this timing belt done.

I have been lurking and looking for months for a Sunrader. I finally found one in California with only 52000 on it, 1990, V6. I flew out last week to look at it. The guy I bought it from had no clue about motorhomes. He said he used it as a bunk house on the beach. He never turn on the frig, stove or water pump. I spent a day checking everything out and to my surprise everything worked. Propane valve leaked and we took it to a propane supplier and they repaired it for $60. The seller paid. So, I bought it and began my trek home. I was hoping to make it home on the tires but only made to Winslow, AZ. Blew the right outside rear. Fortunately I called Discount Tire in Flagstaff and they had 6 Yokohama 185 Class D 8 ply in stock. They said they see a lot of Toyota MH in the area and stock the tires for them. First thing I am tackling is the timing belt and shocks. Plus, of course, the basics, belts, fluids, and a more thorough inspection. But I made it home 2700 miles at an average of 16mpg. So, I am a happy camper. I have rebuilt old trailers but this is my first motorhome. This one I am doing for me. I work all summer ( I own a state park concession.) and only get to vacation in the fall and winter. I am planning to set this up for cold weather. I am a photographer and want to be outside getting picture. Hotel rooms ae to expensive and I get tired of hauling gear to the 4 runner. I was a mechanic in a former life and actually worked at a Holiday Ramble dealership when I was in my 20's. About 40 years ago. I am looking forward to this build out and plan to seek a lot of advice here. I will try to post what I am doing.