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bobblefrog

Toyota Advanced Member
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Everything posted by bobblefrog

  1. Good question WME - 35 gal markwilliam1 - okay, I may not be 6 foot - but I did find that some of the Toys were way too short in the leg room department for me. Odyssey and Sunland seemed to be okay, but the Dolphin, for example, I just couldn't push the seat far enough back to get the steering wheel out of my stomach! So, I feel your pain. I would have thought all the cabs were the same, but it sure seemed like some builds left more room to back up the seats. This is one of the bonuses of the Dodge that thrilled me. 86rader - don't jinx me or oak trees :-) According to the carfax report it failed emissions once in 2005 and was passed the next week. Now it's too old to require emissions (passed last two years ago) and here in NC will only need safety inspections for another three. I will say, though, I do like that I've found the bigger engine. Here in the mountains I'd just like a little more opportunity to stay clear of the semis. LInda - thanks for the positive comments. I know from reading some of your past posts that you appreciate a well put-together rig.
  2. Well, if you are interested...more pictures!!! You know how exciting it is to have a new rig and the urge to share. That ripple on the side isn't delamination. It's a dent and looks worse in the pic than it actually is. Almost didn't think about going to look at this because it didn't have pictures of the ceiling. Turns out there is a microwave up there and ceiling was in great shape. Roof is aluminum. This one is a 5.9 V8 360. Thanks for those comments, JD. I did find a forum post where someone put a diesel in one of these (no pics, just a random thread I managed to run across). Had to move the radiator forward, but otherwise was fairly straightforward. Right now though the engine doesn't throw up any warning flags to the mechanic and it has 64,000 on it. Going to work with it :-) Now it's not all roses - may have to replace a fridge and the cab a/c doesn't blow cold, but even if I have to do have to put in a new fridge and replace compressor into the truck, I will still have plenty left in the allocated funds. Has four brand new tires from this summer, which offsets a little of the cost - almost every other rig I've looked at I would have changed those out first. Oh, and you know what else I was tickled at? The bathroom has a stainless sink. The screen door still exists. There's a 40 gallon fresh water tank (completely unexpected). The oven vent actually vents to the outside. It has a locking cargo box. The curtain above the cab still on its rails, and the awning arms still work. Silly little things like that! Well, okay, not silly. After looking at a bunch of old campers now, it's the small things that seem to add a sense to whether the camper was built well to start with, and then maintained. Again, thanks :-) Great group you all have here. I'm sure I'll still lurk around. Great treasure trove of advice. I expect if I hid in a herd of Toys I might not stand out too much...? Oh, and if you see any concerns in the picture I missed...best not to tell me. We'll find them soon enough. It's all part of the restoration. Just going to relax and go with the flow now that I've pulled the trigger.
  3. Twice the last year you all have steered me clear of Toyotas I was looking at. Very happy; got very good advice. So, I wanted to pop in and say we've pulled the trigger on our motorhome - but, alas, not a Toyota. Found a 20 ft 1984 Mallard on a Dodge Ram truck chassis. It was too good a deal to pass up. With all the research (much of it on this site translates) we knew "structurally and mechanically" sound when we saw it. It's a compromise - giving up the gas mileage, but it tows and and has the nice spacious over cab that drew me to the Toys in the first place. Not as much room - there's just about enough room to change my mind and not much else :-) But it has everything and is well-built. Solid. Anyway, just wanted to give you all the "end of the story". Thanks again!
  4. Sadly across the state - I only have time to follow up leads like that in the summer. I did chase a few this past summer. However It's one thing to go down the street and find a rig isn't as advertised, quite another when you've spent the day getting there :-) I do keep an eye on a few places where I have family and friends that can go look for me if something looks promising.
  5. Appreciate the comments. Yeah, good price, but even so, am I willing to tackle some of these repairs when the mileage is this high? If this was just a summer or weekend kind of camper, maybe, but I want to do some real traveling after whatever I get is fixed up. I've pretty much talked myself out of it after Linda's comment, especially, about the cab concerns. Just not many that come up in my part of the country. A challenge for sure!
  6. Well, several RVs later (that I knew to pass on because of the expertise I read here) and I'm back again! I'd appreciate any thoughts and advice... 88 Odyssey, 161,000 miles (pic of engine below). Passed NC inspection this last July. Engine looked nice and clean, sounded good, started up quickly. Exterior walls are all nice and solid all the way around with no delamination. 6 new tires, shocks (and air shocks on the rear I understand). Roof a/c puts out cold air and at least checking the electric only found two lights not working, maybe the bulbs, maybe not. Plumbing and propane to be checked if I go back with an offer and he's happy to get it to my mechanic for a check over. He's fixed the roof where there was a leak and sealed it. He's kept it under a cover and said he's tested in rainstorms after he sealed the roof and didn't find any leaks. However, he didn't replace the interior panels (in the roof of the rear bath and bath closet where the leak was and where it extended just on the other side in the main compartment and the one cabinet over the sink. He painted and taped them back up. They are soft and a bulgy (see pics - these are the worst of them). I would replace asap. Everything else was solid - good hard raps, no soft spots in the floor. I think the leak was isolated to those panels. That said, I don't know if I can get to the one above the shower - that's a closed plastic shower surround (see pic - anyone know if the top panel comes off?) and he's already patched the roof (see pics). So maybe that one "stays" as is. How hard is it to replace these panels? Would that make you walk away? I've looked at much worse on some of these campers before and this seems "doable", but what do I know? Spare tire needs to be rehung, no screen door (apparently hinges for it (can I find replacements?), a/c in cab needs fixing (something about he turned it on and it was blowing cold but there was some sort of "leak" so he cut the belt and decided not to fix it). Fridge is electric and I'd want to replace that back to a 2/3 way. During test drive check engine light came on (didn't show hot, no oil light, wasn't working hard) but then after turning it off in a parking lot and turning it on and driving back to his house, it didn't come back on again. Manual steering and brakes. It seemed to shift well going up hills. But when turning the wheel in one direction a "new" (to him) sound of clanging popping...u-joint? He's going to look at it over this weekend. I did see the seam of one side of the cab under the corner was gaping a bit - he'd taped and painted over all the seams. Not sure how I feel about that - I can't see the aluminum trim under the paint and tape. However, the exterior lights and windows looked good -no silicone. Another from the door to the roof that has been sealed and taped and painted (see pic). He says that he was told when he bought it that it wasn't in an accident but just cracked. Hmm. Is and the covered seams big red flags? Sealing on the roof was silver stuff - he just coated the heck out of it basically with something he couldn't tell me the name of, maybe you all would know? I think the guy (older) was being pretty frank with me about what he knew that was wrong and what he didn't know. Any thoughts would be appreciated, you guys know your stuff and when to run screaming, and what's worth considering. PS - the racing stripe is duct tape :-) He thought it was a nice touch. PPS - I did not ask what he painted the exterior with.
  7. Very inspiring! That was a heck of a lot of work but the results are amazing. You have the floorplan that's on the top of my list - what do you think of that j-shaped dinette?
  8. The concrobium sounds like (from reviews I read) a good product. Good to know about. Seems like it can be "fogged" but not sure that's going to make a difference to the other side of the panels - and with an RV, it's easy enough to reach all the spaces you need to wipe down (though fogging might be useful in the case of upholstery). So it seems like your best plan at this point is to treat it where you can and then put your focus on keeping the humidity down, and keep everything dry (as best you can)? I did read something to about moisture absorbing crystals - you can put in cabinet spaces and such. You might not eliminate it but at least reduce/retard more growth. Glad to hear no health problems - and it sounds like you can't smell it either, so that's good. As you said, disconcerting, though!
  9. Curious to see if you found out more? Did you determine if it was mold for sure? I was thinking if I wasn't having any respiratory symptoms, and didn't smell it, I'd personally just patch it back up, and keep a piece out to be analyzed once off the road. From what I've read, unless you're sensitive to it, it's not immediately an issue. A lot of "scare" stuff out there on the internet. You've got some time to figure out how to deal with it. Just thinking out loud of course. Wanted to see what you've determined.
  10. Also wondering about that back bumper - looks out a little far? And what's that below the cargo box? Has that been set up to tow something?
  11. Good to know. I'm antsy, summer is almost here, best time for me to start putting the work into one, and price wise for our part of the US it's not a bad deal...but it's still on the other side of the state and I just don't have the time to check her out this weekend/week. I'm curious to see if he used silicone for the caulking...
  12. I'm looking at this myself. You? Saw it on Craigslist first for a higher price before he put it on EBay. I've sent a message asking about what he used for the caulking. How do we know about the rear axle, sight unseen? I have to admit it has some nice options - awning, ladder, cargo rack. Have to replace the fridge (I would for my purposes) but the floors aren't bad.
  13. That Vikram is less than three and a half square, too...not bad at all. Thanks for pointing that out. Look forward to hearing how it works.
  14. I fell down laughing at that... "why we love the Deep south". I'm allowed to, being born and bred there :-) Hmm, I hadn't considered about the legal hits you might get running between states and on toll roads...weigh stations...that would be seriously be a PIA. Here's a AAA list - not much about # of axles (as you said, if they are considered trucks). http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/tag/weigh-stations/
  15. Hey all I was looking at this ad today: http://denver.craigslist.org/rvs/5516029652.html And I've seen these before where there are two rear tires rather than duallies. What's the story with these? It seems they would be a lot easier to work with to air up, change etc....and that they wouldn't necessitate the 6 lug axle? Any thoughts? I don't see too many of them, but I wonder if this would be something to add to my wish list.
  16. Also saw where one of the posters here was selling their rig now that they are going back to "real life" - Candace has their rig up on the San Diego craigslist for what I thought was a reasonable price. Now that they have all the kinks worked out for a lucky buyer :-) It is pretty. I'm hoping to hold out for the floorplan with the couch, or my ultimate favorite, the j-shaped dinette.
  17. A "Wee"! http://www.ebay.com/itm/Toyota-Motorhome-WEE/172133889391?_trksid=p2045573.c100034.m2102&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D33890%26meid%3D1555edac84eb47d38618221a1c76341b%26pid%3D100034%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D8%26sd%3D322039416593 Sadly too small for me, but if I kicked the man, the dog and the cat out of my bed...well, okay the cat could stay, AND if this thing wasn't in Texas (long way to get it home where I could start putting some love in it)....this could just be a sweet little toy home, couldn't it?
  18. Payaso - yikes - now airplanes - that's an expensive hobby!
  19. Can add nothing to this conversation but empathy and "ain't it always something?" :-) I know I keep wondering if I'm crazy to lay out good money to get the equivalent of my father's boat back in the day. What my mother fondly referred to as a hole in the water to throw money into...oh well, now it's my day, so I guess we all pick our poison.
  20. My thought too - that's a lot of work in six months - in my book that would be a good year...maybe two...LOL! Awesome job.
  21. Now that's something I hadn't thought about....
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