Palfreyman

RE: The Club and vehicle security. Speaking from theoretical experience of a misspent youth.... "The Club" is about a 60 second speedbump (and sometimes significantly less...) to any determined vehicle thief. Some interviewed thieves confirmed that theoretical experience thusly: " At some point, the Club was mentioned. The professional thieves laughed and exchanged knowing glances. What we knew was that the Club is a hardened steel device that attaches to the steering wheel and the brake pedal to prevent steering and/or braking. What we found out was that a pro thief would carry a short piece of a hacksaw blade to cut through the plastic steering wheel in a couple seconds. They were then able to release The Club and use it to apply a huge amount of torque to the steering wheel and break the lock on the steering column (which most cars were already equipped with). The pro thieves actually sought out cars with The Club on them because they didn’t want to carry a long pry bar that was too hard to conceal. " (there are at least two youtube video compilations showing just that, thieves bypassing The Club is under 60 seconds.. usually *well* under.)

So... While I've been looking for a 1 ton dually 2WD Rear End from 1990 Toyota truck to upgrade my 1981 Rader RV's rear end, I found that I may have an opportunity to get someones trashed 1990 Toyota uhaul truck. If I can get the whole thing for cheap, what other suspension parts should I scavenge to upgrade my 1981 Rader?

This is my 82 Rader... sitting in the mechanics parking lot. Won't be looked at until next week cuz the dude they assigned to look at it (an owner of one himself) is on vacation until next week... The six digit odometer reads 026,550 miles.. Either the it turned over a million miles, is broke, or accurate.. I'm told the dent in the front happened recently, while they had it towed to their home (from their deceased fathers estate...) and the siding on the drivers side peeled away while being towed at highway speeds.. And those propane tanks.. too rusty? Too old (the valves look outdated..)

So.... the aluminum siding of my 82 Rader is somewhat rough in places.. my uncle is a retired plastics engineer for a vinyl siding company, and still has connections to get me vinyl siding seconds/off-spec for next to nothing... (off spec being stuff that isn't up to snuff color/pigment wise and would be re-ground and recycled at some point if not used..) Any reason to not use vinyl siding?

Linda, I've researched the axle a bit.. since mine in the 17.5" foot version, it's not got the weight/stress on the rear axle that the other, bigger models do.. Still, the mechanic was instructed to pay particular attention to it.

Hello Joe from Dover, I'm Paul, and I'm in the Columbus area... I've got this Toyota RV at the mechanics now being evaluated.. After I get that info, I'll get the priorities figured out on what I need to do from an mechanical/automotive standpoint. I'm also prepared to strip the interior to the frame and rebuild from the ground up. My wife, before she became disabled, was an architect, and we've got a basement/garage filled with various samples of flooring, tiles, counter-top material, etc... and the samples will be perfect for doing up the so-small interior of this RV. We also have to remodel the interior to take my wife's disability (and my coming disabilities) into account. We're gonna take the over-cab bed area and make that storage, and turn the rear couch/dining area into a sleeping area she can get into.. the rest of the interior is up for discussion at this time though...

I'm picking this up today, and taking it to my mechanic for an eval... It's supposedly only got 26K miles... I'm paying $600 for it. Good deal if it runs, I think...

Will be taking possession of this later this week.... What is it? I know it's a 1982 Toyota, and that is all.