Jump to content

Search the Community

Showing results for tags 'Bonanza Travelers Bandit'.

  • Search By Tags

    Type tags separated by commas.
  • Search By Author

Content Type


Forums

  • Toyota Motorhomes
    • General Discussion
    • Engines - Transmissions - Drive Train - Suspension - Chassis - Steering - Exhaust - Tires - Etc.
    • Coach ApplianceTech Issues
    • Electrical
    • Improvement and Do-It-Yourself Projects you have done to Share!
    • Whoops, Mishaps and Murphy's Law
    • Fuel Tanks
    • Communications and Electronics
    • Reviews - New Products - Campgrounds - Links of Interest
    • Pet Zone
    • Rallies & Toy Ins
    • RV CHOW
    • Miscellaneous & Non-related
    • Trip Reports
    • News - Forum Help & Discussion
    • <u>Toyotamotorhomes For Sale - Free Want Ads</u>

Find results in...

Find results that contain...


Date Created

  • Start

    End


Last Updated

  • Start

    End


Filter by number of...

Joined

  • Start

    End


Group


AIM


MSN


Website URL


ICQ


Yahoo


Jabber


Skype


Interests


My Toyota Motorhome


Location

Found 1 result

  1. OK, cue the theme from "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" or similar spaghetti western........ this will be the (re)build thread for the 1985 Bonanza Travelers Bandit that followed me home recently. it was so sad, I just couldn't take it to the Humane society cuz it probably would have been euthanized. this sucker is rare; they're not even listed in the "manufacturers" section of TMH.com, altho there are pix of one that's been either converted to 4WD or grafted onto a 4WD chassis. I ran Searchtempest and didn't find another for sale anywhere in the US. and the only one I've ever seen that was as small was the 70s Chinook popup. even that has a lot more frontal area, and I wasn't interested in getting into a 40 yr old carbureted vehicle. so this seemed like my best starting point to build a poor man's pocket Earthroamer. In case you don't know what one of those is: http://earthroamer.com/ first, a note. taking the Greydog with a duffel bag full of tools to a small town in AZ is NOT the recommended way to buy a 30 yr old motor home in the next state over. it was TGVG weekend and I couldn't line up a codriver to bring the Tacoma home. when it turned out to be in waaay worse condition than the CL advt, I could either wait for the next Greydog east or buy it. so I did. if i'd had a jack and stands, I might have passed on it once I saw the rust underneath and the wasted undercarriage. what sold me was the micro size and the fiberglass shell.....and one piece roof so less of that "soaked and rotted" syndrome. I once watched a typical-RV-construction unit (ie, aluminum sheeting over 2x2s or some such) in a fenderbender sort of explode after it tipped over--the guy's entire life became spread out over the road in <5 seconds. cuidado about riding in the back. fiberglass has the advantage that it absorbs energy as it collapses; one reason Vettes and old Loti did surprisingly well in crashes. anyway, I spent most of yesterday yanking off the steering, front brakes and part of front suspension. given the rust and the tendency of the torsion bar nuts to freeze in place, I suspect that part of the job will be a real party. after reading up on torsion bars, I might replace em with SwayAway or other aftermkt ones since I may have to raise it slightly for tire clearance. midnight found me in the shower, washing and wet sanding the 15" Taco takeoff steelies I bought in prep for painting em black......(are we getting the idea yet that this guy is maybe a bit unhinged.....?) (are we getting the idea yet that his wife is Unimaginably Tolerant?). But unlike the Jeep wheels I also considered (same bolt circle and center bore is only 3mm larger), the offset on these places the weight way more inboard, so as not to exacerbate the axle flew (meant to say flex, but my keyboard inserted that Freudian slip....) issue. i'm not willing to have different wheels for F and R, so for now i'm going to live with the '91 semi floater axle I bought for it. FWIW, my Haynes still shows the semi floater being used on Tacos through 2004, and that's what i found inside my 2002 Taco 4WD when I did the bearings, 6 lug wheels and all....and surprise, replacing the rear wheel bearings has been about the only non-scheduled repair I've had to do in 216K on it. so i'll do the axle bearings and seals afore I install, watch my loading (i'm used to traveling in a 67 hp Westy, where travelin' light is the only way to fly) and keep my eyes open for a 4WD axle and front hubs. OK, enough babble. trying to attach a "before" pic of the beast:
×
×
  • Create New...