Back East Don

I'm saving the red for the Sunrader I'll never find. I have the 4cyl so no timing belt but I was thinking the Aisin is probably oem.

Put it off this spring but it's due. I need to flush out the cooling system. In addition, I am going to treat this like any used vehicle I buy and just replace the hoses, thermostat, radiator cap and now that I just hit 65k probably the water pump. 87 Itasca 22RE I've looked up some of the oem parts for the radiator cap (16401-63010) and thermostat (90916-03078) but there is no listing for the gasket on the Toyota parts site. Anyone got a part number? Water pump is 16100-39346-83 for the oem but Rock Auto also carries the Aisin and Beck Arnley for about half. Any recommendations here? Still got twelve tabs open in the browser looking up the hoses and while I'm at it, the belts should be replaced. Any suggestions or comments welcome.

87 Itasca 19RB weighing in at 5460 on the cat scale fully loaded with my wife and I. This was after the remodel and I was worried being heavy. Being 40lb under GVWR was a surprise as we had quite a bit packed. I was initially concerned until I saw how much others were weighing in at. With the lighter rig, I am able to get up to speeds a little less turtle like and until it gets up past 80 degrees out, have no issues keeping 60-65 on the highway except for steeper grades.

I had this very discussion often with Russel. His was a very old wood fired operation. Great tasting stuff and next door. Yup, better living through chemistry.

One of the things about living in the New England area is how common good maple syrup is but Vermont self identifies as the capitol of the world with regard to it. (keep in mind, I'm not in nor from VT) I built my house across from a rather unique farm. The main business being an organic dairy operation that also bottles and self distributed milk. What made it unique is all the other parts of the business Russel ran. He made ice cream and operated an ice cream stand. Also had free range chickens and sold eggs. Operated a small lumber mill and tucked away at the end of all the different barns he has was a sugarhouse. There are a number of them close by to where I live and you see the new style of tap systems all over as you drive through the area.. Great quality syrup to be had locally.

The people from Vermont would like to have a word with you on that.

I hear you. Some people get lucky and stumble upon them, others spend a lot of time searching for the right one. Most settle for something in between. Keep looking and you'll learn more each step along the way. I do an expanded Craigslist search at least 4 times a day. Stay vigilant and try to get in as early as possible because the right one will sell in a heartbeat. One way to help is to ask the seller to send you more detailed pictures. After you've looked at a couple of these rough ones, you develop a sixth sense just looking at the pictures. Stay in touch here. We are always happy to lend advice and encouragement. More than a few of us here can relate.

I've got my own analog stuff like mastering and multi-track to liquidate as I won't be rebuilding the studio once I move. The good news is analog is pretty collectable though not sure of the value of the Teac. The Studer stuff seems to be hot though.

I started with tube guitar amps in high school. Later it became one of the things I enjoyed working on most in my repair business. Just was hard to justify the cost to many customers then. I've a pretty good collection in the studio but that is all being dismantled and I'll only be keeping a few of the small amps. The radio thing is fairly recent. Just started seeing them at flee markets for cheap money so I picked them up. I've a couple that work pretty good. Gave the rest away along with the carcasses of a lot of half finished or parts amps. Still got a couple of working tube testers. A Silvertone was my first amp. It was given to me by my sisters boyfriend along with a Mosrite semi-hollow body guitar. The guitar was falling apart and the amp didn't work as it needed a couple tubes. A quick trip to Radio Shack with the tubes wrapped up in a towel and I had the amp up and going that afternoon. The guitar however was hopeless. I've now started to give away much of my guitar collection to young musicians just starting out along with some of the amps. I've only two 6 strings I play anyways. Thus completing the circle and paying it forward. So when you bringing the Mini-Cruiser home?

Just one. Duly noted. Not like I'm standing in the way but you ever need a voice of reason, I'm totally there for you. You got the time, money and energy, why the hell not. I am maybe a year or two behind you in age if I had to guess. I got the time and money. Two out of three I suppose. I'm still looking to trade up and if that becomes a project, I'll deal with it once I find it. So I'm in the same boat affliction wise. So glass houses and all that. I'm looking at moving in a year maybe two. Been taking the time I have this summer and trying to rid myself of so much of the collections of things I would one day work on. It is has been rather cathartic. You must have been through some of this moving recently. I do have a 1941 Silvertone portable AM tube radio on the bench right now that I am working on getting operational. It even was made to work on batteries. Couldn't bare to toss that one so it was fix it now or sell it. So I'm not completely cured yet.

Well no matter what, if you buy it you'll be under it. Can it be converted to a manual? Might be cheaper unless you intend to rebuild the auto yourself. There is a lot of other down sides listed regarding uncommon parts. So, you need another project? Grass might be greener but at what cost? When I purchased my Corolla for a commuter car, I considered getting the Prius instead due to the extra fuel savings. That is till I did the math. Turns out you can buy a lot of gas with the difference. EPA was 40 vs 46 mpg so not huge. Any realized savings would have been many years out. You should be enjoying life more rather than fuss with a few mpg's.

I totally get it. Just teasing a bit on your fervent evangelism. You should also get that others value quiet. It is fundamentally the two points of this debate. It's why they spend the extra money and go through the extra effort. My dog starts barking in the yard, I bring him in. My neighbors, not so much even in the middle of the night. Don't have AC but I've camped next to that guy with the loud construction genny. Most don't want to be that guy and I'm grateful. Some do it just for their own sake and I'm fine with that too. The guy I like best though is the one with no genny.

I just camp where it is cool. No genny. No AC. More hooch.

I just knew you two would fast become good friends. Kindred spirits and all. So yes Klein, welcome to the club.

Great point. For me it is the water heater as it is further away but same idea. The stove is also at that end but has no pilot so must be match (lighter stick) lit. So gas volume flow is greater than the pilot on the water heater so doesn't make a good indicator. I don't think there is a rash of sudden line failures or have all those who have had it happened remained silent? Loose line fittings coming undone? I repeatedly see posts from people with a fear of even having propane in the RV. I took a quick look at the fire statistics (at least those that I could find) and found there is just as many if not more issues related to fires started by the house battery wiring. Don't see many clamoring to rid themselves of the batteries and all its associated wiring.

Never had one so I've no suggestion for you other than perhaps you are getting a bit ahead of yourself. It's natural but don't let the enthusiasm blind you. Get past the inspection. Plenty of people here will assist you with the awning and there are plenty of old post on the topic if you do a search. Good luck.

And how would a piece of spring steel be different? Same principal.

Wouldn't be doing much good hiding underneath so I'm going to go with missing. I fabricated a new bumper for mine using a 4" box tube and an aluminum extrusion bumper cover. Wasn't hugely expensive but would require some fabrication. The up side is that you can store the waste hose inside.

If the dinette was in the area where the wheel well is located, one of the bench bases would have covered it. So perhaps that is why the riser under the dresser. Lifter might be air bags (someone might chime in). I zoomed in as best I could on the phone pictures in the ad. As I indicated the area to really look over is that front berth inside and out. On the drivers side front it almost appears slightly bulged in that corner. Would not be uncommon but you want to make sure there is no rot or damage inside and the outside skin is solid.

So mount them to a ???? I'll avoid the long explanations so WME's head doesn't explode. You have the metal frame that is connected to the frame or the RV which is connected to the body of the RV which is connected to the cab of the RV. Following along? If your nice new frame and box start scraping the ground, I'm pretty sure it is going to make a bunch of noise and it is also connected to ????

What is wrong with your original idea of curb feelers?

Oddly enough we will be not too far from there in Hinsdale NH next weekend to attend a birthday party. I asked the wife about maybe one night but the schedule is too tight. If I might suggest. This was a little short of notice for us from a planning perspective. I do hope you get some others interested. Would have loved to attend if only just to make my wife endure one weekend a year not at the beach. For us, we lock in camping trips up to 12 months in advance with only a few impromptu trips to fill in as the schedule allows. Don't know if this is common for others. I have attended toy in's but with a bit more notice.

My Itasca is aluminum top and sides. If sealed and maintained all is great. Start getting water infiltration and aluminum will rot out. I've got plenty of pictures that demonstrate the point. Based on the multiple posts on this forum and personal experience, it appear that many just don't understand how to maintain the exterior. Example after example gets posted here with people having tried to stem the tide with silicone caulking and all manor of roof products. I went out looking at a Toyota yesterday for someone and what I found is an example of a RV that just hasn't seen any work up top. The good news for him is that the rot seems limited to one side of the berth and the roof seems solid and untouched. The best of all starting places for restoration. So in answer to your question. If you've inspected it top to bottom and have some idea of what to look for and the house side of this is solid, price seems pretty good considering the new stuff added. A big if though. Get a ladder and look up top and inspect all the seams and all the sealant. You should not see cracking in the lap sealant and should be able to press it with you fingernail and it should still be pliable. What you don't want to see is all sorts of silicone and roofing coatings and especially holes and damage. Once you've evaluated all the seams around the vents and such and it looks good move to the inside. Inside start at the berth as this is problem central for most. Pull the cushions out and look for any previous signs of water and feel for softness in the base and walls. Move from there to inspecting around the vents and AC if it has one and also inside all the upper cabinets. Feel the floor underneath you for a solid base. All that checks out, feel around the base outside where the walls hang down. Make sure all the trim and structure is solid. Then look at all the running gear, frame and even the waste tanks and valves. Everything still looks ship shape? If it passes all of this without issue, ask the seller to put water into the fresh water tank and turn on the propane and get the fridge and hot water heater fired up. It takes me only a short time to get my RV up and going when I pull into a campsite so make sure the seller demonstrates that everything does work. You meet all of that along with a satisfactory test drive. Happily hand over the asking price. It is low miles but original drive train modified if that means anything. Many of us including myself would happily take a stick. Pictures would go a long way for those of us who are good at nit picking but the above should help you on how to evaluate the shape of the RV. Even prices around the Northeast which had been a lot cheaper a few years ago seems to have gone up on these.

All I said is it's worth a read through. Reviews are a matter of perspective and expectations for the most part even taking out any other factors like paid reviews. So read and make up your own mind. Your mileage may vary, void were prohibited by common sense.

Like the old song, what goes up, must come down but point taken.