RE: Video for entertainment
We know this won't help our situation...just a way of venting.
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HKxpkHWf7M)
Very entertaining, however.
As a senior, I've owned a number of RV's over the years (going back over 40 years). In 2005 sold an Itasca class A we'd owned - and stored outside in fairly rainy Oregon - for 18 years w/o ever doing exterior caulking. Never experienced a leak of any kind. Finally built an RV garage in 2005 and our new unit is always stored inside - still have never caulked the seams, however, and have driven it over 28000 miles, often in very inclement weather, again w/o a leak. I do sympathize. I've probably carried things beyond a reasonable limit - but Four Winds seems to have gone to the other extreme! Caulking every 6 months? Ridiculous!
RE: Reply from Four Winds on body issue
Come on people. You expect the manufacturerer to warrant its product to the 2d, maybe 3d and 4th owners? .
Uh - yes!! What in the world does the number of owners have to do with it? Does any auto manufacturer limit the warranty to the original owner? Seems ridiculous. Interested enough to make the journey to the RV garage at 10:30 pm to check the Winnebago warranty. Only one year on the entire coach (longer on delamination and the roof), but didn't see anywhere where it was limited to one owner. Sure doesn't seem unreasonable to expect a three year warranty that seems to be the minimum offered by auto manufacturers.
RE: Is Ore. Wash, the best on the west coast.
Because I now live too far away to fear being unable to get it....I'll give you the best..100% bestest site..it's on the Oregon Coast, the only state site ON the beach side. Oceanside...it has power/water...under the trees and if you are a clever camper you can get an actual 'next to the beach' site. There's lots of small stores and it's not that far to larger places and it's just so damned pretty...best is when the weather gets ugly? you plug in the ol'ceramic heater, rent some movies, pop-a-top..I mean...you can walk on the beach, get soaked, come back, change, snooze, go wandering up the road...
Now I am wishing I hadn't told you.
Gary Haupt
Actually, you'll find quite a few state sites "on the beach side" of hwy 101 - Oregon has a truly spectacular coast with unprecedented access and numerous parks in which to camp.
I hate to quibble..but I am looking at a written description of Beachside State Park and it is as I said...."the only State Park on the ocean side." I know of other State parks that have trails to the beach or roads perhaps, but I know of no other that is at the beaches edge. And I called it Oceanside...it's Beachside. Cdn spelling.
Gary Haupt
RE: Is Ore. Wash, the best on the west coast.
Because I now live too far away to fear being unable to get it....I'll give you the best..100% bestest site..it's on the Oregon Coast, the only state site ON the beach side. Oceanside...it has power/water...under the trees and if you are a clever camper you can get an actual 'next to the beach' site. There's lots of small stores and it's not that far to larger places and it's just so damned pretty...best is when the weather gets ugly? you plug in the ol'ceramic heater, rent some movies, pop-a-top..I mean...you can walk on the beach, get soaked, come back, change, snooze, go wandering up the road...
Now I am wishing I hadn't told you.
Gary Haupt
Actually, you'll find quite a few state sites "on the beach side" of hwy 101 - Oregon has a truly spectacular coast with unprecedented access and numerous parks in which to camp.
I hate to quibble..but I am looking at a written description of Beachside State Park and it is as I said...."the only State Park on the ocean side." I know of other State parks that have trails to the beach or roads perhaps, but I know of no other that is at the beaches edge. And I called it Oceanside...it's Beachside. Cdn spelling.
Gary Haupt
Your post indicated "state sites" - while there may be only one state "park", there are quite a few "state sites". For example, there is a wonderful state 'site' (park) in Newport right on the beach - a couple of smaller parks between Waldport and Yachats where we've spent many a night watching the surf only yards away. You'll want to be careful with the terminology - I'm aware of the web site that shows state parks, but it misses many state parks (sites, or other terminology) that are available. BTW - the downside is that these parks are very popular & regularly full - many Canadians, especially in the fall. I finally purchased a vacation home in the Waldport area some 16 years ago because of the difficulty of finding open camp spots on the beach.
RE: Is Ore. Wash, the best on the west coast.
Because I now live too far away to fear being unable to get it....I'll give you the best..100% bestest site..it's on the Oregon Coast, the only state site ON the beach side. Oceanside...it has power/water...under the trees and if you are a clever camper you can get an actual 'next to the beach' site. There's lots of small stores and it's not that far to larger places and it's just so damned pretty...best is when the weather gets ugly? you plug in the ol'ceramic heater, rent some movies, pop-a-top..I mean...you can walk on the beach, get soaked, come back, change, snooze, go wandering up the road...
Now I am wishing I hadn't told you.
Gary Haupt
Actually, you'll find quite a few state sites "on the beach side" of hwy 101 - Oregon has a truly spectacular coast with unprecedented access and numerous parks in which to camp.
RE: Is Ore. Wash, the best on the west coast.
Well OR coast is spectacular but try the Sunshine Coast in BC or especially the west coast of Vancouver Island /Tofino area.
Be careful in Tofino, though - stayed in an RV park a few years ago that locks their gates at night - one can't get the RV out! Found out only when leaving (or more accurately, trying to leave) for an early morning fishing trip and finding the gates locked until 8:00 am. A beautiful area, however, and the fishing was very good except for far too many boats in a very small area.
RE: Gas price map
It is a useful site. I found it last month when I used Google and entered "gas prices (city,state)". We went to Yellowstone, and Wyoming and S. Dakota are just about the cheapest states. Many people traveling out there because of prices.
Mark
Just returned from a 4100 mile trip from Oregon to Yellowstone & Mt. Rushmore and return following the Lewis and Clark route from Mandan, North Dakota. The price for 'regular' varied from $3.97 to $4.35 - the highest being in Oregon. $4.09 was by far the most common price - every station in town after town - no collusion, I'm sure. Was surprised to see "plus' for a dime less than regular in some states - the plus having a higher octane rating but also containing 10% ethanol. Was also surprised by the 85.5 octane rating of regular in some areas. Except for the holiday weekend, we saw far fewer RV's than we expected in all areas - sometimes driving for hours without seeing another rig.
RE: answer to vegas parking
Totally agree - should add, though, that the hotel itself is a dump. I've heard it's slated for demolition - any truth to this? By contrast, we've found in the past that the Circus Circus Hotel in Reno is well maintained - not first class, but certainly acceptable - not like its Vegas cousin.
RE: Lewis & Clark
Thanks for all the suggestions. Will digest the info and plan the trip. It's been a long winter - ready to hit the road as soon as the grandkids are out of school!
Lewis & Clark
Have taken granddaughters thru all western states and western Canadian Provinces via MH over the past several summers. This summer the 13 year old wants to go to Mt. Rushmore. Thought it would be interesting to begin the trip in Astoria, Oregon and follow the Lewis & Clark route to Ft. Mandan, then down to Mt. Rushmore. Would appreciate comments and suggestions.
RE: ET Center GAWR Front
For your comparison:
Weighed our 2005 Winnebago 31c a few days ago - full propane, gasoline and water - my wife, our labrador and myself - all our normal travelling gear except food and grandkids.
Front axle weighed 4450#, rear weighed 9100#. Weight distribution on the rear was nearly perfect but less so on the front with more weight on the right front than the left front (and no, my wife weighs far less than me!)
We do have HWH hydraulic levelers which adds 60 or so pounds on each end, I believe.
Also noticed that the OEM tires are rated 2680# single, 2470# dual - both at 80psi.
All in all, an adequate but far from generous margin.
rubber valve stem replacements
Have had a problem with the stock rubber valve stems in our 2005 MH. Considering installing standard metal units as available at Les Schwab Tire Centers. Does anyone know of any disadvantage in using these units? Any reason they aren't standard equipment?
RE: Discontinued Wine Guard Satelitte Dish
In 1996 I purchased 54 Whirlpool (I believe the worlds largest appliance manufacturer) washing machines. A short time later one of the microprocessors failed and Whirlpool informed me that they had discontinued production of the $350 part and knew of no repair facility!! Seems to be the age in which we live - don't repair, just throw it in the trash and buy a new one!!
Last week I had a small Bell & Gossett water recirculating pump fail. This is a heavy duty bronze pump that weighs several pounds - opened it up and found the remnants of a plastic impeller. Was the 50 cent part available? Of course not - throw it away and buy a new one for the better part of $200.
The age in which we live.
RE: Do mosquitos really block the sun at Yellowstone in July?
In Glacier, Yellowstone, Waterton, Banff, Jasper, etc for several weeks last summer. Left home as soon as grandchildren were out of school in mid June. Don't remember EVER seeing a mosquito.
RE: Structual diagrams
One
difference now is that Winnebago uses CAD and is able to locate 'backers' at points of attachment.
We owned (new) a 1988 Itasca class A and one of the first problems developed when the table mounting screws pulled loose from the wall. There was almost nothing for the screws to attach themselves to. I eventually located internal supports and attached a piece of angle iron that spanned them and was used to support the table. Either that or eat off the floor!
Fast forward to our 2005 Winnebago class C. One of the things that convinced us to buy was the salesman - not a small guy!! - hanging from the overhead cabinets. They were secure. Winnebago now inserts backers for all these attachments - a big improvement over the 1988 model and different from some of the competitors we looked at.
RE: Question re C class handling, and Jayco quality
We were in the identical situation - had an older class A and were often taking grandchildren. Went back to a class C for the same reason.
We purchased a new 2005 Winnebago Minnie 31C after looking at many others. Comments:
1) Not really familiar with Jayco quality. We dropped Jayco from consideration after finding that the coach had only one coach battery in a rear compartment not large enough for two batteries. We've RV'd for many, many years, often in very cold weather, and have always found even two batteries marginal - one totally inadequate. I couldn't help but wonder if the designers had ever used their own units and looked no further.
2) We tow a Honda Element - approximately 3600# - one doesn't know it's there. The Ford handles a toad of this weight with ease.
3) We had a 29' Itasca Class A on a Chevy chassis, and I'll assure you the Ford/Winnebago handles infinitely better. Even with aftermarket steering stabilizers, the Chevy was a nightmare in cross winds. The Ford appears immune to them - more like driving our SUV than a MH. I do miss the shorter turning radius of the Chevy, however.
4) I've been inpressed with Winnebago quality - we've driven over 25k miles - including Alaska - and the coach has suffered two very minor problems - a poor antenna connection in the outside radio and a small drip from a split plastic fitting in the outside shower.
RE: Which Tire Pressure Monitoring System ?
We installed them on all six MH tires plus the toad. One major advantage to Pressure Pro is the ability to transfer them to other vehicles. EG - we transfer them from the toad to the boat trailer and sometimes from the MH to the SUV. They seem to work well and install and transfer easily.
