stevelv
Living on the island
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HOW I RESTORED A 1984 MONACO REGENT
I purchased my new old Monaco Regent a few weeks ago as a non-runner and yesterday finally got her back so that I can start doing everything I need to before we head out for a couple of test trips close to home.
The issues that were fixed were a shorted out battery lead at the starter solenoid (BBC 454) - that's what stopped her from running - and then a whole bunch of 3rd party fuel filters, T's and pumps were removed and new lines and a pump/filter installed. Finally, the old AC system had been completely removed and so a new AC system was installed.
So it's now sitting here and I started to make up a list of the work needed and where do I start!!!
Firstly, the old roof caulking was hardened and causing leaks (fortunately we are in Arizona and haven't seen rain for 9 months) so first priority is to wash it down with TSP and then 4" eternabond the seams and I have tubes of C-10 self leveller to do all of the fittings.
Then it's moving into the inside where I firstly need to redo the headlining - have some foam backed material on order which I'm going to stick to the ceiling using 3M adhesive - it's in 4' sections with a wood trim piece so should be easier than doing the whole thing in one piece!
Then, remove carpets and replace with the Home Depot laminate flooring - at least in the front section. Almost every fan needs replacing and I need to check all gas and water lines and get house power checked and on so I can start on the appliances.
It's going to be a long few weeks 
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RV Park Finder
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Repairing/Restoring 1984 Monaco Regent 36' Gas to restart RVing
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wny_pat
Western NYS
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stevelv wrote:Then, remove carpets and replace with the Home Depot laminate flooring - at least in the front section. Take a look at the Allure flooring at Home Depot. There have been a number of post around here raving about it and its ease of installing. They say it looks better than laminate. And it is recommended in wet areas.
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HobbyHauler
South of Nashville, TN
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Joined: 08/07/2004
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stevelv wrote:
It's going to be a long few weeks
Agreed. Maybe several bunches of long few weeks. Good Luck!
Once you finish you will only have the routine weekly maintenance. Remember, if you are not working on your RV then you are falling behind!!
Les Stallings
South of Nashville, TN
2002 Monaco Dynasty Jack 38, ISL 400, TAG
Toad: 2003 Saturn LW300
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tonyandkaren
pennsylvania
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I see that you're a web designer. Any chance that you'll be putting the restoration on the web anywhere? I'd love to see the before , after and in betweens!
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stevelv
Living on the island
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wny_pat wrote:stevelv wrote:Then, remove carpets and replace with the Home Depot laminate flooring - at least in the front section. Take a look at the Allure flooring at Home Depot. There have been a number of post around here raving about it and its ease of installing. They say it looks better than laminate. And it is recommended in wet areas.
Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to use - I had to do a search for info on what to use so I'm heading out to HD today to get it.
And yes, I'm going to do a web site showing step by step updates with lots of photos for those of you with an interest in classic RVs and trailers.
* This post was
edited 10/27/09 12:34pm by an administrator/moderator *
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SGTJOE
Utah
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Good Sam RV Club
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Try this site http://www.irv2.com/forums/f65/ for info on Vintage RV's. Can't wait for the show to begin.
2001 Trade Winds 7390
Toad 03 Grand Am
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stevelv
Living on the island
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Joined: 05/24/2006
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SGTJOE wrote:Try this site http://www.irv2.com/forums/f65/ for info on Vintage RV's. Can't wait for the show to begin.
I'm registered on irv2 but I just hate the excessive ads and poor layout so much I'm hardly ever on it - I understand the need for ads (although most of my websites are altruistic) but to have that many and to put them in the middle of the thread makes it virtually unusable.
Anyway, I heading up on the roof now to start the sealing
Steve
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Daveinet
il
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What ever type of laminate floor you use, get some test pieces and put them in a bucket of water and let them sit for a week or 2. Which ever one is still intact, that is what brand to buy. I am not personally familiar with any other brand other than Pergo which is NOT water proof. My neighbor spilled water on it. The water ran off the edge, which meant it got under the floor, swelled up and buckled. One time spill ruined the floor. Laminate floor must be waterproof or it doesn't belong in a motorhome.
Dave
FMCA F298817
'83 Revcon Prince 31' FWD
502 w/Howell/Edelbrock MPFI, Thorley's & Magnaflows,
Koni FSD, Class A built for gear heads 
??????
Revconeers Forum
There is nothing compassionate about taking someone elses money and giving to the poor.
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stevelv
Living on the island
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Just purchased the Allure flooring today from Home Depot - it claims to be completely waterproof and to be honest, as it's a plastic laminate, I'm sure it is. Real wood would have been nice but I'm in agreement that it has to be waterproof - accidents (will) happen.
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stevelv
Living on the island
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OK, first day's report - photos to follow shortly.
Went up on the roof in our 35mph winds and managed to eternabond the rear seam where the cap joins the roof. The original sealant had turned yellow and was so hard that I couldn't get it off without doing some serious damage - fortunately as I have ordered 4" eternabond it was wide enough to fully cover the seam. Used a hard roller to get a good seal but I did have to polish off the fiberglass as it had not been cleaned in years and the UV caused the surface of the gelcoat to get a chalky powder on it. Once it was clean, the eternabond really stuck and isn't coming off any time soon.
I'll do the front cap seam tomorrow when the wind has died down and it's not so cold - 65 today and I froze.
Started on the inside with the refrigerator that I couldn't get to turn on - finally tracked it down to no 12V so jury rigged a spare battery to feed it 12V and it's getting mighty cold so that was a relief - really didn't want to drop another $1000 on a new refer.
Made a start on pulling out the old carpets - 25 years of accumulated dust, disintegrating felt and whatever those nasty stains were once has now all gone. Apart from a couple of areas where they once had water leaks, the floor is good solid plywood so the new underlayment and the allure laminate flooring will be going down tomorrow.
The battery box with it's old wiring was disconnected by the shop who working on it as they are going to redo the wiring - over a quarter of a century, most of the 12V wiring is in a sorry state. Various repairs are evident, I have no wiring diagram and there are more wirenuts underneath than I have in the stick house - why people can't repair with the same color wire and use proper splices and preferably heat shrink I have no idea - just a lot of bodges - it's a nightmare and I'll probably have the shop run all new wires anyway for the 12V rather than trying to patch it.
If anyone has ever seen a wiring diagram for a 1984 Monaco (gas) I'd appreciate it even though it's highly unlikely
Finally, last job was to check the plumbing - so connected the water line and turned it on - oh, that's good - only 3 leaks hahaha - all of them are pex connections (how I hate that stuff) and one is under the refrigerator, the other in the bathroom and the third one under the range, near to the water heater so that's the one that I'm most concerned with. I'll see what I need tomorrow and a friend has recommended using 'shark fittings' as replacements - not sure what they are yet but give them a try.
Tomorrows work list is pretty involved - after my fun with the carpet today, I have a friend coming over to tackle the bedroom/bathroom carpet as we are going to put new carpet back in there and I'm laying the laminate. I also have to remove the 25 year old microwave/convection and the fan hood as I have new (eBay) replacements for them, along with new powered vents - the old ones have seized and have broken fans.
I'm going to get the pictures resized and uploaded for your enjoyment shortly.
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