Replacing TVs in an 05 Dolphin - followup

JJH3rd · 09-26-2011, 11:14 PM

Because of a lighting strike, I had to replace both TVs. Thanks to the information from folks here in the national forum I was able to remove the case work (thanks Bob AKA Two2Go) and the front TV – with a little help from my friend. The rear TV wasn’t difficult to remove but was heavy enough. I estimate I lightened the load by somewhere near 150 lbs. I know the front of the coach seemed to take the bumps in the road much easier after the extraction.

Rear TV

I decided to work on the rear TV replacement. I used an articulating wall mount and it was a snap.

I had to screw the mount into the wooden cabinet frame which meant close to the front side rather than into the thin wood that make up the panel.

JJH3rd · 09-26-2011, 11:27 PM

Front TV

After removing the casing and 4 of the bolts (two on each side) from the bottom of the metal frame that held the old TV (and disconnecting the TV cable and the power cable) I was able to tilt the base so that the TV could be lifted off of the two brackets and (almost) tumbled out. You REALLY have to watch out for this move because gravity is out to get you big time. The old TV is both unwieldy AND heavy!

I decided to put the bolts back on the base plate of the metal frame and build a wooden frame on which I could mount the wall mount for the LED panel TV. I cut notches for the two brackets on the base of the metal frame and after a trial mounting of the TV on the wooden frame I found I had a problem with the angle of the panel. The wall mount had a minimum angle (about 12deg) and the metal frame also has an angle (also about 12deg) away from vertical. This is to aid watching the TV from the comfort of the recliner but together the angle was too much, so I put a 12deg wedge near the bottom bolts of the wall mount to compensate.

I drilled holes through the wooden frame and the metal frame as well to secure the whole business together. I discovered that I had to drill the bolt holes close to the edge closest to the front of the coach so that I could get an open-ended wrench on the top of the bolt to hold it as I tightened the nut. This took several tries and I have the cuts to prove it (watch out for the edge of the plastic shroud, it is sharp!).

After I wired the TV and got it into the metal frame and bolted down I put the wooden casement back in place and I saw a gap between the TV and the casement. I could have taken everything out and rebuilt the wooden frame. Instead I cut a board to go across the bottom and extend under the front of the TV and two more: one for each side, to fit inside the left and right sides of the casement. a few screws through the casement to hold everything in place and all in all it worked out pretty good.

The TVs came from BJs which had the best prices in our neighborhood for the sizes that would fit the two spaces.