What did you do to your old RV today?

[jstnbrwn]

I reinstalled my new starter (no shims), hooked up the battery, and hoped for the best. I hopped in and tried to start it. One thing I learned during this is to let the fuel pump work for a little bit before trying to start. I didn't do that at first, but when I did it started right up with no hesitation. That chevy 454 sounds so beautiful. 1989 Winnebago Elandan 37'

[Oldme]

Pulled the outside mirrors and refinished them.
They are in a plastic housing that was badly weathered.
I used the new Krylon Fusion for Plastic.
Knocked off the weathered roughness and sprayed as directed.
Looks good so far.

[Gary - K7GLD]

For the several years we've had the '88 Winnie Super Chief seen in my info at the left of this post, I've been fighting the chalky condition of the outer walls, both the fiberglass end caps, and the sidewalls. Tried several name brand waxes - Meguiars liquid stuff seemed best of the lot, went on easily and wiped off easily as well - nice finish for a while, but too quickly reverted back to former dull finish.

Trick used with the biker crowd, is use of Lemon Pledge - I got some and used it on my '83 Kawasaki KZ1100 LTD, and it works great:



SOOooo, decided to try it on the Winnie yesterday - early impression is GREAT! Stuff sprays on and wipes off easily - and so far has left a nice shine on all surfaces tried, painted, fiberglass, and whatever composition is used on the large flat sidewalls - and the difference in the old faded vinyl side stripes is dramatic!

Of course, the MH now smells like a lemon...

Time will tell if the results will stick around any better than the previous stuff used, but so far, looks favorable!

[Cubey]

Originally Posted by Mr_D

Lucky you!!
Replaced the starter last year, $800 to tow ($0 to me, CoachNet paid it all). Starter and labor, just over $1,000 incl tax

It was about $60 for one for me last year.. but that's without towing or labor. I put it on myself. Lifetime warranty starter from OReilly. If you can turn a wrench, you can generally change a starter on your own.

[Brockx]

Originally Posted by Gary - K7GLD

For the several years we've had the '88 Winnie Super Chief seen in my info at the left of this post, I've been fighting the chalky condition of the outer walls, both the fiberglass end caps, and the sidewalls. Tried several name brand waxes - Meguiars liquid stuff seemed best of the lot, went on easily and wiped off easily as well - nice finish for a while, but too quickly reverted back to former dull finish.

Trick used with the biker crowd, is use of Lemon Pledge - I got some and used it on my '83 Kawasaki KZ1100 LTD, and it works great:



SOOooo, decided to try it on the Winnie yesterday - early impression is GREAT! Stuff sprays on and wipes off easily - and so far has left a nice shine on all surfaces tried, painted, fiberglass, and whatever composition is used on the large flat sidewalls - and the difference in the old faded vinyl side stripes is dramatic!

Of course, the MH now smells like a lemon...

Time will tell if the results will stick around any better than the previous stuff used, but so far, looks favorable!

Do a search on Red Max or Zep if you want your MH to shine, cannot be beat. The Pledge will work until the first time you get wet, used it for years to freshen my bikes smelled good at red-lights also.

[Gary - K7GLD]

Originally Posted by Brockx

Do a search on Red Max or Zep if you want your MH to shine, cannot be beat. The Pledge will work until the first time you get wet, used it for years to freshen my bikes smelled good at red-lights also.

YUP - need a longer haul test, but the Pledge sure goes on and off easier than other stuff I've used. I see good reports on the Red Max and Zep, but not much on their lifespan either. Here's a look at mine during application top pic has only the sidewall completed, but not the rear cap yet:




As to rain resistance, ALL the popular waxes I've tried so far have displayed substantial streaking after rain - appears the bare aluminum roof sheds oxidation with water, and causes light colored streaks - not a real big issue, but perhaps a good coat of quality paint would correct the issue...

[Brockx]

That looks good, but probably temporary. Give the Zep a try, either High Traffic or High Gloss will give you great results. Buy some and try the rear cap first. Wash it well with TSP, clean any streaks off with Comet or Bar Keepers Friend, and put on at least 5 good thin coats of Zep. It goes on alot faster than you may think, my wife and I would do a full side in about 15 minutes. Been on about 10 months looks new, most dirt rinses off with hose. Click pics for larger view, MH is a 96, was very dull before the ZEP.

[Gary - K7GLD]

Originally Posted by Brockx

That looks good, but probably temporary. Give the Zep a try, either High Traffic or High Gloss will give you great results. Buy some and try the rear cap first. Wash it well with TSP, clean any streaks off with Comet or Bar Keepers Friend, and put on at least 5 good thin coats of Zep. It goes on alot faster than you may think, my wife and I would do a full side in about 15 minutes. Been on about 10 months looks new, most dirt rinses off with hose. Click pics for larger view, MH is a 96, was very dull before the ZEP.

That looks VERY nice - and good comparison, since your RV is so close to ours in color scheme and construction - thanks for the report and direct experience!

[jml255]

Zep makes a lot of cleaners. What is this, the floor polish?

[Mike_Harriet]

I believe it's an acrylic sealant. Just did my 28 yr old trawler. It turned out better than my wildest expectations. The gelcoat was very faded, after many years in the Fl and Bahamanian sun and salt environment. It's now VERY glossy. Shines like new. We get rain every evening here in Ft Myers in the summer. So far it's great. No streaks that don't come off with a little soap & water. No hard scrubbing. If I knew how to post a pic I would. DW says I'm Internet challenged!!? Anyway I'm very impressed with ZEP.

[JohnH59]

Replaced the old radio head unit with a new one that is iPod, iPhone, and iPad compatible in our '97 American Dream. Should have gone with Bluetooth, but store was out and I already had dash apart and didn't want to wait. Once installed, I made a stand for my iPad for GPS and music playing. Works great. It does charge while connected, but not great. As long as it doesn't lose charge, I'm okay. Of course I can switch to the Aux input.

Still have more mods to do to the old TV cabinet that's its sitting on. I've relocated the TV with an LCD TV, with Direct TV to above the couch mounted to the slide wall. The old opening for the tube TV has to be remodeled to look better and be more functional.

[Winnebeater]

Originally Posted by JohnH59

...... Should have gone with Bluetooth, but store was out .....

It would have been worth the wait. I could not live without a Bluetooth enabled head unit. It is so convenient being able to change music selection and volume from anywhere in the motorhome from my iPhone. It's also nice sitting outside at the campsite too!

[vanbuskirk]

I am not sure if our 10 year old MH classifies as vintage but I enjoy reading this forum especially this thread. This past month the DH has been extremely busy...
1) Replaced the vitange TV with a Flatscreen.
2) Replaced the kitchen countertop and table. * The original ones were in perfect condition but I wanted additional counterspace so he removed the double sink and installed a deep bar sink. And the best part is he customized a stove cover with the cutout. The original color was beige... the new faux granite gives the MH a pop of color.
3) New flooring...both vinyl and carpet. *Hated the fact that you enterend the MH onto carpet and also hated the carpet in the bathroom. Entended the vinly to the entrace way and also all the way through to the bedroom as well as extended it a foot and a half towards the dinette and sofa. Now I don't freak about walking in the coach with shoes...as long as you stay off the carpet that is!!!

[Brockx]

Originally Posted by Gary - K7GLD

That looks VERY nice - and good comparison, since your RV is so close to ours in color scheme and construction - thanks for the report and direct experience!

Thanks, one more thought, when you do the Decals, do them first. Do one or two light coats, one color at a time. You will get some color fade unto your cloth, you don't want that on your fiberglass or other decal colors. Once that first coat on the decals is dry forget about them, they are sealed, just put subsequent coats right over them as you do the fiberglass.