Alpine Tech Library, for Real

[EngineerMike]

ALPINE COACH & TECH INFORMATION

Well folks, here we are w/no mothership. That means that the data source is us. And the value of our coaches in both utility and real dollars is also up to us.

I have corresponded with Frank Halasz, President of ACA, and he has authorized this effort to be warehoused on the ACA website where I believe it is best kept since we ACA members have the most vital and organized interest in its availability and upkeep.

We need to compile all available info on our coaches by year, part#, part manufacturer, specs, dimensions, WHERE TO BUY PARTS, blah, blah, blah... This includes all available schematics, service manuals, installation guides, etc. for every component making up these rolling contraptions. We will have to maintain this as an ongoing project for a while at least.

I envision a parts list in PDF format and updated periodically as new info comes available, several pages devoted to individual systems with links as appropriate to the system manufacturers' own data, and a Projects and Remodels page where we can show off our various tweaks and overhauls.

Suggestion #1: There are a coupla upcoming rallies where multiple coaches will assemble. Bring your copies of your documents to the rally. If you have bought parts, dig out the receipts & note the parts numbers, where purchased, etc. & submit the data. ON EVERY ITEM PLEASE note the year & model coach to which the manual, part#, supplier... applies. Rally directors- please designate somebody to collect all this info, and send it to me:
Mike Fleming
c/o Western Planning & Engineering
11860 Kemper Road #3
Auburn, CA 95603

Suggestion #2: Regional club members have every bit as much at stake, but may at this point not belong to ACA. Please include some form of data collection similar to #1 above in all club activities.

Suggestion #3: If you are not going to a rally soon, copy & send your stuff as in #1 above directly to me.

Suggestion #4: If you can make good quality PDF files of your documents, please do so & send me a CD at the address in #1 above. If you are submitting a link to info available online, please post it to this thread. If you have some one-liners (part for the blah-blah on 36FDDS08 comes from Acme Parts Co, #xx-yy, 800-555-1212, www.blah-blah.com) post those here too.

Suggestion #5: #1 & 2 above will result, hopefully, in a lot of stuff much of which is redundant. We will need energetic folks to volunteer some time to cull out duplicate stuff, and somewhat vet the year/component/mfgr stuff into digestible form. I envision a tech meet at a place of conveniently central (and hopefully fun for spouses) location for which suggestions are appreciated. There we can make piles, and make sense of the piles. End of June would be good for Ann & I, or maybe just after 4th of July.

I can make good quality paper copies into reasonably good quality and somewhat compact PDF files at my office. The data can then be posted to the ACA Tech Library, and available for owners, tech service types, etc.

Let's keep this thread to the compilation & management of this info, and the construction of the library please. If you see something that you need or would like additional info on, please start a new subject matter thread on that specific issue. Likewise with general comments (that's great, howzit coming, rah rah sis boom bah), please pay some rent while posting such, i.e. post some links.
Thank you for your support.

[Ted III]

Mike, I think your suggestion and thoughts on this are imperative and definitely need to be done. Actually you and others with the 08's have the biggest problem as less info is available. Hopefully not to much critical changed. At least the engine info is available from Cummins. I will go through any and all info that I have collected and get it to you in proper order.
Thank you for your thoughts on this situation, it certainly will be a benefit to all of us.
Buddy & Beverly can offer everything that goes wrong with an Alpine. (This is a joke Beverly)

[Jim & Ingrid McIntosh]

Mike,

Great idea and thanks for initiating the effort. We will compile and get info to you asap.

Jim & Ingrid McIntosh
05 40' Brandywine FDTS

[Nick Escamilla]

Mike I think your idea has a lot of merit and I would like to help when possible. I was thinking if Guarantee of Ullman I5 RV would be willing to help. They may have part lists and vendors, or course they may not want to help since they are in the service business.

[rebelsbeach]

Mike, since there may indeed be Alpine owners who aren't members of the ACA, I can arrange for their to be a "featured link" to this information at the top of the Alpine Forum.
Doing this would serve the purpose of providing assistance to ALL Alpine Owners.

That's a win-win for Alpine Owners isn't it?

[Buddy and Beverly]

Ted III,

If we couldn't laugh, we'd all go insane!

Beverly

[Ted III]

Beverly, very well put and most appropriate. I think the two of you have really paid your dues.

Ted

[EngineerMike]

Harold & John- Thanks for the documents you sent. I have them now in PDF format for posting when we get a page set up.

[gjstacy]

Mike,

You are awesome!

I'll go through our files and try to find everything we have going back to our first Alpine, an 01, if I can find this stuff. In addition, I will assure you that SoCal will have this item on each of our rally schedules so we can accumulate as much stuff for you as we can. John & I can't offer much in the way of technical assistance, as we each have 5 thumbs on each hand, but we can certainly help sort through piles of info, so let us know if you plan a meeting to do this.

Rebelsbeach, I definitely agree with your suggestion to post a "featured link" at the top of this Forum, as I'm sure that not everyone who reads this is an ACA member. Thanks for the offer to help with this.

[EngineerMike]

I sent a request to NorCal yesterday to bring all their TechLib stuff to the mid-May rally in Plymouth, CA (where, IMHO, much wine will be dranken). I can make a quick trip there to discuss it and take whatever comes in home for scanning. This is the first official test of the TechLib as a rally function. I hope it exceeds my expectations and I come home loaded.

I have received only two submittals so far, one by email, and one by fax. Fax doesn't work so well for picture quality, but I retyped the one page of process instructions from WRV & saved it as a PDF so it worked out perfectly, thanks again Harold. I haven't gotten anything by mail, so I must assume the Post Office is swamped with a nearly unprocessable pile, working its way slug-like thru their "systems" to arrive at Auburn "soon." Please don't let this issue die of insouciance.

We need:
- brochures for every year/coach version
- owner's manuals every year/model
- system manuals or preferably mfgr's web links for manuals
- WRV instructions for whatever fixits you have accumulated
- part numbers for whatever you have replaced, & supplier contact info
- notes on parts or systems for fixing stuff that doesn't work
- photos of repairs and remodels that make our coaches work better
- whatever else I've forgotten, but you lose sleep over where it will be found in year 2050

Thanks, LibrarianMike

[NorCal Hal]

Since we got them with both our 2003 and 2006 Alpine's I ASSUME that everyone got the AC/DC electrical wiring, fresh water and waste water plumbing schematics and paint charts for their coach in the WRV Owner's Manual....Isn't this correct?

[two sailors]

C&H,
I have none the information that you listed.
I bought this coach used. It had all the appliance and various equipment manuals but nothing on the coach it self.

Brad

[jerry davis]

I have the manual for the 05. I will be giving a copy to EMike at the Plymouth rally.

[EngineerMike]

Brad's comment explains the dilema we are trying to solve. Yoozta be you could call the manufacturer and probably get an owner's manual or at least some of the diagrams needed to diagnose & service the coach. No mo.

So for our coaches to be resalable, this type of basic info has to be comfortably available. The blue book value will depend on how easy it is to visualize easy ownership of the rig. Since it is now self support, the better the support the better the coach value. In business lingo, this is called a network effect- better network = better product. Since you can't call the mfgr, "who ya gunna call?" A well populated online database is the next best thing.

We need all brochures used to sell the coaches in the first place, all owner's manuals (limited tho they may have been), all schematics, plus all aftermarket and other system info we can corral. Mo = mo bettah.