Mods/Upgrades to our 2003 Dynasty

[Timaz]

Originally Posted by zmotorsports

It sure is. We've been through the Teton's many, many times over the years including snowmobiling years ago but this is the first time we came in from the east side and through Dubois. I REALLY liked this route and see us doing it again in the future as the wife is already wanting to return to the Worland area for more exploring.

One of my favorite drives is between Bozeman and West Yellowstone along the Gallatin river. That is a very scenic drive.

I have taken that same route from Bozeman to West Yellowstone the last two years and stay in a little forest campground called Bakers Hole just outside of West Yellowstone. Beautiful part of our country.
Tim

[zmotorsports]

Originally Posted by Timaz

I have taken that same route from Bozeman to West Yellowstone the last two years and stay in a little forest campground called Bakers Hole just outside of West Yellowstone. Beautiful part of our country.
Tim

That is a very pretty area Tim. There are quite a few little camp sites just off Highway 191 along that route. We haven't stayed in any of them as we have generally stayed right in West Yellowstone at Grizzly as our base camp. Although the past few years we've been staying over in Ennis, which is just a hop, skip and a jump from West Yellowstone and has far fewer tourists. Plus the new management at Grizzly RV in West Yellowstone have really run it down hill over the past few years so we haven't been staying there.

[zmotorsports]

During our last trip a couple of weeks ago I noticed a few little odds & ends that I wanted to address before our next trip so last night I made time to take care of them.

As we were driving through Dubois and over Togwotee Pass there were road seams and sections of the highway that were quite bad in places and it shook the passenger's side power shade loose on one end going over a few of them. I could tell by the sound of the shade bouncing but the remaining screws were holding it firmly in place.

Years ago we had both shades come crashing down during different trips so I had machined some aluminum strips that secured up to the structure over the windshield. I drilled and countersunk the fastener holes to keep the screws flush with the aluminum strip and then drilled and tapped holes for the power shades to secure to the aluminum strip. This setup has held up exceptionally well for the past 8-10 years now but one of the flathead screws come loose over that rough section of road so last night I resecured the loose screw as well as went over all of the others to ensure they were all tight.

Next item was to tighten a couple of the latches on two of my basement/compartment doors. I had one that needed to be pulled in a little tighter and another that didn't seem to be catching the strike plate. A little time tweaking them and now both close nice and tight with no play.

Last item was to machine some spacers for the refrigerator bars. When we replaced the absorption refrigerator with a residential refrigerator back in 2015 I had machined some aluminum strips with holes spaced along the sides of the fridge in which some bars could be inserted in to secure items in the refrigerator. The bars are .5" aluminum rods which machined Delrin ends in which orientate into the corresponding holes in the aluminum strips for adjustability depth wise. The rods have a stationary mounted Delrin bushing on one end and a floating Delrin bushing on the other with a spring located under the Delrin and held in place using stainless steel socket head capscrews.

I wasn't sure if the springs were losing tension or what exactly was going on but the bars were not engaging into the aluminum strips with as much positive engagement as I would like and one of them popped out of place during our last trip and we had a few drinks come crashing out of the refrigerator when the wife opened it after stopping.

Last night I took several measurements and decided that rather than allow the spring to expand any further and risk having less spring tension to hold the bars into the holes, that I would merely machine a few spacers to be placed under the Delrin at the fixed end.

I machined one spacer about .200" long and two around .125" long and that did the trick. Now the rods snap very firmly into the holes with no chance of them popping out again.

[cwk]

Originally Posted by zmotorsports

Years ago we had both shades come crashing down during different trips so I had machined some aluminum strips that secured up to the structure over the windshield. I drilled and countersunk the fastener holes to keep the screws flush with the aluminum strip and then drilled and tapped holes for the power shades to secure to the aluminum strip. This setup has held up exceptionally well for the past 8-10 years now but one of the flathead screws come loose over that rough section of road so last night I resecured the loose screw as well as went over all of the others to ensure they were all tight.
...
Last item was to machine some spacers for the refrigerator bars.

Thanks for posting this.
I am currently reconfiguring the upper cockpit area in our DP. I have removed the upper cabinetry, front drapery, backup camera, visors, fans, map lights, etc.

I am installing a minisplit in the center at the top. I am starting to work on framework for the minisplit and two, new smaller upper cabinets. The minisplit indoor unit will set about a foot or so back from the windshield. The view from the driver's and passenger's seats are not restricted at all. In fact, it is better than the original layout.

The main point of my post is that I constructed and installed an aluminum frame comprised of 1" rectangular tubing that support two motorized roller shades. One shade is for privacy; one shade for blackout and insulation. They are working fine with some temporary (read: cheap) fabric. I just finished that this morning. I will add the good fabric materials after I complete the other construction.

Your point about having a shade fall while driving is well taken. I thought I was being a bit paranoid about that issue. I already had some ideas about how to prevent the tubes from popping out. I will add your ideas to the possibilities. Having a shade fall while underway is not a good thing.

Also, thanks for the photos and explanation of the refrigerator bars. I will refer to your ideas again when we get the new fridge.

Thanks for sharing. I have been following this thread for quite some time and have learned some valuable information. Your efforts in documentation are well appreciated.

[zmotorsports]

Originally Posted by cwk

Thanks for posting this.
I am currently reconfiguring the upper cockpit area in our DP. I have removed the upper cabinetry, front drapery, backup camera, visors, fans, map lights, etc.

I am installing a minisplit in the center at the top. I am starting to work on framework for the minisplit and two, new smaller upper cabinets. The minisplit indoor unit will set about a foot or so back from the windshield. The view from the driver's and passenger's seats are not restricted at all. In fact, it is better than the original layout.

The main point of my post is that I constructed and installed an aluminum frame comprised of 1" rectangular tubing that support two motorized roller shades. One shade is for privacy; one shade for blackout and insulation. They are working fine with some temporary (read: cheap) fabric. I just finished that this morning. I will add the good fabric materials after I complete the other construction.

Your point about having a shade fall while driving is well taken. I thought I was being a bit paranoid about that issue. I already had some ideas about how to prevent the tubes from popping out. I will add your ideas to the possibilities. Having a shade fall while underway is not a good thing.

Also, thanks for the photos and explanation of the refrigerator bars. I will refer to your ideas again when we get the new fridge.

Thanks for sharing. I have been following this thread for quite some time and have learned some valuable information. Your efforts in documentation are well appreciated.

Thanks Charles, I appreciate the comments. Sounds like you will have quite a lot of weight above your head, but probably not much more than original cabinetry. Just ensure it is secured properly to avoid a painful issue.

As for the power shades, I had read many years ago that this was an issue in many of the Monaco coaches so when the passenger side fell about 8 or 10 years ago I decided to make an improvement to how they were mounted rather than merely secure them back in the same manner as original. The downside to the one falling is that it put a small nick in the dash that bugs me every time I see it.

They were nowhere near ready to fall this time, but just had a bit of a rattle that wasn't there prior so it wasn't anywhere near as loosely mounted or ready to fall as originally. Just a few minutes and it was as good as before and should be secured for many more years and miles.

Thanks for following along and I appreciate the comments.

[cwk]

Originally Posted by zmotorsports

Thanks Charles, I appreciate the comments. Sounds like you will have quite a lot of weight above your head, but probably not much more than original cabinetry. Just ensure it is secured properly to avoid a painful issue.

The indoor unit for the minisplit weighs 18.3 pounds. Add some weight for the copper refrigerant lines and wires, and the supporting structure. This is probably lighter than what they had up there. Although, that was supported laterally across the upper coach frame as well as the internal front fiberglass cap. I need to consider distributing the load as well.

If anything, I have a propensity for over-engineering for safety. That might have something to do with the basic engineering courses I had back in college. Vectors, forces, etc., etc. My wife sometimes calls it "over-thinking." I prefer to think of it as being thorough.

[Timaz]

Originally Posted by zmotorsports

That is a very pretty area Tim. There are quite a few little camp sites just off Highway 191 along that route. We haven't stayed in any of them as we have generally stayed right in West Yellowstone at Grizzly as our base camp. Although the past few years we've been staying over in Ennis, which is just a hop, skip and a jump from West Yellowstone and has far fewer tourists. Plus the new management at Grizzly RV in West Yellowstone have really run it down hill over the past few years so we haven't been staying there.

Grizzly RV in West Yellowstone have really raised their prices on everything also.

[zmotorsports]

Originally Posted by cwk

The indoor unit for the minisplit weighs 18.3 pounds. Add some weight for the copper refrigerant lines and wires, and the supporting structure. This is probably lighter than what they had up there. Although, that was supported laterally across the upper coach frame as well as the internal front fiberglass cap. I need to consider distributing the load as well.

If anything, I have a propensity for over-engineering for safety. That might have something to do with the basic engineering courses I had back in college. Vectors, forces, etc., etc. My wife sometimes calls it "over-thinking." I prefer to think of it as being thorough.

Sounds like a solid plan. Nothing wrong with over-engineering something. I tend to do the same but I haven't had any formal schooling, just been an Industrial Maintenance Mechanic for 34+ years and if something can be broken or damaged, the people I work with will find a way.

Originally Posted by Timaz

Grizzly RV in West Yellowstone have really raised their prices on everything also.

That's what I've heard Tim. But then again, most everyone in the RV campground world has really upped their prices over the past couple of years. Guess they figured they may as well cash in while they can. We actually haven't been back to Grizzly for about 3 years. We gave them one chance after the management change and they failed miserably as far as I'm concerned.

[EB460]

Originally Posted by cwk

Thanks for posting this.
I am currently reconfiguring the upper cockpit area in our DP. I have removed the upper cabinetry, front drapery, backup camera, visors, fans, map lights, etc.

I am installing a minisplit in the center at the top. I am starting to work on framework for the minisplit and two, new smaller upper cabinets. The minisplit indoor unit will set about a foot or so back from the windshield. The view from the driver's and passenger's seats are not restricted at all. In fact, it is better than the original layout.

ckw,
Contemplating installing minisplits in my AC as well. Where are you mounting the outdoor unit?

Thanks,

[Timaz]

Originally Posted by zmotorsports

Sounds like a solid plan. Nothing wrong with over-engineering something. I tend to do the same but I haven't had any formal schooling, just been an Industrial Maintenance Mechanic for 34+ years and if something can be broken or damaged, the people I work with will find a way.





That's what I've heard Tim. But then again, most everyone in the RV campground world has really upped their prices over the past couple of years. Guess they figured they may as well cash in while they can. We actually haven't been back to Grizzly for about 3 years. We gave them one chance after the management change and they failed miserably as far as I'm concerned.

I camp in Baker's Hole campground with no sewer or water hookups. Last year Grizzly charged $20 to dump and water fill up or just dump. Me just ranting.
Tim

[cwk]

Originally Posted by EB460

ckw,
Contemplating installing minisplits in my AC as well. Where are you mounting the outdoor unit?

Thanks,

Propane tank bay. This is the first basement compartment on the driver's side behind the front wheel. As part of our remodel, all propane has been removed from the coach.

[zmotorsports]

During our annual trip to Ouray/Silverton area last week we unfortunately drove through some nasty weather so yesterday the ole' girl got a full detail before parking it back in the shop.

Generator bay, undercarriage and engine bay were all detailed before a good hand washing and chamois job. Then backed into the shop until the next trip.

[Scepter40]

Sheew that's purty!!!

[zmotorsports]

Originally Posted by Scepter40

Sheew that's purty!!!

Thank you. As you know, it takes time and effort to keep 'em looking and running good at all times, especially as they age a bit.