Shakedown

[777 Driver]

We’re taking delivery of our new coach later this month. The dealer is in West Chester, PA (Stoltzfus RV & Marine).

Our PDI is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. and, I’d guess, will take several hours (4 - 6). We’re planning to spend the first night in the coach on the dealer’s property so if there’s anything we don’t understand (or needs to be fixed), we can get it all straight before we leave for home (about 200 miles away) the next day.

It occurred to us that it might be good to spend more than one night near the dealer. We’ve been looking for a nice campground within 50 miles of West Chester, PA and came across Spring Gulch RV Resort in New Holland, PA.

So, does our plan sound good?

Does anyone have experience with Spring Gulch RV Resort?

Would that be suitable for a novice camper?

Any other recommendations would be appreciated!

Thanks.

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[sknight]

Plan sounds good to me. My walkthrough took about two hours, mine's a regular travel trailer though.

Carry a few cooking tools and dishes along with food to cook for dinner plus a few towels and whatnots for the bathroom. May as well try everything out at once. After a few nights you'll decide what towels you want, real dishes or plastics. I got a "decent" cheap set of pans for the kitchen, Ziploc dishes which have held up great for several years and it seemed like a good time to replace the everyday silverware so the old everyday set went into the camper.

Liquid soaps hold up great for storage time, basically the camper is ready to hook and go most all the time.

Have fun and good luck! Don't worry during the walkthrough, while it'll seem like too much info to soak up you'll get it.

[777 Driver]

We signed the purchase agreement a month and a half ago. So, we’ve been collecting “stuff” since then. Cindy has approached it similar to when we took kids to college…”we’ll need some of this, a little more of that, not so much of that and lot’s more of this. And, this is all gonna change, so, be ready!”

We’ll take enough with us to have dinner and breakfast on the dealer’s site. There’s a Sam’s Club between the dealer and the Spring Gulch RV Resort and both Costco and Walmart (SuperCenter) within 10 miles of Spring Gulch. We should be able to find anything that we’ve forgotten.

I’ve been reviewing the Owner’s Manual (available as a .pdf online), all 258 pages. Hopefully, that’ll let me absorb more during the PDI.

Thanks for your well wishes!

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[JC2]

Originally Posted by 777 Driver

We’re taking delivery of our new coach later this month. The dealer is in West Chester, PA (Stoltzfus RV & Marine).

Our PDI is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. and, I’d guess, will take several hours (4 - 6). We’re planning to spend the first night in the coach on the dealer’s property so if there’s anything we don’t understand (or needs to be fixed), we can get it all straight before we leave for home (about 200 miles away) the next day.

It occurred to us that it might be good to spend more than one night near the dealer. We’ve been looking for a nice campground within 50 miles of West Chester, PA and came across Spring Gulch RV Resort in New Holland, PA.

So, does our plan sound good?

Does anyone have experience with Spring Gulch RV Resort?

Would that be suitable for a novice camper?

Any other recommendations would be appreciated!

Thanks.

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

Here is a link to a review of the park that might be of help. Good luck on your new reig.
RV Park Reviews :: New Holland, Pennsylvania ( PA ) - RV Parks and Campground Reviews

[Seajay]

Here are some small suggestions.
One ...... Because it is a new coach, dont expect everything to ''work just fine''. get yourself a legal pad and write down everything that wont work, works some of the time, works while it is raining, wont work while it is raining, kinda works but not exactly like you thought it would....etc....etc....etc..... the improtant thing is to WRITE IT DOWN AS YOU FIND IT BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT REMEMBER EVERY LITTLE THING........
Two. If this is your first coach you have a lot to learn about RVing. Like the water heater will only hold less than ten gallons of water. TAKE SHORT SHOWERS. Always keep at least half a tank of fresh water. You never know when you might have a blow out or some other trouble that will leave you stranded for a couple of days.
Remember this ... Whether it is brand new or ten years old, motor homes will always have a ''problem something''. That is just the way it is. Something will always need attention in some manner. Show me a motor home that needs no attention and I will show you a motorhome in stowage.
Three ..... RVing is the most fun you can have with your clothing on. You will meet the nicest people and see the most wonderful places and get to know your ''significant other'' better than you ever have in all your life. You will have GOOD TIMES that you will never forget and you will have Bad times that you wish you could forget immediately.
Four. GET A GOOD ROAD SERVICE POLICY..... GET ONE WITH UNLIMITED USAGE COVERAGE AND UNLIMITED MILEAGE for towing.
BEST OF LUCK TO YOU ..........
This valuable information will cost you ten cents and you must pay me the next time you see me. (good information aint cheep)
Seajay the sailor man
ps I started rv,ing in 95...............love it.............

[HD4Mark]

Our walk through on the current MH was terrible. The kid knew less about it than we did. Like Seajay said, make a list. If there is something the person that does the walk through doesn't know or seems shaky about, have him/her get some one that knows.

Run everything too. Even if it is cold out, run the heat until it is too warm then put on the air. Might want to call them and ask if they can turn the fridge on a day or two before you get there since they take some time to get cold.

We got our dealer to agree to pay some one closer to us for repairs if there were any we discovered after because like you we were not local to them. Turned out to be a good thing. They paid a local Cummins service to repair a fuel clog rather than have us drive three hours back to them.

Good luck with the new toy. Hopefully there will be no problems with it.

[CD]

777driver
When we bought our present TT, we vidieo taped the PDI. Then when something came up and we said "What did he say?" we got the tape out. It helped & that wasn't our first TT.
Have fun

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by JC2

Here is a link to a review of the park that might be of help. Good luck on your new reig.
RV Park Reviews :: New Holland, Pennsylvania ( PA ) - RV Parks and Campground Reviews

Thanks, JC2.

It looks like a nice, quiet place. Just what we're looking for!

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by Seajay

This valuable information will cost you ten cents and you must pay me the next time you see me. (good information aint cheep)
Seajay the sailor man
ps I started rv,ing in 95...............love it.............

Thanks, Seajay!

Your information would be a bargain at twice the price! I'll keep my eyes open for ya and a shiny new dime in my pocket.

We chose Coach-Net (Gold), Road Shield for tire coverage and Priority RV Extended Care for all the "stuff". Hopefully they'll all go unused. But, just in case, I've got some phone numbers to start with when things go awry.

Several years ago, I mentioned to an acquaintance of mine our plans to spend some time RVing around. He mentioned that his parents had been motorhoming for 20 years. His next comment was interesting. He asked, "Do you like to fiddle with stuff?"

From my lurking around in IRV2, it's apparent that there's LOTS of stuff that requires a degree of fiddling around with to get it "just right". It's a good thing thing I like to fiddle with stuff!

A half tank of water is a great idea. I can see how you could quickly get stuck dry. Coming from a sailor, I'll use your water advice.

Thanks for your service to our country! In a year, I'll start collecting my Navy Reserve retirement...should pay for much of the RV expense.

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[Ronnie Bledsoe 2006 Dutchstar 43']

If you don't have a toad be really, REALLY careful in parking lots and other close manuevers. The swing and tracking of the rear is considerably different then a car.

That being said keep us up to date on your adventures.

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by HD4Mark

We got our dealer to agree to pay some one closer to us for repairs if there were any we discovered after because like you we were not local to them. Turned out to be a good thing. They paid a local Cummins service to repair a fuel clog rather than have us drive three hours back to them.

Good luck with the new toy. Hopefully there will be no problems with it.

Hi Mark & Nancy,

That's a great idea! I'll try to persuade the dealer that thy should do that for us.

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by CD

777driver
When we bought our present TT, we vidieo taped the PDI. Then when something came up and we said "What did he say?" we got the tape out. It helped & that wasn't our first TT.
Have fun

Hi Cliff,

I've heard that suggested before. We don't have a video camera...no grandkids Maybe it's time to grab an inexpensive one for the PDI. I know there won't be grandkids by the end of this month!

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Bledsoe 2006 Dutchstar 43'

If you don't have a toad be really, REALLY careful in parking lots and other close manuevers. The swing and tracking of the rear is considerably different then a car.

That being said keep us up to date on your adventures.

Hi Ronnie,

None of our vehicles is towable 4-down, so we're starting to look for a suitable toad. It'll be a year before we have time to take any big trips.

For this excursion, we'll be driving a car to the dealer. DW will be driving that car to lead/follow me in the coach to the campground and home. She's disappointed that she won't get to look out that huge windshield as I'm driving along! I'll miss her encouraging words as I try to keep from hitting anything!

I do have some experience with maneuvering large vehicles at high speeds (Boeing 777); there are some concepts that will have some similarity, but, lots of new concepts to master (the LOW SPEED stuff).

I'm familiar with being seated well in front of the steerable wheels and that the tail does swing quite wide during turns. One suggestion that I've thought sounded good was to try to find a large, EMPTY parking lot to practice maneuvering. Turns, backing, etc.

Thanks for the advice!

Take care,
Stu & Cindy

[LVJ58]

Congratulations on your new coach, you shouldn't have much difficulty maneuvering the coach as I'm sure it has a much shorter turning radius than the 777--

Seriously though, do enjoy many fun, safe and trouble free journeys.

Jim