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RE: Any ideas for safe boondocking in DC area?
Since there's no gate at Greenbelt, if you're willing to get up early and have something 'normal-sized' to drive, you can easily find on-street metered parking places like the Nat'l Mall. But I think it's limited to two hours. You can sometimes actually read the big print on the signs from Google Earth Street View, and combine that with the city's parking web site to figure things out.
I stayed a Greenbelt, drove the Tiger (19' C) in early AM on Saturday & Sunday, and was able to tour all the Smithsonians and monuments that I was really interested in. I left about 1 PM each day, no parking tickets.
Jim, "Of course I know how to parallel park. Why, just the other day I came back to find an official note under my wiper. It said 'Parking Fine'."
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02/09/12 07:41pm |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Any ideas for safe boondocking in DC area?
Since there's no gate at Greenbelt, if you're willing to get up early and have something 'normal-sized' to drive, you can easily find on-street metered parking places like the Nat'l Mall. But I think it's limited to two hours. You can sometimes actually read the big print on the signs from Google Earth Street View, and combine that with the city's parking web site to figure things out.
I stayed a Greenbelt, drove the Tiger (19' C) in early AM on Saturday & Sunday, and was able to tour all the Smithsonians and monuments that I was really interested in. I left about 1 PM each day, no parking tickets.
Jim, "Of course I know how to parallel park. Why, just the other day I came back to find an official note under my wiper. It said 'Parking Fine'."
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02/09/12 06:57pm |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Any Visual Aids for a Class C?
A lot of us have added our own backup camera systems. Try www.rvcams.com. Not the cheapest, but he's good at answering questions, and will go above and beyond on customer satisfaction and warranty issues. I've got the 5.6" diagonal monitor on the transmission tunnel, and a night vision camera mounted up high looking down into the blind spot right behind the back bumper. Works fine.
Mirrors: I've added two 'fish-eye' wide angle stick-ons to my main mirrors. I had 1/2 million miles of practice using these in my mis-spent youth as a bank courier. With your vision issues, you may prefer the large 4-6" diameter ones that bolt to the mirror struts. These are not used for checking distance, but for spotting objects; you then move your head to find them in the flat pane to judge distance. There's no true binocular depth perception in a mirror, AFAIK.
The biggest issue I can think of is that you'll have to turn your head further to check the right-hand mirrors. This may take your vision off the road a bit longer.
Jim, "Lazy? Well, he had a riding vacuum cleaner...."
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Handbasket
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02/09/12 05:42pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: Roadtrek on Chevrolet frame
The early RT 200 had a reputation for rain leaks. Main culprits seem to have been reefer vents, tail lights, and (maybe) the rear window. Water leaks are maybe a bit less catastrophic in a fiberglass & steel body, but they can still cause damage. I _think_ this was cured in later models of the 200. There have been a couple of complaint by posters here about tiny bubbles under the paint in the fiberglass bodywork. Dunno if RT worked with them on repairs or not.
Both the ride and straight-line tracking are potentially less good than the 190's due to the shorter wheel base (and probably stiffer rear springs). On the plus side, they appear to sit higher than a C190, tho' I've never seen them side-by-side.
Jim, "Age is a high price to pay for maturity."
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02/09/12 11:19am |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: I-40 WB closed at NC/TN line (1 lane now open!)
Latest on this is that TNDOT is saying that it may be well into March before they get the right-hand west-bound lane cleared and open. There are occasional traffic backups at the bottleneck, so start watching for slow traffic ahead around MM 1 in NC.
Jim, "Mo' coffee!"
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02/09/12 04:37am |
Roads and Routes
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RE: 8.1 Chevy class C
Doubt it's anywhere near as large a coach as what you're seeking, but my Tiger is a 19' C with the 8.1 & Allison... a lovely combo.
Jim, "Mo' coffee!"
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Handbasket
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02/09/12 04:13am |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: The one specific suggestion you would make to RV makers...
For most B and some C makers, refuse to put cheesy cheap noisy battery-hog appliances like the little Suburban furnace in these sometimes-over-$100K-list 'campers'. It's not gonna get better until the intermediate buyers (RV makers) _insist_ on it. Disgraceful!
C makers, learn to install a dam' Onan generator properly. By properly, I mean with enough sound and vibration isolation & insulation that we don't have to be ashamed of running it in public. It can be done. Shameful!
To Dometic, since space prohibits mounting your cheap junk reefers on gimbals, install an 'off-level' safety switch. In this day and age of microelectronics and automation, you're leaving a hi-$$ critical function to fallible human judgement & memory. You deserve to be tarred & feathered!
Lastly, to Provan, thanks for doing a darn decent, although not quite perfect, job of putting my Tiger CX together. Best wishes for many more successes!
Jim, "'Karaoke' is Japanese for 'tone-deaf'."
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02/08/12 05:49pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: onan 4000 charging battery but not running a/c
And check the breaker panel inside the coach.
Jim, "So what's the speed of dark?"
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Handbasket
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02/08/12 03:19pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Williston Wal-Mart cracking down...
I just hope this doesn't leave any of them with no alternative but to go home and draw unemployment. Sounds like a lot of these folks are mostly guilty of not being able to find another place to park. I do notice that a few folks here take great glee at others' misery or misfortune.
Jim, "If only the good die young, what does that say about senior citizens?"
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02/08/12 03:13pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Propane question
I've had a 2nd-stage LP regulator diaphragm rupture overnight on a pretty new RV. I found it by smell the next morning. Luckily it was windy overnight, so it never built up a rich enough mixture to go 'bang.' But that would have totally emptied the tank if I hadn't found it.
If it's plugged in, are you sure that your furnace thermostat isn't on? I thought I turned my furnace off once, but actually just pushed the lever to the low setting. Left it plugged in in chilly weather, and didn't go out until several days later.... needless to say, it'd burned enough LP to notice.
Jim, "It was raining so hard, I got seasick driving home."
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02/08/12 01:04pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: Roadtrek on Chevrolet frame
We can answer better if we know the full model designation and year.
Jim,"Out of my mind. Back in 5 minutes."
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02/08/12 12:11pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Sprinter Diesel - Propane Generator
A dissenting opinion from a former owner of 2 B's and current owner of a B-sized C.... tho' all were gasoline. Living in the southeast and rarely staying in developed CG's, I find the Onan a near-necessity in the summer for running the A/C, a handy option for heat in the winter, and more than 'nice' for running the microwave and such. My travels would be far, far less flexible & enjoyable without.
It also came in very handy when the remnants of 2 hurricanes 'washed over' the area, and knocked out power to my stick house. I ran 2 extension cords in from the B and powered the house reefer, TV, lights, and computer for over 36 hours.
Jim, "I'd like to give you a going-away present. But first, do _your_ part."
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02/08/12 07:42am |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Bad experience with Seafoaming a generator...
Lots of good talk about the mix of Seafoam. One thing not mentioned is the duration.
I've bought two used small RV's that had Onan 2.8's that ran poorly due to neglect / not being run for a while. Fixed each by putting a high percentage (about 50-50) of gas & Seafoam thru the carb. But I just let it run long enough to start smoking, then shut it down. Let it sit overnight to let the solvents work, than started it for a few minutes the next day to draw fresh solvent in. The worst case one would only start using ether, and ran poorly. It required a full week of daily treatments to run smoothly.
Jim, "Will an exhaust brake make my generator quieter?"
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Handbasket
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02/08/12 06:06am |
Tech Issues
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RE: 1995 Ford 350 Coachman F290 Santara
Based on reading posts here, the Ford E-series chassis have considerable history of handling / truck wind issues. Probably fixable if this one has it, but $$$ unknown. Check the tire pressures and take it for a long test drive including some fast 4-lane with passing trucks. If it's got a generator and it's low hours, check to be sure it starts and carries something close to full load.
Jim, "Every one seems normal until you get to know them."
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02/07/12 06:00pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: My Next Modification
I recall someone posting a few years back to the B forum with a newish Sprinter B with an instant WH. As I recall, the gripe was that it didn't heat the full flow of incoming water enough for comfort, if the water was fairly cold to start with.
It wasn't able to supply enough rise in temperature.
Fine, I suppose, for washing dishes, not so much for a shower in cold weather. I don't recall for sure, but think this was an LP-powered unit.
Jim, "One good turn.... gets most of the blanket."
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Handbasket
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02/06/12 07:56am |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: Do Anode Rods REALLY work?
Yep... _not_ needed for Atwoods. Essential for Suburbans. I don't recommend the aftermarkets ones with the little radiator-type drain cock in the center, either. First, you really ought to flush the crud out of the WH when you drain it, and second, the drain keeps a regular 1 1/16" socket from engaging the hex.
Jim, "Recession: Just like recess, but longer. And no snacks."
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02/05/12 02:34pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: I-40 WB closed at NC/TN line (1 lane now open!)
NCDOT has always had a bad reputation for being slow, corrupt, and political, and 98% of it's well-earned. But in their defense, the "Great I-40 Slide of '09" was a heck of a lot bigger than the little boulder on the TN side this time.
In '09, the loose rock extended about 1/8 of a mile _up_ the side of the gorge, and went quite a ways along the road. The quarter-billion year old rock in the whole gorge is just plain rotten, with lots of cracks & fissures for water to infiltrate & freeze in.
Jim, "Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?"
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02/05/12 07:18am |
Roads and Routes
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RE: I-40 WB closed at NC/TN line (1 lane now open!)
And yet another change... Maybe. NCDOT has the more recent smaller slide on this side cleaned up already. Looks like all the rock fractured into manageable pieces as it came down.
But according to the Saturday evening news, TNDOT has not yet set a firm time for clearing their side. There was a vaguely worded statement about 'if the weekend rain didn't interfere too much,' they might still have it open by sometime Monday.
On late edit... Just heard on the Sunday AM local news that one lane is open westbound now! YAY!!! I'm sure there'll be delays, but at least it's now possible to travel direct.
Jim, "Mo' coffee!"
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02/05/12 04:18am |
Roads and Routes
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RE: What to see and do in Asheville, NC?
.....
One of the shows they did, recently, was on Ashville SC.
.......
Your search may go better if you have the correct spelling and state. It's Asheville, NC.
Jim, "Mo' coffee!"
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Handbasket
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02/05/12 04:09am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Portable generators
And as I've posted before, a large part of Onan's general reputation for noisiness is the result of cheap/poor mounting practices by RV makers. No attempt at vibration isolation from the chassis, no sound insulation in the compartment, ignoring the optional exhaust resonator, much more space for cooling air entry than Onan requires, etc.
Then owners gripe because they have no idea that it can be made better with some research, a few dollars, and a little effort.
Jim, "Mo' coffee!"
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Handbasket
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02/05/12 03:58am |
Class C Motorhomes
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