Your thoughts would be appreciated.
The older I get, the better I was.
71choptop wrote:
Older thread but pertinent to me now. Like classics and stuff I can work on. At the age were I would like to have a motorhome but income is limited. Found a old local guy that has a '79 Dodge Honey, 25', rear side door, back bathroom, 360ci,61,000 miles. Has had it since the early '80's, bought it from the original owner w/10,000 miles on it. Body is about 95% nice Interior is very nice w/the exception that you can tell their was roof leakage in the cabinets along the side and under some windows. I could live w/it and am handy. Has new, 4 year old, 100 miles on them, tires, 16". Refer/freezer work, water pump works, water heater destroyed w/ tire blowout,furnace works, and not sure about AC. He is asking $3,500.00, I have been visiting and have looked at it a few times, won't pay 3,500.00. Would be nice to get for 2,500. but 3,000. is more realistic. I know that if I go a few thousand more I can jump up to'85 or so but the knowledge of the history and who owned it means a lot in my book. Says he has had it stored inside, since he owned it, in the winter and says it is a 360A ?
Your thoughts would be appreciated.
Older thread but pertinent to me now. Like classics and stuff I can work on. At the age were I would like to have a motorhome but income is limited. Found a old local guy that has a '79 Dodge Honey, 25', rear side door, back bathroom, 360ci,61,000 miles. Has had it since the early '80's, bought it from the original owner w/10,000 miles on it. Body is about 95% nice Interior is very nice w/the exception that you can tell their was roof leakage in the cabinets along the side and under some windows. I could live w/it and am handy. Has new, 4 year old, 100 miles on them, tires, 16". Refer/freezer work, water pump works, water heater destroyed w/ tire blowout,furnace works, and not sure about AC. He is asking $3,500.00, I have been visiting and have looked at it a few times, won't pay 3,500.00. Would be nice to get for 2,500. but 3,000. is more realistic. I know that if I go a few thousand more I can jump up to'85 or so but the knowledge of the history and who owned it means a lot in my book. Says he has had it stored inside, since he owned it, in the winter and says it is a 360A ?
Your thoughts would be appreciated.
Stored inside? Guess he only took it out on rainy days. LOL
With water damage that apparent I'd walk VERY gingerly around this 'deal' and then RUN??? Well maybe not but look at the threads on RV.net dealing with roof repair. It isn't a pretty project.
One possible exception would be IF it has a metal frame in the walls and roof.... even then ........... I'd keep looking.
Units w/o water damage do exist..... but they are rare...... worth the effort to find them however.
By the way: Tires are said to need replacing every 7years..... regardless of wear. I just sent a set of 6 to a 'tire wall'. Too bad the tread won't be visible when in place. LOL
Hoppe
2011 Dodge 1500 C'boy Caddy
2000 Jayco C 28' Ford chassis w V-10 E450
Doghouse 36' or so Trophy Classic TT
rehoppe wrote:
Stored inside? Guess he only took it out on rainy days. LOL
With water damage that apparent I'd walk VERY gingerly around this 'deal' and then RUN??? Well maybe not but look at the threads on RV.net dealing with roof repair. It isn't a pretty project.
One possible exception would be IF it has a metal frame in the walls and roof.... even then ........... I'd keep looking.
Units w/o water damage do exist..... but they are rare...... worth the effort to find them however.
By the way: Tires are said to need replacing every 7years..... regardless of wear. I just sent a set of 6 to a 'tire wall'. Too bad the tread won't be visible when in place. LOL
Stored inside? Guess he only took it out on rainy days. LOL
With water damage that apparent I'd walk VERY gingerly around this 'deal' and then RUN??? Well maybe not but look at the threads on RV.net dealing with roof repair. It isn't a pretty project.
One possible exception would be IF it has a metal frame in the walls and roof.... even then ........... I'd keep looking.
Units w/o water damage do exist..... but they are rare...... worth the effort to find them however.
By the way: Tires are said to need replacing every 7years..... regardless of wear. I just sent a set of 6 to a 'tire wall'. Too bad the tread won't be visible when in place. LOL
I agree with rehoppe. People give me -- free of charge -- motorhomes in the condition you describe just to keep from having to send them to the junkyard.
You'll wind up spending a couple grand restoring the coach ... assuming you do the work yourself and are willing to take on a major project. I do that kind of work on the ones given to me and usually find it best to just strip off the coach and build a new body.
My '73 RM350 was missing the engine and tranny but was otherwise in excellent condition. For the three and a half grand your seller is asking, I could have gotten a quality rebuilt engine and transmission. (Someone probably took the engine and tranny for a racecar ... the motorhome engines usually have more rugged components desired by racers.)
rehoppe is ABSOLUTELY correct about the tires. I've driven on older tires but only locally and with a full set of spares.
You mentioned "cheesehead" in your profile so I assume you're in Wisconsin. Motorhomes in colder and/or humid climates tend to have water damage unless stored in a heated garage with a dehumidifier. The problem is warm humidity migrates into the framing and condenses when the exterior is exposed to colder temperatures. Once the wood becomes saturated, it becomes the ideal feeding ground for mold that exist in dormancy in all wood. Compounding the problem is mold captures and holds moisture so it can continue to live and grow. (This is why homes in your area need vapor retarders on the warm side of exterior walls.)
1970 Explorer Class A on a 1969 Dodge M300 chassis with 318 cu. in. (split year)
1972 Executive Class A on a Dodge M375 chassis with 413 cu. in.
1973 Explorer Class A on a Dodge RM350 (R4) chassis with 318 engine & tranny from 1970 Explorer Class A
71choptop wrote:
Thanks guys, I will save my pennies and watch for a newer one w/no rain damage.
Thanks guys, I will save my pennies and watch for a newer one w/no rain damage.
A possibility is to watch craigslist postings in the southwest. There's a fair number of well preserved, older motorhomes in that area due to the relatively arid climate, and often for less than $3,500. My daughter bought one in El Paso when she was stationed there and we considered driving it back to Alaska when she was being considered for medical retirement. (Unfortunately, a "friend" of hers borrowed it one weekend and wreck it beyond repair.)
If you find one for less than $3,500, you could hire a reputable mechanic to check it out before driving or flying down there to get it. You could save enough to pay for the trip down there and back. (You may even find one for free that someone wants out of their yard.)
If you do this, I'd take $1,000 in traveller's checks for contingencies. (A zero balance credit card, with a hefty limit is also a possibility, although traveller's checks are easier and more readily cashed.)
In the mid-90's, I lived in a place with a ceiling that dripped every spring because of humidity that migrated through the ceiling, condensing and freezing in the insulation above the ceiling, due to no vapor barrier in the ceiling. (The builders assume the foam insulation sheets were enough of a vapor barrier.) When it warmed up enough for the condensation to melt in the spring, the ceiling dripped even though the roof was intact and waterproof.
Personally, I strip down to the frame, restore the drive train, suspension, and frame. I then build a custom coach to suit myself. But, some people consider me a tad eccentric and i'm used to major projects. (I'm primarily responsible for the preliminary design on the command and control system that was used to manage the Exxon Valdez clean-up.)
One buddy/coworker hung a phrase on me that I live by ... "I haven't lost touch with reality, I ignore it."
Back in the 50's and 60's (and earlier), people built their own travel trailers and motorhome, often based on plans in Popular Mechanics and similar magazines. Those articles planted the seed for my current 'entertainment'.