Maintenance & Restoration

Randy D. · 06-06-2011, 11:23 PM

I have come out of my financial woes and just placed an order for a fantastic fan, some window gaskets and led bulbs for interior lighting. I am also ready to get a new coupler welded on and the wheel bearings replaced. Must get this thing on the road although there has been little sign of summer in these parts.

Randy D. · 06-26-2011, 07:22 PM

I have recieved my Fantasic Fan, water tank and cabinet hardware and after getting the cupboard doors secured I brought the boler home. Here it is in front of my house. After the fan installation it will not likely fit into any typical garage again.

Randy D. · 06-26-2011, 07:27 PM

I struggled with this for a while and finally decided to get what is available. These are not pretty and it seems none are made with a chrome finish but they do work and you can't go far without them. Once again I purchased them through Affordable RV here in Calgary. They have access to the Coast catalogue that many rv dealers use. I used two for the closet door since I have heard that it is the one that often pops open.

Randy D. · 06-26-2011, 07:34 PM

With my Fantastic Fan order I also purchased the gaskets for the small door window. So far I have only installed the one around the oval opening. I will have to remove the window to put the back gasket in place. The new water tank is slightly smaller than the original and it does not have the corner cutout for the fill pipe fitting so I will have to re-build the box for that. I will post pictures of that when I get to it but it is not essential for use. Tomorrow I visit a welder to have the coupler replaced, safety chains installed and a tray for my battery added.

Donna D. · 06-26-2011, 07:39 PM

Looking fantastic

Emily R. · 06-27-2011, 07:48 AM

Lookin' awesome Randy!
So glad the Fantastic Vent order went well....Yahoo for ventilation!
Have fun camping!
Cheers!
Emily

DannyH · 06-27-2011, 08:11 AM

Your trailer looks great and I like the blue. If you have a standard garage door, I think your correct that it will not fit into the garage with the fantastic fan on top. I measured mine before installation and it added 3 to 4 inches to the top. I wanted it to still fit in the garage, so installed the fan on the side wall, behind the stove. I works great and is very quite.

Tim Wood · 06-27-2011, 09:28 AM

Ya gotta love these rebuild threads, very nice job by the way.

Randy D. · 06-30-2011, 11:29 PM

I hated the original worn out small-ball coupler, the lack of safety chains, and the twist in the coupler to frame connection so much that this had to be completed before I actually hit the road. The welder is with The Welding Shop here in Calgary. I was referred to them by the guys at Affordable RV who have been helping me get the parts I need to finish.
I had them remove the old coupler, install the one I got with the trailer, attach my new safety chains and add a tray (with cutout to clear the propane bottle) for my battery box. I think they did a great job and I feel much safer pulling it now. They even sparyed on a coat of black paint.

Randy D. · 06-30-2011, 11:46 PM

Thank you. I saw your setup a while back because I was following your restore project. It made me wish that I had more skills to exploit. You did a superb job. As it happens, I don't have a garage at my home. I have a small lot and opted to grow a vegetable garden in the only available space for a garage. I have decided to install the vent on the roof since I have to store the trailer outside and there is already a 9x9 hole that I dread patching with no fiberglass experience. I thought your idea to mount the vent on a wall was an elegant solution.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DannyH

Your trailer looks great and I like the blue. If you have a standard garage door, I think your correct that it will not fit into the garage with the fantastic fan on top. I measured mine before installation and it added 3 to 4 inches to the top. I wanted it to still fit in the garage, so installed the fan on the side wall, behind the stove. I works great and is very quite.

Randy D. · 06-30-2011, 11:49 PM

Tim
Thank you very much. I am having a really good time with this project and will be posting camping shots soon.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tim Wood

Ya gotta love these rebuild threads, very nice job by the way.

Donna D. · 07-03-2011, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randy D.

I received a reply from Polyrama Plastics in Edmonton regarding my question about the shape of their tank. It does not have an inset corner like mine so the original location will not work. Did some more digging here and found the same information in old posts.

I can't remember, did you get the water tank issue solved? I stumbled across this today, look at the last water tank on the left... second page, right above the tank probe: http://www.sahararv.com/pdfs/325-334..._WasteLine.pdf

Randy D. · 07-04-2011, 09:47 PM

Funny you should mention that. I did some searching on the forum and found a post by someone who had the same problem and simply moved the tank over a few inches toward the door side to provide clearance. I went ahead and ordered the tank and rebuilt the frame so that I can move the whole thing over a couple of inches. I did the rebuild on Saturday and slapped a coat of deck stain on it yesterday. Still looking for the three small fittings at this time, they are not a plumbing shop item and seem to be available from rv part suppliers only. The fill inlet fitting is also not the same size as the original but is available at Home Depot and the like.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donna D.

I can't remember, did you get the water tank issue solved? I stumbled across this today, look at the last water tank on the left... second page, right above the tank probe: http://www.sahararv.com/pdfs/325-334..._WasteLine.pdf

Randy D. · 07-04-2011, 09:53 PM

Based on the great post by Ray N. I ordered WLED-WWHP10-D bulbs to replace the four 921 bulbs in my interior fixtures. They look great and as Ray pointed out, they provide similiar illumination at a fraction of the power consumption.

Randy D. · 07-04-2011, 10:04 PM

Glorious weather this past weekend inspired me to polish up the paint job. I wanted to let the paint cure for a while before applying wax so I left it for a couple months. I washed off the dust with warm water and then waxed and buffed. Here are some shots from yesterday evening and this morning at sunrise.

Donna D. · 07-05-2011, 06:55 PM

Randy, glad you got the water tank figured out and

on the wax job!

Randy D. · 07-22-2011, 07:58 PM

On July 9 I took the Boler out for an over night stay at a campground about an hour from home to do some fishing. Couldn't believe how easy setting camp is. Back in, un-hitch, put the jacks unter the frame and throw out the chair. Done. Nothing left to do but have a beer. At 7 AM Sunday I had this stretch of the Bow river to myself and landed a couple of nice trout.

Randy D. · 07-22-2011, 08:45 PM

After another short over night trip last weekend I just had to check the wheel bearings. I worked with the mechanic next door to my workplace and he showed me how to repack the first one so that I could do the other. Upon inspection we found that the bearings were in great shape and that there was no immediate concern. I took a couple of shots while removing the first hub but was unable to do more in the shop because my hands were covered in grease. Here is a rundown of the process assuming you don't need to replace the bearings and races.

Gently pry off the dust cover.
Remove the cotter pin holding the hub nut.
Spin the nut off the spline.
Pull the hub off (the front bearing falls into your hand at that point).
Clean the grease off of the spline with a rag.
The rear bearing is inside the hub behind a grease seal that will likely be damaged on removal. I found similar (correct size) seals at NAPA (part number 16735) for $20 each.
I cleaned the inside of the hubs using the solvent wash in the mechanics shop but it can be done manually of course.
The mechanic told me not to clean the bearings but to repack them as they are instead. We used a bearing packer but one can do it by hand as well. Just force new grease into the bearing to push the old out. We used synthetic grease.
Place the rear bearing back in the hub and tap the new seal into place flush with the hub.
Slide the hub back onto the axle.
Put the front bearing in place, replace the washer and nut and tighten until firm. Back off the nut until the cotter pin can be re-inserted and replace it. The hub should turn freely at this point and should not be too tight.
Replace the dust cap.
Mount the wheel.
Done.

Randy D. · 08-05-2011, 10:25 PM

Thanks to BarbT for suggesting the faucet from Canadian tire. I went right over and picked one up. It fits the existing hole nicely and the only other parts required were a faucet hose and a 1/2 inch nipple. I purchased the city water inlet from Scamp some time ago.