1980 BigFoot 17B complete Reno

[Mountain Moma]

Hi

I am completely renovating an 1980 Bigfoot 17B.

We picked it up last fall for a good deal after waiting three years.

Planed list of renovations and upgrading are as follows

1. Drop axel replacement with strait axel including new breaks hubs and tires (having this down at a shop)

2. Fibreglass repair where a Bear came through the kitchen window

3. New kitchen cabinets and frig from Bear damage.

4. New LED inside lighting and wiring

5. New break lights and marker lights all around

6. New roof vents and covers in the bathroom and kitchen area (maybe with fans by Maxxair)

7. Solar system installed from our previous trailer with new converter box

8. Slide out battery tray in rear closet

9. Olympic wave heater to replace the gravity furnace

10 Replace old cushions and curtains

11 Paint every thing White

I will keep you posted on our journey. Our goal is to hit the road this spring in May for a year long road trip with our two girls and see the National Parks.

I guess our journey begins


Mountain Momma

[Brent & Margje T.]

Hi Amy

We have a 1983 Bigfoot. I am wondering if you could take some pictures when you remove the cabinets. We are having an issue with the counter coming away from the wall under the window above the sink. We just need to know how the counter is connected without tearing the whole thing out. We are also slowly fixing ours. New vents, new curtains and cushions so far. Good luck and keep us posted.

Margje

[Mountain Moma]

Originally Posted by Brent & Margje T.

Hi Amy

We have a 1983 Bigfoot. I am wondering if you could take some pictures when you remove the cabinets. We are having an issue with the counter coming away from the wall under the window above the sink. We just need to know how the counter is connected without tearing the whole thing out. We are also slowly fixing ours. New vents, new curtains and cushions so far. Good luck and keep us posted.

Margje

Hi

Our cabinents are already out. The bear somewhat helped with this at least the top. The fiberglass wall Was pulled away from most of the back.

To completely take it out we removed all the sliding doors at the bottom by using a paint scraper to get under the edge and pop them out in one piece. We removed the refrigerator by unscrewing it from the floor and sliding it out till we could disconnect the propain line.

We then went all along the bottom if the cabinents and removed all the screws holding it to the floor. There are several screws from inside the closet and inside the table bench also going in to the cabinents. The floor to counter supports at both sides of the frig have screws that go in to the trailer body and along the top of the counter top. Some screws from the frig vent covers went directly in to the Cabinets from the outside. I will sent some photos later today of the wall that's left.

Happy camping

[Brent & Margje T.]

Thanks Amy. Greatly appreciated.
Margje

[Tom Trostel]

I will be following your project with a great deal of interest.

NW New Mexico Photo by tomNjo | Photobucket

[Mountain Moma]

Here are some photos of the cabinet attachment from the outside of the trailer through to the inside. The frig doors went through to the cabinet boxes. I did not have to remove theses as the bear did this for us from the inside


There is how I have braced the upper cabinets to allow for the Fiberglass repair once the cabinet goes back in I will add supports Ling term to help with roof sag. My roof does not leak but I will have to reattach the foam to the roof on the forward panel.


As long as it stays this warm I will be making progress. It is a heat wave here for a few days and I am hoping to make much progress.

[Mountain Moma]

I am having some issues uploading photos. If some one can point me to a link on how to I will upload the bath and wiring posts next .

Thanks

[Mountain Moma]

As it has been a bit cold here I have been working in the trailer with a space heater sorting out all the wiring problems.

I took some photos of the original lights coming off because all the wiring in this part of the trailer is original.

One Of the PO's has to have backed in to something as the back street side corner has been crunched but repaired for the inside although not well. It looks like some of the patch failed and was duck taped together. I will post photos of this when the repair gets underway for that area. Most of the wiring harnesses has been patched if it was not hidden and taped in to in many places to ground mods.

I am putting in a harnessing junction box under the frount street side bench. I am also hoping I can draw a wiring diagram to share to help out others.

Back to it I guess

[Tom Trostel]

I wanted brighter tail lights on my Bigfoot. I started with plug in LED replacement bulbs which were okay but not much improved. With all the room under the original lens, I added more LEDs and am very happy with the results.

LEDs Under Original Tail Light Lens Photo by tomNjo | Photobucket

[Mountain Moma]

So the new lights are in and making great progress inside. Have had great weather here so it's coming along faster than I thought it would.

The new LED lights are on
A new wiring harnesses is in

At the Axel shop now

Once the new axel is done and the stability jacks are on I will remove and redo the windows. I plan on replacing all the water damaged wood under the windows then.

Most of my windows have been siliconed shut and are quite a mess. I hope to make them function again with out replacing them all this year but that may be a dream and I have to go for just water tight.

[Mountain Moma]

We just got bigger feet. Axle is on and new tires and wheels.

[Mountain Moma]

I have a kitchen starting to form.

It seems like we have come
A long way from where we started. In to new propane lines and appliances this week. One day it will be done.

We move in full time next month and it seems at this rate I will never get all the little bits done.

[ZachO]

Looking good!

Having "been there, done that" with a smaller RV, I mostly know what you're going through. There is something very nice about rebuilding with new stuff, set up the way you want it. But man is it a lot of work, a lot of time, a lot of money. A lot of mental energy. I gutted and rebuilt a little Toyota Chinook and moved into it and mostly lived in it for two years. It was great, but it got down to the wire trying to get it done in time.

For my first couple months traveling around that first spring, I was regularly out in the desert cutting panels and shelving with a circular saw, staining and painting stuff, drilling holes etc. As long as you get the basics up and running like water, electricity and propane, the rest can happen as you go as long as you have some portable tools.

Not sure what your history is, but I think you'll like the Bigfoot. I've been living in mine during the summer since just last spring, with lots of time out of it while house sitting. This summer will be the same. Quite a few housesitting gigs over the summer, but otherwise in the camper. It works very well for me and the dog. It would start to get cramped full-timing with two people, but there are enough benefits of having a partner around that it probably makes up for being cramped.

I'll be interested to see your final product. I need to upgrade some of my electrical system, but otherwise I've been pretty happy with my Bigfoot for full timing.

[Mountain Moma]

A bit mor done.

In the home stretch now. We are looking at two more weeks and then down to small jobs and parts if there is such a thing.

[cassel01]

Nice job, looks great. I have just started a reno on a 1987 D20 5th wheel. We are going to gut the trailer, as the people we bought it from had a fire. The white interior looks good. I would like to see pictures when you are all done. Thanks

[Mountain Moma]

Click lock is down but needs trimmed. We are moving on. Projects seem to take longer now. The Devil is in the details.

[cassel01]

Floor looks good. Did you glue the click lock down? Somewhere I read that you need to glue it down. I really don't want to do that when I get to that part. Let me know how it works out.

[Mountain Moma]

Originally Posted by cassel01

Floor looks good. Did you glue the click lock down? Somewhere I read that you need to glue it down. I really don't want to do that when I get to that part. Let me know how it works out.

We did glue down on top of the old floors after cleaning. We may have to replace the floor at some point but we have no soft spots now so we didn't want to go through taking the old up

[cassel01]

Thanks for the information.

[Mountain Moma]

Attachment 105105

We have all new propane lines and the kitchen is in


New stove is tested and the new heater is in

I am down to that fiberglass that I have been dreading and a bit of final wiring.