Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Fix It Already!

Catching this head cold put on hold a number of repairs I need to make while I am here in a good spot with a good friend to help when needed.  There are a number of small, elective repairs I need to make, but the most important repair is to fix the speedometer signal sending unit.  Without a functioning speedometer I have no cruise control, and without cruise control I am not as happy driving the coach as I would like to be.  Since the speedometer quit working last year in southern Wisconsin we have traveled 6,123 miles and I have gotten somewhat used to not having the cruise control, but am I happy about it?  NO!  When we were in Spearfish, SD at the Newell Gurus Rally my friend Richard helped me get the whole drive unit detached from the transmission where we discovered the problem was a broken drive tip, or drive pin, if you will.  


This is the 1.25" long culprit

It has taken so long to replace that broken drive pin because it is hard to find.  I spent hours and hours on the computer looking......gave up for a while.......then a few weeks ago I found it on a website called "Farmtronics" located up in Alberta, Canada for $5.95.  At the time I thought we were going to be in Wittmann, AZ within a week, so I had it shipped to my friend Tom's home.  As it turned out the drive tip had to be backed ordered (3 week back order), and I had hernia surgery........we arrived at Tom and Darlene's home just one day before the drive tip arrived.

Monday I was back to almost 100%, and was the day I decided was the day to get this new drive tip installed.  The square end was slightly big so I had to use a flat file to shave off a little, and then install it.....it fit perfectly and within 30 minutes I had it installed, and the signal generator reinstalled.

Front air manifold

Next up I will be rebuilding the 6 air valve manifold that controls the front air ride, and leveling characteristics of the coach.  Two years ago, when we were visiting Tom and Darlene, Tom and I rebuilt the rear six pack which has ceased working due to too many air leaks.....I don't want to wait for the 32 year old front six pack to spring any leaks.  When we were in Sioux Falls, SD visiting our new Newell friends Todd and Dawn who own a 1984 Newell, Todd gifted to me 5 of the six MAC valves I needed......Elaine and I had done a lot of work on his coach while we were there helping them get the coach ready for the rally.  He had ordered too many of the valves so gave the extras to me as a "thank you gift".  So, all I needed was one additional valve to rebuild the front manifold.  Tom and Darlene were going to be in the area where the MAC valve distributor is located running errands, and volunteered to pick up the extra valve so that saved us a 100 mile round trip drive.

Monday was also the day we needed to dump our black tank.....it had been 9 days, and while it was not full, it is better when using our portable macerator pump to not wait until the tank is full.....just makes it a quicker, easier job.  Below is a picture of the setup I use to pump the dreaded "black water" into Tom's sewer cleanout located exactly 50' away.....how do I know, you ask?  Because that is exactly how long the hose is!

My homemade portable Jabsco macerator pump setup



The pump out went smoothly, just as it should after so many years of doing it, but you just never know what will happen......if you are interested in what can happen while dumping your black tank when you least expect it click on this link......"Paint it Black".

I spent part of the afternoon getting the coach ready to drain the air out of the air lines so I can work on the front six pack by putting jacks under the coach to keep it from settling all the way down.

As I have recounted numerous times over the past couple of years, you just never know who you will meet along the way.  Monday was one of those days.......my friend Tom recently met one of his new neighbors while riding in his golf cart and invited him over for dinner last night.   The neighbor's name is Dave Crouse, the owner of the famous Custom Auto in Loveland, CO.  Dave spent a couple of hours regaling us with stories of his work, which was totally fascinating.  One of his proudest achievements was the restoration of the Norman Timbs Buick Special.


I love this kind of stuff, and was so grateful to be able to meet and spend time with Dave.

Of course, my blog about Monday is not complete without a picture of our first Saturday sunset.....


Thanks for stopping by!

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