Classic Motor home get together

[mayco]

Just got squared away at Prairie Dog State Park....long day, been up since 2am. Long story short, the mechanic (Jake) was able to install the ball joints on the damaged side on site. We were then able to drive it to his shop 5 miles down the road. He had gotten parts early this morning and showed up at the rest stop around 9. He finished up everything at the shop about 4 and we jumped in and headed west. Drove 250 miles or so, total joy! Ran great as before, really tightened up the steering and the suspension felt better even though Im running without the right front air bag. Its gonna meet me in FOCO tomorrow, just need to replace the air line.....I think. We are all good, feel extremely lucky, the people were incredible and the rig is running and driving great. Too pooped to post any more, Ill fill you in later on the details......WOW! That was a dizzying 36 hours. Thanks for your support,

Mike nLynn.........beans n weenies for dinner, yeeeeeeehawwwww

[Kota]

Originally Posted by mayco

Ran great as before, really tightened up the steering and the suspension felt better even though Im running without the right front air bag.

I guessing here! If the ball joints were loose enough to effect the steering and suspension, they were probably banging themselves to death leading to the failure. It's important to get the weight off when greasing them. Wheel in the air. Good time to check for any play. Unless you are a gorilla, a pry bar is usually needed to assess any play in the ball joints.

Glad you are back in the saddle. No sense fretting about what could have been. I've seen them fall apart just putting a vehicle on the lift.

[mayco]

Youre absolutely right Kota, no fretting about what could have happened. Just grateful for how things shook out, very grateful. On to FOCO today.
Bob, i was too tired last night to answer your questions. The only front end work that had been done to date was steering damper, new air bags, Henderson bell cranks, and new shocks. I do as much as I can myself. Dont have the knowledge or experience to tackle what you and some of the other fellas here undertake. I had figured on replacing the ball joints down the road but didnt feel it was anything that needed done immediately. In talking with the mechanic, he said that his best guess was that it snapped due to being loose and just fatigue due to age. He didnt see anything else on the front end that seemed out of the ordinary. He must have been able to get the measurements pretty close because I didnt feel any pulling while driving. Gonna try and get it aligned while in Fort Collins.

We may end up getting to the get together on saturday rather than friday as planned. Need to check on the kids schedules. All in all, its done, new ball joints! Cool. Jake was more than reasonable on his bill. I was expecting well over a grand said and done. He was well under. Nice guy, nice shop.

[bobmiller1]

OK great, thanks for the reply, as I thought previous work lead to the failure. The most probable cause was that after the air bags were replaced the lower ball joints were tightened up with an impact gun which stressed the original ball joints. Would have been a good time to replace the ball joints but where does it end. And also very easy to say after the fact. Chances are it never would have happened on the highway because you never steer that sharply. I hope all is well and enjoy the trip. PS I really wanted to make it. Next time , I promise !

[Vycan]

Slight change to the timeline because of availability of the Tesla Museum. Swapping the days for the museum and the hike. Also need to know how many people will attend the tesla museum. It is not a standard walk through, it is a demonstration museum, ran by an individual who will talk you through the life of Tesla, share the artifacts from the collection at the museum, and review the 700 patents of Tesla. No issues if you guys do not want to go, but I need to know for the reservation.

24APR15- Arrival
25APR15- 9:30am Group Breakfast (biscuits and gravy, Pancakes, and eggs?)
-Sometime during breakfast get number of people interested in going
to the airplane diner to make a reservation
11:00am-1:00pm Tesla Museum $12/person
2:30pm-4:30pm afternoon ciesta
5:00pm meet back at Campground to arrange travel to Dinner
6:00pm-8:30pm Dinner
9:00pm-10:00pm campfire and smores
26APR15 Breakfast on your own
12:00pm-2:30pm Garden of the gods hike
2:30pm-4:30pm afternoon ciesta (because naps are great after hikes!)6:00pm-Until Complete Cheese and Wine tasting (bring a bottle of your
favorite wine, a loaf of your favorite bread, and a block of your
favorite cheese to share.
27APR15 Clean up and departure

[mayco]

Actually I installed the air bags without disconnecting and removing the control arm or spring. Lots of folks do it the same way by compressing the air bag and slipping it through the hole in the bottom. Thats how I did mine. I did the install.

[martin300662]

Firestone have a video on the web showing to install that way.

[tevake]

Woohoo. Good recovery Mike, big kudos to JAKE.
Great that you found such support.

Glad to hear that you are back under way. And not raked over the coals cost wise.

Hoping you both are able to relax put this behind you and enjoy the rest of the trip.

Cheers Richard

[Kota]

I've been trying to get down there for years. Ann and I will go on the tesla tour. We plan on being there on the 23rd.

[Kota]

Mayco,

Twin peaks diesel is a great place if you have any engine needs while you are in the area.

http://www.twinpeaksdiesel.com/

[tevake]

Count me in on the Tesla visit.
Is any one going to rent a car that I can pitch in on.
We will need one to get around unless all activities are close at hand.

I have decided not to tow my 911 through the mountains for a first shakedown trip. Would rather take it easy with it at first with easier terrain.

Cheers Richard

[mayco]

Made it to Fort Collins and snug as a bug at my sond house. Hope to get the air line today and get it on. Knock on wood, the rig has been just a pleasure to drive and been running like a top. Nice sweet spot around 28-2900 rpm, 62-64 mph. Seems to purr right there. Pretty stout wind yesterday and shes a sail but handled it no problem.

Thanks for all the advice and moral support fellas. Cant tell you how much it means to have several heads working at once to problem solve. My gratitude to you all.

Smartstream, I had no idea thats how they made adjustments on the alighnment.
No wonder it felt so good and wasnt wanting to wander or pull. Hmmmmm.

See y'all down at the get together. Looks like a cold spell has set in here for a few days.


Mike n Lynn

[Vycan]

We are thinking about bringing our toad, but all seats are taken for the family I'll look into taxi's and such this weekend.
So for Tesla visit I have:
1. Kota: 2x guests
2. Tevake: 2x guests

Waiting on confirm or deny from Mayco.

Also a reminder on the timeline, that's just what we are doing, and yall are invited to join us for all or part of it, just let me know which ones you would like to do with us in a PM so I can ensure I get the logistics right.

Thanks!

[mayco]

Hey Vycan,
Sorry about that, we wont be making the tour at the Tesla museum though it sounds absolutely fascinating. Ive read quite a bit about he and Edisons rivalry for supplying electricity to the 1893 Columbian Expo (worlds fair) in Chicago. Very interesting how that shook out, if you ever have the inclination, take a look.

Mike

[Kota]

Originally Posted by Vycan

We are thinking about bringing our toad, but all seats are taken for the family I'll look into taxi's and such this weekend.
So for Tesla visit I have:
1. Kota: 2x guests
2. Tevake: 2x guests

Waiting on confirm or deny from Mayco.

Also a reminder on the timeline, that's just what we are doing, and yall are invited to join us for all or part of it, just let me know which ones you would like to do with us in a PM so I can ensure I get the logistics right.

Thanks!

We will have our jeep.

[mayco]

Appreciate your thoughts and analysis Bob, I think we ALL would like to pin down why/how that ball joint snapped. So keep your thoughts coming.

Mike

[tevake]

Vycan, just for your planning info , I will be traveling Solo on this trip, so no +2 with me.

I'm also interest in follow up info on your break down Mike.
Have had my coach in for front end work a couple of times and don't have total faith in the thoroughness of the Techs nor was I allowed into the garage area myself. So some questions remain.

See ya'll in a week .

Cheers Richard

[Kota]

Snow stopped. Friends about 11 miles straight back got 32 inches. Should be good weather for the get together. Getting summarized and packing for the season. Heading down to the springs Wednesday afternoon.

CU all there!

[Kota]

This morning.

[mayco]

Kota, where is the best place for propane between FOCO and Denver?