1990 345 LE project Roadrunner

[RBonney]

It's time to get this bird in road worthy condition. I want to thank all the input and help over the years from this site. But now I'm ready to tackle this thing and enjoy it with my family. I know I've talked and even listed it for sale before but the wife and I are now ready to enjoy this coach. We purchased this when we had one child, now we have 3. Ages 8,9, and 23 so the queen bed was removed and working on a twin bed setup. Here is a pic of my temporarily bed setup to see if it will work. Didn't have s choice the floor was rotted out. It's also time to put my window in I bought off here years ago.
Here is a couple pics of my coach and my progress. The first big purchase was new tires all the way around. I was told the coach was from Arizona and owned by the Bartles Family from Bartles and James but not sure. The odometer had about 12000 miles on it when I purchased and not even 19000 on it now. I think less use makes things worse.
Thanks again for the help and input.

[RBonney]

Well it's been slow progress but we did make some. New rear bags installed. The wife is finishing up her custom mattresses and some upholstery. Still always to go but it i think it will be just fine for this holiday weekend.

[RBonney]

Made it to our summer camping spot without any major issues. One issue I had was one front wheel was running hot at first it was only a hour drive. I use a laser temp gage to measure temp. Usually run around 100- 110 on the wheel by the center. And the hot water heater seems to be running a long time without shutting off.
How long does it normally take to heat water? And what is the normal operation of the red light.

As always everyone thinks the rig is sweet. Little do they know what it takes to keep these girls going. Lol.
I also noticed that everyone leaves there awning open even when they are not there. It's obvious the don't have Zip Dees Thanks for any input

[Boom Sounds]

There are plenty of good solutions for the awning with tie down straps, really strong pegs and upright telescopic support poles. If you have these in place, you should be fine with moderate wind. Check the weather, if it looks gusty, put it up. I once had an awning blow upright on me so learnt the hard way!


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[wxbuoy]

Originally Posted by RBonney

Made it to our summer camping spot without any major issues. One issue I had was one front wheel was running hot at first it was only a hour drive. I use a laser temp gage to measure temp. Usually run around 100- 110 on the wheel by the center. And the hot water heater seems to be running a long time without shutting off.
How long does it normally take to heat water? And what is the normal operation of the red light.

As always everyone thinks the rig is sweet. Little do they know what it takes to keep these girls going. Lol.
I also noticed that everyone leaves there awning open even when they are not there. It's obvious the don't have Zip Dees Thanks for any input Attachment 263722

Water heater time depends on a lot of things. If you have the auxiliary engine coolant running back to yours it should be hot when you get to the camp site. Otherwise for a 6 gal water heater it takes about 15 minutes on gas about 10 on gas and electric together. It should turn off once it reaches temperature though. Also we have always showered after it has run for 10 minutes and normally turn it off afterwards so we are not wasting gas/electric. The red light on the switch is to let you know that the water heater is ON. This should be for the propane side of things. If you have 2 switches then the switch with the electric bolt is the electric on/off.

As far as leaving the awnings open when they are not there. They are fools and every time we are at a camp ground and a storm comes through we watch people scurrying around trying to put theirs up and watch a few that were left unattended by their owners, fold back onto themselves. I use the term fools lightheartedly since everyone is a fool until they learn from experience. Ask me how I know!

As far as the wheel running hot, it could mean a bearing might be starting to go or need more grease. However, it most likely is that was the side of the MoHo that the sun was on or a difference in tire pressure. Might even be a sticking break pad (slam on the breaks a couple times going backwards). I wouldn't worry to much about it, but definitely keep an eye on it. You obviously know enough to carry a laser temp gauge! Use mine all the time for the tires, to see what the refer temp is and what the A/C is putting out.

[RBonney]

Thanks for the input. I turned the heater on the second day at camp so it was cold. It's a gas only heater I turned it on and switch light up red and it let it run for almost 45 minutes. The light was off but still running and the water was very hot.
As for the awnings what a way to ruin your awnings by leaving them out all week.
Any input on sealing the wall paper in the shower. It's going to be a long summer if I have to use the public shower.
Thanks

[wxbuoy]

Originally Posted by RBonney

Thanks for the input. I turned the heater on the second day at camp so it was cold. It's a gas only heater I turned it on and switch light up red and it let it run for almost 45 minutes. The light was off but still running and the water was very hot.
As for the awnings what a way to ruin your awnings by leaving them out all week.
Any input on sealing the wall paper in the shower. It's going to be a long summer if I have to use the public shower.
Thanks

I checked my book and it says it should be hot by 30 minutes..... I don't know what temp the thermostat is turned to for that, but we keep ours low.... Looks like you will just have to turn on and off manually. Ours is brand new and that's what we do.

Wall paper is a tough one..... It is vinyl and was applied originally with a spray adhesive that like all glues will fail after 20 years. You can try vinyl wall paper adhesive from the big box store. However, you need to make sure that the paper hasn't shrunk and pulled away. if it has, you will need to replace the wall paper.

[RBonney]

Thanks for the input. I'm thinking about calling one of these custom wrap places that wrap cars and see if the wrap would hold up and how much it would be to do . The other idea is to make a pattern and have stainless laser cut to fit all the walls. I still can't believe they just covered wood from the factory.

[wxbuoy]

Just remember there is a foam insert in the corners that seals the gap between the side and back wall. This piece is almost impossible to cut and get right after you take out the inserts. Good luck and post pics!


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[RBonney]

Well it's been a long 2 weeks of sweat equity. After a week of using motorhome I noticed one brake heating up so I thought I would give it a quick once over. I was Getting the Roadrunner ready for our trip to the UP of Michigan.
New Passenger exhaust manifold with a broken bolt. Had to heli coil it.
New Plugs wires cap rotor.
New calipers, pads, rubber hoses, master cylinder and one 5 ft section of steel brake line.
Power steering flush and bleed.
All new belts installed.
New exhaust on GenSet.
Tightened my ignition switch with my new laser cut tool.
Reinforced battery tray so if the rust part breaks free I won't loose my batteries on the ground.
And I did all this on the ground on jack stands.
It's kinda scary crawling under there.
Finished up the night we were supposed to leave so we put our trip off till the morning (Sunday) and as I went for my test drive the alternator went out. Of course no one had one available so we are off on our trip booking hotels. Lol. Hopefully the Roadrunner will have another opportunity for another road trip.
I feel like I let the family down but I will tell you I know more about the 345 today then I did 2 weeks ago.
It's just a reminder of what it really takes to own one of these.
Thanks for all the help lately and in the future.

[RBonney]

We just picked up where we left off a year ago and made our road trip. 1200 miles without using a wrench all the way around Lake Michigan . I was so close last year. The only thing I had to do this spring was change the fuel filter. It sure feels good to get out and enjoy our hard work. Here is a pic from the upper peninsula of Michigan by Bark River at Fuller Park. It's a great county park right on the water.

Thanks again for all the help on this site.

[mayco]

Good on ya! All the work pays off eventually.

[chriscraw]

Can anyone assist with "how to unbolt" the driver's chair in my 350LE. Need to remove it for repair and to allow access to the ECU. See 2 bolts at the rear but suspect the "turntable" mounting is also bolted to the floor but how...bolts hidden under the carpet? thanks
chris