My 87 345 Adventure

[rmuller]

Today is the day! Going to pick up this beauty in Michigan. We just put 8 new tires on checked the fluids and will be attempting the drive back to Cleveland (364 miles). Wish us luck and I will post pictures from the trip.

[PeterH-350LE]

Originally Posted by rmuller

Today is the day! Going to pick up this beauty in Michigan. We just put 8 new tires on checked the fluids and will be attempting the drive back to Cleveland (364 miles). Wish us luck and I will post pictures from the trip.Attachment 264216

Congrats and welcome aboard. Check if your front airbags will hold air (55 psi), it will make your ride a lot more pleasant.

[Isuzusweet]

It is just my imagination or have a bunch of 1987 325's suddenly been bought and sold these days. They are everywhere.:huh

Welcome to the forum, and other than air bags, you might want to make sure the gas card has lots of room.

BTW, only considered an adventure when something has gone totally south on you, leaving you stranded for days with no water, black tank full and since you haven't left yet..........which is actually pretty smart of you, as the Airstream Gods may leave you alone, as they think you want an adventure; reverse psychology, very smart indeed.

Goodluck
Tony

[tevake]

All the best on your shakedown cruise, and welcome aboard the forum.
You will find a sharing bunch here with grease under a few nails and big smiles on our faces.
These classics are wonderful machines to tour in.
Don't be surprised if the first few trips generate considerable to do lists.
Check in here for part #s, sources, tips etc.

Cheers Richard

[comprose]

Welcome to the world of Airsream motor homing. We just completed a 75 day almost 7,000 mile trip and thoroughly enjoyed the travel, and we're still speaking to each other. Not sure if Airstream trailer-types recognize MHs on the road, or even in the parks. But that's their problem.

Safe travels.

[rmuller]

Sorry no posts during the trip.. I have to admit I was a bit focused on the task at hand. Not only is this our first Airstream, it is our first RV.

We made the 406 mile trip in about 9 hours. The 345 ran like a champ, new tires made a big difference from the test drive. I have to say the mission was not to need a tow truck. Not only did we not need a tow truck but we didn't need the 500lbs of tools I had in the back of our VW, so that was an extra bonus!

Of course there were some issues that I will address during the summer.

1) It is HOT with no AC and 92 degrees outside. The 454 is like sitting on top of a volcano. I know I could have ran the generator but I didn't have time to service it before we left.

2) Lost the airbags about 50 miles from home. There is 80 lbs in the tank but it is not keeping the bags up as much as the beginning of the trip. Dash gauge was in the red. (Valve of some sort?)

3)Very weak brakes. Does the job I guess but not very comforting.

4) lots and lots of cleaning! And a refresh inside.

More to come I'm sure as I bring the coach systems online.

[PeterH-350LE]

too cool (not a pun) you made it!!! Big congratulations! I have done it a couple of times, so have may others on this forum. It will bond you to the rig forever and once you start digging into it, you will say :I can't believe I made it home with this..........
I had to laugh out loud, when I saw you even left the for sale sign in the window

[Kota]

Congratulations! Glad the trip home was uneventful.

[Isuzusweet]

Whew; yes we have all had that feeling of just, lets just get home and take stock of what we have just done. Yes the learning curve is steep, but the crowd here will answer any question you have, including dumb ones.

Air bags sounds like the leveller valve got stuck, or some debris from inside the tank fouled it. I replaced the steel tank with aluminum ones and replaced the valve. Valve is around $90 and Brad can tell you the model number.

This will happen to you a lot in the first while you start using it. Things will work and then not........

As for brakes, well, I hate to tell you but what you see is what you get. My 310 weighing 3000 lbs less than yours has the same braking system, which is, normal braking is okay, but ask it to stop you any faster, no way; and this was after a new master cylinder ($90.00) and new fluid. If I were you I would get a new master cylinder if it hasn't been replaced at all and all the brake fluid replaced, especially if the coach sat for a few years. Roquefort found just brake jelly in his master cyclinder. Your tag axle brakes are probably not working well and also need servicing. Others can chip in on that.

Spray Nine and buckets of it will do a great job of cleaning up the interior.

Way to go mate, you made it.....now the fun begins.

Cheers
Tony

PS. Your very first thing to do would be to change the rubber fuel lines. These fuel lines were made pre Ethanol and Ethanol is very corrosive and will eventually cause them to crack and spill fuel all over the volcano, which is bad. We have lost a number of rigs over the years due to fuel/engine fires. It happens fast, by the time you realize what's happening, the little fire extinguisher supplied will just piss off the fire, but not put it out.

[rmuller]

Thank you for the words of encouragement and tips, especially about the fuel lines, that is one I would not have thought about!

Got the generator working today, I am impressed with how quiet it is. It is nice to have A/C!

Question - has anyone tried to remove the coating on the interior aluminum skin and succeed? If so how much of a pain was it and how does it look?

[PeterH-350LE]

Originally Posted by rmuller

Thank you for the words of encouragement and tips, especially about the fuel lines, that is one I would not have thought about!

Got the generator working today, I am impressed with how quiet it is. It is nice to have A/C!

Question - has anyone tried to remove the coating on the interior aluminum skin and succeed? If so how much of a pain was it and how does it look?

I would go with SAE30R9, which is the more expensive fuel injection fuel line.
The clear coat is easy to remove. I like to use Citristrip from Home Depot. Protect adjacent areas and brush it on. You can either rinse it off with a water hose our wipe it off with a damp rag.
If you don't have excessive oxidation, it will look pretty good after you clean it up, if you do have oxidation, you have to polish to get it to look decent again.
BTW, if only your wood decal is peeling, but the gray upper and lower is still in good shape, you can remove the rest of the wooden decal with cheap white masking tape.
Replacing all of the pinstriping is rather expensive (~6.-/foot)

[Isuzusweet]

Originally Posted by rmuller

Question - has anyone tried to remove the coating on the interior aluminum skin and succeed? If so how much of a pain was it and how does it look?

First things first grasshopper.

Get the mechanical is good working order, stopping first, followed by steering, suspension and powertrain in that order.........trust me, that's a big one for this summer. Master cylinder, brake fluid, pads, Crank steering bells, lower ball joints, tie-rod ends, grease fittings, steering damper, transmission fluid, rear differential fluid, engine coolant, radiator condition with possible re-core, thermostat, FUEL LINES, drive belts, airbags (condition), air compressor, air tank, lights (marker, dock and headlamps), wipers, hydraulic levellers etc, etc.

Now interior to make it user friendly: clean first, check condition of sub floor, plumbing, pumps, toilet, black and grey tanks, dump fittings, hot water system, fridge, freezer (if applicable), 12 volt converter, lights, circuits and fuses, fans, stove, LP system and certification, furnaces, systems panel, curtains, dead bolt, etc, etc

Now you can go, stop and use it...........now it's time to make it pretty. I'm almost up to this stage,-almost- and I bought mine four years ago.

Peter will tell you how to strip your coach but be aware that keeping one of these in polished condition takes many, many, many hours of labour and will cut into your using it time.

Relax, take a breath first; it's not going anywhere soon, but you will if you try and do everything all at once.

Cheers
Tony

[rmuller]

Thank you for the list of mechanical priorities, I appreciate it and will always prioritize safety first. I was asking more for conceptual purposes. I was referring to the interior aluminum skin. Has anyone taken that back down to aluminum and gotten rid of that sticky wall paper stuff?

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by PeterH-Airstreamer

I would go with SAE30R9, which is the more expensive fuel injection fuel line.
The clear coat is easy to remove. I like to use Citristrip from Home Depot. Protect adjacent areas and brush it on. You can either rinse it off with a water hose our wipe it off with a damp rag.
If you don't have excessive oxidation, it will look pretty good after you clean it up, if you do have oxidation, you have to polish to get it to look decent again.
BTW, if only your wood decal is peeling, but the gray upper and lower is still in good shape, you can remove the rest of the wooden decal with cheap white masking tape.
Replacing all of the pinstriping is rather expensive (~6.-/foot)

Question - has anyone tried to remove the coating on the interior aluminum skin and succeed? If so how much of a pain was it and how does it look?

Peter, I believe the OP was asking about the interior skin.

[PeterH-350LE]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Peter, I believe the OP was asking about the interior skin.

yup, my bad. I would not attempt to remove it from the ceilings. Its a tremendous amount of work and very toxic. The end result is not very pleasing. There have been many discussions on how to clean the sticky stuff for a while, since it continues to bleed through. Among other things, denatured or rubbing alcohol works pretty good.
The walls is whole different issue, since the vinyl is glued to thin plywood in many places that falls apart when you try to remove the vinyl. I have done different things with good success, like venetian plaster and grasscloth wallcovering. The secret to success is the right primer AFTER you pull the vinyl off and fix the wood. Getting anything to stick permanently to the vinyl is difficult, if not impossible, unless you use high temp contact adhesive.

[rmuller]

So I'm not sure how I did this but I named this thread saying it is a 325? It is in fact a 345... Can I rename the thread or just start a new one?

[Isuzusweet]

Originally Posted by rmuller

So I'm not sure how I did this but I named this thread saying it is a 325? It is in fact a 345... Can I rename the thread or just start a new one?

Contact a moderator, they maybe able to help.

Cheers
Tony

[Lily&Me]

Done.


Maggie

[rmuller]

Awesome! Thank you.

[Isuzusweet]

Okay, now that's taken care off........back to the thread.

Why exactly are you thinking of stripping your interior walls? I'm now sure you mean the interior outer walls. Is it because they're sticky or faded or yellowed?

Cheers
Tony