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Old 01-13-2008, 04:43 AM   #1
Pam
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1967 17' Caravel
1968 24' Tradewind
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10 Yr. Old Cutter.....Now What

Have loved our Cutter for the past 10 years.

Has had ongoing maintenance, but this seems to be the year to really hunker down with a very aggressive maintenance schedule before camping season.

Following a winter trip from MA to FL, we found lots to do.

Has anyone relocated their fuse block from the front, somewhat exterior location to an interior location?

Our diesel has the fuse block up front and we have found that the road water and salt has really corroded alot of it. This resulted in a fuse catching fire on our trip. We also found water sitting inside one of the fuses.

A couple other upcoming projects;
Change all tires; Especially front two
Replace front step: Any source recommendations?
Check underside for corrosion
Review seals for any water leaks. Front passenger window seems to be a problem with water but can't figure out where it's coming from.
Check corrosion on propane tank

Another other suggestions?
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Old 01-14-2008, 02:05 PM   #2
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Would like to see the result of the relocation of the fuse box. Also, instead of relocation, build a cover?

I have disassembled the front fuse box to fix a problem with one of the corroded fuse areas. There are a LOT of wires to be relocated.

I am on my third set of tires. Have over 118,000 miles on coach.

I would be glad to discuss maintenance with you.

While you are at the maintenance, look at the fuses in the engine battery area and the relays under the bed. The relays under the bed gave me problems when they were loose. Also, check the engine/air dryer for tightness. Mine was loose. I replaced it. Not too difficult if you are mechanically inclined.
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Old 01-14-2008, 02:24 PM   #3
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Wink Good advice

Hi John,

Great advice. I will let my husband know what we talked about. He's the one that is doing all the work. I think I might be the project manager.

Anyway. The idea was this....bring the whole thing inside. We talked about building a cover and had some ideas, but the whole winter travel thing is an issue with us coming out of New England in to the warmer climates in winter. So we had the idea to remove the tv, put the fuse blocks inside that area, build a cabinet door type of recessed facing and then mount a new flat screen tv to that. Then when we need to access the fuses we can open the tv cabinet. I really like the idea.

I believe Chuck is talking about rewiring quite extensively, while he's about the fuse block relocation as it makes sense to this all now.

I will send him the link to this thread....I am sure he has all the details.

Did you find any other corrosion or deterioration on the underside of your rig?

Have you added any kind of spare tire hoist system? That's on the wish list of things we'd like to add.
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Old 02-24-2008, 06:34 AM   #4
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It's working!

Husband, Chuck, is finishing up the redesign and move of the fuse blocks. Yesterday he finishing rewiring to the new fuses. HOORAY! It works! He's finishing up today and doing testing. I will get photos to publish, as I was most impressed by the whole project.

Even the woodworking and new flip up flat screen tv looks very good.
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Old 02-25-2008, 02:20 PM   #5
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Please post pictures !!!!
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Old 05-24-2009, 01:26 AM   #6
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Fuse Panel Photos

Not sure if inserting the photos will work. But here goes.

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Old 05-24-2009, 06:45 AM   #7
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It's a keeper...

Okay, we are both on the same page and plan to keep the motorhome. We have so many upgrades now, including the next two...

1. Replaced the headlights with BMW headlights from our older 740 before we got rid of it. BIG difference. The factory headlights were quite poor and didn't give us much distance.
2. Replacing (as we speak) the tv antenna. Removing the Winnegard and replacing with a disk style boating antenna, which will be mounted to the mechanism that raises and lowers. We have just tested it and the reception is unbelievable! Huge improvement.

We have just found a local diesel mechanic to make house calls. He has met with us and has a list of parts to order for brake replacements, hoses, etc. It's perfect for us. He is working part time on the side from his regular fleet job.
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Old 05-03-2011, 03:09 PM   #8
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So how did the Mechanic, making house calls work Out ?
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Old 08-24-2011, 12:42 PM   #9
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Exclamation Improvements / Ideas......

Quote:
Originally Posted by Pam View Post
Okay, we are both on the same page and plan to keep the motorhome. We have so many upgrades now, including the next two...

1. Replaced the headlights with BMW headlights from our older 740 before we got rid of it. BIG difference. The factory headlights were quite poor and didn't give us much distance.
2. Replacing (as we speak) the tv antenna. Removing the Winnegard and replacing with a disk style boating antenna, which will be mounted to the mechanism that raises and lowers. We have just tested it and the reception is unbelievable! Huge improvement.

We have just found a local diesel mechanic to make house calls. He has met with us and has a list of parts to order for brake replacements, hoses, etc. It's perfect for us. He is working part time on the side from his regular fleet job.
I am looking at purchasing a 1999 Cutter and was curious what you've done since you started posting back in '06.... any great ideas or solutions to problems? Any comments about the Cutter overall I should think about?
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Old 08-24-2011, 05:58 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by John Haggard View Post
So how did the Mechanic, making house calls work Out ?

It went perfectly and was well priced. Very happy.
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Old 08-24-2011, 06:03 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GREENovaters View Post
I am looking at purchasing a 1999 Cutter and was curious what you've done since you started posting back in '06.... any great ideas or solutions to problems? Any comments about the Cutter overall I should think about?

We love our Cutter. It's comfortable and wonderful to travel in. The down side of anything is maintenance and repairs. I believe to own anything like this you either need to be financially well off or very handy. My husband can tackle just about any problem from mechanical to electrical to electronic. We are very fortunate.

We have had some leaking problems that are now being addressed with recaulking the roof.

There's some problems with hoses drying out, etc. that need to be watched. We did have some oil spray from the diesel engine that is being addressed with replacement parts.

Other than that it's just the usual stuff to keep things running. At some point we may want to simplify and change to a trailer and tow vehicle.
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Old 03-23-2012, 02:03 PM   #12
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we have just purchased an identical unit to yours, 70K, and its a diesel.

have read all of your posts preparing for the delivery, you offer up some good shortcuts, thanks for posting!
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Old 03-23-2012, 07:53 PM   #13
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Still love our motorhome. It is so comfortable and we love traveling this way. We are getting ready for some major maintenance starting this month to prepare for the season; recaulk the roof thoroughly, which means stripping it out first, rebuild the front bulkhead cabinet where some water leaked over time and did damage, and I believe engine and transmission maintenance. It's alot but it has to be kept up to date. Then we'll be ready for May camping.

Good luck with your new motorhome. I am sure you'll enjoy this as much as I.
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Old 10-09-2012, 09:59 PM   #14
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Just finished reading this entire thread. Wow, re-locating the fuse box must have been a real chore, but I understand. Out here where I live, I don't have to do any winterizing other than making sure all the tanks are drained and there's no snow or road salt. But, I am going to get a new fuse box and fabricate a cover for it sooner or later.... but, although there's some corrosion in there, it doesn't call for a complete relocation. Actually, there's no real amount of corrosion at all. I really like the Cutter 35. It looks good and if a slide has to be there, just one is more than enough for us. Enjoy!
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Old 10-11-2012, 04:50 AM   #15
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Lovin' Petaluma

Hi Adam,

Yes the fuse box move was huge! I couldn't believe my husband was able to do that and keep everything in order! It works perfectly in the tv compartment with the new flat screen in front of it.

We love the Cutter Diesel and do have the slide out. It is very comfortable. We did think about selling this year, as we have much less time for travel. Taking the year off we are now regenerated about getting out again next Spring. That gives time for updates, maintenance, etc. The mh is in good shape, but I would like to do some "redecorating".

We also have two trailers that need to be completed but that's on the back burner until Spring now.

BTW, we stayed in Petaluma at the KOA and loved the area.
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Old 12-04-2012, 07:01 PM   #16
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Anyone done rip in fiberglass?

Have a 1996 34' Cutter and did a stupid driving around corner of shop and hit the gutter. I have been using duct tape the past few years, but have been on a tear sealing roof with Dicor 502 and Eternabond 3" wide tape...all is going great but not sure how to fix tear in fiberglass. The easy way I thought would be to just cover hole with about 8" of Eternabond. Have looked at some posts of actually layering fiberglass on it and then painting. This coach is not beautiful and we decided it would be our last so we are doing lots of overdue maintenance. Just not sure of the fiberglass....any thoughts? Hope the picture makes it with the post
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Old 02-14-2013, 09:19 AM   #17
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How did you make out with this repair??

I would think you are lucky that it is confined to such a small area of the gelcoat f/g.

Any body/boat shop that has experience with f/g repairs should be able to make that look new for a reasonable cost. The decal looks unmolested, the location is above eye level, so a good gelcoat repair should be almost unnoticeable. To further disguise the repair you might install an upper side marker light on the repair after running a wire to the location before fixing it.

Sealing it from the weather is your first priority.

Dave
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Old 01-28-2019, 09:59 AM   #18
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Has anyone taken out the raised dash, containing the original TV, and replaced it? I am thinking of the fusebox issue as well.
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Old 02-15-2019, 07:47 PM   #19
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Has anyone had to replace the vinyl insert for the rub rail?
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Old 02-15-2019, 08:11 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pam View Post
Husband, Chuck, is finishing up the redesign and move of the fuse blocks. Yesterday he finishing rewiring to the new fuses. HOORAY! It works! He's finishing up today and doing testing. I will get photos to publish, as I was most impressed by the whole project.

Even the woodworking and new flip up flat screen tv looks very good.
Pam, do you have any photos of your flip-TV?
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