Category: Camper Updates

I started removing the appliances to figure out if the worked or not. I didn’t feel safe plugging the camper in and testing everything in the camper since there were mice, wasps, and god knows what else living inside this thing. I’m super glad I did this because the appliances were packed with mouse houses.

Stove removed and mouse house removed under top.

Stove vent fan removed and bird nest removed.

Furnace removed and several mouse houses removed and wasp nests that filled the exhaust and intake.

Return Trip Part 2

My work trip went very well so I was able to return the next morning and get the camper. I backed up and hooked her up to the Jeep did one final walkaround and hit the road. I went 10 mins in to town and stopped at a gas station to check how the first 10 mins was going. I checked tire pressures and bearing temps, all good. The Hitch I got didn’t go down as far as I needed to the trailer tilted up quite a bit. It still pulled ok but not ideal. There was no sway at all but I could definitely tell it was back there on the hills. Even though my Jeep was rated to pull 6200lbs it really struggled with the 3600lb camper at times. It also snowed last night so I’m really glad I didn’t have to do all the bearings, tires and wiring in the snow.

The 2 hour trip home was uneventful even with the light snow we got. However the backing into my driveway proved a bit harder due to not having backed a trailer in years, the proximity to the bus and it being dark. So just pulled in for now and will back it in later when it’s not dark.

Bus meet Camper.

Return trip part 1.

I came down early Sunday with a trunk full of tools and tires. I got a hotel room at the local BnB and started on the Camper. I had purchased 4 new trailer tires and replaced the 7.75×15 with 215/75/15. I was able to get a local tire place to swap the 2 tires onto the rims I brought back last trip. I also had brought back the bearings and hubs from the one side and cleaned and repacked them. I also nickel plated the lug nuts, for fun. I then put the one side back together with the repacked bearings, cleaned and painted hubs and the new tires. Dropped back down that side and started on the other side. I pulled off the old tires and put into the Jeep so I could run them to a local dealership to have them swapped in the morning. I then pulled the hub and bearings. Repacked the bearings and gave the hubs and brakes a good cleaning. The Electric brakes looked pretty dirty but otherwise in good shape. It looks like this camper probably doesn’t have many miles on it based on the condition of the axles and brakes. I bought 2 new shocks but didn’t have the right tools or time to do them today. I also started to adjust the Weight distribution hitch I picked up at Harbor Freight.

After the Bearings and tires were as far as I could get them I started on the wiring. What a mess. I did find that the original 6 pin harness went under the trailer and was wiring into a 4 gang residential metal electrical box. I pulled all the wires out and used a multimeter to find ground, then a car battery to test the lights one by one. I put new ring connectors on and tied them into the correct spots on the new harness. I didn’t get a picture of this all tied up and done, but I was able to put it in the same spot under the trailer. The weight distribution hitch was mostly adjusted and the wiring harness was good enough. It was just starting to get dark and being as this was in a back field and no power it was about to get really dark.

So I turned on the lights and WE GOT LIGHTS! Well most of the important lights at least. All the brakes, and turn signal lights worked. There are quite a few markers out but that will get addressed way way later. I then started buttoning up the trailer to make it road worthy. The Water heater panel wouldn’t stay closed so I duct taped it closed(which didn’t hold, so I just removed the door). I tightened the trunk door up since it one of the latch bar brackets was partially stripped. I removed the porch light and made sure all other doors where tight and closed. I fixed one of the panels on the kitchen window so the window would fully close. And then I went back to the Bed and Breakfast and called it a night.

I woke up the morning of the 14th and went right to the dealership(only place in town) and they swapped the other 2 tires over onto the old rims and disposed of the 30+ year old tires. I drove back to the camper and put the tires on and did one final look over it. I had planned this trip around a work trip so I had to go to work now. I will come back through this area in 2 days and then I’ll take the camper home.

More Random Pictures I took.

I always seem to get to 80% finished on a project and lose interest. Well this bus is not any different. I got really bummed after driving the bus on the Highway for the first time and realizing I really hate how it drives. It drives like a bus, lol. The steering is still a tad lose, I think. It only does about 60-65 thanks to the AT545 transmission. I really hate being passed by semi’s. The tires on the rear are from 2006 and 2010, so they need to go and they feel like they have some flat spots. I’ve had my eye on a set of 4 at Fleet Farm for months, Priced at about $1500 installed. Well I finally go to make the appt and the price went up a bunch. A set of 4 is now $2200. I really don’t want to put anymore money in to it and still have it drive like a bus. So I started browsing Facebook Marketplace and well….. I bought this 1971 Holiday Rambler.

It had been sitting at a campground for over 30 years and used as a permanent site camper. It had a deck and a roof built over it so the interior stayed in pretty good shape. Nearly everything was original with the exception of the plumbing. They had removed the tank and plumbed it direct to the shore water connection. Since the tires were also 30 years old it was time to say goodbye to those as well. I had brought a bottle jack and a floor jack but was only able to get one side off the ground at a time so I grabbed 2 of the tires and threw them in the Jeep. I also looked it over for anything else I’d need for the return trip to bring it home. The owners were gracious enough to let me keep it there for a couple weeks until I could come back down with tires and pull it home. I found I needed to repack bearings, there were in perfect shape but the grease had broken down into tar. The trailer lights were the old style 6 pin and was in terrible shape. I’ll need to swap that to the newer 7 pin style. It also had a factory weight distribution hitch but that was nowhere to be found. So after making a list I headed home with the 2 tires and a plan.