Thor Forums

[SamNavy]

I officially retire from the US Navy tomorrow... about 90 minutes from now Pacific Time. I'm picking up the family at LAX Thursday morning and starting our X-country drive to Virginia to start my new job.

Just picked up 34B, 37,000 miles and despite the current insanity in the market, I feel I got a great deal. Bunch of new stuff, including tires and a rear AC unit, plus a stack of receipts from the previous owner. Still, a few things discovered on my 300 mile shakedown drive home from the purchase.

1) FUEL FILLER AND VENT HOSE ROTTEN... after putting about 10 gallons in, saw fuel at my feet. I almost set the thing on fire right there. Only owned it an hour, and already leaking dead dinosaurs all over the ground. Calmness prevailed, I stopped fueling, waited for the puddle to evaporate, drove it to an empty area and crawled underneath... both the 1.5" and .75" filler and vent hose sections at the tank were shot. I drove it home and a trip to Napa for some hose and new hose clamps was fixed.

2) SLIDE SEAL DO'H... starboard main slide, rear vertical seal... you can see it. Once it's out, I can manipulate it back into place, but it clearly needs re-attaching. WHERE DO I GET A NEW SEAL? I looked at a bunch of websites and no seals I've found look like mine. Also... what is the metal wire structure called and what's it's purpose? I think it's clamped to the fiberglass shell on the coach and serves to give an better anchor for whatever filler "glues" the seal in place.

3) 12VOLT LIGHTER SOCKETS no workie. Where are the circuit breakers for those... are they in the FORD labeled panel centerline on the coach directly behind the air filter assembly (how the heck do I get that box open?), or are they in the BATTERY CONTROL CENTER on the drivers side.

4) DASH ACCESS... my dash appears to be held in place with a half-dozen vinyl covered "buttons"... how do I remove those buttons without damaging anything... WHAT'S THE TRICK? Is there an easier way to access the area behind the lighter sockets to start chasing wires.

5) RADIO SUCKS... is there a more modern, direct replacement radio for the Jensen POS this thing came with. It looks like it comes out easily enough with the standard Ford u-shaped tool. Is the wiring harness to the radio factory Ford as well... will most double-din Ford radios drop in?

6) CENTRAL VACUUM SYSTEM... yes, "central" is giving it too much credit... but nothing happens when I hit the switch. Its mounted to the sink area and I haven't dismantled anything to get a look at the back of the unit. Is there a standard way to wire one of these into a coach? Does it need it's own circuit? Would it be wired to run on the generator?

7) GENERATOR MAX LOAD ROAD TO HAPPINESS! Please tell me if this all sounds good.
I go around the coach and turn off all hi-draw items. Then fire up the generator... fires up quick and clean thanks to a service and new carb. I let it run for a minute and then turn on both roof A/C's (about 30 seconds apart). As I turn on more systems over the next few minutes... swap fridge to 110, water pump, water heater, interior lights... at some point, the 20amp breaker on the generator trips and the rear A/C shuts off.
WHAT SYSTEMS ARE ON EACH DIFFERENT (20amp and 30amp) BREAKER ON THE GENERATOR?

8) SWAPPING BETWEEN SHORE AND GENERATOR AND BATTERIES
8A) Lets say the coach is dark, no external, no generator, and house/coach batteries off. What batteries power the starter for the generator? Do I need to have the house battery switch by the door enabled to start the generator?
8B) If I want to swap from shore to generator or vice-versa, do I have to disconnect the other system first... ie, if the generator is running and I plug in to the campground, can I shut off the generator after? What about the other way around... can I fire up the generator while plugged in outside?
8C) I've read that I should have the MAIN CB's under the queen bed OFF when plug into the campground... hook up the surge protector, throw breakers on the campground box, check for clean power, then hook up cable to coach, THEN the CB's under the bed? Correct or unnecessary? And do all of that with the generator off?


Thanks a huge dang bunch if you can help me out with these issues. Fixing the dash sockets is #1 on the agenda tomorrow... then the slide seal... then all the rattles... then a quick wash... Bissell-steam the carpet and hope it dries... ADVENTURE!