When the elderly decide to go rv’ing again.

BA

Barbboyer

New Member
Joined
Aug 9, 2019
Posts
7
Location
Lake Havasu City
Hi everybody,

Richard is 81, I’m 73 and use a walker. Yet, we decided to buy a slightly used (2,800 miles) Thor Vegas, 25.3 because we just can’t sit at home and wait to die.

So, we are on our shake down run and it’s apparent we need front sway bars, sumo springs, insulation under the dog house, better seats and an extension to fit on the black tank because Richard has arthritis in his hands.

Any suggestions on any of those things?


Thanks in advance. Please answer sooner rather than later... we are at the ages where we don’t buy green bananas... however, they did gave us a twenty year loan. Go figure.
 
for the black pipe problem, do you mean something to make it easier to turn the cap? I saw this online which may help , Camco Mfg 39758 Rhinoflex Sewer Fitting Wrench. I have not used on so not sure if it is awkward to use or not.
 

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As for the seats you might check this out; shop4seats.com

Its just me but the sway bar and springs I would wait until you drive it alittle bit more. There is something called "cheap handling fix" CHF that tightens up the sway bars. There are a lot of posts here about it.
 
be happy said:
As for the seats you might check this out; shop4seats.com

Its just me but the sway bar and springs I would wait until you drive it alittle bit more. There is something called "cheap handling fix" CHF that tightens up the sway bars. There are a lot of posts here about it.
Click to expand...

Vegas is on an E-Series (E-350 or E-450) chassis CHF doesn't apply for that coach.

Take the suspension mods one at a time driving a bit in between to see if you even notice the mod: Starting with an alignment (unless you know it has already been aligned), followed by front Sumos, etc.
 
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Barbboyer said:
...Thanks in advance. Please answer sooner rather than later... we are at the ages where we don’t buy green bananas... however, they did gave us a twenty year loan. Go figure.
Click to expand...

:D They must know something about you, that your Doctors don't... :rolleyes:
You've already received some pretty darn good advice: I'll just add a hearty "Welcome to the Forum"! :thumb:
 
Good advice from Jamie. As far as the insulation is concerned, while it may important from a comfort standpoint, it is not something that you can probable do yourself. The dog house is not easy to remove the first time (at least mine was not) and you have to climb into the engine to put insulation there. Probably very expensive to have a shop do it.
 
Oneilkeys said:
Good advice from Jamie. As far as the insulation is concerned, while it may important from a comfort standpoint, it is not something that you can probable do yourself. The dog house is not easy to remove the first time (at least mine was not) and you have to climb into the engine to put insulation there. Probably very expensive to have a shop do it.
Click to expand...

They could probably put a blanket or carpet over the top of the doghouse--if it doesn't already have something on it from the previous owner.
 
Welcome and Congrats!
81 is the New 61... I'm hoping.
I agree take it slow. I would start with A steering wheel alignment, Saf-t-Plus , Sumo's and 4 new shocks. Safe travels Rev.
 
As for dog house insulation. I would take it to a business that installs custom radios in your area. Would be a piece of cake for them.
 
Heavier sway bars front and rear will help control side-to-side swaying and lean when going through fast sweepers.
IMO, most all heavy vehicles benefit from tighter suspension/body control. You don’t want to fight the steering wheel every time a big rig passes you.
 
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Handling

I can tell you what it took with our 2016 Axis. Alignment/Weighing each corner (for proper tire inflation numbers), SumoSprings in the front, Saf-T-Plus and Koni shocks on all four corners. Made a huge difference. As far as the sewer hook up goes, this rig is one of the least handy for we older folks because it is so low to the ground and the need to pivot the fitting downward. Not much can be done about this particular issue. Drive carefully and enjoy.
 
Welcome for the forum. Lots of valuable information here.

Do some searched on the topics mentioned above and you will find lots of treads discussing them.

And dont be afraid to ask questions. Even if they seem simple. :thumb:
 
Barbboyer said:
...
Richard is 81, I’m 73 and use a walker. Yet, we decided... because we just can’t sit at home and wait to die...
Please answer sooner rather than later... we are at the ages where we don’t buy green bananas... however, they did gave us a twenty year loan. Go figure.
Click to expand...


perfect!!! Go seniors!


go...travel....enjoy....and don't worry about all that 'stuff', you may not have time to!!!! : )
 
As others have said - "Welcome to the Forum"; and welcome to this next stage of your adventures!

That said - once (if) I reach age 81, I'm going to be pleased if I can just make it up the stairs and into the driver's seat. Anything I can do beyond that is "gravy" as we say down heah. :hatw1:
 
Barbboyer said:
Hi everybody,

Richard is 81, I’m 73 and use a walker. Yet, we decided to buy a slightly used (2,800 miles) Thor Vegas, 25.3 because we just can’t sit at home and wait to die.

So, we are on our shake down run and it’s apparent we need front sway bars, sumo springs, insulation under the dog house, better seats and an extension to fit on the black tank because Richard has arthritis in his hands.

Any suggestions on any of those things?


Thanks in advance. Please answer sooner rather than later... we are at the ages where we don’t buy green bananas... however, they did gave us a twenty year loan. Go figure.
Click to expand...

As mentioned a couple of times, get an alignment.
Check with your tire manufacture for the correct air pressure, it IS NOT what is on the tire sidewall and 10 (or more) lbs lower than what is posted on the door.
Those #'s are for a MH or delivery van that is carrying its maximum weight.

Here are a couple of parts that may help Richard with the black tank.
https://www.amazon.com/Camco-39509-...er+extension&qid=1565831706&s=gateway&sr=8-16
Put this on the existing waste gate and leave the original open, makes it much easer to drain the tank.
https://www.amazon.com/Valterra-T58...er+extension&qid=1565833987&s=gateway&sr=8-17
 
I’ll tell you one thing on the black and grey tanks. I bought a “Clean Dump” waste pump system that attaches permanently to the outflow pipe. It connects to a pump which is connected to a 15’ hose. All fit in the waste dump compartment. To use it, all you do is open the door, take out a few feet of hose (just enough to reach the dump) pull the black handle to open the black tank, open the valve at the end if the hose, flip a switch to turn on the pump and it empties in two minutes. You then close the black tank, open the grey tank and dump that. When you are finished, you close the valve at the end of the hose, put it back in the compartment and drive away. No connection, no mess, no smell (it’s all contained within the system), no cleaning sewer hose. I’ve had one in my last three RVs and I won’t have another RV without one. At 74, I don’t need to be on the ground wrestling hoses and attachments. With the Clean Dump, I dump every other day and never even think about it. Takes the hassle away from one of the worst job in RVing and you will “wow” you neighbors at the dump station.
 
Barb,

As far as the steering, I found the installing of the Safe-T Plus stablizer made the biggest difference for me.

DocMike
 
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