Hello Folks,
Well -- with the Holiday cheer only a memory, I decided it was time to tackle the main fuel hose replacement. It took me most of one day to complete the job. As some of you already know from my previous postings, this '95 U300 that I acquired in November had not been started for perhaps 5-6 years. The main hose was covered with cracks on the O.D along its entire length, and was sucking air. I bought 30' (which was the exact right length, as it turned out) of a cloth-jacketed 5/8" I.D. -- Goodyear product that is compatible with ULSD fuel. I paid $7.68 a foot.
Anyway, if you want to tackle this real PITA project yourself, here are a few tips:
1.) Cut through the old hose that attaches to the top of the tank so you can slip a box-end wrench onto the fitting to crack it loose. It's almost impossible to get in there with an open-end
2.) Get yourself a brass union, barbed at each end to attach the new hose to the old -- which you will use for pulling it through the basement and bulkheads.
3.) Do not use hose-clamps on the union, for you won't be able to pull the new hose through the last bulkhead opening, which is tighter -- just aft of your holding tanks. I know this because I tried the clamps, but had to remove them and use safety wire pliers and .060 steel wire to make sure the hose stayed on the 5'8" union. Make sure you snip off the twisted wire ends and use pliers to bend them parallel to the hose so you have no chance of them slicing up other lines that share the bulkhead opening, as you are pulling through.
4.) Get yourself a drill pump ($10 at Ace Hardware), and with the hose re-connected to the tank, use the drill pump to pull fuel through the 30 feet of hose to your primary filter location. It took less than 20 seconds for the pump to fill up the hose.
It still took me about 5 minutes of using the prime pump on the CAT before I had fuel into the cylinder head. Once it caught it ran rough for about 15-20 seconds and then smoothed right out. After 5 minutes of running I blipped it up to about 1800 rpm a few times, then steadily raised the rpm from the 700 rpm idle up to about 1500 rpm and it responded great.
I ran it for about an hour to let all the temps come up and to check the engine/trans for leaks. Not one drop!
After shutting it down I waited for perhaps 3 minutes and tried a re-start and it lit right up.
I'm thrilled. It's hard to explain that feeling of satisfaction of having a smooth running machine after all of the work I've been doing on my dream coach.
Next it's going to be the two airbags in front of the rear axle. Both on each side have dry-rot on the bottom - cord showing through the crumbling rubber, and the driver side one is slightly leaking air. I noticed this after shutting down the engine. The other six look to be fine. It doesn't look like too difficult of a job. I suppose the most difficult part will be finding the right type of hydraulic jack to use to R&R them.
That's about it for now. Oh! -- just found that the air cylinder on the retractable door step is shot. It leaks air when you close the door and it tries to do its thing. But the air horns sound fantastic! -- I'd never heard them before as I never had full pressurized air in the Coach until today!
Woo Hoo !
With best regards,
Michael
Michael,
That's good news. For air spring replacement info see
Replacing Air Bags (http://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=15680.msg96764#msg96764)
Good luck,
Rick
congratulations on a completed milestone. I too enjoy a task completed. Thanks for the thoughts too.
Howdy Michael,
Thanks for this great write-up!! I have enjoyed following your adventures with this great coach...
Good Luck with everything.
Dave A
Micheal, if I may offer a suggestion to make removing the bags easier, I would not hesitate to remove the side panels covering the wheels as it will take 30mins to do but make life a lot better putting the bags in as you have full access to nuts and air.
John H
Outstanding! It does my heart good to see a coach rescued...
Harbor freight has 20 ton jacks that will do the job nicely for not much $. Even better are their 20 ton air assisted jacks. Put them in place and just squeeze the valve. I got a couple on sale for $69/each but have seen them online for about $80 everyday price so a search will save $$.
You can just install a quick coupler in the coach air and run an air hose to them. I changed the end air hose fitting from the industrial to the garage style so make sure you get the right quick coupler to match. They also work without air and come with the pipes to do it. Lots of different prices but I expect they all come from the same factory in China. Here is an example: 20 Ton Air/Hydraulic Bottle Jack (http://www.gregsmithequipment.com/20-Ton-Air-Hydraulic-Bottle-Jack?ibp-adgroup=npadwords&gclid=CJXt0ryZ6LQCFWrZQgodtWIAMA)
A white kitty litter container makes a great box for a spare airbag along with the hand tools to change it. See my past posts for the tools needed. I changed my without touching the fiberglass. You will need to make a special "crows foot" tool for a hard to get at nut on some of the airbags as well as a short box in case the larger nut on the hollow stud is hard to break loose. Compress the bag with your knee and stick the black vinyl cap back on and it will stay compressed and can be installed in less than 30 seconds.
Here is the link to my previous post. Covers it in detail: Air ride bag replacement number? (http://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=15678.msg97221#msg97221)
Having all the tools and not removing the side panels makes for a quick job if you are stuck along the road can't move the rig, especially if on the traffic side.
Pierce
Hi Michael,
Congrats! Great story. Thanks for sharing.
Raymond
Hi Michael,
Glad to hear its making smoke.
I have tried to follow your adventure, but don't remeber reading if you had made a determination as to why the coach sat so long.
Was it due to a mechanical probelm?
Congrats on the progress,
Jerry
Jerry,
The only possible explanation of why it sat, I've pieced together from news shared with me from a few people that knew the original owner. He passed away some years ago, possibly as many as 8 years ago, now. His son used the Coach only slightly after that. It was abandoned in a RV Park, and a tow company had it in their yard for 18 months when I came across it in a Craigslist Ad.
I'm thinking that the rodent damage to the wiring from being in the RV Park probably made it a non-runner (The CAT, that is -- the powertech ran great from the time I acquired it). And maybe the son had not the financial means and/or knowledge to correct the situation. Or -- it could have also been the main tank's fuel hose sucking air -- even 5-6 years ago, and of course that would have also prevented it from starting. Both of those things are corrected now -- the other day I found a RV consignment company key tag in a kitchen drawer that listed the mileage as 7,150, and the asking price of $149,500. There is no date on the tag, but I believe that was when the father was still with us, and was trying to sell it. I had also found an older online posting for it with an asking price of $199,500.
The Odometer now shows only 5 more miles than that, so the son probably drove it to the RV park, and there it sat for years -- neglected after he moved on and left it there. The gen-set has 492 hours on it. Everything inside appears to be working fine (except the dash mounted monitoring system), and there is practically no wear & tear in evidence -- the leather upholstery, flooring, counter-tops, and cabinetry are all perfect. Even the window-fabric matching pillows for the bedroom and front living area are there and like new.
So, yes -- it's been an interesting process of discovery. So far -- I'm making excellent progress in the restoration, and hoping for a late Spring first voyage.
Regards,
Michael
Michael, I know what it feels like to bring a big machine back to life after a deep sleep and you are doing it right. I would normally call but thought I would give you written suggestions this time as someone else may want to check their coach.
Now that it runs and you have air and , after you have the major leaks repaired, I would ask that you do an easy air brake check. This is actualy part of a CDL test. First run the engine and exercise the brakes a lot with various pedal pressures, including a lot of full pedal. Make the warning light and buzzer come on sevral times then let the air build to max and shut the motor off.
Now slowly depress the pedal (2-3 sec)to the max and hold it for at least 60 seconds while watching the gauges. If there is no drop, be happy. If the pressure drops ,you have another project. It takes very little air pressure to come to a normal stop. Too many people get complacent and don't realise they have a cracked or broken supply line to a brake chamber or a bad brake chamber. Then when there is need for a panic stop ,they don't have full braking power.
All of that exercsing will flex the lines and move the calipers. Then you can also check the calipers for free play like I told you. Call anytime when needed.
Just a bit of history to the forum. Michael now owns the dream coach that my late wife & I tried many times to buy from the original owner but he never , we felt , got serious so we moved on and I lost track of it's where abouts. I believe he is doing an outstanding job in putting this "hanger queen"back on the road.
Gary O
Michael,
Sounds like a really nice coach. When you get the time you should post some pics. I am sure everyone would enjoy seeing your find.
Jerry
Gary,
What does your term "hanger queen" mean? I'm just a FT newbie trying to learn the lingo here. Thanks.
You go to the airport and walk in a big hanger and see an airplane that has been parked in the corner for a long time. All the other planes go out and fly but that one just sits in the corner. That's a "hanger queen".
And you never want your airplane parked in the corner of the hanger when it is in for annual maintenance/inspection. Those $$$ can make coach bucks look pretty small depending on the type of aircraft you have. the corners of the hanger tend to collect airplanes that don't move much. Not the place you want your airplane to sit if it is undergoing maintenance!
Old proverb to avoid HQ status: "A rolling stone gathers no moss" -Publilius Syrus
Pierce
Gary O said:
"You go to the airport and"......
You a fly-boy, Gary? If so, we need to talk about that one of these days!
Yes, but not current. Are you coming to Fl. this winter?
Gary O