Well, finally the last phase of our coach renovations. We've been loving the beach at Puerto Penasco for a few days, but dropped off the coach at Antonio Geraldo's shop this afternoon. Antonio estimates a little over 4 weeks for the bodywork and full body paint.
We met with Antonio and are going to stay close to the original spirit of the coach, but with a couple of modern touches. We like the look of it now, so aren't looking for a total makeover. White will be replaced with a sand color, the side stripes will be rounded a bit at the bottom, and a touch of a dark red added as a accent color to give it some "pop".
Also met with David Munoz and picked out fabric to recover the sofa and valances.
Will keep post pictures and updates as the work progresses. We saw a few of Antonio's Foretravel "transformations" last year, so we're really excited about our project.
Antonio started the prep work today.
It looks like our coach has the 2002 endcap issue. This wasn't a surprise because after we purchased the coach, I noticed there was a heavy metal strip attached to the drivers side rear under the awning. Scanning the Forum, I learned of the 2002 endcap issue. Not something I knew of when we bought it.
Anyway, when Antonio removed the strip, he exposed a crack roughly 24" long. It seems there was repair work done in the past for the same issue on the passenger side, but that wasn't covered with a strip. He'll repair the crack in the driver's side with fiberglass and then install a metal reinforcement strip on both sides from the top of the awning on down to reinforce it. Hopefully that will resolve the issue.
Do you have any small cracking in the dark colored paint on the side of the coach above the belt line? It seems to be a problem with our years. The fiberglass doesn't like the heat from the darker paints. There are several mentions on the forum. You might consider lighter colors above the belt line.
Rich
Rich, to your point it looks like all the cracks are under the belt line. I don't see any crack in the white gelcoat, just where the gold is. We're going to keep it pretty light where the white is... more of a cream. So, hopefully no issues.
Prep work is coming along. Most of the hardware is off the rig. We had some very poor repair work from the past that is now evident. Antonio is digging out all the old Bondo body filler previously used in preparation for doing proper fiberglass repair. The end cap crack is not terrible. Fiberglass to fill it and then the strips to cover and reinforce it should do the trick.
More progress..... getting wrapped.
Fiberglass repairs in process....
Fiberglass repairs are mostly done. Great work! Final preparation and stripe painting should begin this weekend.
Looking good. I am impressed.
Wow what a project! Looks great!
These two aircraft were not only painted but built from scratch at a tiny airport on the shore of Lake Chapala (Guadalajara area). A couple of potential Oshkosh winners.
Pierce
RV-12's??
This was just pre-pandemic and I can't remember now but think you're right. I've got the tail number so I may be able to look it up at the Mexican FAA.
Pierce
they look like a couple of very pretty RV-12's
More progress. Stripes are being painted, a much more labor intensive process than I thought, but love the deeper colors and the shading he's doing. Couch was installed yesterday. Still waiting on the valances and driver/passenger seats.
Looking good. I like the fabric on the sofa. ^.^d
Pierce
Its fascinating how Antonio does the stripe painting. Cover, paint, recover and so on in layers. Stripes are done on one side and ready for primer then base paint. The other sides striping is underway.
Got the chairs and valances back. Very happy with David Munoz work.
Getting close... painting is complete. Clear-coating, smoothing and buffing in process.
Looks fantastic
Really nice!! How much weight did you gain from the food?
Pierce
Getting close... painting is complete. Clearcoating, smoothing and buffing in process.
Haha... so far, not too much. Being in Cholla for the duration is far enough from the street food and taco stands to avoid a total blowout. :) It will be good to get moved in and back to the beach next week... the real danger starts there with the empanada and tamale vendors.
Joe,
Couple of good restaurants out there along with good sand dollar hunting a low tide.
Good video of our wolf running on Cholla Bay wet sand: Shared album - E Pierce Stewart Jr - Google Photos (https://photos.app.goo.gl/6cZb74gjJtgYssdT7)
Pierce
I don't care what it takes, find and go to Jesse's Carreta. You can thank me later. And Samy's tacos on the street across from the Burger King.
Oh yeah, we ate at Jesse's a couple times last year. Our favorites are Rojo Pago for Fish Tacos on Constitution, Tacos Marcos for pollo and carne asada, roast chicken in town, and La Curva for Mexican.
Can't wait to get back to the beach so we can marinate red snapper and put it on the grill. Jesse's fish market usually keeps us well supplied for home cooking.
To be clear......Jesses Carreta is
not Jesse's fish market, right?
Correct. Jesse's Carreta is the restuarant. Jesse's fish market is a stand down near the fishing piers on the way to the Malecon.
Love Jesse. El tiene siempre una sonrisa grande y los pescados and camarones mejores.
We just did a remodel on our 1990 foretravel unihome I have before and after pics anyone interested in seeing them
We just did a remodel on our 1990 foretravel unihome I have before and after pics anyone interested in seeing them
Congratulations on an exceptional renovation. We wish you many years of enjoyment.
These renovations/photos and just thinking about the food put a big smile on our faces too!
Pierce
Picked her up today! Wow! The transformation is is awesome. Just the mural on the slide to be done this weekend, but otherwise ready to go. We feel like we accomplished what we wanted, keeping her 2002 U270 spirit, while adding modernizing touches and making her our own. The dark red metallic with gold came out amazing.
I can't say enough for Antonio. He's a perfectionist and he kept us informed and involved every step of the way. I would recommend him with 1000 stars if they had stars here.
Looks fantastic!
Pierce
Great looking job
Looks Great!
Looks great, Joe.
Very pretty coach. Looks brand new!
Awesome!!
jk
Of course, now you have me coveting your burgundy awnings, Roger. On the upgrade list along with the new mud flap. :)
Looks fantastic!
That's really something to be proud of: both the coach and the paint job. Enjoy it in good health.
Looks amazing!!! Looks like it just came off the showroom floor!
He did a fantastic job!! Did Antonio also paint the white or just do the graphics? Stunning!
He painted both the base coat and the graphics. Original color was pure white. We opted to take it down a shade and use a cream color.
Looks great! I like that color combo...
Keith
Well, I will keep a lookout for awning coveters. We like the burgundy color too. Some say they are hot in the sun, I don't know any different. They are original and many ask if we have replaced them. They look good with our colors and will with your new coach colors too.
Did they paint your roof?
Joe,
Any color code or name for the cream color?
Pierce
I'll ask Antonio. I want to get some touch-up, so I'll find out then.
Antonio is the man and he did a very nice job with your coach! You can be proud!
Antonio did a beautiful job! I love that you took the white down a notch. We have the same coach as you and it need a little paint love lol. I would love to go to Porta Penasco but I'm not having any luck convincing my husband that it's safe. We are going to try to make it to Quartzite in January or February. It would be great to meet Twig and some of you that have gone before
Every time we make plans to go somewhere, something happens 🤷♀️
We feel safer here than in the USA. Easy trip (60 miles from the border) and once you're here its pretty laid back. The greatest danger IMHO on the way down is a speeding ticket/ :) Can't say enough for Antonio and his team. Hope we cross paths at some point.
Julie,
Sit down with your husband and watch the YouTube video on driving to Peñasco. Then drop one of us a PM with questions. Almost makes a veteran out out you before you even go.
Pierce
Thank you Pierce! I'm on YouTube now while Tom is in his deer stand. We are leaving Saturday to head to Nach TX to get some work done. We will be off for the winter so fingers crossed. He is pretty stubborn tho 😬😩
Julie
One more thing. We aren't travel newbies We travel to Akumal, Holbox, and farther south. We have also been to Belize. I think it's the drive and the trouble at the border. Also getting back into the states because of the damn COVID. Always we have flown and we haven't been out of the country since this mess lol
Flying into Mexico makes a lot of sense as it's cheap and quick. For driving, by the time you pay for $$$ diesel, insurance, tolls, etc., it really adds up. Even though Mexican RV parks are less expensive, they still bring the total up. Naturally, this is for longer distances as having work done in Puerto Peñasco is quick and easy both ways at the border. With any kind of planning, no wait coming back plus and it's only an hour from the border to get there.
For longer seasonal trips like Glenn makes, the travel cost is much less of a factor. For us, we usually fly with FF mileage for almost free or fly with Volaris as it's direct and costs from $73 each way. Cheap flights from Sacramento (SMF) to Guadalajara (GDL) with Volaris from USD73 (https://flights.volaris.com/en-us/flights-from-sacramento-to-guadalajara) Mexican car rental is inexpensive (collision/comp insurance is covered by credit card benefits) and nice hotels are very reasonable. This makes medical/dental/vacation trips very inexpensive.
As far as the pandemic goes, Mexico's infection rate is way down at 2 per 100,000 and the state of Jalisco (Guadalajara, Lake Chapala) is <0.8 per 100,000 with today's numbers. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-cases.html
Pierce
I'll wrap this up with some final pictures and and update. As it turned out, the 2002/2003 slide cap issue was more complicated that we thought. A few days after bringing her home, we saw some minor "zippering" in the paint in the place where the end cap had separated. Antonio brought in his uncle with many years experience in boat and body repair to rework it.
Juan, (Antonio's uncle) said to the left the fiberglass has separated from the backing and vibration was not going to allow it to hold up as repaired. He opened up the area about an inch wide where the crack was, placed a steel plate behind the fiberglass and epoxied that to the wall behind it. Then he epoxied the outer fiberglass laminate to that. Next he fiber-glassed the opening using cloth and fiberglass to patch it. After that dried he used several screws reinforce it, attached the new fiberglass to the steel plate and backing. Finally, he covered the screws with fiberglass, smoothed, repainted and clear-coated. Its perfect. You'd never know the repair was done and I'm confident this is going to hold up well.
Final step was some final polishing, fixing a previously difficult to open bay door, and painting the mural on the slide of "Violeta", our cat who now graces the RV inside and out. The detail in the mural is beautiful and looks just like her.
We are so pleased with the work David Muñoz did on the sofa, valances and seats we decided to have him finish it out by reupholstering the dinette and do the cloth upholstery on the bedroom valances and behind the bed. Not only did he do great upholstering work, but all the seats and sofa are nice and firm with new springs and foam.
Loving our new look and couldn't be more pleased with the work. Antonio Geraldo is a man of great integrity. He refused to take final payment before all was done and we were 100% satisfied. The suggestions he made were all improvements to what we had in mind, and there were things he did that went beyond what we expected. Steps, wipers, and handles were all repainted, the bay doors fixed so they now operate smoothly and all the chrome on the awnings and elsewhere was shined. I would recommend him (and David) to anyone.
👍👍
Very nice, Joe. Thanks for sharing the transformation process.
Looks great!
Very nice thanks for sharing.
Antonio has a great talent. No one comes to mind that has the great ability to take an person, animal or from a photo, bring it to life on the side of a motorcoach (or building for that matter). Nice to see he is in a building now so can use his ability year around. Hope to have Antonio do some paint work for us some day.
We nosed around Peñasco back in '14 until we found a very small shop that was willing and had the expertise to do a better than factory job on our seats. David Muñoz did a great job in replicating the factory pattern back then and today, it still looks as good as the day his shop did it.
Through the years, we have taken motorcycle seats, cars, chairs, sofas to Mexico for upholstery work. The finished job was always perfect. When I was a kid, I remember the rumors that they used sand in tuck and roll seats, bad thread, etc. None of which turned out to have the slightest bit of truth to them.
Some links with reviews on David's work: david munoz puerto penasco - Google Search (https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=david+munoz+puerto+penasco)
I don't know about today but back in 2014, David had a huge choice of fabrics but could not supply any perforated material. That may have changed now.
Although my grandmother came from a small village deep in Mexico, my Spanish is very limited but I've never had a problem communicating with shops or businesses.
Pierce
What a purrfect likeness of your cat!
That turned out absolutely fantastic! The cat mural is amazingly similar to the picture, true artist obviously. Thanks for sharing more pics and the recap. I hope to make it down there someday.