New member intoduction

Topic: New member intoduction (Read 1348 times) previous topic - next topic

New member intoduction

August 29, 2015, 11:02:15 pm

Hello all

Thought that I would take a few minuets of your time and introduce myself.

My name is Brian.
I am a Heavy Duty Mechanic with over 40 years of experience so that is why the Rusty Socket handle.
(I work on the heavy stuff, not so much bus and truck, but I do work on trucks as needed)

My wife and I live on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.
I like to call it the Wet coast.

So why am I here.

Well, that is a simple answer.

I am retiring in 3 years.

My plan for retirement has always had a fulltime RV component in it.
We own a 22 foot travel trailer that we use for "camping" and I also use it for work when I am sometimes called away from home.
If I am living in it while working I will be in an RV park, all hooked up.
So while not as experienced as most people here, we are not noob's to the RV life style.

Being a mechanic, of course I am drawn to diesel pushers. For units this big, it only makes sense to go big diesel power and air brakes.
I have looked around at some of the local RV lots at used DP's and so far what I have seen has almost put me off the idea. I can't afford to buy new so it will have to be used and most of the units I have seen have left just a little to be desired.

Here is a good example.

I saw one on the lot the other day. Looked nice from a distance.
When I opened the door, the smell of the 1/2 dozen air fresheners was just about enough to gag a maggot.
I'm pretty sure that it was full of mold, there was a weird smell that was not covered up and everything felt "damp" not sure if that is the right word.
Went back outside and sighted down the length of the coach, all kinds of ripples in the Filon, major delam. Not good,
Run away, don't walk.

So I have spent lots of time online looking for a decent coach.

I have never even heard of Foretravel until the other week. I guess that they are not that popular in Canada.

I like what I have been reading. It appears that these are a very well built coach. There are lots of older ones around, and lots look to be in excellent shape.

So I am starting to lean towards a FT.

I have 3 plus years to do my research. It should be fun.

So I hope that the rest of you don't mind me going along for the ride and asking questions. I find that there can be some excellent information gained from using forums. And I have LOTS of questions.

So that's my story in a nutshell, looking forward to some good conversation.

Brian, the Rusty Socket

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #1 – August 30, 2015, 06:44:40 am

There are a number of owners in Canada and the older coaches have loads of life in the still. I would suggest getting your coach prior to retirement and if needed, you will have the time to get her in top shape before you head out. Welcome to the forum, you will like it here I am sure.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #2 – August 30, 2015, 07:29:51 am

Welcome aboard! You'll find Foreforums to be very helpful and eventually you'll find the "perfect" Foretravel for you.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #3 – August 30, 2015, 07:51:59 am

Welcome Brian, you've come to the right place to learn about the Foretravel line. We'll tell you all about them - good and bad. We've had other new members show up who have said "We're going to be ready to buy in ___ years...", and 6 months later they own a coach because they found a deal too good to pass up. Like John S says, buying "early" gives you time to get acquainted before you hit the road. Good luck in your search - always take the opportunity to look at ANY Foretravel you encounter - the more you see of them, the more you will want one!

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #4 – August 30, 2015, 08:23:38 am

Welcome Brian! You have found your home. You probably should connect with John Haygarth on this forum. He too is from Canada.
Suggest you take your spare time and read/skip every post on this forum. Also get very comfortable with the search and PM (personal message) functions. Welcome to our group!!

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #5 – August 30, 2015, 08:24:47 am

Welcom to the FoFum. Wonderful group of helpful folks here.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #6 – August 30, 2015, 08:34:13 am

Rusty,
You are "in my opinion" in the right place. We sent two year looking for the same reason. I decided to buy a U280.
Mechanical C8.3 does have a computer on the six speed Allison. Foretravel Grand Villa front end, we love the styling, asked many times it must be new. The 1994 & 1995 six speed with retarder is the one to look for.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #7 – August 30, 2015, 08:34:54 am

Howdy Brian, Welcome! You're definitely on the right track looking at FTs.
If you haven't found it yet, here's a couple of links to our great website for all things Foretravel.
Foreforums Foretravel Wiki
Foretravel Specifications, Floor Plans, Photos & Brochures by Year
Good Luck, Dave A

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #8 – August 30, 2015, 09:40:07 am

Welcome to the Forum. Lots of knowledgeable folks here.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #9 – August 30, 2015, 10:33:52 am

Brian, Tim mentioned me in an early posting but as there are about 5 owners of FT living around Victoria this is a good reason to contact them to have a look at what they have to offer.
Go to the "community" link on the top line and hit the "member map" and you will pull up their names. With this info then go to their personnal profiles and look at the map and emails to contact.
I live in the S Okanagan (Kaleden).
One thing I would not do and that is bother looking at coach's in Canada if you want a FT or any high end one. Check out the members here who have one for sale (safe bet) and also check the websites in US. Motorhomes of Texas has many at a time and of course RVT.com putting in this make. Prices in US are way cheaper than here even with the $ exchange right now. Importing is simple to do and all FTs meet Canada admissability by CBSA.
If you need any info just e mail me.
JohnH

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #10 – August 30, 2015, 01:10:34 pm

brian
where are you located on Vancouver island? I live just south of parksville.
there are 3 foretravels within a few blocks of me. I know of 13 foretravels
owners on Vancouver island. I might have a lead for you on one that is
coming up for sale. If you want to come over sometime and talk foretravels,
shoot mean email. my email address is on my profile page.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #11 – August 30, 2015, 02:24:45 pm

Thanks everybody for the warm welcome and replies.

I am looking forward to learning all the good and the "bad". Possibly the bad more than the good.

Being a mechanic repairs are not a scary thing to me. At one time in my life I was thinking of changing trades to RV repair but up in my part of the world it is more of a seasonal thing and the money was just not there. So to pick up and older coach that would need some TLC is not out of the question. If I want to do that or not is the question.

John, thanks for the information. I have done a bit of research into what it would take to import a RV into canada so I have a bit of an idea of what it will take. I might just take you up on your offer. Would you perfer email or PM.

Tim, hahaha, I have pretty much immersed myself in the forum, going through threads. Great stuff

Hammer2100. The 8.3 is one of my favorite engines. They were a very popular engine to have in lots of the equipment I worked on. If they can survive loggers, they can survive anything. Tough engine, easy to work on. I could do a head gasket easy in a night.
I have not had any experience with the ISM 450 that FT runs, but I have had a bit to do with the ISX, we ran them in our logging trucks.

Wayne, I'm in Campbell River. I'll send a message along in a bit. Thanks for the offer.

Anyways, thanks to all. I will be back to pick your brains. Now believe it or not, I have to go and start getting ready to head off to work. I know its Sunday but that is the shift. Rust never sleeps and neither do mechanics. I work the evening shift, anywhere from 12 to 14 hours a day. I will get to bed somewhere around 4 in the morning. As I tell people, I work at night so that the wheels of industry can turn the next day.

Brian

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #12 – September 12, 2015, 09:28:32 pm

Me again.

Many thanks to Wayne Macauley for allowing me to come see his rig. A most gracious host.

So here is what I think of Foretravel now that I have seen one.

WOW...

If Wayne shows up on here again I'm sure he will tell you what the reaction was when he opened up the engine compartment.
What a well built coach. You can see the engine. Raise the bed and there it is
As a mechanic I think I fell in love with foretravel just for that.

Oh, and the rest of the coach was pretty nice too LOL.

Just for fun, after I left Wayne, I stopped at the local RV dealer and went inside some of the class A's on the lot.
Yeah, hmmmm, ah noooo. I'll pass.

So now the questions are really going to start coming from me.

Wayne explained and showed me the "Bulkhead" issue.
Looks to me like if dealt with properly, it really isn't an issue.

I see lots of goods
What are the bad's.

I have a few years before I will be ready to buy, so lots of time to continue to learn.

My next quest will be to see a GV

Thanks all

Brian

PS, I will try to pay it forward buy putting forth as much technical babble as people would like.
While in real life I am an introvert, I can ramble on pretty good online.

For instance, I could put together a post on cooling. The parts of a radiator, the proper names, what to look for, and things that you can do to help keep your unit cooling properly.
Let me know if there is any interest.

B

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #13 – September 12, 2015, 09:35:53 pm

Rusty's hooked

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #14 – September 12, 2015, 09:52:08 pm

UUUUHHHHHHHHHH
YUP

Is this a bad thing?

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #15 – September 12, 2015, 10:23:11 pm

Not at all, welcome to the group Rusty

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #16 – September 12, 2015, 10:31:07 pm

Quote from: Rusty Socket – September 12, 2015, 09:28:32 pm

PS, I will try to pay it forward buy putting forth as much technical babble as people would like.
While in real life I am an introvert, I can ramble on pretty good online.

For instance, I could put together a post on cooling. The parts of a radiator, the proper names, what to look for, and things that you can do to help keep your unit cooling properly.
Let me know if there is any interest.

As the "chief communications officer" for Foreforums (aka she who suckered Steve into creating the current forum) I say heck yes!

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #17 – September 12, 2015, 11:23:59 pm

Quote from: Michelle – September 12, 2015, 10:31:07 pm

As the "chief communications officer" for Foreforums (aka she who suckered Steve into creating the current forum) I say heck yes!

Okay, it's on.

I will take my camera down to the rad shop and get a few pics happening. Hopefully I can coordinate my arrival with a rebuild going on.
Then I will need to figure out how to post the pics. ( Visit to the how to page coming up)
I should be able to come up with something by next weekend ( That darn work thing getting in the way again )

Have also been working through a computer issue so will see what happens

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #18 – September 13, 2015, 07:07:49 am

Brian,

Your offer for technical "how-Tos" is cheerfully anticipated. Everyone here really appreciates posts that have lots of photos. You will find adding them to your entries is very easy. If you have any problem, just ask...

Since you seem drawn to the Foretravel brand, I recommend learning all you can before you do any serious shopping. One of the best ways to educate yourself is reading Barry's "Technical Help" page. You should (seriously) read every entry on this page - "A" to "W", top to bottom. By the time you finish, you will probably know more about Foretravel coaches than half the current owners out there. Remember, a educated shopper is a successful shopper!

Foretravel Motorhome technical help and information links

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #19 – September 13, 2015, 07:27:20 am

Brian,

A word of caution, if you do as Chuck suggests, the "Gotta get a Foretravel Itch" becomes unstoppable. It's not a bad thing in any way, just beware that Cortisone 10 will not relieve the itch.

(It took me a couple of years to get my itch solved.)

Larry

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #20 – September 13, 2015, 12:17:33 pm

Rusty

We bought our coach 7.5 years ago- live in it full time and will continue to do so for many years from now ( until health or $$$ run out.....lol). This forum is a great base of knowledge and your experience will be a very big plus in your search for a coach to fit your needs. That is the key- find the coach that fits YOUR Needs, buy it, learn about it, fix and upgrade, travel and enjoy it.

Sounds simple doesn't it?

Have fun with your search and welcome.

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #21 – September 13, 2015, 01:04:09 pm

Brian,

Welcome to the forum. The reason Foretravels are not seen in numbers in Canada reflects the small number of coaches manufactured relative to other brands. To you, this means you will probably have to travel further to find a good coach than for other coaches. Yes, good to pinpoint the minuses so you will know better what to look for in your search. I feel Foretravels have more pluses than most others and a great support group to go with it.

PIerce

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #22 – September 13, 2015, 01:08:33 pm

Quote from: Chuck & Jeannie – September 13, 2015, 07:07:49 am

Brian,

Your offer for technical "how-Tos" is cheerfully anticipated. Everyone here really appreciates posts that have lots of photos. You will find adding them to your entries is very easy. If you have any problem, just ask...

Since you seem drawn to the Foretravel brand, I recommend learning all you can before you do any serious shopping. One of the best ways to educate yourself is reading Barry's "Technical Help" page. You should (seriously) read every entry on this page - "A" to "W", top to bottom. By the time you finish, you will probably know more about Foretravel coaches than half the current owners out there. Remember, a educated shopper is a successful shopper!

Foretravel Motorhome technical help and information links

Oh, I have been going through Barry's stuff. Great site. I have gnawed my way through a pretty good chunk already
To tell you the truth, I read the one of when he had to have his radiator changed with great interest. Having looked at a few of the other coaches and wondered how a poor mechanic like myself would ever get it out of its hiding place, then seeing how easy it is on a FT (and trust me, that doesn't look to bad), I was totally impressed.

I use my camera LOTS at work. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. Since I am one of the "Senior" mechanics, in more ways than one

I spend lots of my time teaching the next generation of mechanics, so anything that I write up here I can also use for work. I should be able to get a few good post together.

As far as educating myself before the purchase, that is something that my wife and I have done for years. It is funny when you go to make a purchase and you know more than the sales person.

So to find a model that I like and suits our needs could take a bit. To get into a few and have a look around, see how the lay out works, the different floor plans, that sort of thing. There are a few on Vancouver Island where I live, but not that many. But as mentioned before, I have a few years to work it out.

But for today, It is the start of a new work week for me, must find some breakfast and get ready. I don't start till 2 but it is amazing how fast the hours fly past.

Brian

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #23 – September 20, 2015, 03:02:58 pm

Quick update.
Have not forgotten my promise.

But

So far I have had to recover computer once.
Update system twice (failed first time)
When I had to recover I lost everything
And this is all just since last week.
It all started when I updated to windows 10, but that is another sad story for another day

Several PM's to Michelle to get some professional help on how to get pictures posted and such.

I have a bunch of photos and working on a write up.
I am going back on Monday or Tuesday to get a few more.

Now I just need some time to get it all done and uploaded.

This darn job that I have to keep going to is holding me back LOL

Re: New member intoduction

Reply #24 – September 22, 2015, 11:42:04 am

Thanks for the intro. You will be an asset here. There is another "Barry" of the Barry and Cindy show that I have found to always be helpful. I read any of his contributions here. There are other "stars" also, such as Brent Wolfe. I suggest you quit work as soon as you can--you never get that time back.... andy1

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