rsbilledwards

In so far as Wet or flooded Crown 260s are my choice and Trojan 105s second choice. Some are trending to AGM s but for me price and cold charging an issue. Batteries, you definitely get what you pay for...

Great welcome back

Carl, Kay what years best on the Jeep as an older one. Want to begin looking too. V6 Tracker works fine off road in slow speed and around town use but highway not much enjoyment.

Carl, It is most likely the single axle trailer he is hauling behind the coach with his toad on it...exciting if the has a tire go on it. Just guessing

I will second all of the above. A short conversation will shed light quickly on circumstances. Then appropriate action can be initiated. Judging a book by it's cover has always been expensive for me.

I would second Ian's recommendation. As a result it makes hooking up, after a bit of trial and error learning to center and distance from the coach, a quick five minute job by yourself to be hooked up and ready to roll. I chuckle many times watching a couple, with him trying to guide the missus to a centered position and the distance from the coach. Many times it is greater than 5 minutes, why for the both of them to get the job completed.

Spend a little on solar so you can dry camp with us and save away from the maddening crowd and have some breathing room. Since you like the West, there are a meriod of places to visit where there are no fees attached and fewer people. I am not anti social as you know, but like the wide open places and spaces and vistas.

Joe, For decades I ran the Bridgestone V-Steels, all steel belting including side walls on my Super Duty Ford Vans. They were a bit less money than the Michelins and wore better as well. Then in their infinite wisdom ended production and redesigned the tire. At that point the Michelin was the only all steel radial casing left and thinking it would get the mileage I bought them for my 2003 F350 Ford dually. They have turned out to be a real disappointment. I am back to eking out 20 k on the front tires, rears will do 35-40k. I tried the first addition of the Duravis and barely eked out 20,000 miles. The V-Steels would do 40K. Are the new Duravis any better than the originals. I have read some stories about how slippery they are in the wet. The V-Steels were not in any condition. I am coming up on a new set later this summer and in a quandry.

Considering all the points that Wolfe laid out and all valid. I can not answer to AGM not on my radar as of yet. So that leaves flooded as likely came in you coach. My choice is Crown 260s and a hot second Trojan 105s. Believe me not all batteries are created equal and weight is you best friend when it comes to batteries. The Crowns are presently U.S. made and are more easily obtained in the East but still available in the West with a little effort. A good supplier is in Colorado Springs, Colorado of you Google Crown Batteries. I have had them in the coach for 3 years and expect a ten year life span. If you are shopping price the COSCO. Critical to a long life, is a means to track usage and the recharging especially flooded batteries. This is a lacking feature in most coaches. If you are a heavy dry camper like we are then it is imperative to use a meter like the Bogart Engineering 2030 SC and the addition of additional solar as opposed to using a gen set all the time is just plain wonderful. The 2030 SC and the 2030 controller are as close to an MPPT setup as one can get. This conversation could be developed widely with many perspectives. If you are a do it yourselfer then the costs are very manageable and not difficult. Consider a Solar 101-102 read at handybobsolar.com which includes batteries.

Jim, you know when God needs money he calls Carl... B

Mr Bill, why? Something you know and we do not or just a gut feeling. My choice would have been TOYOs

Not everything newer is better in fact many times it is costlier to fix what was left not done or ignored to save money or what not. Your "old" coach, you know and what is wrong with it, has better and more storage than what you have found. It has a better kitchen and so forth...you are trying to talk yourself into an unknown and to like the idea. I bought older because of simplicity in the designs not for the complexity of new and am loving every minute. The added electronics will not be making you very happy when you have to fix it. Good luck happy motoring, take the time to smell the roses.

Kay, likely not as not is the Safaris and not in Beavers of the time frame I have seen. Cable from batts to inverter typically 00 or 000

Rick This issue could be easily solved by the Beaver club or for that matter safarifriends@yahoogroups.com as it is most likely on a Magnum chassis with a similar electrical system as the Safaris of the same era. I see no reason the unit cannot be run on the same electrical system as the original. The 20d is a modified sine wave and yes the reference MS is modified sine. The only time a refer uses any power is during the start and only momentarily. You will learn how to adjust your power usage with time, we have all been there, it is called a learning curve. It is not difficult to run power anywhere in your coach just takes a bit of time to find the path of least resistance. Last year we modified my electrical system so the entire coach will run off the inverter a 2000 watt Magnum pure sine wave. Once I got the cut off voltage right it has worked perfectly. Now not every thing can be on at the same time and it took a bit to learn what will run together. Numerous trips were made to the basement to hit the reset buttons on the inverter. Did you fine the solution to the testing the temp sensor question? Bill 1999 Safari Panther .

Yes he should look into that one since it could lead to a hot coach, but that said the breaker is off. What this means is that the end of a hot wire is exposed on this circuit. The wire nut has vibrated off and the power is trying to go to ground...badddd!!!!!! could lead to straighter hair! As for the generator..it is producing 120 type power Bill not 12 volt power. Yes it too should be looked into. I have made suggestions in the past in PMs that address your over all issues so I will not belabor the issue further. Go where old Safari coach info and solutions are readily available.

Before you just replace the batteries cause they are dead, expensive, check the dates, recharge fully and have the electrolyte checked with a real hydrometer that tells what the specific gravity is to see if they need replacing.

To the subject of pitching the old isolator. I was the one that told him to ditch it. These things have been the bane of Safari coaches and show up with relative frequency as going bad in all things SMC. It is my conclusion that age is a partial culprit or possibly the quality of the product of the time. Since these things can eat an alternator and cause other issues for unsuspecting owners that have not experienced such, I suggest taking the preemptive action of getting rid of the potential trouble maker. Before I figured it out while in a remote location. I had been thru 2 new alternators. I cleaned all battery terminals and checked here and there, (wiser now). In the ensuing efforts I shorted a fuse in the ECU of the Allison. Again no luck finding what I had done sat there for two days trying to trouble shoot the thing. Called for help Turns out, luckily, the alternators were fine but I knew nothing of an ISOLATOR. With the addition of the professional help, 10 minutes and a $100 bill, it turns out the isolator in the coach was a 130 amp with a 160 amp alternator (OEM) and shot. May or may not have had something to do with it. The professional knew right away about the fuse. It looked good cause I checked, but when metered it was blown (much wiser now). When the similar happened in the current Panther and only 25K miles, I immediately pitched the isolator in favor of a new one. Countless stories on Safari Friends of these things dying and a meriod of symptoms. As for 5 wires, no, max should be four if there is a sense wire to set of the regulator other wise only 3, one hot from the alt and one each the outer studs to the house and chassis batteries. I still catty a spare mechanical unit ST 85 from Napa. For me it is not necessary as I do not use the isolator any longer. It remains there as an option just cause. I took the Alt hot wire and sent it to the chassis batteries, and the house is fed by the 960 watts of solar all the time. I disconnect 1/2 of the solar when not traveling and not used. CB Sounds like another problem to be found as suggested by the previous posters. Additionally it would help all of those trying to help you if they knew what coach year and model is being discussed.

That should get him going...stand by for the action...

Yes it should have one, my 1999 Panther has one. But beings it is a Monaco the assembly of the panels in the cargo area could be different than the SMC years. Look carefully inside at the panels behind it. SMC used drywall screws through the carpet to tie them together. The tie method could also be Velcro. In any event it is not rocket science.

Then Carl you are very smart in my humble opinion...aught to be a sight when wound up!

Many like Yuma, very flat...We like the Quartzsite area a bit north as it is more mountainous and closer to some lakes. There are a lot of trails all over the BLM lands and similar lands owned by trusts and Arizona everywhere it seems. The areas lend themselves well to moving about particularly if you have the included facilities to dry camp. California, yes you have to drive through it to get to the coast and for coaches the speed limit is 55, absurd. Traffic is horrid and then there are the earthquakes...no I do notlike the area inspite of having many friends and family there. Northern most part of the state ok but still the 55 mph rule holds tight.

Any commercial supply house that services tire shops with weights and tools will have the bars 2 of them are needed. They will also have BUD sockets which are used to remove the lug nuts and rear studs retaining the rear inside dually. Now you need an air hose and a 3/4 inch impact wrench and a means to access the air on your coach if you have air. I frequently carry a small nitrogen bottle with a regulator. I use it to keep tires pressured up but it is good for one removal and re-installation if needed. Efficiency is the name of the game as the nitrogen quantity is not an unlimited supply if using this set of tools.

Yes easy drive and just south of Natchez a great sea food restaurant on the left below the road. Big parking lor on north side of the building. Same turn n a sherrifs office and fligt for life. We spent the night in the parking lot after eating no charge and great food. Natchez is a very interesting city. There is a great deal of history here and certainly worth a long look. We were through in March last year in a 43 foot DP and toad,

Best out there M&G

What are the requirements, at this point the choices are vast, 2 wheel, 4 wheel, off road, no off road, pick up or car, SUV, sedan...need a starting point