rsbilledwards

No, it is not necessary to remove it all. The cost just escalates to the point of just leave it be and or where do you stop. The flaking material is broken loose and then blown away high air pressure, in the blowing process, it will remove a little more. That which is left will have a sufficient mil thickness that I would not worry about it in this particular situation. As long as the scrubbing/scuffing with the gray (fine) Scotch Brite is through and the application of the clear is something near 3 mils = or- a bit, it will bury the remaining loose edges. If this situation were occurring at eye level it would be a different animal and treated otherwise. I used a small, flat blade screw driver to gently scratch the broken clear a bit to forcibly break it, in addition to the Scotch Brite. The end product, will likely out last you as the owner and the loose edges will be invisible to you naked eye. On top of that it is eight feet above eye level. Really, the critical element from my point of view, is that the clear is a true high solids clear. Safari coaches were painted with Diamont, a sub-set of BASF and a very good product. My coach, both of them had the issue in question, now invisible and do I dare say you would never know any thing was done. In my humble opinion BASF's Glasso is the best out there and Diamont a hot second. Amongst painters, plenty to argue about.....and plenty of differing opinions. Bill Edwards

I spent 3 and a half decades in the autobody restoration and collision business. The simple answer is this: the clear coat is not oxidizing but dying. It is doing so because it was not thick enough to begin with. Unlike automobiles , coaches are for the most part, assembled and then masked and then painted in an aftermarket fashion, like at a regular collision shop in you hometown. For a 5 year finish, by paint manufacturer requirements, the clear coat must be a minimum of 2 mils thick. In the affected areas it is in all likelihood not. A 3 mil thickness will return nearly 15 years of life +. The affected areas are the fade away areas, that is they are out of sight and just do not get the attention. The easy fix is to scuff with gray, fine, scotch brite and reclear. If the clear is flaking, it can be scuffed harder breaking the flaking up and then maybe a bit of color and 2 heavy coats of high solids clear applied and you are on the way, bright and shiny. Really it is no big deal to repair, mask, and reshoot outside and without a booth. It should be less than a $1,000 dollars as it can be completed in half a day and less than a quart of clear on a 40 footer Good luck Bill Edwards.

Not giving Don a hard time but he sounds like he is from the Texas flatlands. True the section from Ouray to Silverton is a drive to test your concentration it is an absolutely spectacular drive through one of Colorado's major historic mining districts. This section is not for the faint of heart! Make reservations now for the park in Ouray. Have fun Bill Edwards

If you are asking me what it will cost and where to have it done, I haven't the foggiest idea. The most likely location of an appropriate repair would be in Bend Oregon through Beaver coach Sales and service. A number of the fellas there are old Beaver people. The other suggestion is to find the Beaver owners club web site and post the question there. This site is to generic for this issue. 800 382 2597 541 322 2184 Please keep us apprise as to what happens Thanks Bill Edwards

Beings that we live and breath Colorado and live at 8050 ft above sea level...550 is no problem and as Mr. Butler indicated several pretty good passes so slow going, slow and steady will get you there every time and the scenery is terrific. There is lots of twisty road. My question is what direction are you going as it makes a difference to how much traffic one encounters. The Ouray to Silverton or visa versa is incredible. There are several very nice RV parks in the area. I have addressed this specific route before, here. My absolute favorite route north to south would be the Delores River Road otherwise known as HWY 145 just east of Cortez intersecting 141. 141 is not marked scenic but is every bit as stunning maybe more so than 550. It is a narrower road but perfectly adequate for a 40+ footer. Most of the traffic is from north to south making it perfect for going the other way. It has one major pass, Lizard Head, which looks like one of the peaks from the Saw Tooth Mts. in Idaho. It is an imposing, grey granite sharp sided, sitting majestically tall, and snow faced most of the year. 145 cutting left from the intersection to Telluride which sits at the end of an enormously tall box canyon takes you to a historic water flume that fed the gold placer mines. near Placerville. The flume carried a million gallons of water a day to the barely producing mines in the local hills. This flume was constructed along the cliffs of the river well above the river level. This is a geological transition point where you go from above river level to river level and the cliffs move ever higher the further you go north. the cliffs grow nearly a 1000 feet in height, the valley narrows to what seems like 600 yards and are a deep red in color. The hayfields are green, it is a very enveloping scene and you are part of it, a spectator all by your selves...as in NO traffic! It gives real meaning to "off the beaten trail".. Lastly the best part, take them both as neither is like the other. The topography and the geology 100% different. Good luck and have a great time Bill Edwards

Actually, there was or is a solution and Safari made several repairs to their chassis of that time frame under warranty. The problem was and still is that time we do not always drive the coaches far enough for the issue to expose itself in the warranty period. Both Beaver and Safari used the same or similar chassis that Magnum produced, which was owned by Matt Perlot, Safari founder, who ultimately bought Beaver and put it under the Safari umbrella. I recently bought a 1999 Safari Panther and being aware of this problem looked for a coach that had been repaired. I looked at a Safari Panther recently in Yuma, Arizona to see what had been done to strengthen the front framing since it was an early coach built in 1999.and I believe built after mine. What I found is, at least for me, not conclusive as to what was done since it looked just as mine does, unless mine has been modified as well. The Yuma coach has 126K on it without any issues, This problem purportedly occurred in the coaches that were side entry as opposed to front entry so, can you please confirm that your coach is a side entry or not. It is interesting in that the reinforcement of the front structure must occur below the windshield yet there are no diagonal braces in that area of the Yuma coach, nor on mine. There is however, a substantial amount of additional structuring that appears to have been done after the cap was installed. This though is difficult to determine since I have not looked at enough coaches as of this point in time. I have another friend near Yakima, Washington, with a Continental that has had the lower corner, drivers side pop out as opposed to cracking. Would it be possible for you to take some pictures looking up into the cap either side below the windshield corners. Obviously there would be no bracing in the w/s area and there is minimal area for bracing above. I do know, that what was done to the Yuma coach, required a new cap that was 3 inches longer to accommodate the changes. Please post them here I will send you a PM Thanks for helping in advance. Bill Edwards

Nearly all the coaches of that time frame had fiberglass caps as on my Safari coaches built at the same time as the Beavers. My Zanzibar has 44k on it and no problems. Bill Edwards

We just drove 101 from San Fran to Washington in Sept. 2015. We left it several times and traversed the numerous redwood forests along the way and no problems at all. the Oregon section piece of cake drive wide two lane all the way border to border. Saw numerous 40 and larger in the forests. Now 1 in Calif. vey slow Bill Edwards

I had this issue this summer no light on pad, no starting, turned out to be one of two fuses in the VIM mounted under the shift pad on my 2001 Safari Zanzibar. This occurred after I pulled the chassis batteries and reinstalled them. It is very important when using a test light on computerized systems, to use one that is low impedance type! Good luck Bill Edwards

It depends on where the hole is...is it on the bottom? If it is why did it occur. If it is a pin hole likely from water accumulation in the tank and that little hole will be a bigger one if welded with a torch or Mig. With a Tig control is better stil but likely same result...bigger. I would opt for the fore mentioned JB Weld as a permanent fix. Prepped well it will last longer than you will have the coach and the repair cost minimal. Bill

160 is a great road and it will be slow up over Wolf Creek Pass and plenty of places to camp off the beaten trail. use the toad to explore and you will find plenty of places ro camp with out paying a dime. Obviously we have no idea where you are headed but a suggestion. Continue on to Cortez and watch for Hwy 145 and Delores. Use the toad to find one. Fall is busy in this part of the country as well. It is Colorado's best kept secrets: it is the Delores River road Hwy 145 and going North from Cortez, The traffic is minimal, most of it is coming in from the North. Numerous camping spots. Look at the map, the Delores river runs just east from Cortez north. One can go all the way to Grand Junction with unbelievable sites all the way up . The elevation changes are minimal except where you encounter Lizard Head Pass and then it is not bad at all. Both roads are scenic but 145 is the BEST...145 will also take you by Placerville and the historic wooden viaduct still hanging on the canyon wall, an engineering marvel. It supplied water to the placer mines that were ill fated and produced little. Then there is Telluride! Follow 145 to 141 and though not marked scenic it is oh my unbelievable. The geology spectacular and NO traffic, easy road to drive off the beaten path a 9 on my scale. Find a place to stay on the 145 and take the toad to explore 550 and Ouray area. Good luck Bil

The adrenalin rush made me sick a few times. I had an early tear of the lateral meniscus of one knee and the cycling allowed me to ski. Yes way back then as a Medford farm boy I was pretty stout and not bad today at 70 but old man time is tearin it up way to fast. I plan to go out on an empty tank... Bill

Ray, Great video, since I grew up in Medford, Oregon it brought back great memories... When I was an older teen and attending S.O.C. (Southern Oregon College), I used to ride my bicycle up to Mt. Ashland ski area in the spring time. There were many times I chased the semis in those days as a sprint workout. Then the ride down was a blast and very fast... oh what a great time it was being young and dumb!! Thanks, Bill Edwards

Here is another 2 bits: First visit this site and read the solar puzzle and then as much as you can take in... https://handybobsolar.wordpress.com/ Bob is an electrical engineer building a home in Montana completely off the grid using 8 Crown 260s to support the house systems ( I am wrong here still Crowns but bigger). I haven't any experience with the L batteries but the cost seems absurd when one considers the alternatives. I am not knocking anyone here. I did two installs last summer and the cost was nowhere near what you are discussing. I am using in my Panther, 6 Crown 260 amp hour batteries which is over kill and a 6 panel 160 watt Charmanah Canadian panels which is overkill. I am using Bogart Engineering a Trimetric TM2030 to control 2 SC-2030 chargers to control 62 amps from solar panels in a 12 volt battery system. The same components can be used on a 24 volt system. For that kind of money, up grade the battery tray to a roll out. It took me two days to install the system, including removal of the refrigerator in order to have easy access from wiring entering interior of the coach from above and exiting into the cargo bay. The other components other than the 500 ma shunt and temperature sensor came from Home Depot. I correct myself here, the #4 wire and the heavy 2/0 wire came from a welding supply house with ends installed at no additional cost. The total for all of this is under $5,000 retail. How much can the labor rate be, $100 an hour, that is still only $1,600 and the bill is now $6,600? This is on the high side with fluff!! The lithium batteries...there are better choices, if Green is one they are not and are unproven for the life expectancy against cost and there is enough to worry about with respect to fire in one of these coaches with out adding a known potential. I think I can dry camp with the best of those that have solar installed and I did it for a lot less than what I listed here. Good luck Bill Edwards PS thanks for the edit B

There were a whole bunch of places on the west coast listed, particularly California. Great thank you!!! b

On our Safari there is at one end of the horizontal drive shaft, a hex head where a socket and a long handled ratchet can be used to retract the ailing slide. Maybe there is such on your coach. You will have to look from underneath. Bill Edwards

Do not know 33 or where it is. 191/287/89 no problem good roads but far from the most scenic. 191 from Rock Springs traverses a pretty barren uranium mining area . If you are looking to check out Lander it is the only way. Another stop on that route of interest would be South of Dubois, Brooks Lake Lodge. It is on the historic registry and is a huge log lodge built in the 1900sby Morton of Morton Salt. It sits at the base of the Tetons as the back drop for the lodge. I have not been there in years so I do not know the improvements to the access road...it is likely much better than when we were there. Fire place in the dining room would take an eight foot log. Spectacular place, sits on rock pilings so the spring water can just flow out from under it. I found 33 in Idaho...I would take it with a 40 footer though I have not been on it per say, so you are coming from the Rexburg area and over East. I have taken many a small red line highway and never been disappointed, slower and a narrower road than a heavy one. From Jackson up piece of cake, great road, wide and generally smooth last time we were there 3 or so years ago with the coach. Let us know how it was scenery and such. It is about time we revisit this area. Hope you have a great time. Bill Edwards

Our first time was a real hoot! Lots of information, great people, a few duds too, a lot of fun. Volunteered too and that kept me busy and met more people. Bill E

Colter Bay is in Wyoming and the Tetons, Haven't been there in decades but have been all over that part of the country where are you coming from, how far South? There are a myriad of routes all spectacular. B

Another issue for me, I open the "Notify Me"...it does not Notify... B Herman how do I contact you, site says I cannot send or you do not receive notes B

I can not remember all of these points why so many changes all at once. A little here and a little there probably better for most of us... B

What happened to the DELETE function??? Bill Edwards

Slider, There are numerous ways to this area but going up from Rock Springs is not one of my favorites, not much on 191 to see and there is not much to see on 189. It used to be known on maps as the Gas lands and there was an enormous amount of uranium mining in this area. A much better drive and only 40 more miles down 80 is Hwy 30 to Kremmerer and then across to 89/30. Please note that 89 stays in Wyoming and 30 enters Idaho. Stay on this 89 it is a good road and enjoy the drive North. It is your choice of scenic drives from that point to Island Park. There is plenty to see in Jackson and numerous memorable ways North. We have been all over that area both with and without a coach. Going through Yellowstone can be very trying if there is a lot of traffic. We live in Evergreen, Colorado rsbilledwards@q.com

95 is a great road, just fine 2 lane across some of Oregon's finest high desert. In Nevada it too is a great drive. However when you get to Winnemucca, Nevada I suggest you go east to Battle Mountain and take 305 south to Austin, Nevada. I know it seems to detour you little bit but the scenic value of going this way into Reno is well worth the few extra miles. When you reach Reno you will want to take Hwy 431 (The Incline) West to Lake Tahoe. It is quite a drive, we did it in our 40 ft Safari Zanzibar and was not a problem though pretty steep in a couple places. There are numerous passing zones to let traffic pass. This will place you at the north end of the lake. From here go west all the way around the lake, the views are spectacular on 28 and on 89. It intersects 88 South and leads you to Jackson and Hwy 49. There are along this entire drive small quaint towns alive with activity. Traffic is not heavy at all and the views wonderful. Hwy 49 is a twisty hilly drive through the top side of the California costal range. 49 drops you at Oakhurst and Hwy 41 for a not so spectacular drive onto Hwy 41 across central California agricultural farm lands. It gets interesting again Kettleman City to Paso Robles and on to Hwy 101 and a pretty drive down the coast to San Francisco. You could also stay on 89 till it intersects 395 in Nevada again and my what a drive this is. It will drop you much farther South near Tehachapi missing most of the costal areas you were looking to see. Others can comment on 1 that are more familiar.

Carl, Touché ! Bill E