blakeloke

Hi Renee, Sorry for the late response. Yes, the tiles were original to our coach. We've had it since brand new. We have broken tiles in different places in the coach. Transition from carpet to floor in living room. In front of the kitchen sink. Bathroom hallway. All of the tiles have broken at different times during the life of our travels. Some we noticed after rough interstate travel and others just appeared. Once we get back home I'll be doing the demo on the carpet and tile before taking up to Erniee. Hopefully I'll be able to determine the cause but am guessing at this point is that it's normal flexing of the coach's frame and subfloor. Tile is unforgiving and doesn't flex. Blake

PJFromny, Hopefully you still have the data sticker in your coach. I don't remember where Winnebago puts theirs but ours is in the bathroom stuck on the back of the medicine cabinet. That data sticker may give you the information you need to determine tow rating. GCWR (Gross Combination Weight Rating) less GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) = Tow Capacity. Ours is: GCWR = 44,600. GVWR = 34,600. Tow Capacity = 10,000. Blake

Hi David, Do your slides operate via electric motor? If so, and accessible, can you check voltage to the motor while someone pushes the slide button? Blake

Mike and Cindy, I too would start with replacing latches. I had a cabinet in the bedroom that would often open on it's own when on the road. Quick fix was to replace the 5 lb. latch with a 10 lb. latch. It was less than $10 at our local RV supplier. Now the cabinet door stays closed unless I pull on it! Blake

Roswald, Welcome to the forum. I would also be concerned with weight. Look at the cargo carrying capacity of your coach. When considering tile install you'll need to factor in the actual weight of the tile and include weight of the thin set and grout. If you haven't done so, go to a CAT Scale and weigh your coach. Compare the actual weight to your GVWR and factor in the added weight of the remodel. We have 3/8" ceramic tile and carpet. Six of those tiles are cracked. Erniee (from this site) will be replacing all of our flooring with engineered wood flooring next month. Blake

Wow.....that's a bummer. Pretty bold move. Blake

Bill, sorry to hear about your mother. Travel safe. Blake

Wow.....that is a beautiful coach!

Thanks Carl.......as of late, we've been really busy out here on the left coast doing some remodel work on Deb's dad's house. And, it was well into the 100's F when we started. Good thing is her dad kept the beer flowing and we're almost finished! All new tile on the patio, poured concrete to support posts, and slate stone on the pillar supports. So....this picture is WAY off topic but figured Erniee would appreciate it.....we have an appointment with him in November.

Guys, Appreciate the input on tag axle and rides. We usually don't get "pushed" when big rigs pass us or on the rare occasion we are passing them. But, buffeting crosswinds are no fun for me! Our timelines are such nowadays that I can find a safe spot and campout when the crosswinds get really bad but that isn't always the case. I've always heard that tag axle coaches handle the crosswinds better and will heed advice from Herman with respect to driving a true Roadmaster tag axle coach. Also Carl's input on high centering and torqueing the chassis. Don't get me wrong....our Windsor rides like a dream and we've done a few things to improve the ride and road manners such as Michelins and Bilstein shocks. Carl, I hear you loud and clear on someone saying "you will have no problem getting in". Deb had to follow me home in the pickup from Little Rock (August) because the KOA host guided me through a turn that was just too tight for coach and truck. Bent the durn hitch so badly that it was not serviceable. My bad though....I should have walked the route and unhooked. We bought the Grand Cherokee the week we got home. A 3500 Dodge Mega Cab diesel is just too much toad in most cases! Blake

Carl, This no way addresses your question and I am no expert on coaches with tags but I'd like to chime in......... As you know, I'm mildly interested in upgrading from our current coach to a 45 footer with a tag. My thinking is that a tag would help tremendously when encountering cross winds when out west. Note: Deb is not as keen on the idea of trading as I am! Given that, last fall we test drove a new Dynasty. It was a 45 footer with tag. We were in Tucson and the test drive was realistic as there were some pretty good cross winds. Believe it or not, Deb and I thought our Windsor rode much nicer than the new Dynasty! Needless to say we still have our Windsor and are burning up the highways. So, a bit of research and I think I've figured out the difference in ride. Our Windsor has a true Roadmaster chassis with outboard air bags. Although the Dynasty advertised a Roadmaster chassis it was a Freightliner. Freightliner is a good chassis but it didn't have the outboard airbags which I think helps a lot with stability. Now, I'm really hesitant to drive a Foretravel or the likes $$ !!!!! You have a lot more experience on the road than I do and am interested in what you chose! Blake

Wmsfan, Check your over the air TV antenna. Under some conditions our old crank up antenna would whistle and rattle. It sat right above the drivers seat and drove me nuts. I insulated it with foam pipe insulation and that helped (for the short term). Blake

kurtsue, How did you check your batteries and what voltage did you get? Make sure you check them without the battery charger on. Blake

Carl......M&G conversion is on my "blake list" as soon as I get some downtime and after my "honey do's" get whittled down. I've done a bit of reading on them at the behest of you all and feel a change-out from Blue Ox to M&G is an upgrade that is needed. pjfromny.......here's the 2003 Towing Guide. http://www.fmca.com/images/stories/pdf/towing_03.pdf remember to check your owner's manual and get specifics. I, like most others, will not leave home without a braking system on my toad (including break-away). Blake

pjfromny, Welcome to the forum. You are on the right track. Once you determine if the vehicle you have is towable (owners manual & FMCA Towing Guide for the year of your vehicle). You will need a baseplate for your vehicle, tow bar that connects the vehicle to your coach, lights either auxiliary or wired into your truck's system and finally, a braking system for your pickup (a must have). We use a Blue Ox System which has worked fine for us. You'll hear from some of others that they prefer M&G brakes. Blake

OPs question reminded me of a funny story when I wanted to install a TV on my first RV. It was a 70's something 20' or so. This RV didn't have a TV or even a microwave. Anyway, I bought a small 13' TV, mounting bracket and required wood screws. All set to go, located where I wanted the mounting bracket and screwed it into the wall. All good........tested the mount by pulling on it a few times, then installed the TV. Plugged it in and it worked! I was really proud of myself until I went outside and saw them dang wood screws sticking out of the aluminum siding on the trailer........hahaha . So, I undid everything, found shorter screws, relocated the bracket a few inches.......then used silicone to seal the bad holes. Yup, there were 2" x 4" studs all right. They were just oriented flat instead of like a traditional stick house. Had I thought about it enough I could have saved the expense of a tube of silicone! I cant remember the brand of that trailer anymore but sure remember the story like it was yesterday! Blake

Our Sony monitor started going belly up. Went to black and white from color and picture would fade out. Upgraded to the Voyager that Brett provided link to. We're happy with it. Blake

here's a test. At the bottom is a link to Tom's original post which did appear at the bottom of the message. However, I pasted it at the end of my text. Another try here: following diatribe means nothing except that I'll attempt to insert a link to the 2016 Towing guides [link has been removed by moderator] after I complete this small paragraph. Another item is, I've tried to use the link function in the header above (looks like a chain with two links) and that option doesn't allow me to rename the link. Okay....inserting the towing guide where I wanted seemed to work. I just copied the browser address, clicked my curser where I wanted to insert the link then right clicked "copy" Blake

Ron, Here's the link to FMCA towing guides for 2014. It appears the 2014, manual transmission Forrester can be towed 4 down. http://www.fmca.com/images/stories/pdf/towing_2014.pdf You can navigate to the towing guides through the FMCA Home Page. Blake

Lyle, Not sure what brand awning you have but our Carefree Mirage was doing the same thing. The cover wouldn't fully seat in the awning housing when in the stowed position. Looking at it more closely, when fully extended we found that the awning fabric had worked it's way out of the roller drum at the edge. This caused the awning to retract crookedly. Blake

Another great informative post by the experts on this forum! Thanks folks! I took a visual of our exhaust manifold (2004 Cummins 400 ISL on an '05 Roadmaster & Windsor). We look good at this point but will look at it a bit more closely when I get home where I left my inspection camera.... Joe, wish I were up there when you start on Saturday. Would have been good for me to watch, learn, help and video document! Blake

Joe, Son went to the truck parts store yesterday where he thought they had the battery tie down straps. They didn't have them. When we get back home, and start refurbishing the battery compartment, think I will tack a couple of eyelets on the sides of the trays after the vinegar wash and before coating. This should allow me to use heavy rubber bungee straps. Of course, the batteries will be out of the compartment before I strike an arc! Blake

Hi Mike, Sounds like your coach didn't want to go to a Tigers game! Glad you are safe and sound. Seriously, given your explanation above I would start diagnosis with the thermostat. Blake

This is a really good discussion. Deb and I are noticing more and more truck stops offering bio blends in the B20 range. I'm no expert and have only researched mildly but have read what Carl states above with respect to degradation of fuel lines and seals if the component does not have the right type of elastomers. So, at this point we take a pass at bio blends and search for true #2. Most recent was our last fuel ups in Tucson and Bakersfield. Actually, the truck stop in Tucson gave us some literature on bio-blends that indicated a customer complained he had purchased some "dirty" product at their islands which caused a degradation of performance due to clogged filters. They sent the fuel filter for testing and the lab results showed the clogging was due to constituents commonly found in biodiesel. This particular truck stop prides themselves in offering traditional diesel and welcomes RV'rs at their islands and scales! So far.....it hasn't been a struggle finding traditional diesel. We just do a google search and call ahead. Blake

Roland, We had the Winegard Rayzar Automatic installed on our coach (looks like a disc and about 6" tall). Have used it a lot on this trip and it works as advertised. We had the old style crank up antenna that worked okay but not automatic. It was noisy (rattles and wind noise) when going down the highway. It was placed right above the driver on the roof. I'm not sure how stout the Rayzar Z1 is but it looks like the "bat" wings could snag on tree limbs etc. Blake