Picked up another fifth wheel today..

EMD_Driver · 07-13-2012, 06:20 PM

We've been looking for a camper, for Kitty's son for a while. Not having any luck finding a suitable Sunline, I looked for SOB's. I found a Starcraft fifth wheel in South Jersey and arranged to go look at it today. I left right after work yesterday and got to Jersey around 11:30pm. Kitty's son went with me and we stayed at his in-law's house. We got up at 5:30am and headed out before 7. The camper had been sitting for 6-7 years, but the interior looked great. There is a small bit of water damage, from where one window was left open. Other than that, it was in pretty good shape.

The tires were Towmaster ST tires of 2004 vintage and that worried me a bit. They "Looked" to be in great shape, but I was still worried about making a 250 mile trip on them. I checked the lug torque and air pressure in all 4 tires. We also had to wiggle a few wires, to get the stop/turn lights working properly. I also checked the hub temperatures, to get a reference temp for them.

We arrived home around 5:30pm with it and shoved it up our driveway. We immediately started checking things and found a broken fan blade on the 1988 vintage Dometic A/C unit. We'll be getting it ready for some camping and have him enjoying t soon!

Here's a pic of it, before we left New Jersey.. I know it's nose-high, but I didn't want to mess with the hitch adjustment. It's adjusted perfectly for Sunny and stays that way!

**JohnB** · 07-13-2012, 09:17 PM

Gary,

So does the Sunny port tell the boat to go to be able to let Sunny have a mate next to her?

Is that an actual 1988 Starcraft? It looks is really good shape from the 1 pic.

And yes, the tires for sure would make me nervous too... Glad you made it home without a blow out.

EMD_Driver · 07-14-2012, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnB

Gary,

So does the Sunny port tell the boat to go to be able to let Sunny have a mate next to her?

Is that an actual 1988 Starcraft? It looks is really good shape from the 1 pic.

And yes, the tires for sure would make me nervous too... Glad you made it home without a blow out.

He says the boat stays in the Sunny port... It is actually a 1988 model and was one of their upper-class models. No interior water damage, with the exception of below a couple of windows. The windows had been left open and some rain got in.

We attempted to remove the old Dometic A/C today and found that the gasket had been glued to the aluminum roof. I had Kitty's son pull gently, while I separated the gasket from the roof. He pulled a bit too hard and ripped the aluminum roof back about a foot. A second trip to camping world was necessary, to obtain some eternabond for the repair.

Once the roof was repaired, we mounted the 15,000btu A/C from the 299 on the roof and installed the ceiling assembly that we had gotten during our first camping world trip today. When we turned the A/C on, it worked perfectly!

It also has a Norcold fridge in it, but mysteriously, it was not on one of their recall lists. The electric portion of it worked great, but the gas side needed some help. There was something blocking the burner orifice pipe and it just needed some cleaning. It now works on both gas and electric.

I also hooked the fresh water system up to my air compressor. The vintage Sealand toilet valve has a small leak, as well as a split pipe behind the converter. It was not winterized.. Getting to that pipe should be fun, since it's behind the antique converter and the wheel well.

**Tweety** · 07-14-2012, 07:33 PM

Sounds like you found a winner. BUT I am surprised you gave up on finding a Sunline. I consider you guys ALMOST as loyal as Sunlinefan

There aren't that many Sunline 5ers out there I guess. We notice that we're seeing less Sunlines on the road these days. Only saw 1 on our 800 mile trip last week. Someone on I81 with a 2499 with a murall on the big back window, towing with a red truck.

EMD_Driver · 07-14-2012, 07:40 PM

The only suitable Sunline fiver we found was too much money and way too far away.. Otherwise, we would have been right on it!

**JohnB** · 07-14-2012, 08:36 PM

Good deal in using the 299 AC unit. That came in handy. Good job on the fridge. When my son bought his used PU we had it at the house cleaning it up, doing the bearings etc.

The fridge had not been used in a long time. The mud daubers really filled the thing almost solid.... Took it completely apart in the back unit. This is a PU fridge, not that much there to take "all" apart. After cleaning it up, the thing worked flawless. The operation of these things is simple. Having it clean to work is one of the bigger issues to stay ahead of. His main gas regulator was toast though.

I has left over new wheel bearings off the T2499. They fit is perfectly.

EMD_Driver · 07-15-2012, 09:52 AM

After being told that the boat would stay, I got a text message last night... "I ran out of Dicor and am not done with the roof" I asked how much more he needed and he said at least three more tubes. He said he was packing up the boat..

I went out and hitched up the little fiver.. It fit in the Sunny port, even with both of Sunny's slides out! I went ahead and put them in, so we'd have room to work... It's unreal how different these two fifth wheels are in size. He looked at them and said "Yours makes mine look puny!"

Jim-Bev-2363 · 07-15-2012, 10:18 AM

It just didn't take long to fill that port.

**JohnB** · 07-15-2012, 11:57 AM

Well that didn't take long.....

Maybe a "boat port" is in the future.

The size difference, Can you stand up in the bed room or is it a reduced height 5er like they use to make them?

Is the Starcraft an 8 foot wide or a 7' something wide camper?

I also did not notice a slide, is it a non slide unit? Don't know what year Starcraft started slides as 1988 was long ago for slides.

EMD_Driver · 07-15-2012, 06:35 PM

I believe it's 8' wide and there are no slides.

I finally figured out why there were two battery trays... One battery was used for the breakaway switch and landing gear. It was charged only by the tow vehicle. The other battery was the coach battery and charged only by the converter. Odd setup and not what I'm used to at all. Since I only put one battery in it, I have both leads hooked to it. That makes it work identical to what we have in Sunny.

Also found out today, that the antique converter was toast. It would only put out 11.56v with no load on it. Once the battery was hooked up, it only had 10.5v. I had a spare antique converter in the garage and put it in. It had one positive leg for the battery and one for the coach wiring. Why they separated them, I have no idea. Problem with that converter is that the battery leg was putting out zero volts. The coach leg put out 13.6v so I'm using that for now. A PD9245 is already on the way.

The toilet valve was also leaking. I removed it today and could not believe how simple it is! It has an O-ring and it had a piece missing. I'm not sure if that O-ring can be replaced, but it's worth a try. It seems as if it was glued in place. I had no idea SeaLand made china toilets back then.. It's a model 910 and parts are still available.

**JohnB** · 07-15-2012, 08:14 PM

Strange on the battery setup. Maybe that is what they did in 1988... Now a days a slide motor pulls as much amps as the landing gear and they are all combined.

I myself would convert to modern day hook up when you put the PD in.

O rings, if you cannot find one, they do make kits you splice (glue) together to make any length in a standard diameter.

As long as your not into major water damage, the rest is a whole lot easier to get fixed....

Good luck. Again, wish I was closer. I'd come over and help.

EMD_Driver · 07-16-2012, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnB

Strange on the battery setup. Maybe that is what they did in 1988... Now a days a slide motor pulls as much amps as the landing gear and they are all combined.

I myself would convert to modern day hook up when you put the PD in.

O rings, if you cannot find one, they do make kits you splice (glue) together to make any length in a standard diameter.

As long as your not into major water damage, the rest is a whole lot easier to get fixed....

Good luck. Again, wish I was closer. I'd come over and help.

Thanks for the info John..

I've already converted it over to the modern way of doing things. Since the old converter contained the fuse block, I ordered a new 6-gang ATC fuse block. It's rated for 35AMPS on each circuit. The camper only has 6 12v circuits, so I'm covered there. Best part is, that the PD converter is already setup for the battery wire connection and the fuse block connection!

For a 24 year old trailer, the ONLY water damage we could find was from where someone left the windows open! That damage is minimal, at best!

I wish you were closer... I'd enjoy not only the help, but getting to see you two again!