One thing leads to another

I had great intentions this Monday of opening up Frostbite and installing the remaining shelves and the door threshold.  However, when I was cranking her up, it stopped just short of being about to hook the safety bar to the frame.  I tried it a few times and was careful not to apply too much pressure so the cables or anything else wouldn't break or bend.  the mechanism that lifted the roof was hitting something that didn't allow it to raise all the way.

I lowered the roof and crawled underneath.  Looking at the so-called whiffle tree, which is the gizmo that that the 4 roof cables attach to and is itself attached to the main lift cable, it appeared bent and I suspected that part of it was hitting the frame somewhere along the path as it was being lifted.  In fact, I noticed that it was digging a groove into the floor along the raise path.  Remembering that I didn't tighten the metal bar that holds the safety bar to the whiffle tree the last time I worked on it so I decided to try tightening that up first. 

It was a pain as it took 2 pairs of pliers and working around the lift cable but I eventually got the screw nut turning.  I kept this up until, to my surprise, it fell apart in my hands.  It turns out that I was actually loosening the screw instead of tightening it.  I briefly tried to re-attach the bolt but it was difficult due to the previously mentioned bend in the metal.  I decided to take the whole thing off and try my patented "smack it with a hammer until it looks straight" method that has worked successfully for me in the past.  Besides, at this point it was much easer to take apart than put back together and I was getting tired of lying underneath the camper.

I had to unattach the corner lift cables from the whiffle tree to get the thing off.  Realizing that this would destroy any special adjustments made keeping the roof lifting evenly, I figured I was already committed to this thing and forged ahead anyway.  Here is the piece in question:

The bend is easier to see in this photo.  Where the two metal strips come together is bent upwards and was digging into the floor when the roof is raised.

I got my trusty hammer and whacked on it for a while.  Eventually, I got the piece to look like this:

Still bent but not nearly as bad

With this done, I then spent the next hour putting the thing back on the camper.  I won't bore you with the details except to say that I was glad my daughter was not outside to hear my commentary during the process.

Daylight was quickly slipping away.  I had to get a flashlight to finish.  Once it was all back together, I gave it one last try before calling it a night and tried to crank up the roof.

About halfway up, it wedged and would go no further.

@#$%

It may not be pretty, but it works

Last week I fashioned a way to secure the awning for travel.  Like the title says, it may not be pretty but at least it will work.  I picked up some tarp straps for $10.  Cut some small slits in the awning and attached the straps so that they go around the entire awning and bag. 

I no longer have to worry about the awning coming undone while on the road and ripping violently off the camper.  You can't tell from the pictures but the 2 ends on each of the straps are connected by large hooks underneath the awning bag.  This is definitely not the best solution but the best I could come up with right away. 

The weakest point is probably where I cut the slits for the straps.  I tried to cut them in the thick seam where the bag and the awning is connected to the camper.

I realize that there is a potential for these slits to continue to rip down the seam but I figure that it would take a while to do that and there really wasn't any other option.  The bag/awning combo is in pretty bad shape since the bag will no longer zip closed around the awning.

This will have to work until I either think of a better solution or replace the entire awning.

This past weekend I did manage to clean out the garage.  One evening this week I will raise Frostbite and pack her for our 2nd trip this coming weekend to Paris Landing State Park.  I intend to do a better job pre-packing than I did last trip.

Phase One Renovation Complete

Over the weekend, I installed the new, much stronger, front for the galley side box.  It went in without a hitch and was tested a bit over the weekend as we showed off the camper to my in-laws and my mother in law and daughter were sitting on the bench and it didn't cave in.

I'm calling Phase One complete since the camper is now perfectly "campable" even though there are still things I wish to do.  I still need some type of moulding in several places along with a final coat of paint and clear coat on the counter tops.  There are several other improvements on my list that are mainly cosmetic which I will do as I get time and money.  I'll be sure to detail all my changes here.

I did pick up some straps to use on the awning bag and I'll try to get those installed this week.  The only color I could find for the straps was red which sorta sucks.  However, if I can get that bag closed tight, secure, and easy to open and close, I'll be happy.

The weather was perfect for the labor day weekend so I took some pictures of the inside of Frostbite just for comparison.  You also get a chance to see the new curtains.  My seamstress did a most outstanding job!

This is the closest shot I got of the rebuild face for the galley side bench.  You can see most of it in the lower right of the above photo.  Notice that the bunk end curtains are now yellow which matches the other material perfectly. 

Here is the AC installed.  The exhaust runs down through the box it is sitting on and then underneath the camper.  We just had it on fan since it was so cool outside already.  Actually, this is the first time Frostbite has been set up with all the screen windows open.

Perfect camping weather is upon us and Frostbite is ready for action.  Next trip is planned for Paris Landing State Park later this month.

Repairing the Damage from the Maiden Voyage

I did find some time this week to address the damage to the galley side bench that happened during Frostbite's first outing.  Here is a shot of the damage:

The front face of the bench, which obviously wasn't strong enough to use, cracked in half nearly along it's entire length just underneath the converter box.  The caused the nails to pull apart from the top board that serves as the seat.  The entire face would have to be rebuild.

Using the broken piece as a pattern, I cut out a new piece from a large piece of bead board left over from the renovation.  Lucky I saved that! 

The new piece is on the left

another angle

I then reattached the inside dowels making it exactly the same  as the original. 

Here is a shot of the original supports for comparison. 

The one on the right was the original pre-renovation part from Frostbite.  The one of the left is the rebuilt one that broke.  The original, of course, didn't seem to have enough support so I added three vertical support dowels.

Hopefully, much stronger now!

I opted not to drill the large hole near the converter box opening since, and I can't remember exactly why now, I wondered during the trip why I had a hole there in the first place since it wasn't needed.  I'll cross that bridge later.  If I do need a hole there, I can add it later.

One important piece that is not in the picture is another vertical support dowel that will go at the very end after the converter box is installed in the hole.  I'll add that one as I am installing the bench back in Frostbite.  This is the piece that I neglected to add prior to our first voyage and was probably the cause of the damage in the first place.  I figure the extra 3 vertical supports couldn't hurt.

At this point, I was satisfied with my work.  However, I don't work very fast and, with the days starting to get shorter, I ran out of daylight.  My frequent beer breaks didn't help either.  I hope to raise Frostbite this weekend and install the newer and better bench this Sat.

My next project is figuring out a system for keeping the awning bag closed.  My in-laws are coming for a visit this weekend so they will get a chance to see Frostbite firsthand in all her glory.  I hope to solicit some advice about the awning bag from them as well.

ahh, The Sweet Smell of Success . . .

. . . and the rancid stench of poor planning.

Well, we survived so my previously stated victory conditions were met.  As I predicted, the pack up just prior to leaving was a last minute hatchet job.  We were grabbing anything we could think of and piling it into Bluebell.  I didn't want to raise up Frostbite to pack her better since we were pressed for time.  I wanted to get to the park and have her set up before it got dark.  I only partially succeeded in that effort.

Here is a list of things we forgot:

• weather radio
• radio of any type
• orange juice
• milk
• eggs
• towels
• dish cloths of any type (we did manage to remember paper towels)
• 1 table leg
• a fan for outside

Here is a photo of Bluebell and Frostbite packed up and ready to ship out:

Looking sharp!

another angle

Notice the new stripe decal that I added to the side of Frostbite which matches Bluebell.  The safety chain, which I replaced with a shiny new, and stronger, one turned out to be too short.  I had to attach it to just one side of the hitch instead of both the way it was intended.  I'll get to the tool box and have them add another couple of feet to it later this week.  Since we were just going 20 miles down country roads, I figured it would be OK.

We arrived at the park before dark.  The cost for a site with electric/water was $20 per night.  My wife's state employee discount kicked it down to $16 per night.  Total cost for the campsite this weekend was $32 which was, oddly enough, the exact same cost as our crappy lunch at the fair last weekend.  There was a creek that ran along the campground and all the sites adjacent to this creek were already full.  The opposite side of the loop, however, was completely empty so we opted for one of those fairly close to the bathhouse.  We had no neighbors on either side or across the street for the whole weekend which was nice. 

I got the set up started good before it got dark but still had to finish in the dark.  The water hose was too short because they has the hookups for this particular campsite just a foot away from the water hookup for the neighboring campsite both of which were actually next to the neighboring campsite rather than in the middle between them.  I'll have to make sure that I check for this prior to choosing a site to set up in.

I got the awning up, amazingly, without any problems at all.  I figured out the mistake I made when I set it up at home last night and it went up stronger than ever.  I didn't need to use any guide ropes to secure it.  Eventually, I finished setting up.  The AC and fridge were going strong.  We started a charcoal fire and cooked three hamburgers around 10pm.  My daughter was already asleep, though, so she didn't eat.  My wife and I set up our chairs outside and sat up until around 12 or 1.

I opted to leave my CPAP machine at home for this weekend thinking that I would be fine. 

I wasn't.

I actually experienced the most significant sleep apnea I ever had this weekend.  I was constantly dreaming about being underwater and would force myself to wake up gasping for air. 

I won't make this mistake again.  CPAP goes wherever I do from now on.

The next morning, we realized that I forgot the milk, eggs, and orange juice so we altered our plans a bit and went to the park restaurant for breakfast.  After that, we went to town for the planned errands.  We couldn't get the tires rotated because Bluebell needs 2 new tires.  That sucked.  We did pick up some plastic bins of various sizes to better organize the myriad of junk inside Frostbite.  We also picked up a cool fan at Big Lots that can easily be stored inside Frostbite between trips.

When we got back to the campsite, it was noon, and hot.  Very hot!  My daughter was hungry so I cooked some hot dogs on the stove in a sauce pan of water.  My daughter wanted to go swimming but my wife and I put her off claiming that it would be cooler later in the afternoon.  We both sat outside under the awning with the new fan pointed at us while my daughter watched a movie inside.  There is a neat outside table that hooks up to the wall but I couldn't set it up because I forgot the stupid table leg. 

I snapped a few pics of our set up:

  

Notice the awning doesn't really stretch tight across the top?  This will become significant later in the afternoon.

See my new white RV water hose laying across the picnic table?  Well I couldn't hook it up because of . . .

. . . the fact that the stupid water hook up was in the other @$#% campsite next to us.  I was a good 2-3 feet too short.

Here is our nifty new fan that has a remote and oscillates and can easily fit underneath the storage bench in Frostbite.

After a couple of hours and a couple of hundred reminders from our daughter, we decided it was time to take her swimming in the lake.  We forgot her swimsuit so we picked out some shorts and a t-shirt she could swim in.  We didn't really know where the swimming place was so we opted to turn right heading out from the campground (it was a 50/50 shot) and traveled several miles.  It turned out to be the wrong way.  Turning around and heading back we noticed signs for swimming.  We traveled several miles before we realized that we didn't bring a towel (we picked some up at Wal-Mart).  We turned back, returned to the campsite and pick up the new towel.  Finally, we made it to the swimming area.  Now during all this running around, it was getting steadily darker and darker and low rumbles of thunder were starting.  When we arrived at the campground, the rangers had just closed it due to the impending rain.

My daughter was upset so I promised to take her to our rec center in Fairview to swim after we got home.  Actually, had we gone out when she first asked us, she would have been able to swim a couple of hours before the rain but who was to know.  Not us, we forgot the weather radio!

We made it back to Frostbite just as it started raining.  My wife and daughter went inside to watch a movie.  I stayed out underneath the awning to make sure rain didn't collect and pool up.  It was a steady rain.  That kept getting stronger,

and stronger,

and stronger, until the thunderclaps were almost upon our very site.  I had dropped one of the awning poles so that it was only 3 or 4 feet off the ground and pulled the awning down off the pole on that side so the rain could run off.  The rain (monsoon, actually) was so strong that I couldn't see the campsite across the street.  There was no place underneath the awning that was dry due to the strong winds.  The water running off the road was flowing across our campsite and down the hill towards the creek.  I was standing in at least an inch of water everywhere in the pad that Frostbite was sitting on.  At times, it was a bit unnerving.  It sure would have been nice to have a weather radio to check and see when/if this was going to end.

My daughter screaming inside Frostbite didn't help.

I kept checking with my wife about how Frostbite was doing inside.  Were there leaks?  She always reported negative so that was good.  I continued to sit outside underneath the awning making sure it was dumping water OK and wasn't about to fall down.  There were some tent camping neighbors several sites down from us and I was thinking smugly about how neat it was that my wife and daughter were inside high and dry and watching a movie in the AC.

and then the electricity went out.

I figured it would pass when the storm was over until I noticed a neighbor across the field still had lights on inside their camper.  It wasn't out in the whole campground, just our site.  I went to check the breaker in the pouring rain and it had tripped.  I reset it and the electric came back on.

Within five minutes, it was off again.

I repeated this a few times and finally just opted to wait until the storm passed.  Which it did eventually pass,

an hour later.

When everything was over, the sun started to come back out.  I reset the breaker a final time, raised the awning, and everything was golden again.  Frostbite was high and dry.  There were a few damp spots on the mattress against the far edge of the bunk end but I was very, very pleased that it did as well as it did.

We cooked the hobo dinners that night and they were wonderful.

The rain, however, did force us to realize that we desperately need a floor mat inside and outside Frostbite's door.  Despite trying to take off our shoes before entering the camper, Frostbite still had muddy floors. 

The weekend did result in some damage, however.  The rebuilt support for the utility bench on the galley side cracked almost in half.  My rebuild there was a complete failure.  Also, I still need to install the shelf underneath the sink and reinstall 2 drawers for the door side storage box.

Nevertheless, the AC worked smashingly.  The gas worked.  (Unwittingly, I also accidentally tested for gas leaks as I forgot to turn off the outside tank after lunch on Sat. and didn't notice it until Sun. morn)  The beds were comfy.  The awning worked great.  All this and a major thunderstorm too! 

Frostbite was tested well this weekend.  I'll make the necessary repairs and rebuilds and the next trip should be even better.

The next camping location is a toss up between Natchez Trace State Park and Paris Landing State Park.

Leaving Today!

Today is the day.  Frostbite is just hours away from embarking on her first adventure.  As predicted, I had wonderful intentions of packing the camper last night before I lowered her for the last time but I spent all the daylight doing other things to get her ready so all my intentions went straight out the window.

First, the awning.  Yes, it is in one piece.  There is about a 2 -3 inch tear near the front edge.  I'll do a quickie duct tape repair this weekend.  All the things I've read about awnings being complicated and non-intuitive to set up were completelyy correct.  There were telescoping poles of all sizes and no obvious way to put them together.  Once unrolled, there was a large metal bar that ran the length of the font end.  Attached to this bar were two sets of metal poles that folded out.  One set folded down to ground, the other folded back towards the camper.  The ones that folded to the ground were each in two pieces.  They connected via a small button that popped through a hole in the larger of the 2 poles;  the common way poles attach. 

The poles that folded back towards the camper were three to a set.  On each set, the three poles slid into each other telescope style but the lacked both the little buttons and the holes in which they could connect together with.  I figured it was safe to assume that they weren't meant to connect this way and it wasn't a case of the poles being damaged.  There was Velcro along the length of both sides of the awning that didn't seem to attach to anything.  I never figured out what that was for.  I hope it's not important.

I goofed with this thing for half an hour mixing and matching poles trying to see how they could be assembled so that the awning would stand by itself.  I did notice that the side poles without holes or buttons had strange end pieces.  There was a little metal circle, not quite round, that spined around loosely at one end of each pole.  Continuing to goof around, I FINALLY realized that if you inserted that end into another pole and TWISTED it, the poles would lock together.  I also FINALLY noticed that there was a canvas "pocket" in the corners where the awning attached to the camper that the poles could set in. 

I manged to get it set up and attached to the camper.  I angled the front poles enough so that it could stand alone (remember, my driveway is on a hill.)  I need to have some rope and stakes to secure it when actually camping but I think it will work. 

I also put the strip decals on the side of Frostbite.  This, believe it or not, was extremely easy.  A neighbor let me borrow a pop-string that when stretched across the side of the camper at the right height (yes, I did measure this time!) and then pulled and "popped" against the side, left a straight blue chalk line.  I attached the decal along each side just underneath the chalk line and then wiped the chalk away.  It looks perfect.  I didn't take any pictures since light was slipping away but I plan to take a nice pic today of Frostbite attached to Bluebell just before the leave for the park.

I am very glad I did this today as I'm quite sure I looked like an idiot flopping around underneath the loose awning and staring stupidly at two poles in my hands wondering how in the hell they fit together.  I have no doubt that I'll be comic fodder for everyone at the campground this weekend but setting up the awning will be one less thing.

There is still a problem with the stupid awning bag.  As I mentioned in the post where I repaired the awning, the zipper is not present and there is nothing to keep the bag closed.  I did purchase some Velcro last night at Fred's but it was too dark to put it on last night.  Also, I rolled the awning up wrong and it was really too long to fit in the bag well.  I decided to use the stuff-it-in-anyway technique and it had the added bonus of wedging the awning in the bag so well that it won't come out despite not having the bag closed.  Sunday when we pack up to leave I hope to roll the awning up more carefully and correctly and attach the new Velcro to the bag so it will be more secure.  I sort of doubt that the self-stick aspect of the Velcro I bought will be strong enough for the heavy awning so I might have to sew it in.  I need to see if I can find some chain-mail gloves first, though.

Also at Fred's we bought a cheap coffee maker, some cooking utensils, and a cheap pot/pan set.  I found some rope that I can use to secure the awning but no tent stakes.  We picked up some simple spices and condiments to keep in Frostbite and some food items for the weekend.

Here is our menu for the weekend:

Friday supper:
hot dogs,hamburgers, chips

Saturday breakfast:
eggs, bacon, orange juice

Saturday lunch:
Park restaurant

Saturday supper:
Hobo dinners (beef patty, potatoes, carrots, onions wrapped in tin foil and laid on coals)

Sunday breakfast:
moon pies (yea, I know, we're not big breakfast eaters)

Curious as to our camping activities scheduled for Saturday?

We plan to go to wal-mart and get the tires rotated on Bluebell, she is long overdue.  While waiting for the car to be done, I hope to pick up some type of plastic containers to better organize and store our stuff in frostbite.  Not exactly "getting back to nature" I know but it needs done and sometimes you just have to do what needs done.  Future camping trips will hopefully involve more campground activities such as fishing, boat rentals, hiking trails.  This is all in my plans.

This weekend, though, is primarily just to break Frostbite in.

Friday/Saturday evening?

We plan to sit around on our butts, drinking, and listening to some Delta Blues.  We hope to get our netflix movie in the mail today so we will watch that on a laptop inside the air conditioned camper.

Is this really camping?

It is for us and, let's go ahead and get this out in the open right now, I don't give a rat's butt if anyone claims that it isn't.  I have no intention of sleeping without AC.  I have no intention of sleeping on the ground.  I have no desire to be without a laptop.  To be honest, if I had a more money, a bigger tow vehicle, and even more money, I would have bought a hard-walled trailer camper.  Frostbite, despite the fact that I've grown to love her, is a compromise of necessity.

My pre-packing plans were shattered last night so we will do the typical Holder style of grabbing up things at the last minute and throwing them in the car.  Frostbite is down and I'm not going to set her up this afternoon to pack her any better.  I hope to leave as early as possible to be sure that I have enough time to set her up completely before it starts to get dark.  I also have to factor in an extra half hour for cursing and backing the thing up into a campsite.

I'll be sure to take plenty of pictures of the inside and out.  Especially, to show off the new curtains which are perfect.

If we survive the weekend, I'll consider it a success. 

Wish us luck!

Just One More Day

It rained all day yesterday.  The night before saw some pretty strong thunderstorms.  Since it was raining, I couldn't get to the awning task like I had hoped but I did get inside Frostbite (she was high and dry!) and did a bit of work.

I took down the curtains and put them in a zipper bag my seamstress left me.  It is perfect for storing them in.  I plan to take down the curtains and store them in the bag between every camping trip.  I figure it would just protect them better as they could easily get torn when the roof is lowered and the camper is packed up.  It really isn't that much extra trouble anyway. 

The curtains look GREAT by the way.  My seamstress did an outstanding job!  I really wanted to have some pictures of them for this post but it was rainy and dark yesterday and the photos would look so much better on a sunny day.  I hope to get good pics this weekend of the new curtains.  She somehow managed to make them all match and fit just like I ordered.

Starting with the AC exhaust and the counter top, I opted not to take it apart again and reattach the extra dowel that I forgot to put back on.  It was solid and that fix can wait for another day.  I reattached the cabinet doors and called it good enough for government work.  I did have to mend my hand made adaptor for the exhaust pipe at the floor.  It had come loose when I was tugging and bending the hose to run it through the holes in the box.  The duct tape seems to be doing a wonderful job.  I even taped the ends of the insulation down around the connections at either end of the hose.

The lights all came on.  I don't know why they went off last week but they were on and stayed on.  I stepped outside and even noticed that the porch light was working.  I have never see this before!  I tested the switch and it turns on and off like it should.  This is particularly surprising since the plastic cover has a large hole at the top roughly a couple of inches wide allowing it to rain directly inside the light.  I had given it up for dead months ago.  I suppose I should put a piece of duct tape over the hole once I lower the roof.  That will probably make it stop working though.

I didn't get the door threshold down either.  Maybe this afternoon if there is time.  I suppose it won't hurt anything to camp without one once.

The day before yesterday when I was repairing the awning, I also used the drill wire brush to scrape the paint off of the metal along the side so it is nice and shiny again.

I also snapped some shots of the new door latch since I painted.

from afar

closer look of the outside

inside

It's not beautiful, I realize, but it works and it locks with a key and it is much better than the hunk of crap that was there before.

Hopefully, it will stop raining today and I can address the awning.  I plan to make a list of things we need to pack in the camper and add to it as I think of things today. 

That's the plan anyway.  More realistically, I won't get to it and we'll wind up rushing and packing tomorrow right before we leave probably forgetting 50% of things we need.

Should be fun.