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| Busy summer- trip reports- longer post [message #213038] |
Tue, 02 July 2013 14:24 |
lqqkatjon
Messages: 2324
Registered: October 2010
Location: St. Cloud, MN
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I put some pictures on my blog. sorta in a hurry, so pretty sloppy.
http://www.lqqkatjon.blogspot.com/
I spent most of late April, into May working on the GMC.
New carpet and Pad, re did the upholstery, blocked the exhaust cross over, installed Paterson distributor. and added Zip dee awning, and unplanned I had to change out the Radiator, just after Memorial day.
Our first trip for the year was Mid May. We just took the GMC about 40 minutes from Home and camped at Charles Lindbergh state park. it is located right adjacent to Charles Lindbergh's childhood home. However the tours to that did not start for a couple weeks. Locally there is a small zoo, and a few other things to see. My wife drove the car, so we ran around that weekend in the car, and came home early sunday. GMC seemed to run just great, and I was happier that the fuel guage was not on E when I got home.
Memorial Day weekend was my "Dune buggy weekend" Group of us try to get together a few times a year and run our Buggies out in the woods. This spring trip was to be simple. Camp at my friends place for the weekend. Run the buggies up to a state forest on Saturday. after a frantic week piecing my buggy back together, when I was ready to leave, in the rain, I noticed it steaming. Looks like the radiator sprung a spray.
I decided to leave anyway, I had all all night to get there, and a full tank of water. But it never got warm on my drive out there. less then an hour. Had a great weekend, Keith came out with his GMC, and got to experience riding shotgun in my buggy with me driving. He said he would come again, so I must not have scared him enough.
Monday morning, I tried to fix the radiator, only to make it worse. so I was on the hunt that week for a fix, because we had plans to attend the Greater Midwest Classics work rally the next Friday.
I was able to find a good used radiator, and get it shipped to me on friday. the work rally got postponed, so Friday night I had just enough time to get back to my friends, get the radiator swapped, and get home.
We left with the family Saturday to attend the work rally for a night. Had a real great time and the hosts were wonderful. My dodge rims did not allow me to get my alingment checked there, but we did lower the ride height a little, but found mine is still high, so i might need some different pork chops.
We had to head out of there on sunday, because my daughter had her 5 year old birthday party sunday night. GMC flew home, running great.
That same weekend, I had my friend Jeff swinging by zip dee to pick up an 18' long "flex key assembly" so I can get the zip dee awining I bought installed. So that following Saturday, my wife had family from England visit, and her "uncle" helped me finish mounting the awning. We also used the GMC in our driveway as a guest house for my sister-in-law and her fiance.
Then the weekend after that, we took the GMC to a Wedding in wisconsin. Camping at a friend of the grooms place, where the wedding was going to be up on a bluff, only accessible by ATV. I borrowed a trailer, and a polaris ranger, and put my buggy and the ranger on a trailer behind the GMC. I had forgot I broke the circuit breaker to my electric trailer brake controller, so after fixing that just before leaving, we were ready go go. It was pretty hot trip inside the coach. My dash air blows no air. and I should be running the onan, and roof air, but just do not like to do that because of fire worry, and gas mileage. I think the trailer was a little heavy, because of how the GMC pulled. but it still did it. We got into some hills in wisconsin, that it slowed down to a crawl going up. But we got there and back with no problem.
First night there, we did not stay in the coach. it was hot and humid, and we were plugged in with 200' of cord, and the A/C would not run on that. The onan insulation is gone, so it is pretty loud to have run. it cooled down the next day, and we stayed in it the other two nights. Loved having the awning. even though i had to take it in a couple times, and move stuff i had under it, because of some severe storms that came through.
the trip home, it ran like a champ, and i took a more flatter route home, so it was easier on the coach, and the gas consumption. the trip down there I got 6mpg. I noticed a big dip in the fuel guage after going through those hills. I am pretty sure i did alot better coming home.
GMC has been parked since that trip. I might use it for a couple short one night trips over the 4th.
I do need to change out my CV boots. I have been using the hole in them as a grease zirk the past few trips. I think i will tackle that on friday. I am not sure what happened, I replaced the boots when I first got the coach 3 years back.
life is good in the gmc.
Jon Roche
75 palm beach
EBL EFI, manny headers, Micro Level, rebuilt most of coach now.
St. Cloud, MN
http://lqqkatjon.blogspot.com/
[Updated on: Tue, 02 July 2013 14:27] Report message to a moderator |
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