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To buy or not to buy? - Printable Version +- Wanderlodge Gurus - The Member Funded Wanderlodge Forum (http://www.wanderlodgegurus.com) +-- Forum: Yahoo Groups Archive (/forumdisplay.php?fid=61) +--- Forum: WanderlodgeForum (/forumdisplay.php?fid=63) +--- Thread: To buy or not to buy? (/showthread.php?tid=4659) Pages: 1 2 |
To buy or not to buy? - Eric Johnson - 04-11-2007 23:43 RW, We've owned an '84 FC 35 since 2000. I think you've described a coach that sounds like a pretty good deal for the money. Look carefully at the floor plan and storage before you make the final decision. Getting someone with experience to inspect the Bird would be a good idea. Our personal traveling preferences for our 35 footer are as follows: 1 person - happy to live in the coach for an extended period 2 people - happy to live in the coach for 2-3 weeks 4 adults - happy to live in the coach for 1-2 nights Bear in mind that you're top speed on the road will be around 60-65 mph on the flat and considerably slower on steep grades. This is slow compared to many other coaches but your reward is a bit better fuel consumption of around 7-8 mpg. You should plan on making regular expenditures to maintain the coach. In the six years we've owned the FC, our costs for storage, insurance, fuel, maintenance and upgrades are just about equal to what we paid for the Bird to begin with. Of course, had we plunked down the money for a new coach, the depreciation during this time would have easily exceeded our expenditures and we wouldn't have enjoyed the advantages of owning a motorhome of this quality. When we evaluate if this was a good use of the money, we mentally balance what we've spent against the trips and experiences we've had. If we use it regularly, say 1-2 trips a month, it feels like we've made a good decision. If we let it sit in storage for very long, then we start to doubt what we're doing. Overall, our experience has been that there are surely cheaper ways to travel, but no better ways to travel, than in our FC. Good luck with your decision. Eric in San Antonio 84FC35SBWL2 --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "littlehouseonprairie1" <murphy4@...> wrote: > > I'm on the verge of purchasing a 1984 FC33 rear bath. The coach is in > excellent condition with recent interior remodel, new paint job, new > generator, good mechanical maintenance, etc. The price is below $30k. > I'm a pretty good mechanic and fair electrician. I have two early > teen daughters and a loving wife I want to show the country to. My > question is this... is the cost and maintenance challenge of owning > one of these older birds worth the effort or do most people who buy on > eventually get overwhelmed and wish they had just gone fishing? I see > a lot of 4-figure repairs in the various notes going back and forth. > I guess I'm just a little paranoid at this point of making my fun too > much work. > > Any thoughts you have to offer will be appreciated. > > RW > To buy or not to buy? - Gregory OConnor - 04-12-2007 03:29 At 25K there is no mistake to make if you trade out. 3 years ago they were 25K and three years from now they will be 25k. The diff between a 30K deal and a 25K deal should be new tires and a full tank of bus juice. The cost to maintain is realized by every make RV. More money is spent working on Birds than Travcos because the total value of the maintained item justify the expense. One thing for sure is you will get an honest bias answer here. When you get to the point where you ask BB owners if a BB purchase is a good Idea, your mind is made up and you are looking for supporting replys. Murphy, buy it as long as the repaint is classic and not fleetwoodish!! Be sure to post a pic of the new bus! GregoryO'Connor 94ptRomolandCa --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "littlehouseonprairie1" <murphy4@...> wrote: > > I'm on the verge of purchasing a 1984 FC33 rear bath. The coach is in > excellent condition with recent interior remodel, new paint job, new > generator, good mechanical maintenance, etc. The price is below $30k. > I'm a pretty good mechanic and fair electrician. I have two early > teen daughters and a loving wife I want to show the country to. My > question is this... is the cost and maintenance challenge of owning > one of these older birds worth the effort or do most people who buy on > eventually get overwhelmed and wish they had just gone fishing? I see > a lot of 4-figure repairs in the various notes going back and forth. > I guess I'm just a little paranoid at this point of making my fun too > much work. > > Any thoughts you have to offer will be appreciated. > > RW > To buy or not to buy? - Henry Jay Hannigan - 04-12-2007 04:00 --- RW: Price seems OK....Make sure you will be happy with the REAR BATH MODEL as the bedding area is different than most of the FC's. I've heard the rear baths are more difficult to sell also. If a rear bath fits your needs..no problem...have you compared it to the SIDE BATH model BEFORE you buy?? Just my 2 cents worth to you. Regards & LOL Hank Hannigan 90SP36 In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Gregory OConnor" > > At 25K there is no mistake to make if you trade out. 3 years ago they > were 25K and three years from now they will be 25k. The diff between a > 30K deal and a 25K deal should be new tires and a full tank of bus > juice. The cost to maintain is realized by every make RV. More money > is spent working on Birds than Travcos because the total value of the > maintained item justify the expense. > One thing for sure is you will get an honest bias answer here. When > you get to the point where you ask BB owners if a BB purchase is a good > Idea, your mind is made up and you are looking for supporting replys. > > Murphy, buy it as long as the repaint is classic and not fleetwoodish!! > Be sure to post a pic of the new bus! > > GregoryO'Connor > 94ptRomolandCa > > --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "littlehouseonprairie1" > <murphy4@> wrote: > > > > I'm on the verge of purchasing a 1984 FC33 rear bath. The coach is in > > excellent condition with recent interior remodel, new paint job, new > > generator, good mechanical maintenance, etc. The price is below $30k. > > I'm a pretty good mechanic and fair electrician. I have two early > > teen daughters and a loving wife I want to show the country to. My > > question is this... is the cost and maintenance challenge of owning > > one of these older birds worth the effort or do most people who buy on > > eventually get overwhelmed and wish they had just gone fishing? I see > > a lot of 4-figure repairs in the various notes going back and forth. > > I guess I'm just a little paranoid at this point of making my fun too > > much work. > > > > Any thoughts you have to offer will be appreciated. > > > > RW > > > To buy or not to buy? - Wilhelmus Schreurs - 04-12-2007 06:40 RW: We purchased our coach a year ago, and on our maiden voyage drove it from Florida to northern B.C. This voyage was without incident, thanks to Randy Dupree, who did a lot of work to ready the coach. The learning curve has been steep, and still lots more to learn. Unlike you, I am okay with the electrical side and weak on the mechanical. We chose the rear side bed as my wife did not want to sleep alone. I think the rear bath would be a good choice for you, as your teenagers can have seperate beds and then there is a double bed up front. There are pros and cons to both layouts, and it is only you and your family can decide if it is the right one for you. I am a bus nut, but for the money, design, installed equipment and layout you cannot beat the Wanderlodge. Also the biggest, SAFETY, is the best. Good luck on your choice, hopefully you become a bird member. Where on the praire are you from?? Bill 84FC35SB Terrace, B.C. littlehouseonprairie1 <murphy4@...> wrote: I'm on the verge of purchasing a 1984 FC33 rear bath. The coach is in excellent condition with recent interior remodel, new paint job, new generator, good mechanical maintenance, etc. The price is below $30k. I'm a pretty good mechanic and fair electrician. I have two early teen daughters and a loving wife I want to show the country to. My question is this... is the cost and maintenance challenge of owning one of these older birds worth the effort or do most people who buy on eventually get overwhelmed and wish they had just gone fishing? I see a lot of 4-figure repairs in the various notes going back and forth. I guess I'm just a little paranoid at this point of making my fun too much work. Any thoughts you have to offer will be appreciated. RW Bill 84 FC 35 SB "$quanderlodge" Terrace, B.C. Canada --------------------------------- The best gets better. See why everyone is raving about the All-new Yahoo! Mail. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] To buy or not to buy? - brad barton - 04-12-2007 11:13 RW, Our first coach was a 1984 FC-35 with the side bath, twin sofas up front and corner bed in the back. I agree 33' seems a little short for four people but power/weight ratio may give you a little more pull. We used our 84 Bird with our son and daughter who were both in High School at the time (a number of shorter trips and a 2-week great circle vacation through KS, SD, ID, OR, CA, AZ, back to TX). The sofas were wide enough up front that we never had to pull out the streetside jacknife bed. The curbside sofa had deep back bolsters that revealed plenty of sleeping width. And the bolsters, when placed on the dash, blocked the view from outside without having to pull down the blinds or curtains. We liked the overall size and balance of the side bath. While the floor space was pretty tight, the shower was more than adequate. We really liked the layout. Later we, too had a 1986 Newell, 38'. We liked the big fixed table around the two forward chairs and the 8V92, overall drive, ride and handling were great. But parts were getting hard to find and it was becoming a money pit. Air ride and park leveling tanks, lines and valves were leaky and complicated and the dash air never worked right. We are glad to be BB owners again (first month..still in punch list stage). Fit and finish and overall solid feel of the coach is superior to the Newell. Brad Barton 00LXiDFW bbartonwx@... >From: "Dan" >Reply-To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com >To: >Subject: Re: [WanderlodgeForum] To buy or not to buy? >Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2007 02:18:55 -0500 > >That is interesting, Newell had a wide body in 1986 and Wanderlodge waited >until 1988. >Dan >81RB33 >Jackson, MS > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Troy Tikalsky > To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 11:08 PM > Subject: Re: [WanderlodgeForum] To buy or not to buy? > > > My first coach was a 1983 FC33SB with a single couch and 2 barrel chairs >in front and a queen bed in the rear. I have 2 daughters that were not >happy sleeping in the same bed and were not shy telling us repeatedly. The >lack of closet space and the side bathroom really makes the coach feel >cramped inside with 4 people. There is not much outside storage either. I >was searching for a 35 foot rear bath model with the intention of making >bunks above the rear beds. I ended buying a Newell 40' wide body with dual >couches in the front and now the family tells me how much more they like >this coach on every trip and no more fighting about sharing a bed! I took >the whole family with when buying the Newell and before buying asked each >of them if they would be happy with the sleeping arrangements and layout. A >happy family makes traveling and vacations much more enjoyable. > > Troy Tikalsky > Waconia, MN > 1986 Newell > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Dan > To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 7:07 PM > Subject: Re: [WanderlodgeForum] To buy or not to buy? > > Any thoughts? 1) I think a 33 is too short for four people. It is enough >for a couple or small kids but you may wish for more room. 2) an oil sample >is important to rule out hidden engine problems 3) I think you should set >aside 10-20% of the purchase price for repairs and unexpected expenses 4) a >good mechanic and fair electrician should have no trouble keeping it >running. > > Dan > 81RB33 > Jackson, MS > ----- Original Message ----- > From: littlehouseonprairie1 > To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 6:07 PM > Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] To buy or not to buy? > > I'm on the verge of purchasing a 1984 FC33 rear bath. The coach is in > excellent condition with recent interior remodel, new paint job, new > generator, good mechanical maintenance, etc. The price is below $30k. > I'm a pretty good mechanic and fair electrician. I have two early > teen daughters and a loving wife I want to show the country to. My > question is this... is the cost and maintenance challenge of owning > one of these older birds worth the effort or do most people who buy on > eventually get overwhelmed and wish they had just gone fishing? I see > a lot of 4-figure repairs in the various notes going back and forth. > I guess I'm just a little paranoid at this point of making my fun too > much work. > > Any thoughts you have to offer will be appreciated. > > RW > > ---------------------------------------------------------- > > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.446 / Virus Database: 269.2.0/756 - Release Date: 4/10/2007 >10:44 PM > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > >------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.446 / Virus Database: 269.2.0/756 - Release Date: 4/10/2007 >10:44 PM > > >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > _________________________________________________________________ Canât afford to quit your job? â Earn your AS, BS, or MS degree online in 1 year. http://www.classesusa.com/clickcount.cfm?id=866145&goto=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.classes\ usa.com%2Ffeaturedschools%2Fonlinedegreesmp%2Fform-dyn1.html%3Fsplovr%3D866143 |