Anyone interested in 83 Pace Arrow Tear down and Rebuild?

I have to say I've picked up some tips along the way through his materials testing. I totally agree with his wanting to just do it right when he's gotten that far tearing it out. Being 6'4" I seriously considered raising the roof on my 36' Class A. I ended up not doing so, but did run a ridge line of foam above the roof frame for the exact reason of avoiding the flat roof. I have been adding an additional layer of insulation on the walls and ceiling which has made a noticeable improvement in the climate control.

Personally I have enjoyed the occasional jaunt through daily life, and learning more about the person who is doing the work. We all have life that distracts us from our pet projects; that doesn't keep us from thinking about the next steps.

I really appreciate how far he is taking this project. While it isn't a rebuild thread, it is a renovation with the craftsman making it his own. Obviously this is a labor of love and not something he's looking to flip for a profit. I get that he is building this the way he thinks it should be, learning from the mistakes of the profit-driven factory.

Personally I am very interested to see how it turns out with the mini-split HVAC. I have installed several, and they are MUCH more efficient than any rooftop unit. They're almost silent, and so efficient that you can certainly run it off an inverter with enough capacity. I've considered replacing the rooftop A/Cs on my rig with a ductless mini-split. They're heat-pumps as well so you could do away with the need for a furnace with the added insulation.

Pay attention it’s his niece not his daughter. :)

When we first bought the motor home, I was dumber than a box of rocks, concerning all things "motor home" wise. Lol.

I am not sure that has changed much. You are a master carpenter and the King of "fix it" but calling this a "rebuild" is far from what's happening here. Yes, there will still be the same number of tires on the ground and the same basic chassis, but nothing, and I am not kidding when I say nothing, about this rebuild will have anything what-so-ever to do with a rebuild of an 83 Pace Arrow.
I am still addicted to this thread but only because it gets farther and farther from what us commoners know as a motorhome. I often show my wife the photo from the post that lists progress and she just shakes her head and asks if this person really has a wife! Shelves along the entire back wall but nowhere to put a cooktop or sink? Are these going to butt up against the shelves? Where's that fridge going again?
Don't get me wrong, I have learned stuff about stuff I will never have any use for over the course of these last 1 million or so posts, but I still hang in there. I feel like I should know a lot more about the daughter that keeps stealing Dad's time away from the forum but I do know too much about PT Cruisers, stains and planers than most anyone should have to learn from somewhere like here.
You really cannot take this thread seriously as the vehicle being built is not like anything anyone else would want to duplicate. Just look at the shelving setup! What? How does that kind of shelving on both sides of the cooking and prep areas allow for real life usage? Shelving on the wall behind the cook top? Behind the sink? (Hopefully he does have a plan for a sink). No roof penetrations? A/C hanging off the side of the coach? The window in the back that's not sentimental? Rounded here, flat there and some cosmetic thing to make it look "not so terribly bad"?
It weird that this thread still fascinates me. What fascinates me is where it started and where it's headed. I don't believe that even fulltimer would have seen the course that this "rebuild" (again, not a rebuild has taken. He/she has kept this tread interesting and I love the new posts (unless they are about the PT Cruiser, the daughter, the lack of new information or the random LOL post). I know he/she believes that he/she "must" post everyday to keep himself/herself activately engaged but I don't see where any harm would be done my simply not posting anything on a day where there was nothing to post.

I had a 1994 Pace Arrow on a P30
It was the biggest POS lol
I did everything to that chassis and still changed lanes all by itself.
The P30 chassis was never meant to be a rv chassis it was a potato chip delivery truck,
The air bags were added as bandaids to beef up the front end.

mikestock wrote:
I apologize for not reading the 622 previous pages and I'm sure this has been addressed. I hope the motor, transmission and other systems are not overlooked.

This reminds me of back when stores used to sell suits with two pairs of pants so it could serve as a sports coat as well as a suit coat. I'll bet not too many of you remember this, but it was a common practice way back when.

I got me a nice, brand new, wool, top of the line, suit like this, for almost $100. I smoked, at the time and accidentally burned a large hole in the front of the coat, ruining it beyond repair.

I hope you don't do all this work and burn a hole in your coat.

I apologize for not reading the 622 previous pages....

Well, I am just shocked! Lol...

I don't blame anyone for not wanting to start at the beginning. That's a lot of reading to do...

I also hope I don't burn a hole in my coat!

Transmission I replaced a number of years ago. Engine still runs good, but it wouldn't hurt to have a little freshening up.

Engine is a standard Chevy 454, and the transmission is a standard Turbo 400.

The transmission is not difficult to replace, nor expensive, if I do the work of remove and replace.

Engine is same deal. More difficult for R&R, but depending on how it's freshened, can be reasonably priced or outrageous.

I apologize for not reading the 622 previous pages and I'm sure this has been addressed. I hope the motor, transmission and other systems are not overlooked.

This reminds me of back when stores used to sell suits with two pairs of pants so it could serve as a sports coat as well as a suit coat. I'll bet not too many of you remember this, but it was a common practice way back when.

I got me a nice, brand new, wool, top of the line, suit like this, for almost $100. I smoked, at the time and accidentally burned a large hole in the front of the coat, ruining it beyond repair.

I hope you don't do all this work and burn a hole in your coat.

Brob wrote:
I like the idea of the black walnut; I recall the story of it being from your grandfather. Having the sentimental value in addition is great.

I built some cabinets for my home a few years back and I had baskets for drawers. The baskets had a wooden rim at the top and I affixed drawer slides to them. Made a really nice cabinet. I later built an outdoor bathroom and moved that cabinet to the outdoor bathroom; it's still in service today.

You mentioned a noticeable difference with the air bags; what was your observation? The airbags on my rig are currently inoperable; mine is a 36' coach on a P30 chassis with a MorRyde tag axle. It handles pretty well without the airbags, I'm wondering what new bags will do.

When we first bought the motor home, I was dumber than a box of rocks, concerning all things "motor home" wise. Lol.

Anyhow, while driving down the road, when a semi would come along side of us to pass us, about the time his front end would get to the rear of our coach, the front end of the coach would start heading towards the left. (I was in the driving lane, the semi was obviously in the passing lane).

It was significant enough that I had to make an adjustment with the steering wheel, and not just a tiny bit of adjustment.

About the time the front of the semi got to the center of the coach, then the front of the coach would start to head toward the right side of the road. More steering adjustment needed to try and keep 'er going straight.

Once the rear of the semi trailer got past the front of the coach, now the front end of the coach would start to (for lack of a better term, 'dive'), towards the left again.

It was all based on the air movement from the semi, and after realizing what was going on, it was easy to know about when the coach was going to dive one way or another.

One day while I was checking air in the rear tires, I noticed, at the front of the wheel well, a little air valve. Say what? Where does that go?

Crawling under the coach, following the air line, I discovered the rear air bags. Well! Let's add some air and see what happens. I put about 60 lbs in there, and it made a difference in handling when a semi would pass us. Not cured, but a definite difference.

Mr rocket science here never noticed that the front end also had air "valves" as well.

Eventually, I did notice, followed the air lines, and realized the air bags were inside the front springs. Ok, then.

After a little research, I put 40 lbs in the front pair, 60 in the rear, and it's time to go for a test spin on the nearby interstate.

All I could say is WOW!!!!! Almost zero movement of the coach when a semi would pass us. It was like driving a completely different coach.

Now, a semi comes along side of the coach, and little to no steering adjustment needed to keep 'er straight.

With the rear bags inflated to 60 - 70 lbs and the front at 40, keeps the rear of the coach up in the air just a little, but it handles like a dream.

That's been our experience with this coach. I've seen other P30's going down the highway, watched them when a semi passed them, and I instantly knew what they were going through. All over their lane, trying to keep it straight.

If yours doesn't do that, you are blessed.

I haven't verified it, but I've heard that the P30 came from the factory with air bags installed, and was part of the suspension package, and was necessary to handle properly.

Like I said, I haven't verified that, but it sure works that way with ours.

I like the idea of the black walnut; I recall the story of it being from your grandfather. Having the sentimental value in addition is great.

I built some cabinets for my home a few years back and I had baskets for drawers. The baskets had a wooden rim at the top and I affixed drawer slides to them. Made a really nice cabinet. I later built an outdoor bathroom and moved that cabinet to the outdoor bathroom; it's still in service today.

You mentioned a noticeable difference with the air bags; what was your observation? The airbags on my rig are currently inoperable; mine is a 36' coach on a P30 chassis with a MorRyde tag axle. It handles pretty well without the airbags, I'm wondering what new bags will do.

Wanderlost wrote:
Have you compared the weight of all this wood to what you removed? Kinda curious about how the whole weight, and weight distribution, is going to work out on that chassis and engine. Any upgrades there you'll need to consider, such as shocks, axles, tires, transmission, toad towing capacity, etc?

I have weighed a bunch of stuff that I took out, that I know won't be going back, so that has created some weight savings.

That allows me to use some heavier items going back in. I want to weigh this on a scale before putting a lot of heavier items back in, just to be sure where the weights are.,

I'll have to weigh each corner, to know exactly. Weighing an axle at a time and dividing by 2 doesn't give a real indication of where exact corner weights are.

I don't think I'll need any chassis upgrades, as I don't think it will be heavier than what it was.

This has air bags both front and rear, and I have never had to run them full of air, so it should be fine with the current suspension.

As a side note, I did find a drastic difference in handling between having very little air in the air bags, as opposed to having them properly inflated. The difference was night and day when being passed by a truck or in high cross winds.

FloridaRosebud wrote:

Brob wrote:
Looking good. What are you building the cabinets out of?

Funny story. I had bought a couple of the magnet holders sold at Harbor Freight as they were very inexpensive with an ITC sale. I had taken them out to the MH to be installed at a later time. When I went to get them to install I couldn't find them anywhere. Puzzled, I went inside the house and started looking in the couple places my wife puts things of mine that I bring inside that she finds less than aesthetically pleasing. As I was searching she came in and asked what I was looking for. I told her, and she pointed to the kitchen where she had just installed them by the stove. She "used a level and everything". She had gone to the MH to look for me, found the magnetic holders instead, and thought they'd be great in the house too! She said I could get another pair next time I went to Harbor Freight. I took this to mean it was a sanctioned trip for more tools!

Sounds like an endorsement to me!! :B

Al

Sounds the same to me as well! Lol.