1997 (Monaco) Beaver Brandywine 40M

[Dave_Pete]

Hello. Being the old classic RV kind of guy I am, I'm thinking of an old Class A purchase.

We've been considering a 3-5 year old quality motorhome. Something big, for longer term travel and more distant destinations. We have our little truck camper and a small fifthwheel for those other kinds of camping and for local stuff. In 2013, we had a 2013 Komfort TT and we're disappointed in the quality of build for new.

I just watched a YouTube video by an RV inspector lamenting the poor quality of many newer RVs. Partly due to corporate aquisition and reduction of quality for their bottom line, and partly due to fast and sloppy build due to work ethic, hurrying mentality, and pandemic era building concerns. She mentioned 2005 and older were built much better.

So - I went to a local RV dealer site and found an interesting older speciman. A 1997 (Monaco) Beaver Brandywine 40M with about 54,000 miles. According to JD Power it may be the 300HP or 330HP (I am assuming Cummins).

What has anybody to say about Beaver brand specifically (apparently purchased by Monaco around 1997), Monaco in general around this time (I understand they were pretty high quality), and the idea of buying and owning a big old ship like this, considering for the less costly original outlay, more can be spent on fuel costs than say a newer smaller, way more expensive outfit? 

[SuperBus]

I thought I would add a recent service cost in this post as a good example of what one can expect with older coaches.  I've read a lot of similar posts but often the real costs aren't shared.  I try and do all work myself (I can control the quality of the parts used and know the work was done right) but sometimes I just don't have the time to do it.  Case in point, my drive axle brakes were ready to be replaced.  We had a trip coming up and I wasn't able to get in the barn to do the work (something about working full time and having kids...).  Hence, I took it to a trusted shop for the work.  In the course of the inspection it was also discovered that there was a bad ball joint, a bad inversion valve, a bad delivery valve, and a leaking pressure switch.  Just labor was quoted over $7,000.   This example was a bit extreme due to the amount of labor it takes to access some of the bad parts, but its worth mentioning as it is in the realm of possibilities.  The handful of other times I have had to have someone else do the work it seems I can never get out of the shop for under $2,000 in labor, plus parts which can get expensive on these heavy chassis.

Enjoy that new truck!

[goodady]

Older Beaver RVs, especially when under Monaco, had a solid rep for quality. A '97 model with low mileage sounds promising. With the savings upfront, you can splurge on fuel for those epic trips.

[goodady]

You know, going for an older RV like that Beaver Brandywine can be a smart move. They're usually built to last, so you might score a tough one while saving some dough for those awesome adventures on the road.

[Dave_Pete]

Thank you SuperBus, that's very thoughtful advice.

As it turns out, the referred to unit has been sold. Probably just as well - it's 40' long! And like you said, going on 30 years old.

We also looked at the cheapest Class A on RVTrader.com nationwide, right here in our own backyard - a 1979 Winnebago Elandan II 27RT. 45 years old! Oh yeah, we researched the heck out of both! What a lot of fun that was, but I think we got it out of our systems. That unit was so cool! And not in terrible shape. Of course it needed EVERYTHING examined at least, and I already kind of tried that route wth a '70 Travco. I just need to control our sickness. And finish my current 1999 Forrest River Salem very fifthwheel. A short one but with kind of amazing space!

You see, I did a resto-mod on an 8' camper, a 1968 Travel Queen. We did a 1964 Roadrunner canned ham. And like I said, if I finish that fifthwheel, and fix up the old Dodge Ram, well, we'll be spending enough money on that.

Thanks again. Cheers!

(Boy, I sure hate this new forum site. Haven't been back here much at all in years and this new forum format wasn't a pleasant surprise at all). Cheers all!

[SuperBus]

I don't have any direct experience with Monacos or Beavers, but have the same understanding of the quality during that time period as you do.  I do however, have experience with owning an older, yet high quality coach.  The few pieces of advice I would offer are:

• Parts and information: Obviously, with it encroaching on 30 years old, some parts, mostly electronics, will be hard(er) to find.  Records, schematics, etc., may be hard to come across as well, complicating troubleshooting, etc., when something goes wrong
• Repairs:  Getting to this age, certain parts will just start to wear out, and they can be the expensive ones, either in cost or labor (air bags, hydraulic hoses, etc.)
• Labor: Given the above points, someone will need to work on it.  If it is well taken care of and you keep after things as they break, it won't get too bad too often, but just prepare yourself.  It will either be your time or your money.

All of that aside, I think owning an older, high-quality coach is a great thing.  A well cared for one, to boot, sure makes it cool.

[Dave_Pete]

All good advice. When we awoke from our fantasy dream we bought a new pickup instead. 🙂