Total Rebuild of a 1979 Dodge Class C

[oldtrucker63]

I would say some of you have seen the start of this build that my brother bgriffey had posted, Well I have now bought the RV from him and plan to post the pixs of the build I have found a lot of rot in this RV I have torn out everything on the inside and have the rear opened up and the skin off the lower driver side, I will be buying a camera for my wife for christmas and im sure she will take the pixs if I can learn HOW to post them on here, Please remember its winter here in Kentucky so it will be slow but we will keep the pixs coming, Like I said this will be a total build from floor to walls and roof and custom inside build so I would appreciate all the help I can get this will be my first build and I will be learning as I go so any info will help. THANKS......Tony Griffey.

A new RV can be very expensive and if you already own an outdated RV then you should just consider a complete RV remodel which can be a significant amount of money cheaper than the cost of a brand new model. If you are retired and use your RV to travel then why not save the money for your travels rather than on spending a large chunk of money on a brand new travelling vacation home. When you decide to have an RV remodel done you can have your old model completely gutted and rebuilt to look just like a newer RV and when the work is done you will not even recognize your old mobile home. Going about having a new RV to travel in this way can save you thousands of dollars and you will not have to worry about the payments on a brand new RV home. Many retired people are travelling this way nowadays so they can travel the country and be comfortable while doing it, and there are many others that own these vehicles that they will take on summer family camping trips. The RV’s that are made today are unbelievable and have all of the luxuries of home at a fraction of the size, these make it great fir families and retired folks to travel comfortably, and having an RV remodel done you can make your old RV look just like a brand new one.

Statistics show that the amount of registered RV homes on the road is growing steadily every year, and much of this is due to the baby boomer generation retiring and wanting to travel the country in comfort and style. Having an RV remodel can make your RV brand new. Some things you may want to consider is having all new beds and appliances put in. Since RV appliances are smaller than your normal home kitchen appliances they are much cheaper, and a complete RV remodel will probably cost you anywhere from $5,000 to $12,000, depending on how many changes are being done. The latter price could even be a little more if you are having your RV completely gutted and redesigned. It will still save you a lot of money over purchasing a new RV home. Another thing to consider during your RV remodel is if you plan on just remodeling the inside or if you want to have the exterior redone as well, and if this is the case the project will cost more money but will still be cheaper than buying a new RV. Most of these vacationing and traveling vehicles have a type of siding on them, and the more modern ones are sometimes made of more durable fibreglasses and plastics, these materials are very nice since you do not ever have to worry about rusting.

If you plan on getting a loan out for this remodeling job then you will first want to get various estimates, much like a home remodeling project. Once you get all the estimates you want you can then apply for the amount of money through your financial institution or credit union. The amount of money you need should not be hard for you to get approved for, especially if you have good credit. If you are a retired individual you most likely can take the money out of your pension or 401 funds, and this would be your best bet due to interest rates. Usually the place where you originally bought the RV can do the remodel for you as well, and if they cannot they can usually refer you to someone who can do the job for you. With the popularity of these vehicles constantly growing there are also many new dealerships and shops that specialize in these vacation vehicles. Having a comfortable vehicle to travel year round in or to just vacation in yearly is a great asset and can also be a great stress reliever. It is also a very popular vehicle for families to use on family camping trips, and the nice thing is that if the kids want to rough it while camping they can just sent their tents up right outside the RV.

[oldtrucker63]

Well still not any more work on the RV, Bought a Old junky Looking Craftsman LT 4000 and been working on it and still working on the inside of the house.

[oldtrucker63]

I could work on the RV this weekend and so far it's rained, OH well she (Jolene) is still sitting out here waiting on me.:B

[oldtrucker63]

Should be back on the RV by next week.:B

[oldtrucker63]

We just need to finish the bathroom and we are waiting on the carpet guy's to get here and install the carpet, It will be over soon.:Z

[oldtrucker63]

The living room and computer room.

[oldtrucker63]

Here is some photos of the house, We are just about finished.

The Kitchen,








We still have to paint over the top of the cabinets.

[oldtrucker63]

falconbrother wrote:
The manager at the O'reillys store here actually knows RV's pretty well. In my experience O'reillys is the place to go for hard to find parts, or easy to find parts that the children at the other stores cant find, that is sitting on the shelf three feet away.

I needed a simple P-30 motorhome master cylinder. I drove up to NAPA. The guy looked on the computer and said they didn't have it. He didn't seem to know much about cars/trucks, etc.. I think he knew how to look at the computer. Every time I have gone to Oreillys they seem to do whatever they need to do to find me a part. They once took me in the back and let me look at the parts to see if I could find one. That was probably a violation of company policy or something. Anyway, I always try Oreillys first for parts. Only once did they not have what I needed at a local store.

Yeah it's good to have a few still left, Although they did not call me back, He said he would call the factory Monday and call me, I have been to busy with the house to drive to town yet, I guess I will have to go there in person to find out, I'm just about ready to order the factory manifold so I can just hurry and get her going.

[falconbrother]

The manager at the O'reillys store here actually knows RV's pretty well. In my experience O'reillys is the place to go for hard to find parts, or easy to find parts that the children at the other stores cant find, that is sitting on the shelf three feet away.

I needed a simple P-30 motorhome master cylinder. I drove up to NAPA. The guy looked on the computer and said they didn't have it. He didn't seem to know much about cars/trucks, etc.. I think he knew how to look at the computer. Every time I have gone to Oreillys they seem to do whatever they need to do to find me a part. They once took me in the back and let me look at the parts to see if I could find one. That was probably a violation of company policy or something. Anyway, I always try Oreillys first for parts. Only once did they not have what I needed at a local store.

[oldtrucker63]

skimask wrote:
I gotta throw a bit in about header vs stock manifolds...
From my reading around the intar-webs about 440's, performance, and all that, headers are only going to help a guy out in a heavy RV in one place...wide open throttle and maximum RPM...where the stock manifolds start to lose flow. Seems like the 440 wants a bit of back-pressure to keep from detonating itself to death and keeping exhaust valve seats and exhaust valves themselves from burning up.
As far as talking to the guys at "O-Reilly's", well, hopefully you got lucky and are talking with somebody that knows something about something vs. the punks that only know small block Chevy's/Ford's (or worse, fart-can mufflers for late 90's Honda's) and such. As far as I know, there's only a couple of manufacturers out there that make headers to fit the Dodge RV/Van chassis types and still have clearance for everything.
Like I said, I switched my exhaust from 2" pipe (manifolds to Y-pipe) and 2-1/4" pipe (Y-pipe to outlet) over to 2-1/4" (manifolds to Y-pipe) and 3" from there, thru the muffler to the outlet, and added a 4-1/2" resonator tip. My exhaust sounds great IMO, cackles just enough to get my attention when I get on it full throttle, but just kinda blubs at idle.
I guess in short, if you can find them for a decent price (probably not, but ya never know) and if they fit (if those guys at O'Reilly's actually do any good), well, there ya go.

Otherwise, what is your generator rated at? Have you tried to load the heck out of it to help make sure it won't die on you down the highway? I've got a 5500watt (8500 surge) generator. I took 4 of those 1500watt heaters and turned them all on at the same time. Generator coughed for a split second and kept going. Roof A/C will probably pull something like, what, 2,000 watts on startup for a couple of seconds and level off at about 1,000 watts or so? And the TV maybe another 100 or so watts.

And BTW, I like the color of the woodwork. That deep brown wood behind the TV looks great.

Yeah I guess I will find out just how much they know about there work Monday, Like you said Probably not, But I can still get the stock manifold and I only need the passenger side My driver side is good, So if I can not get something going on headers I will order that stock one for $212 and order all new studs and bolts (Both sides) and be back on the road in no time, Although there is only two or three that make headers for the 70 dodge RV I think there is a pair of shorty's out there that will bolt up and fit with out any problem, It might be for a 1970 dodge (Whatever) and still fit this RV The shorty headers that exit to the rear I think will work, Only time will tell, And I also don't have to much time, I want to get on the road, We'll see Maybe headers Maybe stock, But back on the road for sure Right. I like the way you done your, Sound great and I just might go this rout.

[Gene_in_NE]

Hedman Headers were around and popular in the 60's.

[skimask]

I gotta throw a bit in about header vs stock manifolds...
From my reading around the intar-webs about 440's, performance, and all that, headers are only going to help a guy out in a heavy RV in one place...wide open throttle and maximum RPM...where the stock manifolds start to lose flow. Seems like the 440 wants a bit of back-pressure to keep from detonating itself to death and keeping exhaust valve seats and exhaust valves themselves from burning up.
As far as talking to the guys at "O-Reilly's", well, hopefully you got lucky and are talking with somebody that knows something about something vs. the punks that only know small block Chevy's/Ford's (or worse, fart-can mufflers for late 90's Honda's) and such. As far as I know, there's only a couple of manufacturers out there that make headers to fit the Dodge RV/Van chassis types and still have clearance for everything.
Like I said, I switched my exhaust from 2" pipe (manifolds to Y-pipe) and 2-1/4" pipe (Y-pipe to outlet) over to 2-1/4" (manifolds to Y-pipe) and 3" from there, thru the muffler to the outlet, and added a 4-1/2" resonator tip. My exhaust sounds great IMO, cackles just enough to get my attention when I get on it full throttle, but just kinda blubs at idle.
I guess in short, if you can find them for a decent price (probably not, but ya never know) and if they fit (if those guys at O'Reilly's actually do any good), well, there ya go.

Otherwise, what is your generator rated at? Have you tried to load the heck out of it to help make sure it won't die on you down the highway? I've got a 5500watt (8500 surge) generator. I took 4 of those 1500watt heaters and turned them all on at the same time. Generator coughed for a split second and kept going. Roof A/C will probably pull something like, what, 2,000 watts on startup for a couple of seconds and level off at about 1,000 watts or so? And the TV maybe another 100 or so watts.

And BTW, I like the color of the woodwork. That deep brown wood behind the TV looks great.

[oldtrucker63]

Here is the Doug Thorley headers from $438 free shipping

$438.00

[oldtrucker63]

I think I have found what I have been searching for, Check this out.

1979 Motor-home headers

[oldtrucker63]

And if I can not hurry and find a set of headers to fit, I can still go back factory with these here, But I really want the header sound.

Manifolds.

[Gene_in_NE]

I had an old Ford 8N tractor and had a guy weld the exhaust manifold and then mill the mating surface flat. Much more cost effective for me.