I sold my boat for an RV?

[Ericb760]

Hello fellow RV'ers! I have been a sailboat owner for more than twenty years. In those years I have encountered every problem imaginable, from the head not working, to a total loss of electrical power during a Catalina Channel crossing. A job change to the SoCal desert prompted me to sell my last boat. My wife hails from a country where RV's do not exist, so when I showed her some new Class A's at my local dealer she was intrigued. However, a dose of reality revealed that a new Class A wasn't in my budget. After perusing Craigslist and FB Marketplace, and looking at nearly twenty different RV's (Class C's, A's, and TT) we opted to buy a well used, but well maintained 1989 Winnebago Chieftain 28 for a grand total of $4,000.

My reasoning for going so cheap is that I wanted to make sure that my wife actually enjoyed RVing before dropping some serious coinage.

Anyways, I hope that my years of boating will help me in this new endeavor. I am sure I will have plenty of questions as I dive in to my new (to me) toy.

Cheers!

Eric

 

[WinnieView]

Welcome to Winnie Owners, we are glad you joined us. :wavey:

 

[creativepart]

Welcome and good luck.

Let’s hope that the potential problems of a 30 year old vehicle don’t throw water on your eventual plans. (See what I did there?)

A 30-yr old sailboat is much easier to deal with.

I’m a former inland sailer. Progressing from a 14’ Hobie cat, to a Catalina 22 and finally an Irwin Citation 31. All were kept on a large lake in South Texas (Canyon Lake). A move to the mountains in 2000 forced the sale of the Citation. While in the mountains we started with a new but cheap TT and over the years moved up to bigger and better RVs until our current Class A.

 

[David_Laura]

My old Newport 27S had simple systems compared to the RV we just bought.

 

[Mike Owens]

My boat floats and catches fish to eat.

Welcome to the group.

 

[Ericb760]

Welcome and good luck.

Let’s hope that the potential problems of a 30 year old vehicle don’t throw water on your eventual plans. (See what I did there?)

A 30-yr old sailboat is much easier to deal with.

I’m a former inland sailer. Progressing from a 14’ Hobie cat, to a Catalina 22 and finally an Irwin Citation 31”. All were kept on a large lake in South Texas (Canyon Lake). A move to the mountains in 2000 forced the sale of the Citation. While in the mountains we started with a new but cheap TT and over the years moved up to bigger and better RVs until our current Class A.

I've owned and sailed plenty of 30 year old boats with their share of electrical gremlins. I figure an RV is basically a self contained "boat" that never gets wet. Like I said in my first post this RV has been maintained based on the three inch binder service history. Hard to believe I am only the third owner. It passed smog with flying colors! Now, to dig in and find what's wrong. I'll continue that venture in another thread...

 

[BCam]

You are absolutely correct, your boating experience will serve you well. I owned sailboats for years before transitioning to RVs, the last being a Catalina 30. It sounds like you made a great purchase.

By and large the systems are the same and trouble-shooting, repair and replacement will be second nature to you. One of my biggest beefs with the RV community is their love of gooping sealant on nice and thick until your roof looks like a flock of seagulls have been living on it. As a former boater, you know that it's the sealant between the fixture and the deck that counts, not five generations of additional sealant. Make this your first priority. And, although it's not boaty, read up on using Eternabond tape. Winnebago's specified sealant part # for roof fittings cross-references to Manus Bond 75 AM, available on Amazon. Many owners use the ubiquitous Dicor but it's made for rubber roofs, not fiberglass. I prefer to use Winnebago's recommended sealants.

Two priorities to research are treating your roof edges and making sure you don't have the dreaded Winnebago windshield leak. You'll find that the Google search box at the top of the forum page is the best way to search.

Here are some useful links:

http://www.winnieowners.com/forums/...s-and-hwh-levelers-slides-diagrams-19250.html

http://www.winnieowners.com/forums/f259/winnebago-service-tips-26543.html

Good luck.