Sailor Man's Coach: Then & Now
- Thread starter sailor man
- Start date
Perhaps...if you can make the fall GMCMI convention...you would condsider doing a tech session outlining the rebuilding of your coach? We'd love to see it.
Can you share with us the make/model of your fuel filters?
One point, your fuel pumps and fuel filter arrangement are very exposed to damage from road trash thrown up by the front tires and serious damage in an accident. Are you planning on providing some kind of protection for them?
My Birchaven came with an externally mounted fuel pump and filter and had a kludge cover that kept some of the sand and gravel from bombarding it, took 3 different tools to undo the cover.
I made a cover-mount from 2 pieces of large leg aluminum angle, one attached to the frame with cradles to hold the pump and filter, and the other angle was hinged at the bottom so it could swing up and cover the side.
The fronts of both angles were cut and bent so they sloped up towards the front leaving a small opening for the fuel line, and the hinged cover was held in place with springs inside aluminum gutter spike ferrules which acted as standoffs. The end of a paper clip was bent to form a hook which catches the spring to unhook it from the cover - semi-tool free, and is stored on the exposed underside of the hose clamp that holds the pump.
The arrangement keeps most of the debris away from the pump and filter - still surprises me how much gets thrown up in there.
Larry:
I would love to do that. My largest concern would be if I could fit everything in a single session.
Perhaps I would try to do an overview and then do additional sessions that specialize on particular sectors.
As an architect, I had to do many public presentations. It's been more than 20 years since i have done that, so I am a bit nervous thinking about it.
Where and when will the fall GMCMI Convention take place?
I hope that it is not to far away from Florida.
I am currently in the design and installation phase. I am afraid that with all of these modifications, the learning curve will be arduous and long. I hope that I will not have to drive the coach a long distance to get to the convention.
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This filter is marine grade, so it is much more robust than the normal automobile filters.
I actually have been thinking about some kind of debris protection. I think that the the filter is the most vulnerable component.
All of the hoses are high pressure fuel lines, so they are much more robust than the normal low pressure ones.
All of the fasteners, hose clamps, valves, and plumbing fittings are stainless steel. They are quite strong and corrosion resistant..
The black plastic mounting plate is Starboard and nothing sticks to it. It is also waterproof and uv resistant.
This is the latest version of the kitchen area. The photo illustrates how the counter extension should work.
The counter extension does not quite reach the table, so there is no instruction. I just need to make certain that it clears the cypress seat back as it swings up.
I am using a smaller sink as well.
In order to deal with the garbage and recycling, I plan to use the empty storage space under the dining table bench for a slide out Rev-a shelf (2) 35 qt garbage/recycling cans with lids.
It is a perfect location to the right of the sink.
I am going to have to shorten the garbage can to fit into the space.
It is a perfect location to the right of the sink.
I am going to have to shorten the garbage can to fit into the space.
Finally, for the very first time we were able to activate the new Lithionics 51.2vdc 300AH system.
It has taken us 3 years to make this happen!
Inovation is sometimes so daunting.
I have not seen it myself but Jacob texted me about it. I generally start working sometime between 2:00 & 5:00am to prepare Jacob for the days work ahead. By 4:00 in the afternoon I am generally toast and am in bed. Whatever Jacob completes after that, I will see the next morning.
The (2) mini splits are working. We have gotten E6 & E7 error codes, so we probably need refrigerant gas. Next for the servicing.
We have not yet turned on the 455 to test the Balmar 48 volt, 60 amps alternator, but there is so much excitement! Things are coming together and the equinox is not far off. The sun is getting stronger in Florida and we soon will have to start hiding from it.
Getting all the coach's new direct current air conditioning systems functioning will be a blessing.
Until the mini-splits are gassed up and fully functioning I will not be able to determine how well the design is.
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Here are the specification for the 2 YMGI Mini-Split Systems.
The indoor sound level is rated at 42 or below dB(A). That is very quiet!
What is the sound level in your coach? My Apple watch can tell you what it is.
Dam Quiet.
Can you imagine having this type of environmental control in your coach?
Pretty Nifty but it took more than 3 years to make it happen.
It has been so very difficult to keep this under my hat for all these years.
As bought but the small folding table on the sofa was between the driver and passenger seat.
And recently
The kitchen is starting to come together.
I may need another knife holder.
Too many knives!
Sammie, our Portuguese Water Dog is inspecting her sometimes home on wheels.
In order to actually find out what the original factory wiring was like, I printed out the original wiring diagram on (6) 8.5"x11" sheets and pasted them together.
Sorry about the semi circular smudges!
This is the base line and this layout doest no include some of the factory options.
At least it is a start.
I started to color the wires so that I could understand it better, but I just got too tired to finish it.
In order to get my final diagram, I I need to ring out all of the wires now in the coach.
They include the original wiring, wiring by previous owners, wiring done by Cliff and of course by by Jacob and me.
I hope that this image will help you.
It may be the first time you have seen this all in one piece. This is 11" wide & 51" long.
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Certainly easier on the eyes!
Alan Henderson, Ken's son that now runs their electric wiper business, sells very large format (2'x10' and even larger) electrical diagrams for most GMCs including those by upfitters.
Really a great bargain and huge timesaver.
This is the condition of the fuses in the glove compartment as I found them. There are (3) additional circuits piggy backed on other the original fuses. In addition, there are (4) glass fuse blocks with fuses and an additional black box with more wires. The only one that I am certain of the the red piggy backed wire on the left which seems to power the previous owner's electrical fuel pump.
I decided to replace all of the glove box fuses with circuit breakers. Here I am checking out if I can get 24 breakers in.
It does not fit like this.
But if I trimmed the circuit block ends a bit, I could get (2) 12 circuit blocks in.
Since we do not use paper maps any more with GPS, the glove compartment is way over sized.
Rather than stuff (4) of these to get (48) 12vdc breakers, I decided to add (2) 6 breaker panels for a total of 36 breakers.
Here I am using various angled connectors so I can put together compact color coded harnesses to the breaker block.
Notice the trimmed ends.
This was the original 12vdc loads for the fuses in the Electrical Power Center Copayment. With no Furnace, recirculating toilet or 12v range hood in the coach, very little dc power fuses were being used.
With all of the new equipment now using 12vdc, I hope that 45 breakers will be enough. There were only 17 fused when new.
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HVAC guy came yesterday and verified that there is refrigerant in the system. However, the system did not start up. We are getting Code 6 & 7 errors which seem the be related to communication issues not power. Working on it.. Me HVAC said that it should start up if we get the communications right.
Sailor Man, It is so good to see someone who really cooks in their GMC. We have big, fancy meals and savor every bite. Maybe we just like to nest, but a full kitchen, with salad spinner, garlic press, good knives and all the rest means that even with limited counter space, a fancy meal is a treat for us both. Really happy to see someone else with the cooking gene. Well done!
I am color coding each breaker and will be using harness with Anderson connectors. Each breaker capacity is identified. These are not switches. If a breaker overloads and breaks the circuit, just push down on the white dot and the breaker will reset.
