I'm a wanna-be, not an owner yet. But Herself and I are planning to acquire one when I retire (closer and closer with every passing day!) and are looking forward it! I've wanted one of these since I first saw one in 1973, when I was 9. 
Another hello
- Thread starter Bill Underhill
- Start date
Why wait til you retire? We just got one and have a long time before we retire.............
Fair point, and depending on what happens next year (don't want to try to buy one in the middle of a posting move), Herself and I may re-visit the timeline.
hi Bill, welcome! I had never paid them much attention but always thought they looked much better than anything else and then one day I met a friendly enthusiast that gave me a tour of his. thats what planted the seed here than a few years later we got one.
all the best
all the best
Hi Bill,
I too was nine years old in 1973. We bought our GMC three years ago in 2016. Don't wait! We both still work full time, and enjoy using the coach on weekends, and working on it only on the weekends as well. To date we've been on 22 camping trips with the coach, including 15 rallies. (Yes I keep track of everything) We travel just within the state for now (Florida), since we're still working, but it is a ton of fun! See some of our adventures here:
https://www.facebook.com/Adventures-With-Harry-The-GMC-Motorhome-310223099382284/
or here: http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/u42530-russellkeith.html
Bite the bullet Bill, hit the road, and come join us!
I too was nine years old in 1973. We bought our GMC three years ago in 2016. Don't wait! We both still work full time, and enjoy using the coach on weekends, and working on it only on the weekends as well. To date we've been on 22 camping trips with the coach, including 15 rallies. (Yes I keep track of everything) We travel just within the state for now (Florida), since we're still working, but it is a ton of fun! See some of our adventures here:
https://www.facebook.com/Adventures-With-Harry-The-GMC-Motorhome-310223099382284/
or here: http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/u42530-russellkeith.html
Bite the bullet Bill, hit the road, and come join us!
Hey Bill,
A suggestion from an owner of some time now, try to hook up with what ever local chapter you can. Most have open house one day of any rally and you can learn a lot. The best of these coaches are acquired when owner realizes that he can no longer support it. When this happens, the good ones go FAST. Yes, and don't wait. Even a good one will probably need some work, and this will give you time to do that (while you still have regular income).
Not to scare you, but we have a line we use in the community - A reliable and ready to travel coach will cost you ~30k$us. The important thing that does not say is that sweat is billed in at full shop rate.
Matt Colie
A suggestion from an owner of some time now, try to hook up with what ever local chapter you can. Most have open house one day of any rally and you can learn a lot. The best of these coaches are acquired when owner realizes that he can no longer support it. When this happens, the good ones go FAST. Yes, and don't wait. Even a good one will probably need some work, and this will give you time to do that (while you still have regular income).
Not to scare you, but we have a line we use in the community - A reliable and ready to travel coach will cost you ~30k$us. The important thing that does not say is that sweat is billed in at full shop rate.
Matt Colie
Bill,
We were years from retirement when we got ours. We were living in Chicago and our canoe camping river got too crowded and overrun with poison ivy. With two big dogs most B&B's were out so we found a GMC. It was our lifeboat then and has remained one for 24 years. Spend that 30K up front or spread it over 20 years. If you like to camp, either way it will be the best 30K you've ever spent.
You can have lots of fun in any RV, but every single unit is a bundle of compromises, some tailored to very specific uses. Be VERY thoughtful when you speculate on how you're going to use it when making a purchase decision. if you talk to a GMC owner, you'll find that it has some issues, most related to it being a vintage vehicle, but for the most part, GM got it amazingly right. Small enough to be fun to drive, big enough to be great to stay--and all the downstream compromises that allow such contradictory statements to live in the same sentence. "Doesn't look like a box, doesn't drive like a truck." as GM used to say.
Those of us that put thousands of miles each year on our coaches have bumped into those compromises often, and the enduring success of the GMC motorhome decades after it stopped production is a testament to how well GM navigated their way through the issues. Consider jumping in now. There are still 9,000 or so of our coaches on the road, an active and dedicated group of support vendors supplying every part you can't find just down the street, and a support community of dedicated enthusiasts willing to help you.
Your family may not be ready to jump into RV ownership right now, but if they might be, take Matt's advice and get thee to a GMC club rally. You may well find your new cabin on _____________(insert lake name here).
We were years from retirement when we got ours. We were living in Chicago and our canoe camping river got too crowded and overrun with poison ivy. With two big dogs most B&B's were out so we found a GMC. It was our lifeboat then and has remained one for 24 years. Spend that 30K up front or spread it over 20 years. If you like to camp, either way it will be the best 30K you've ever spent.
You can have lots of fun in any RV, but every single unit is a bundle of compromises, some tailored to very specific uses. Be VERY thoughtful when you speculate on how you're going to use it when making a purchase decision. if you talk to a GMC owner, you'll find that it has some issues, most related to it being a vintage vehicle, but for the most part, GM got it amazingly right. Small enough to be fun to drive, big enough to be great to stay--and all the downstream compromises that allow such contradictory statements to live in the same sentence. "Doesn't look like a box, doesn't drive like a truck." as GM used to say.
Those of us that put thousands of miles each year on our coaches have bumped into those compromises often, and the enduring success of the GMC motorhome decades after it stopped production is a testament to how well GM navigated their way through the issues. Consider jumping in now. There are still 9,000 or so of our coaches on the road, an active and dedicated group of support vendors supplying every part you can't find just down the street, and a support community of dedicated enthusiasts willing to help you.
Your family may not be ready to jump into RV ownership right now, but if they might be, take Matt's advice and get thee to a GMC club rally. You may well find your new cabin on _____________(insert lake name here).
It's been about six years since I registered as a wanna-be owner and yesterday it happened - Herself and I are now the happy owners of a 1978 Royale!
Oh, yes - retirement also happened a couple of years ago. I retired, we moved and bought our retirement home, I built a garage with a GMCMH in mind, and now we have one!
Of course it does have some issues that need work; the first and most immediate need being new boots on all six corners). I'll post more pics of her once I figure out where I can post such as I don't want to get punted for photospamming.
Oh, yes - retirement also happened a couple of years ago. I retired, we moved and bought our retirement home, I built a garage with a GMCMH in mind, and now we have one!
Of course it does have some issues that need work; the first and most immediate need being new boots on all six corners). I'll post more pics of her once I figure out where I can post such as I don't want to get punted for photospamming.
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Hi Bill,
A fellow Canuck here. Where are you located in Canada? We are in S. Ontario near London.
If you can, join a local GMC Club and get to a couple of their Rally's if you can yet this season. Even if you can't bring your coach, you can glean a lot of info in a day visit.
For what it's worth, I've had great luck with Toyo Open Country H/T II tires.
Hi, Bruce - I'm in Sackville, NB. Already in touch with a couple of other owners in the area (meaning NB and NS from about Truro on up). I have Michelins on her at the moment and was going to see about getting the same, but certainly am open to recommendations for other brands. I'm semi-familiar with Toyo as a brand name; I've also heard people saying good things about Firestone, and someone else mentioned Cooper HT as a brand/line, too.
At the moment - since I definitely don't have the tools nor expertise to put tires on rims, nor do I have a lot in the way of tools generally - I'm looking for a shop locally that can handle light to medium trucks.
I think the GMC Motorhome club has a chapter covering the maritime provinces but I'm not sure. That's definitely on my to-do list; also wondering if FMCA is worth joining? My impression is that it's not GMC-specific, though.
http://www.gmc-cascaders.com/ They also have a presence on this forum.
www.gmcmotorhome.org
Northeast
Connect with GMC'ers in CT, MA, ME, NH, NY, RI, VT, and Eastern Canada (QB, NB, PEI, NS)
www.gmcmotorhome.org
