RDBE (for those in the know)

[kingskids]

Sue - Not only are you progressing nicely on the mods for the truck - but you have NINE posts at this time of this message!! SEE, it's not hard, and SO much fun! I'm proud of you for finally jumping in the water on posting, and though I'm sorry you guys had to redo the truck, happy that it's coming along nicely. You'll be more comfortable with it when it's exactly as YOU want it - we all know "if mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy"!

[alanasue123]

okay Sharon, here is post #10. ha ha

 

You are right, "if mama is not happy, no one is happy"...or something like that...but you are right.

 

Since we have the smart car bed loader OFF and the drom boxes OFF, we can see what we need. The mud flaps were mounted to the back storage boxes, not sealed so we had water inside the storage box. These are also OFF.

 

Today spent the a.m. going to the truck lighthouse here in Nashville. They have lights and more lights, flashing lights, you name it, they have it. They service police cars and fire trucks with lights, and now we are telling them about our project, the smart car loader and Volvo truck.

 

Here we pulled up in the smart car and we found out they were commenting if elfs were going to get out....no just us normal size people. Told them we were looking for lights and they just looked at each other and looked at the smart car...........you could read their minds. Pulled out one of our business card and they finally got what we were after. Heck they immediately offered us one of their catalogs. They realized we are not trying to put lights on the smart car but on our other ride, the Volvo. Now we have their attention!

 

Bob replaced a lot of the lights in our RV with LED lights so this is nothing new for him. He researches and researches everything. It is like, measure twice and cut once. That way you should only have to do it once! Right?

 

Sue

[TreyandSusan]

Janet, Thanks for organizing the recipes! They will be great, I'm sure. Two questions: Is there a deadline for submission? Do you want them in any particular format?

 

Sue, it is exciting to listen to the progress on your truck. I went into a truck lighting store once and it was too much stimulation for my little brain. Pretty to look at, but how do you decide what you want/need?

 

Sounds like everyone made it safely from the rally to their next destination. I look forward to reading more about everyone's adventures here.

[kingskids]

Susan, thanks for reminding me - I've been meaning to ask Janet if we're only supposed to send in the recipe that we used for the pot luck, or just any recipes that we like...

 

Sue, I'm anxious to see the new thread about the before, during, and after progress (with pictures of course) on the truck (be sure to use Bob's user name for that thread!). I'm happy you're getting things done. Never been to a truck lighting store - I'm with Susan - might be mental overload for me!

 

OK ALL LADIES - I would like to know how we had SO many in the room and everyone had plenty to say - then we leave the rally, and no one is yacking it up like in the meeting! Is it the lack of the tongue loosening drink - whatever that stuff was (personally, I had lemonade, so I don't know...)?? Let's do the thing that us gals are best known for (other than shopping) - talking! C'mon gals

[alanasue123]

The truck lighting store was over-whelming. They had lights that would flash, small round ones, larger round ones, some that blinked, it just went on and on. It was brain over-load. But you know what, I didn't think about the smart car loader and the drom boxes. Sometimes over-whelming is good. :)

 

You are right Sharon about all the chatter at the rally. Let's see now, some of the topics were????

Guess Sharon you have to get the topic started.

 

 

You mentioned posting pictures to keep everyone updated on the progress of the new re-do. Never posted pictures on this forum, heck up to last week, never posted on this forum. And what is this, post #10?

 

Sue

[jags1fan]

RECIPES: ALL recipes are accepted, not just ones from the great Pot Luck Dinners we've had. You can email them to me (jags1fan@gmail.com). No particular format since I have so many handwritten ones already from RBDE gals, but I intend to follow close to the usual format of "Recipe Name", # of servings it makes-if known, Ingredients, Preparation, Nutrition Values if known, Submitter Name/ and possibly the information of the RIG they currently have.

 

No deadline, however, when I get to around 100 recipes - we'll publish then. I have around 25-30 right now. Also, plan to let ya'll know when we reach 75 submittals - I'll try to advise what sections of the Cookbook need more entries so we can equal out the sections somewhat.

 

Since so many would like the 'cookbook' on DVD, we'll be printing only the ones needed in that format. All other will be on a DVD or another format for accessing the cookbook online. Accessing online seems to be getting popular - so I'm checking that out to see if that would work for us.

[wygolfnutz]

Hi ladies.

Sharon you are right. I haven't been chatting like I can.

 

We are sitting in Hauchuca City, AZ. Weather here is great. 75 to 85 in the day time 50 - 64 at night. Have just been taking some down time and getting some things organized in the camper. Haven't been following the post until today.

 

Thanks for the info on the recipes. I have several I want to send to you. Have to put that on my to do list.

 

So glad to here Kurt is doing so well. It could have been so much worse. Just goes to show the power of prayer. Praise God!

 

Sue, I am so glad to hear your refit is going so well. It is just such a shame to spend all that time and money and get such sloppy workmanship.

Keep us posted on how things are going.

[kingskids]

Davena - where are you - our fearless leader...? Can you "rally the troops" and get this thread rolling?

 

Janet, I'll look into finding more of the recipes that I like - do you already have the info you need on the ones you took at the rally? If not, I'll email you with anything that's missing (that I know anyway).

 

Aggie, nice to take a break every couple hundred miles or so I second what you said about Sue's truck and Kurt with the prayers.

 

Have a great day ladies - hubby comes back home today from his FL visit with his brother. It will be great to have him home again. We "chip" the cats tomorrow, and leave on Thursday for our DRV appointment. Then we'll start heading towards TX for the winter...

[alanasue123]

Aggie, you are right about the time and the cost of the first build. Never in our wildest did we think it would take so long and the cost is still unbelievable....and for what?

 

We had rallies planned and had to cancel due to the length of time they were taking to do???? The Good Sam's Rally was scheduled and the SubVets rally and the one that really hurt to cancel was the East Coast Rally in CrossvilleTennesseeee.

 

But we made the Hutch rally and boy did we have a good time. Gail and Steve were excellent "hosts" and made the week flow nicely and smoothly. Believe this rally was the largest group. Everyone sure gave us a lot of feed back from "nice paint job" to "why in the world did they do it that way".

 

Never been to Hauchuca City, Arizona, say it is nice. Sounds like the weather is Perfect.

 

Sharon is teasing me about the number of posts, believe it is like

#11. Since Sharon is traveling, guess we could always put "where is Sharon"?

 

Wondering how Kurt is doing? Sure hope Vickie keeps us updated on his continued progress.

 

Sue

[ddshjs]

Davena - where are you - our fearless leader...? Can you "rally the troops" and get this thread rolling?

 

Janet, I'll look into finding more of the recipes that I like - do you already have the info you need on the ones you took at the rally? If not, I'll email you with anything that's missing (that I know anyway).

 

Aggie, nice to take a break every couple hundred miles or so I second what you said about Sue's truck and Kurt with the prayers.

 

Have a great day ladies - hubby comes back home today from his FL visit with his brother. It will be great to have him home again. We "chip" the cats tomorrow, and leave on Thursday for our DRV appointment. Then we'll start heading towards TX for the winter...

 

 

We finally made it to the Escapees Park in Bushnell, FL Will head back to NH late tomorow or Thursday. Will update details later!!!!!

Thank heavens for Vern and Chris! SKP Hugs. Davena

[wmdragons]

Well if everything worked right, I should start posting as furball express2. Found out I could have an e-mail notification every time someone post on the forum and since my smart phone is synced with my e-mail, I will get e-mail notification on my phone. So I don't need my computer to keep up with the forum. We shall see :-)

[kingskids]

Yeah! Davena is still alive and with us! I know you're looking forward to getting back home again... Drive safe and update us when you can.

 

Sue - if you'll look to the left of everyone's post you'll see how many posts they've made - (as of this writing, yours said 12 posts - I tried copying the image, but it won't post the message with it!). So you'll never have to wonder again how many you've done Sue. Be sure to post the link for the "show and tell" thread when you guys get it up and running...

Aggie - why not "Mrs Furball"?!?!

 

Vickie... calling Vickie... How's Kurt doing? Updates on him and what you guys are up to...?

 

Haven't heard from Suzan lately - has "Boomer's Mom" had any good news on her house? I sure haven't had any on mine yet...

[alanasue123]

Sharon, found the number of posts and they were right where you said they would be. You are SO smart.

 

Bob is trying to find a folder in which he can put the pictures of the truck in real time. This prep time is what takes so long, but once the steel arrives, I'm sure big things will be happening. We are using the catalog that Truckers Lighthouse gave us to cut and paste. Have to plan these things, right?

Think we should go with the flashing lights? Red or amber?

 

We are still horse sitting as the owners will be back tomorrow. Bob is really getting to be a pro at pitching the hay in the stall, and Betsy (that is the horse's name) is loving the one who feeds her.......that be Bob. Okay, okay, I sneaked a handful of hay to Betsy just to win her affection, guess it will take more handfuls of hay. She is loving Bob the best....not fair.

 

But I believe I won the heart of their dog, Lizzy....yep, dog treats, yep she loves me the best!

 

Glad to hear from Davena and that they arrived safe and sound. Glad to hear they are heading to NH as they still have to finish our order...never a dull moment in the life of #1. Believe Ketchup will like Florida's weather this winter much better than NH's weather, you agree?

 

Haven't heard from Heide either, might have to put out a shout to her.....Where is Heide?

 

Glad to hear Fur ball express is joining the group, Yeah!

 

Sue

[4Girls&aMan]

Ladies, I have a question for you. I was talking to one of the gals and we were talking about set up/tear down time for the interior of the camper.

 

How long does it take you, on average, to get ready to roll?

 

Sue, I've been chasing babies. Turned my back for too long and this is what happened....

 

 

Edited October 27, 2012 by 4Girls&aMan

[jags1fan]

Ladies, I have a question for you. I was talking to one of the gals and we were talking about set up/tear down time for the interior of the camper.

 

How long does it take you, on average, to get ready to roll?

 

Sue, I've been chasing babies. Turned my back for too long and this is what happened....

 

My estimate would be 45-60 minutes on both sides of that process (just for me inside the RV). We are still so new to the process of open up/or close, I start at one end of the RV and try to methodically go to the other end. I'm not using the 'museum tape' stuff, so I put away all glass, etc, that I might have put out. And, I pay very close attention to what's in the way of the slide edges before I open or close...amazing the stories you hear about things that have shifted their location when you arrive where you want to be. That paid off for us this time coming home from Hutch....very rough roads on I-10 LA Eastbound shifted even small end tables forward and would have definitely been in the way of both LR slides when I opened them. Never seen those tables move, in fact they seemed to be wedged in place, until now! What an adorable picture....kids are fast aren't they? Glad you shared the picture!

Edited October 27, 2012 by jags1fan

[wygolfnutz]

Heidi, That is such a cute picture. It's one of those pictures you keep and put away until he has kids of his own and his kid does the same thing and Dad is so upset, so then you pull out the picture and use it to put some prespective (emotional blackmail) into the situation :lol:

 

As to how long it takes me to set up/break down... Well, if we have been set up for a while (months), it is one day for "pre-packing" all the things I have left setting out for every day use.

 

Then the morning of the move, about an hour inside and outside. I have never actually timed it so I could be off 15 to 30 minutes either way. What takes to long for me is moving the cats from the RV to the Truck.

 

I put together a check list for inside and outside and had them laminated. Bought a couple china markers and we just check off things as we do it. Saves time and piece of mind second guessing our selves and worrying if we forgot something. This is especially true when you have been setting for a month or so.

[TreyandSusan]

If our rig is clean, it is about 20-30 uninterrupted minutes for the inside. We have no glass items, no "pretties", no decor to remove, and we share most duties (so we are both inside and outside). Another time saver: I do NOT have to clean up little ones who have recently encountered mud puddles!

This estimate only includes packing, moving, and securing the inside. I usually try to thoroughly clean the evening before moving days - I didn't include that time.

 

This is a great question, Heidi. I look forward to hearing what experiences others have.

[alanasue123]

Heide, see why we were looking for you on the RDBE forum? Your precious little one, cute, cute, cute. That picture is priceless.

 

Now for your question. I think you are getting good ideas on the length of time also wonder what gals leave setting out....like coffee pot? I have found our refrigerator doors have come open while traveling, even the freezer door. Really careful with things that roll around, like one time left an orange sitting on the counter........not there when we got to our destination. It got caught behind the slide.

 

We also have a check list, like a cheat sheet at the control panel. It is so easy to get distracted.

Easily distracterd.............Okay, okay, be nice now.

 

Sue

[wmdragons]

I know what you mean Sue, that's why the check list. It is amazing how often you get interrupted and the check list keeps you on track. I have a coffee pot on the counter, coffee grinder, coffee cups (there's a theme going on here :-)), and usually some odds and ends.

[alanasue123]

Aggie, and everything stays put when you travel - the coffee theme? Sounds like someone needs coffee first thing in the a.m....hum.......

 

Boy we need coffee or hot chocolate where we are. Tomorrow night they are predicting 34 degrees, burrrrrr. Told Bob that is pretty close to the 32 degree freezing line.

 

Have not heard from our RDBE fearless #1 leader lately. Guess they are in transit. Also anxious to hear how Vicki's son is doing.

 

We will be here south of Nashville, Tennessee for about another month. Steel came yesterday, and he only ordered it a few days ago. Didn't have to wait for that slow boat from China this time. Hopefully this is U.S. steel. "Made in America" is good! ;)

 

Believe Sharon would like to see a west coast rally....ditto Sharon....

 

We were at the Escapees park in Livingston right before we headed out to Hutchinson when the Escapees C-BoF heavy haulers group came through after Sedalia. We joined their group and found out they plan on being out west from Jan. 23 thru Jan. 26, 2013. Undestand our RDBE #1's main squeeze Henry writes articles for their newsletter.............one more excellent reason to join that group, right?

 

Sue

[4Girls&aMan]

Thanks for answering the take down/set up question. It takes me 15-20 minutes, depending on how much help I get (so I was surprised to hear the lady say that it takes her 2 hours). The girls each have a list of what they are supposed to do, but I always double check just in case. I had read enough about this subject before we started fulltiming that I put up the bare minimum of "pretties", i.e., 3 framed pictures, 2 groupings of pretties, one lamp, etc. We have also experimented with what will make the ride - the table lamp stays plugged in in the half bath and I've only found it dangling once or twice. Well worth leaving it in place each time, for me. Might need to try some of the sticky stuff for its sake.

 

Janet, we drove that piece of I10 a couple years ago and literally drove 35mph over it - and that was STILL too fast! We drove out of the way the last time we needed to traverse that section of our great country and were happy to do it!

 

Another question - for those of you who have had both framed windows and frameless windows in their camper, do you like the frameless ones? Is there a similar amount of air movement??

 

Heidi

[wmdragons]

Considering we new at this, I think we are doing good. After a few years we should have this down to a science.

Not sure what you mean about frameless windows. Are you talking about Lamberkins? If so, we only have them on the top, none on the sides and I think it makes the room look bigger, not so crowded.

[4Girls&aMan]

Not sure what you mean about frameless windows. Are you talking about Lamberkins? If so, we only have them on the top, none on the sides and I think it makes the room look bigger, not so crowded.

 

I am asking about the entire window in the camper wall. The new frameless windows flip up instead of raising up and I was specifically concerned that the air flow would be less with frameless.

 

Thought some of you may have had campers with both and could tell me which you prefer.

[kingskids]

Heidi - As you might remember, we do have both types of windows. When you talk about "flip up" - I believe that you are referring to the "crank out"/"awning" style VS a standard "single hung" (a slider that goes up and down rather than side to side). My opinion on the two types is summed up with the rain issue. The crank out has the huge advantage of NOT letting everything get soaked if a rain comes up when you're not in the rig (or are asleep). Yes, the "lift up" does allow more air in, but the crank outs are not slackards in the air moving arena. Plus for a larger window, there's more security with the crank out - picture someone trying to get inside that - the "lift up" style could conceivably allow an intruder in, or a child out. I could really get more air with the crank outs if I would open them wider - but having been in Colorado for so long, the dust is also an issue. We have more dust than we do heat in the summer (as you noticed), so we generally tend to only open the windows a small amount as the area is always windy and more wind comes in than I want even with them only open a little bit. So given all this - I do prefer the crank out type - for looks, security, and rain.

 

Hope this helps. You've been asking some great questions!

Sharon

[kingskids]

>>>> Here's a Halloween joke for you ladies - to make you smile >>>>>>

 

 

A man was walking home alone late one foggy Halloween night. Suddenly, from behind him he heard: BUMP! BUMP! BUMP!

 

Walking faster, he looked back and through the fog he could see an upright casket. It was banging its way down the middle of the street toward him: BUMP! BUMP! BUMP!

 

Terrified, the man began to run home, the casket bouncing quickly behind him: BUMP! BUMP! BUMP!

 

He ran up to his door; fumbled with his keys; opened the door and rushed in. He slammed and locked the door behind him. However, the casket crashed through the door, with the lid of the casket clapping: Clappity-BUMP! Clappity-BUMP! Clappity-BUMP!

 

The terrified man ran up the stairs to the bathroom and locked himself in. His heart was pounding; his head was reeling; his breath was coming in huge gasps. With a loud CRASH the casket broke down the bathroom door, bumping and clapping toward him: Clappity-BUMP! Clappity-BUMP! Clappity-BUMP!

 

The man screamed and reached for something, anything! His hand closed around a bottle of cough syrup! Desperate, he threw the cough syrup at the casket and ... the coffin stopped. Pretty bad huh?