Richard's Pop Up Mods

abivens wrote:Need some help?

I think that he will take you up on the offer Alan.

Richard, my sister that is selling the popup! It had new parts when we had it.

@ Alan, I very well may need help once I get the new parts. I'll certainly let you know. The real trick will be supporting the roof in a way that that won't get in the way. I have a couple of ideas, but I've got to get all the parts here. I want to get on this project and get it finished, as I don't want the roof on temporary supports any longer than necessary. I'm either going to build a scaffold and hang it, or most likely will sit it on posts, two on either side tied together and braced at an angle. I don't want it to fall while I'm working on it, I just don't need that headache. (Wocka wocka)

Dar, your hubby told me to go ahead and get the parts and re-do all the pulleys and everything back when it first collapsed. I'm pretty thick headed sometimes (most times). If I had done it, mine would still be working too.

I'm not really in the market to buy a different one, but I have to ask how much she wants for it. It might be more practical to buy that one, and move my mods over to it, than to repair my lift system. Lift systems are a pain in the pully!

Well, it's done. I just ordered $495 worth of bracket/pully, lift arms and bushings.

It makes me wish I was only buying some of that high dollar roof seal instead. Sealing a roof is clearly cheaper than raising a roof.

I've got to get the old girl fixed before the Smokey Bear trip!

Plus, Wildfire is trapped inside and the RV show is right around the corner!

Alan, I knew that he would take you up on your offer to help. Don't worry, Richard has a huge mansion to put you up in.

Richard wrote:Well, it's done. I just ordered $495 worth of bracket/pully, lift arms and bushings.

That's about what it cost me when I did ours...

KralCamper wrote:

Richard wrote:Well, it's done. I just ordered $495 worth of bracket/pully, lift arms and bushings.

That's about what it cost me when I did ours...

That will make him feel better, that the price had not gone up.

Richard, I started to suggest that all of us get together after the RV Show and put the new lift system in.....that way you would have LOTS of help, but then I thought about it and with everybody there, you might have TOO MUCH HELP!!

Oh well, yell at us if you think you might need some help - you aren't too far away for us to make a trip over one evening to help or on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon.

Yea just let me know when you want to get on it. Will your parts be in by saturday? I can come up then.

[quote="Richard"

Plus, Wildfire is trapped inside and the RV show is right around the corner![/quote]

You might have to make an emergency rescue attempt to save Wildfire.

Richard wrote:Well, it's done. I just ordered $495 worth of bracket/pully, lift arms and bushings.

It makes me wish I was only buying some of that high dollar roof seal instead. Sealing a roof is clearly cheaper than raising a roof.

I've got to get the old girl fixed before the Smokey Bear trip!

Plus, Wildfire is trapped inside and the RV show is right around the corner!

Do you have any ideal when your parts will be in?

Darcamper wrote:Richard, my sister that is selling the popup! It had new parts when we had it.

Just had a wild thought. Richard buys you old popup and cuts and wields the two together, making one large popup.

I've no true idea when the parts will be in. You guys are right about the "too much help" because there's only so much room in there. I've got to get my scaffolding put together. Once I've got that, and the parts are in my hands, I'll be able to make a plan. I'll keep you guys posted, and thanks for offering to help, I'm betting I'll need some before it's completed, Some things just can't readily be accomplished without some help.

These are my plans for the scaffolding to hold up the roof. Any suggestions? The boards on the bottom would go all the way under the camper. I'll use strong-tie on the corners.

Richard wrote:I've no true idea when the parts will be in. You guys are right about the "too much help" because there's only so much room in there. I've got to get my scaffolding put together. Once I've got that, and the parts are in my hands, I'll be able to make a plan. I'll keep you guys posted, and thanks for offering to help, I'm betting I'll need some before it's completed, Some things just can't readily be accomplished without some help.

I don't know how much help I would be, but if you need some, just let me know.

What is your scaffolding made of?

don't call me.. I don't enjoy hard labor.. and I am not very mechanically inclined.

chuck wrote:don't call me.. I don't enjoy hard labor.. and I am not very mechanically inclined.

Chuck, you could come and help. Just stand there and look important.

Hey Richard, instead of building a scaffold (which looks pretty cool by the way), you could set up 4 step ladders(one on each corner of the pop up roof. From the top rung of each step ladder you can run a 2x6 or 2x8, spanning across the top of the roof. From the 2x6 you can attach a clip to hold that side of the roof. This would redue the need to build all the scaffolding that you may never use again. You would need 4 step ladders, I'm betting you have at least one, and I have one you can use. If you can't borrow a ouple more, it may be cheaper to purchase them as opposed to purhasing the scaffolding materials (you could even return the ladders, or perhaps rent them from an equipment rental place). Just a thought..

Richard,

I was at Walmart yesterday and found a 30ft, 30 amp extension cord for $41.79

Maybe after you fix the "Clark Family Clubhouse"...or is she back to being called "Miss Danger"...again...

Tim, I'm not having a party or a slumber party. Stop trying to turn this into one. I'll do my own social arrangements. Ha!

There's just not much room to work on the floor of a PUP. I'm not gutting it to start over, I'm carefully disassembling parts of it, and planning on putting most of those parts back in it. Too many hands and ideas are worse than none. I promise I'll ask when time comes to get help lined up.

Alan, I like the ladder idea, but the step ladders would be in the way. I've already got a lot of the wood to make the scaffolding, and it's all reusable.

Chuck, you didn't ask me to come spread gravel, so that's fair!!!

This isn't a project that can be done in a few hours. I'll be working on this for several weeks. I've got to build the scaffolding, hoist up the roof, secure it and brace everything. Then I've got to get all my stuff out of the PUP. Then I have to remove the cabinets. I may have to pull the fridge, plumbing, and all of that, and do it in a careful way so I can put it all back in.

Only then can I put tension back on the old lift system to see where the binding is happening. It could be floor rot that I didn't find the first time, it may be frozen pullies around the wheel well, it may be the slight warp that I think I have in my frame, and it may be something else entirely.

Once I determine everything that may have caused the first failure, I have to re-engineer a fix to those problems. This may mean a long search for just the right pully and mount at local stores or on the internet. Once all of that is done to my complete satisfactionthat the pup and mounting positions are all straight and solid, and that all of the pullys and tracks are working properly, then I can move on to replacing the old parts. (Understand that I only bought lift arms, bushings, and one special curved track/pully combo).

Then I have to remove all the aluminum railing around the top of the box. Then I have to un-do the things I've done to make the old lift system work at all. Then I've got carefully take the old lift system out.

Then I've got to put the new lift system in, and make sure all of my cables are the right length and that they are in good shape. I suspect that I'll be replacing them all, while I'm in there. This means making up all the cables, feeding them through all the right places, and making sure they are exactly the right length so the corners go up evenly. The aluminum caps for the sidesgo back on, and then I can test the lift system. This means going up and down a few times. Leaving it up under weight overnight, and then doing the up/down tests again. Then I need to hitch her up and drive around for half an hour or so under various road conditions, and then go through all the up/down tests again.

Then I get to start reassembling the cabinets, fridge, sink, water-heater, etc. Fixing the things that were damaged or discovered during the disassembly. Then all that has to be tested.

Here's a wiki on what's required for just the lift system stuff, without all the cabinet disassembly and reassembly. http://www.wikipopup.com/index.php?title=L%26W

Then, when all that's done, and the scaffolding is once again a pile of lumber, if I haven't shot myself in the knee to make myself stop working on this old camper...I've got to go to Dave's Walmart to get the extension cord that I still think might be handy to have.

Oh, and there's still the long list of dream mods I listed a few months back.

I thought you might need help in this social party, since all of the work you have been doing lately. Being the friend that I am, with plenty of time on my hands, I thought I would take the burden off of you.

coolbreeze1 wrote:I thought you might need help in this social party, since all of the work you have been doing lately. Being the friend that I am, with plenty of time on my hands, I thought I would take the burden off of you.

Awww, what a nice and thoughtful gesture. NOW Stop it! Ha!

Richard wrote:

coolbreeze1 wrote:I thought you might need help in this social party, since all of the work you have been doing lately. Being the friend that I am, with plenty of time on my hands, I thought I would take the burden off of you.

Awww, what a nice and thoughtful gesture. NOW Stop it! Ha!

Thanks, but you know that it not my nature to stop anything.