The Family Motor Coach Association (FMCA) Convention went into top gear on Thursday. The schedule was filled with seminars, coaches on display and two buildings full of vendors.
I wasn’t scheduled to work again until Friday morning. After Donna attended the Microwave and Convection Oven Cooking seminar, she spent the rest of the day working at her computer. I went to the big vendor hall at the Bank of the Cascades Center. My credit card got a good workout there!
The first item I bought was a quart of Howes Meaner Power Kleaner. This is a diesel fuel additive that adds lubricity to ultra-low-sulphur diesel fuel. It is also an algaecide and injector cleaner. Diesel fuel can develop a form of algae when excess water is in the fuel. Water can be in diesel fuel from many sources, such as the filling station’s tank or condensation from sitting in the motorhome fuel tank. One way to help prevent excess water is to keep the fuel tank as full as possible. With less air space in the tank, less condensation can form. Once algae forms in the water/fuel emulsion, it can plug fuel filters or damage injectors. One quart of Howes will treat 320 gallons of diesel fuel.
At the next vendor stop, I bought a gallon of The Solution waterless car wash. This product was recommended to me by Lynda Campbell. She and her husband Dave use it exclusively on their Alpine Coach. I wanted a waterless wash product so I can clean the coach when we’re in a park that doesn’t allow washing. One gallon should be enough to wash the coach four times.
After that I stopped at the Redlands Truck and RV Service booth. I had decided to buy the set of new Koni shock absorbers from Vic Egg. He had front and rear shocks, new in the box, that fit the Alpine Coach Western RV Peak chassis. Shock selection is like tires or oil – everyone has a favorite and will defend their choice vigorously. I was leaning toward the Bilstein gas pressure shock, but after checking the products at the various vendor tables and also discussing the matter with RV suspension expert, Robert Henderson (Henderson’s Line-Up, Grants Pass, OR), I went with the Koni shocks. I made arrangements with the guys at Redlands to install the new shocks onsite that afternoon.
Then I stopped at the booth selling products from The RV Water Filter Store. I’ve been using the Camco inline throw away filters for the water supply to our coach. These only last about three months and I’ve had two of them crack at the hose fittings. I wanted a more robust filtration system. I bought a two-stage canister type filter. The first canister contains a cotton filter media designed to mechanically remove sediment and any other particles in the water. The second canister contains activated charcoal and will remove chlorine and other chemical compounds from the water. The cotton cartridge in the first canister should last about six months, depending on water quality. This cartridge is inexpensive at $3.50. The second cartridge should last a full year and costs $13.00. Over time, this system will save money and provide better filtration compared to the inline throwaway filters.
The Redlands Truck and RV Service Center mechanics pulled up to our coach at 2:30pm. They went right to work and had the shocks changed out in about 45 minutes. The original shocks on our coach showed wear and tear. The right rear shock was completely blown out and was leaking fluid. This is most likely what I was feeling as we drove down the road. The fine handling qualities of our Alpine Coach had deteriorated since we left Arizona. No doubt, some of the rough roads we encountered contributed to failure of the original Bilstein shocks.
Original front Bilstein shock – doesn’t look too bad
New Koni FSD shock installed on front suspension
Blown out rear Bilstein gas pressure shock
Thursday evening we had a happy hour gathering next to the sites of Tom and Nancy Polk and Vic and Willi Egg. We were getting into the swing of things when it began to rain. We got cozy under an awning and an Easy-Up and carried on.
Braving the elements for happy hour
Yesterday, I was up at 6am for another shift of carting people around the fairgrounds. It was much busier than Wednesday’s shift. The weather was superb with abundant sunshine and the temperature topped out near 80 degrees. I was scheduled to work until 9:30am, but I couldn’t get back to the cart staging area until 10am. People needed rides and I couldn’t turn them down. I finally gave a person a ride to the small vendor building next to the cart area and turned it in.
Donna and I spent the afternoon kicking tires and looking at coaches for sale. We aren’t in the market, but it was fun to see different set-ups. We spent some time in a two-million dollar Prevost Marathon. It was nice, but we liked the 1.7 million dollar Newell better. I was impressed with the Entegra line of coaches also. Entegra came about when Travel Supreme was going out of business. Jayco bought the Travel Supreme business and retooled it into Entegra around 2009.
Last night, we enjoyed another happy hour with with our fellow Alpiners and tons of hors d’oeuvres. Today, Donna is going shopping in Bend with Willi Egg. I’ll check out more of the show and attend a seminar.