Class A Motorhome Cake - Looks like a Prevost

Good "taste" in RV's may have to do with Cakes!

Near Austin is a little suburb called Dripping Springs. One of Dripping Springs more famous residents runs a little cake shop called Lori's Classic Cakes.

RV52 found this cake on her site ...

RV Cake from Classic Cakes by Lori

What impressed me even more was that I think this is a Prevost. If you're going to do a cake - make it top of the line!

First Class A Motorhome?

Archeological find in warehouse #14 at Pioneers Village

Maybe this archeological find isn't a mastodon, but it is a pretty cool old homemade RV circa 1950.

I spent several hours going through Pioneers Village (it is an exhausting place) and had I not been blogging on rv52.com I wouldn't even have noticed the old beast. It was in warehouse #14 - Pioneer Village calls them "warehouse".

About Pioneers Village in Minden Nebraska

Pioneer Village is located in Minden Nebraska. It is about midway between Omaha and Denver on Interstate 80 and about 20 miles south of the Interstate. It was founded by a wealthy Cornhusker named Harold Warp who invented Plexiglas. In Pioneer Village, they have amassed an incredible amount of STUFF. Just one example (other than the first RV) was that they have the second ever Cadillac ever built. How cool is that? I'm attaching a picture just so you can get an idea of how big the warehouses are and how full they are. Note : many warehouses contain TWO stories...

Pioneer Village - Cadillac after Cadillac

Notes and Writings about the First Class A Motorhome or RV

I have a youtube video which shows you the insides of the RV which I'll embed at the bottom of this post in which you can get a really good look at the inside of the RV.

Interesting notes :

• The stove was a normal home heating stove. Reminded me of my mothers original home.
• I bet there were not too many dump stations OR standardized connectors in 1953 (the first use).
• I got a kick out of the regular home windows.
• I really liked the lap siding.
• When this thing was running, gas was cheap and plentiful and there were not enough cars to make much pollution. I'm thinking gas must have been around $0.25 a gallon.
• I wonder if there are any examples of EARLIER RV's.
• I'm not going to count the Conestoga wagons!

Take a look at the pictures, and where the picture is of the museum placard, I also have typed that up in regular text for you.

First Class A Motorhome RV - Looking at the front

First Class A Motorhome RV - Looking at rear back porch

First Class A Motorhome RV - Drivers side looking from rear to front

First Class A Motorhome RV - Passenger side looking towards front

First Class A Motorhome RV - Letter to Pioneer Village

I'll transcribe Mrs. Wendell's letter to Mr. Warp here :

Oakland, Iowa

May 29, 1976

Mr. Harold Warp
Chicago Ill.

Dear Friend:
What possessed my husband to build this motor home? He had bought the truck new in 1939 when he was in the trucking business. After using the truck for 11 years in the trucking business- he sold the business and the truck was quite old then and he felt he would not get out of it what it was worth and he and I had always like to travel- so he decided to build us a "Home On Wheels". He had no pattern as there was nothing like it on the road or around. He stripped it all down and built it piece by piece--on the fram and 4 wheels. Some people laughted at him and told him that he would not use it to travel in when he finished it. They were surely wrong.

Listed below are the years and places visited in it:
[ content removed for space ]

Wendell and I lived in this house every year from 1960 to 1976 while he attended his steam engine above in Mt Pleasant IA- for eight days.

We estimated we have traveled 100,000 miles in it.

There were no other motor homes on the road when we started out. I believe it was 9 or 10 years before we saw any-- but this is a guess.

In Alaska we pulled off the road south of Fairbanks- to eat some lunch. Some people pulled up in a pickup and smiled and asked us if we were homesteading. We laughed and said "no" we were just having lunch.

At Bryce Canyon Ntl. Park- my husband was taking some people through to see it and was explaining where the motor was and this lady piped up and said "Oh do you mean to tell me these things have motors?" (We figured she must have thought she was in a trailer.)

We were always getting our picture taken. One lady asked us if she could take our picture as the people back home would not believe her if she just told them about it.

It took my husband one year to build it and there are 11 gross of screws in it. The beds in the bed room are 2 full size beds with innerspring mattresses and they are double decked. This whole unit was put on rollers so the beds were easier to make as the whole unit can be pulled out and 1 person get get over behind.

Yours sincerely,

[ Signed Mrs. Edna M. Turner, Oakland, Iowa ]

First Class A Motorhome RV - Pioneer Village Placard

Here is the text of the Pioneer Village placard transcribed :

Wendell Turner Motor Home

The original truck chassis on which the home was built was a 1939 White. The weight of the motor home is 16,000 lbs. The original White engine was located directly below the kitchen table. The engine has since been changed to the present "390" Ford Police special below the rear of the table.

The fuel capacity is 80 gal. of gas. The water capacity is a 30 gal. tank located under the back porch. A 50 gal. septic tank is located under the rest room. Propane gas capacity was 95 lbs., which was used to operate the refrigerator, fireplace heater, and gas burners located no the top of the fireplace. A 5 gal. propane gas hot water heater was used to heat the water.

Here is a video embedded of the first Motorhome :

The Right RV for the Job can MAKE you MONEY!

Went to a car show at the Travis County Expo Center near Austin recently. It was more of a swap meet for car people than a car show and it attracted every type of vendor and patron imaginable.

While we were there, I snapped a few pictures of a Toy Hauler RV ( this was a Keystone Toy Hauler ) which was being used as a real business tool. I've no real opinion on the business that the toy hauler supported, but the concept makes a great deal of sense.

First, having an RV lets you follow the "show" circuit, attending different events and making sure you are there, present, and making sales where the people are. The idea that you don't have to commute back and forth or worry about hotels seems smart to me.

A toy hauler can haul anywhere from 2000-5000 pounds of payload depending upon the unit. So if you can fit your inventory neatly in the garage (which comes in all sizes), now you can take your inventory with you and even have stock shelves if you wanted. Since the garage can be air conditioned, you could use the area for foods - not really for COLD or FREEZER storage, but "keep in a dry cool place" type things.

Since the RV has a really large awning, you can make a nice 'front area' for your customers and yourself where you can conduct business. Keep in mind, toy haulers have outside TV's and speakers so that you can integrate multimedia into your sales concepts.

Since the toy hauler is a fifth wheel, you'll also conveniently have a vehicle (the truck) available for you to run errands or other trips.

What caught my eye about this toy hauler was the paint job (or wrap). This really finalizes the work package and makes this Toy Hauler a lean mean selling machine.

And at night when it is all said and done, you can make your inventory safe, get a good nights rest right on the site, and be there the next morning without any commute.

Drivers side view of a business use RV

Passenger side view of Toy Hauler used for Business

RV Cool - This makes me want to live in a garbage truck

One of the neater home-spun RV's I've seen. I like the 'stealth' concept (sneaks up like a garbage truck). All of the appliances and furnishings look to be first class.




If you like a link instead : Living in a garbage truck

Go find a corner in a round room

On our way to a day trip to La Grange, we thought would would do a video drive through rv park review of a park along the way.

We ran out of gas following the sign's instruction. We just kept going in circles. After doing 745 small circles and no RV park, we gave up.

Actually, we could NOT find the park. I'm not kidding!

Conversations with non-full-timers

Everytime I have a conversation with someone who lives in a traditional house and I explain that I'm full-timing in an RV, I invariably have this really odd out-of-body conversation with them where they simply cannot put their arms around the idea of living small. Most cannot explain why they couldn't live small other than to simply say that they can't.

I thought I would take time from my busy day to record this conversation in video form for you. I hope you enjoy...

Seen at an RV rental place in Austin Texas. I wrote about bed bug avoidance, but this is one more thing about RV travel. Your "junk never gets touched."

From RV Park and Campground Review videos, RV basics, and travel stories with Sheri and Marlan

RV Out of the Ordinary : A new class of RV

Here is a new class of RV. It has air conditioning and a generator. Its designed to be more mobile than larger units and have lots of windows.

What do you think? Will this take-off? I think this ought to be called a sport class RV.

Sport Class RV with Air Conditioning and Generator

RV Basics : Instructional Video for extending a manual awning - NOT!

My first attempt as an 'actor'!  I was going to make an instructional video for something so simple as extending a Dometic RV awning. The first time is always a little tricky, but once you know how it isn't too bad. I thought it would be helpful.

This actually ISN'T the video I would want to do, but I thought it would be fun to post it anyway, uncut, unedited, and about as 'real' as you can get. I can see my acting needs some improvement too.

Love to hear from all of you. Be gentle!

RV Lifestyle : The RV Birdhouse

If you own an RV, much of your decor seems to be arranged around the idea that you truly have an "RV lifestyle". Typically this is symbolized by mobility or retirement, or freedom of some sorts.

So, if you are an RV'er and you like birds, then why not get a truly lifestyle targeted birdhouse!

I also think that this speaks to things you can do while in your RV. This is not workamping, but it is certaily something you could make and sell 4 or 5 a month on your travels. You could vary the artwork and the design.

From RV Park and Campground Review videos, RV basics, and travel stories with Sheri and Marlan

Ok, I have to do it... this does give new meaning to the idea of migrating!

RV News : Pushups KEY to RV negotiations

If you are going to argue with an RV dealer on delivery of your vehicle, be prepared to do pushups to win your case.

I see all over that people complain about their RV when delivered and this actor named Taylor Lautner seems to be no exception. He is I guess an actor in a series called Twilight. (my daughter knows something about this).

Anyway, he sued due to the late delivery and incorrect delivery (I do not know the details or any veracity of the statements). As part of the resolution of the suit, the RV dealer issues a challenge.

Read on...

-> RV Dealer Challenge to Taylor Lautner's Lawsuit over delivery of an RV <-

RV Basics : Beware the Electrically Controlled Awnings

This story is a true story that occurred in August 2010. I did not personally witness it, but I heard if from my friend first hand and it is about his Dad and his Dad's new motorhome. So if you want to validate how close to the truth this is, it is very, very close.

My friends Dad bought a new motorhome this year (from Louisiana) and he lives in north Austin. This summer he took it out to Arizona. One of the really cool features of the motorhome is that it has electric awnings that can retract and extend with the push of a button. Even better, it has wind speed sensors as well as rain detectors. When the awning gets any weight on it from rain water, it automatically tips the rain out. If the wind gets too gusty, then the awning retracts.

He has met many, many people and is having a great time. One night he has friends over and they are enjoying the night and it is raining but they are outside under the awning. The drinks are cold and the food is hot and the talk is windy. A freak gust hits and within seconds the awning completely retracts, not before using the automatic dumping feature to dump the rainwater on his guests and then retracts so that now they are all getting rained on!

Pretty cool eh?

Art in Rural Nebraska

In a very remote and rural part of Nebraska, in a very small town called Mason City there is a yard that has some really neat art. The art looks to be welded metal and painted - the metal coming from ordinary objects - in this case with a farming focus. Very much a bird theme, perhaps a Phoenix theme, and a little bit of a war theme. I can't tell and don't know what any of the deeper meanings themes and intentions of the artist actually are, but I thought this was neat and I thought all of you might enjoy this.

RV Humor : The Black and Gray Water Drain Hose

This may be one of my shortest posts in history! But playing on the internet and looking at some articles around the proper management of the gray/black water drain pipe I found a really great bit of terminology.

The most common RV drain hose is a spring wire which is coiled and wrapped with plastic. It is basically very similar to a plastic covered slinky. They are anywhere from 5-20 feet in length and condense down to  perhaps a space as small as 2 feet long. They normally store in the bumper of the RV or camper but I've since found that the bumpers are really good at destroying the drain hose. I'll post a solution in the near future for that.

But here is your RV term of the day which defines the RV drain hose : Stinky Slinky!

RV Mini News : Geico Amazes

You might find this list of RV insurance companies useful when you are looking for insurance. Perhaps you might already have insurance with one of them and its nice to know you can simply add your rig to your policy.

I wrote earlier and mentioned that we insure Puma the RV with our Geico insurance. But I thought I would regale you with a little tiny story about Geico...

When I tried to DROP Mr Big from our Geico insurance policy recently I could not do it from the web. The buttons simply would not work. I tried it from Firefox and Safari. Frustrated  I called in and made the adjustment. As a footnote to the call I mentioned that the website was not working and they should look at it. More or less simply venting.

Well, about 2 business days later I received a phone call from Geico explaining that because there is an RV on the policy, it has to go through a manual quotation process and that the web doesn't work because of that. They apologized for the problem, said they understand what is going on, and that they have plans to automate the quotation process soon.

I was pretty impressed. Geico listened and called back. Kudos to the little gal in their Dallas call center who took the initiative. I hope Geico is nice to her.

RV Did you Know : RV Motorhome Hall of Fame

While perusing the internet during a lunch break, I ran across a reference to the RV/Motorhome Hall of Fame. It never occurred to me that such a thing might exist so I did a Google search and lo and behold...

This page on old RV's in the museum is pretty interesting - but the page takes a LONG TIME to load. It is a page of the inventory of old RV/MH. Kind of cool to see all of the different types. They were missing the conestoga wagon (the first travel trailer).

I didn't put in a label calling this a destination, but maybe it is a destination. It is close enough to Major League Baseballs Hall of Fame, so maybe you could do a Hall of fame tour. If you are passing by on the interstate it might be a fun afternoon diversion.

Here is a hall of fame you probably didn't know about : http://www.essortment.com/all/nationalmuseum_rlzm.htm

Anyway, I thought this would be a fun post. Enjoy.

RV Interest : 1969 Dodge Travco

When videoing an RV park near Georgetown, Sheri and I ran across this BEAST! I looked it up and I think it is a Dodge 1969 Travco. I found an entire site dedicated to Travco line of motorhomes. Anyway, this looks like a classic. Not sure what the towbar is all about, but I hope you enjoy this VERY short video.

RV Lifestyle : Dinner over at Puma

Sheri and I had some friends over for dinner at our RV Puma. We thought we would video this so you could get a real idea of how you can entertain people.

It was a hidden camera so our guests did not know ahead of time they were being filmed but we checked with them afterwards and they were ok with it.

RV Innovation AND News : April Fools

I hope everyone yesterday realized that the amphibious RV was an April Fools Joke.

I couldn't resist.

Marlan

RV Pull Vehicle : Mr Big skins his knee

Our RV ( Puma ) gets pulled by Mr Big, our tow vehicle.

But Mr Big is not a pretty truck. He is old and beat up. We know it. We bought him because we thought he would be 'just enough' for towing Puma around central Texas. One big strike against him is that he is a gas hog. Our thinking is that we're going to get a diesel. We hear rave review about diesel trucks, especially for towing an RV.

But this article is about Mr Big.

After thanksgiving, we parked Mr Big in an out of the way spot near our apartment. From our apartment we could see Mr Big's driver side and could check up on him visually. We didn't really need him and when we started towing around central Texas, we'd fire him up.

Fast forward to March 2010 when we decided to start Mr Big and get him ready.

When we went down to see him, we found that there was a big GASH in the side of Mr Big we could not see.

As it turns out, the LAWN crew at Bella Vista apartments ( a crew they hire ) in Austin Texas ran into Mr Big and they left a note. So if you need a VERY HONEST lawn crew, contact me and I'll put you in touch. I'm very impressed. Anyway, Mr Big is going to get fixed and paint for his entire body.

So, we bought him for $1200, put in $800, and now with paint and a dent-pull, he'll probably be worth nearly $3,000. How about them apples?

Here is the real clincher : The note was dated December 1, 2009. We didn't even contact the 'crashers' for almost three months! I bet they were shocked that nothing happened for so long.

Here is the RV owner tip that comes with this story : If your truck you pull your RV with is not needed, be careful where and how you park it because a lot can happen even if it is just parked.