My Journey

[Ovrlnd Rd]

I'm guessing the pups will be happy to be able to stretch their legs anytime they want. Ours was stuck in the back seat all the way from San Antonio to Albuquerque and back. He slept almost the entire trip and when we did stop to let him out he sure was reluctant to get back in the truck.

That looks like a great rig and I hope it's a much higher quality unit than the Arctic Fox.

 

[shellbackcva59]

All these issues with a Artic Fox you just bought late this summer? I would have dropped it off at the factory, demanded it fixed as new, then unloaded it. You had to take a real beating if you traded it in! I had a terrible experience with a Travel Lite truck camper I bought. Leaks and rotted wood in the first 1.5 years. Unloaded it and bought an old Four Wheel camper and rebuilt it from the ground up. Now I have just what I want and I know it was built properly. I think these RV companies use minimum wage employees who never stay around long enough to learn, and could care less about their work.

 

[unkamonkey]

Good luck with it. I would pull into the place that built mine and the guy that ran the place would chase off out to the shop. All that I wanted was some cabinet latches. I fixed everything else myself. Just easier and I knew it was done correctly. My neighbor was out resealing the roof on his camper a while back. At least he asked me what to use other than silicon caulk.

 

[ClayH]

Glad to see the new change.
Congrats!

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Thanks furbucket.....I appreciate it.....

azken.....this has been a long time coming and I'm still pinching myself as I think did I really do this.....thank you.....

calicamper.....thanks for following along my travels. I sure hope the “big rig” is the answer.....so far, so good.....

Chet.....yesterday I was fooling around in the RV lot and I'm estimating that the turnaround radius is about 100', nearly double the pick up truck (ouch ! ).....thanks for taking the time to read and comment on my blog.....always appreciated.....

JD.....when you've got some free time check out iwsmotorcoaches.com. They have about (50) pictures of professionally done photos of the rig and several videos. It's good stuff and far better than anything I'd post. Thanks for always making kind, positive comments to my blog.....

M1078.....the Arctic Fox was a piece of ****. I just don't understand how it is that they manufacture and sell over 1,000 of these units annually. If there was one thing that I'd say I'm happiest about with my new rig is how easy it is for Yukon to enter / exit the rig due to the stairs, and the low bed height so she can easily jump up there and relax. Yukon has been doing this stuff for nearly (11) years now so that gives me a bit of peace to give back to her. She's loved me unconditionally since Day One.....

shellbackcva59.....I did take a bit of a beating on the Arctic Fox. It's hard to tell for sure when you're trading stuff (as you know of course) but I had nearly $33,000 in the Arctic Fox and they gave me $25,000 for it. And honestly, I was thrilled to get that. They really liked my truck and they gave me double what other places had offered me in the past. Of all the issues I had, the mold and dampness were my primary concern. That unit needs to move to Arizona or Southern California. Taking it back ? Nope, done with that company.....

Thanks Unkamonkey.....

Clay.....you guessed that one right !

I always knew this day would come for me. I've had the urge for quite sometime now but I could never get myself to go forward. Making this move, for ME, is almost a kin to putting one foot in the grave. God only knows how many comments I've made in my life about old people and motor homes. To steal a great line from a Sean Connery movie, I've entered the “winter” of my life.....wether I want to admit it or not. I can't help but wonder why it was that I drove the route I did that day in October that led me here. Was this my destiny ?

This morning I'm having the fog lights relocated and huge tow hooks added to the front. We're close to wrapping up the work and soon we will be on the road again. I'm a little nervous.....a little excited.....and always thankful.....

 

[unkamonkey]

It's going to be a learning curve for you.

 

[Ace Brown]

Continuing to follow and enjoy your thread. Good luck on this major change. With all this busy time your not getting in any dog adventures. I’ll bet they’re ready to get out there.

Ace

 

[longhorn1]

Jerry, checked out the photos and watched the video on the yearly super duper model. Summed up in 2 words, "Shock & Awe". Very very nice. Did yours come with the countertop rope lighting that changes colors? An amazing vehicle. Enjoy, jd

 

[CSG]

I went and looked up these rigs after your post about acquiring one. Holy cow! Expensive and luxurious but what a way to travel. I fulltimed in a truck camper for six months back in 1992. Great as it was, this looks better! A lot better, especially with a Jeep in tow.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Unkamonkey.....it's been a huge learning curve but I'd say I'm 90 % there after a week of living in it. I'm guessing it'll be 6 months before I'm 100 % there.....

Ace.....I can say that Tanner loves it at IWS (Idaho Wrecker Sales). Both the service and sales departments are dog friendly and the dogs have pretty much had the run of the place. We started calling Tanner Little JD after one of the mechanics that he's bonded with. Yukon loves browsing the building during their lunch breaks. Their facility is located on the outskirts of town so they've got tons of open space to explore. Heck, they'll probably miss this place (I know I will).....

JD.....nope.....mine does not have the inlaid lighting on the countertop and I'm happy about that actually. I like to think of my rig as being built tough without all the glitz that you see in so many motor homes. It's actually rather plain on the inside but it's incredibly well built.....

CSG.....yep, they are fairly pricey but you really get a lot of product for your money with Renegade. Over the years I've spent many hours looking at motor homes and for me, these stand out. Regarding price, it cost way less than the homes I'm typically buying and hopefully it will suffice as my full time home. I know I'm saving well over $1,000 per month in property taxes, insurance, upkeep, etc. I would imagine that'll now be spent on diesel fuel as I wander around. Time will tell if I made a good decision.....

So the new tow hooks and the relocation of the fog lights came out quite nice. I hope to take the rig into a few places that I shouldn't, so hooks were mandatory.....



Yesterday they installed the Air Force One braking system on the Renegade and Jeep. It was pretty cool to be able to walk underneath the Renegade and check it out. What a beast !!!!!









I started to have some issues with the Jeep running at a high RPM. JD (IWS mechanic) came over to have a look.....



He diagnosed the problem in less than one minute. In the first picture is the mouse nest.....



I was storing my dog food in the Jeep and had noticed that something had eaten through the bottom of the bags. I had no idea that said something was actually living in the Jeep. The next picture shows where the mouse was storing food for the upcoming winter in the air filter compartment. He had no idea we were headed south.....



Jay (IWS detailer) is on his 4th day on my old rig getting it ready for sales. Damn I'm going to miss that truck after 13 plus years but good riddance to the camper (I hate you !)....





Last night IWS hooked me up with a free night in an RV resort. I spent the evening in a hot tub and finished the evening watching cable TV ! What's happening to me !?!

 

[Pacific Northwest yetti]

Congrats!!! We can't wait to see where and what this new chapter in your life bring should you continue to document here. Its a great looking rig, I agree about the statement on cost/savings(ish) in regards to a house and rental. And now I now where to go if i want to purchase one. They really are better built than the standard rvs of today.

I understand how you feel about the truck though. Ive had mine since she was built. 220k on a 2004 chevy 2500 6.0 going strong.

Happy trails!

 

[shellbackcva59]

Best of luck to you, enjoy the new rig, (home)!

 

[chet6.7]

That is some rig.
Is the Jeep set up for a few days of camping? It would be nice to leave the mother-ship at an established campground(for vehicle safety) and hit some remote country for a few days,return home,rinse and repeat.Good luck with it.

 

[Overdrive]

Jerry, congrats on the new motorhome! It's a beauty, not ostentatious. I'm sure it will work out and you'll wonder why you did not get one sooner.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

PNWY.....I don't see any reason not to keep posting here. The moderators seem to be OK with me. I've been posting for so long here, I'd hate to move on. If nothing else, at least my new rig has a cool look to it. Regarding my truck, I'm having second thoughts about letting it go. I'm curious what they're going to ask for it. They've got it on the sales lot now.....

shellbackcva59.....thanks.....

Chet.....well, I gave one of my sons quite a bit of my gear before I moved west. Then when I sold the Montana house, I sold a bunch more gear. Most of what was left went into storage since I just didn't have space in the Arctic Fox. I do have sleeping bags, a tent, and some other stuff. Maybe time to replace. I assure you I won't become a member of the RV resort community. Thanks for always having positive feedback.....always appreciated.....

Overdrive.....thanks for following along and for the kind words. I miss the truck camper lifestyle to be completely honest. But I hope to adjust in time. It was a tough summer losing my best friend and then the camper fire. I'm just trying to figure out some new ways.....



Yesterday we finally got back out on the highway. From Mountain Home, Idaho we drove west on Interstate 84. Somewhere along that highway I decided to make my first stop for fuel and food. It turned out to be a bit of a disaster. I'm constantly looking ahead to see if I “fit”. After passing 3 service stations where I didn't “fit”, I returned to the interstate, took the next exit, and filled up with fuel.....no issues. My experience tells me that truck stops are convenient but you pay about 30 cents more per gallon (I have a 100 gallon tank). It's worth it to search around.....

We connected with Interstate 15 and finally began the push south once again.....





We were still driving as the skies darkened. I'm generally not a fan of night driving in a rig, so I finally pulled into a small gravel lot along the interstate. It turned out to be quiet and dark.....and that's about all we really needed.....