Motorhome: Minus home, now minus motor

[mountainexplorer]

My weekend was kinda cut short. Sure, I had big plans, rip the motor out of the partial motorhome and put it in my '81 "little" Crew Cab and maybe drive it home. But all day Saturday was wasted... partially me trying to accomplish other things.

The other part was me trying to retrieve the bad 454 crank that came out of my motor at the Moyie Mud Bog 2 weeks ago, which had, by mistake, made it's way about 150 miles west of Moyie Springs the day I pulled it out and has been there since in the back of an S-10. (thats another long story in itself).

So, I drive up and take care of a few things along the way, and stop and visit a fellow mud racer for a bit, then totally miss meeting up to pick up the crank cause he was out trying to get a friend unstuck from a swamp up some mountain. So, I head over the back way to my place in Ione, rallying the Black blazer on the gravel roads at almost but not quite dangerous speeds.

This leaves me with Sunday: Didn't help that I woke up at 12:15 pm.

But, anyway, got the motorhome, already missing the "home" part, and began tearing away. Cut out a section and went to rip it out of the way.

Ok, so I didn't intend on the whole section to break loose, but what can ya do?

Well, time to try and see if it will fit out through the hole. Nope, needs a little more trimming.

Now it fits coming out... now since the cherry picker won't roll back, the chassis must move forward.

Everything sure seems to be leaning... a come-a-long hooked to the tree adds a little stabilization.

Of course, when we thought we were home free, one mistake made everything fall over onto the ground and tweaked everything on the cherry picker. So, we mixed and matched parts from another one and were back in business and got it under cover; ready for a few alterations to make it ready to go into the Crew Cab as a temp motor till I'm ready to swap in the Cummins.

I was hoping it was the original 1974 motorhome block, so that it would have been a 4-bolt main... but it's an '82 block with '77 heads. Whoever rebuilt it did an exchange (and I bet someone wanted to keep the 4-bolt main block). At least a tag on it told me it was bored .030 over and the crank is .010/.010.

So now the motorhome lacks the home and the motor. Oh well, it was kinda fun while it lasted.

 

[divorced]

I always enjoy reading about things you do. And how do you get an action shot like this? Doesn't it all happen real quick?

 

[fwdjunky]

I love you man. You make my activities seem normal. By the way, is "stabilization" a word?

 

[divorced]

By the way, is "stabilization" a word?

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=stabilization









.

 

[fwdjunky]

Thanks man! Can't wait to use that one in conversation.

 

[mountainexplorer]

If it's two things I do it's these:

1) Teach people around me that when I hand them a camera, be ready to snap a picture at just the right time.

2) The second one is "how NOT to do ________" (as in, how not to remove and engine, or how not to install bearings, or how not to change a tire.)

 

[darkshadow]

how not to change a tire?
what like pulling the truch sidewas by the tire and a chain????

love the motercab with mudders sudda put a 60 in the front and wheeled it more lol

 

[diesel4me]

Awwhhhhh....

Aw,you cut up the mini-winnie!(bago!) ...that think looked like more fun than a vegas hooker!..I showed the pictures of it to some friends,they loved it!.I thought it was pretty cool...my brother said it would have made a neat car hauler!...oh well..

Must be a bitch to pull a 454 from one of those things,and not damage anything,like if you were just fixing up a camper!--not a job I'd want..

 

[mountainexplorer]

Yeah, this thing was even mostly stripped and it was still a pain to pull out. The 454 was rebuilt in 1987, and the motorhome is a '74. I wonder how they yanked it out. I looked through the front and I didn't see that as being a possibility. They must have had to drop all the front suspension and take it out from below. I didn't see many other alternatives.

The fun one is still coming. I have a 1972 Open Road 25 footer thats still intact, and I need to get the 402 pulled out of it with destroying it. I think I'll have to cut my way in through the front. My sawzall still works.

I've been leaving it whole cause I want to get it running better and take it and my "good" '79 440 powered motorhome out to the race track and race them side by side. Who knows if I'll ever get a chance to do it though.

 

[diesel4me]

new racing class!

Lets see--they have "stock cars","funny cars"--"Top fuel dragsters"--"wheelie machines"--even Semi-truck races--but now,for the newest class.....

"Motorhome Racing!"

I can see it now!--Alan in his 30ft Pace Arrow,with a blown 454 and nitrous,smoking the dual rear wheels in a 300ft posi burnout in the 1/4 mile!!..while a steak is grilling in the oven....!

 

[dontoe]

You gotta be from the South originally man!!

We gotta be kin one way or another!!

Ya need to send this pic to the new Jeff Foxworthy show, they show a "Redneck" backyard photo each week.

 

[TruckNutzDude]

Honestly I think this one takes the cake...

 

[beater_k20]

I can see it now!--Alan in his 30ft Pace Arrow,with a blown 454 and nitrous,smoking the dual rear wheels in a 300ft posi burnout in the 1/4 mile!!..while a steak is grilling in the oven....!

first of all, how do you grille in the oven? that's like trying to bake on the stove. it just dont work!

Alan, you kick ass man!

 

[mountainexplorer]

You know, a racing motorhome would be the ultimate sleeper... literally cause it could sleep 4-8 people.

 

[ZooMad75]

Yeah, this thing was even mostly stripped and it was still a pain to pull out. The 454 was rebuilt in 1987, and the motorhome is a '74. I wonder how they yanked it out. I looked through the front and I didn't see that as being a possibility. They must have had to drop all the front suspension and take it out from below. I didn't see many other alternatives.

The fun one is still coming. I have a 1972 Open Road 25 footer thats still intact, and I need to get the 402 pulled out of it with destroying it. I think I'll have to cut my way in through the front. My sawzall still works.

I've been leaving it whole cause I want to get it running better and take it and my "good" '79 440 powered motorhome out to the race track and race them side by side. Who knows if I'll ever get a chance to do it though.

If that motorhome has a GM "P" chassis under it, you should be able to yank the engine from underneath without cutting the body. You will have to lift the front end up 3 to 4 feet, support the frame and pull the front suspension and main engine cross member and drop the engine down with a floor tranny jack. You can take the intake and heads off so you don't have to lift the body as high and not have as much wieght to deal with. It can be done. Just go ask around at shops that do a lot of RV chassis work, most have done a few....Its a pain in the arse, but better that hacking the body if you wanted to keep it whole to put the engine back into.

Now if you plan on scapping the beast anyway, breakout the sawzall!