Long time camper, first time PU owner

[Jeremy]

I've been snooping around here and a couple other PU related sites for a couple days now.  Thought it was time to join now that I have a PU.  About a week ago an opportunity to take ownership of a used PU came our way, and we couldn't pass it up.  I've been camping pretty much my entire life.  My parents had an older (70's ish) Combi Camp that we towed, and we slept in the lower section til we were old enough for tents.
 
My wife and I have been tent camping since we met, and with the recent addition of our daughter, we felt tent camping on the ground was no longer a good idea.  We talked about eventually getting a popup, but being in a townhouse, we didn't have a place to store it, plus we wanted to use the $$ to get into a house first.  Til last weekend.  A friend of a neighbor had an older camper that he never used and said we could borrow it whenever we wanted.  I talk my neighbor about borrowing it this summer and he said "oh, he's going to trade it in on a new travel trailer"... crap.  Turns out they were going to give him $400 in trade for the camper.  Heck, for 400 bucks, if it's in decent shape, I'll buy it from him.
 
The next day we went out to look at it and see about buying it.  It's an '85 Palomino Stallion PU in great shape.  The canvas is original with no rips or tears or worn spots.  Frame is sturdy with minimal surface rust (no pieces rusted through) for a 20 year old camper.  All the electrics work (no onboard battery, but we don't dry camp), and he said the gas & water works too.  
 
After giving it a quick once over, everything looked in good shape for the age of the camper.  The guys parents bought it and handed it down to them.  The interior was typical 80's brown, but all the cushions looked brand new.  A couple of the cabinet drawers needed some work, but overall, for $400 bucks I couldn't pass it up.
 
I asked him the last time it was used/towed and he said they used it in June and towed it upto Door County WI to have the RV dealer look at it.  The tires have a little dry rot and will be replaced before we go on our first trip.
 
I spoke with my sister and they have 5 acres and will let us store it at their place for free, and I said they can use it whenever they want.
 
We towed it home Thursday and began working on cleaning/repairing it this weekend.  I painted all the lifter bars, tongue assembly, frame, bumpers with Rustoleum hammered finish black.  Replaced the safety chains and LP tank hardware.  I converted the old Non-OPD fitting to the new OPD fittings and checked it for leaks.  
 
Inside we primed and painted all the cabinets white to brighten up the interior.  We also put down new peel & stick tiles to cover the dark brown linoleum floor.  I painted the stovetop with appliance epoxy paint and tested the 3 burners and they're working.
 
The water system on the other hand... the camper had an onboard storage tank as well as street water hookup that "T'd" to the pump faucet.  When we hooked up the water and turned it on, the "T" cracked and water went everywhere.  After drying everything off we decided that we'd never really use the onboard storage tank so I removed the tank and replaced the "T" with a straight thread to barb fitting and ran a new line upto the sink.  I need to pickup a pressure regulator and possibly an inline filter and we're good to go.
 
Overall I think I've put maybe $200 into it with repairs and new supplies, but even still, for $600 bucks we're set to go.
 
Well, that's enough rambling for me.  I've been lurking around this forum and others looking for tips, hints, repairs, and mods and the members of the PU community have some great ideas and some great enginuity when it comes to customizing your campers.  I look forward to picking up some knowledge and hopefully share some as well.
 
 
Happy Trails,

[vjm1639]

Welcome to PUT and congratulations on your new to you camper!  I hope you have many years of fun camping times ahead.  You'll find all sorts of info here from the pros.

[tlhdoc]

Congratulations on the new PU and welcome to PUT!:)

[OC Campers]

Congratulations on your great find.  It sounds like you are very handy and will have that popup looking great in no time.  Have fun.  Welcome to PUT.  
 
Jacqui