RE: PUT forum testimonial

[Red neff Barchetta]

 I just wanted to say thank you to the PU (some who have moved to other forums) owner s here who have shared their great advice, SPUT s, and bad experience s as well when having work done.
 I had the TV & PU serviced today at the tire & brake shop and now have them both back ready to roll with no ridiculous unrelated (to tire & brake work) problems such as a bent frame, smashed rear stabilizer s, etc...  I calmly but forcefully had them write some things down this morning such as " Don t drive out of the driveway straight on"  so they wouldn t smash up the rear of the PU.  Pointed out to " please"  not let the PU brake wires get pinched in the leaf springs after they were done working on the PU like I have read has happened to more than one Coleman owner here.  I removed a few things like the battery & spare tire vinyl cover from the PU so they weren t misplaced or disappeared (accidently or otherwise).  Confirmed they did not need inside the PU and then took the PU keys with me so that wouldn t be another thing to worry about all day.
 I know this all sounds anal, but hey, I now am ready for our busy and exciting summer camping schedule and I am NOT doing a last minute scramble this afternoon trying to book an RV mechanic to repair a smashed stabilizer or something.  I now have rotated tires and 2 new front brakes on the TV as well as re-packed bearings on the PU and the security that all tires & brakes are in excellent condition.  What I don t have is some new headache regarding missing LP tanks or some other ridiculous thing happening.  Both the TV & PU are resting happily in perfect condition at this moment.
 
 Thanks again everyone for your stories and experience s!  As I discreetly checked the PU this afternoon for a bent frame, scratched bumper, etc... before driving off their property, I thought of all that I have learned here.

[tlhdoc]

 Red neff Barchetta

 

ORIGINAL:  Red neff Barchetta
 
 Pointed out to " please"  not let the PU brake wires get pinched in the leaf springs after they were done working on the PU like I have read has happened to more than one Coleman owner here.
 
 

 I know that feeling.[]
 

[kathybrj]

 tlhdoc

 

ORIGINAL:  tlhdoc
 
 
 I know that feeling.[]
 
 

 
 Yeah, Tracy knows that feeling! []

[tlhdoc]

 kathybrj

 

ORIGINAL:  kathybrj
 
 
 

ORIGINAL:  tlhdoc
 
 
 I know that feeling.[]
 
 

 
 Yeah, Tracy knows that feeling! []
 

 Tell Blaise THANK YOU again for me!

[Red neff Barchetta]

 Red neff Barchetta
Tracy -
 Then I thank you for passing on your unfortunate experience, ha.  Your thread must have been one of the one s I read at some point in time to make sure it doesn t happen to my PU.  After hearing about the problem, I crawled under the PU and sure enough under the driver s side there were 2 wires just waiting to get pinched in the springs.  I strapped them to the frame, but the guys needed them loose today to work under there (or so they said) so I unstrapped them.  I re-strapped them this afternoon.  Just one more thing I learned that has kept that particular potential problem out of my life.
 
 I have neither the interest or time for all things automotive.  I have no problem paying someone else to change my oil, tires, brakes, tune-up, etc...  I guess having my own business I am very aware how much my time is worth.  My DW and her sister on the other hand will drive 45 minutes out of their way to save $3.00 on a pair of pants and then buy a Starbuck s coffee for $3.50 on the way back, lol!  Not to mention wear and tear on the car as well as fuel used.  To each his/her own I guess.
 
 I just felt like letting everyone know that we all learn from each other, just like I hope nobody ever pulls my best/worst SPUT;
 Popping-up in some extreme wind and getting flustered and forgetting the stabilizer s.  I hopped up on the rear bunk to set the shepherd s pole and did a wheelie with the PU!  The scary part was that about 20 seconds earlier my 3 year-old niece was standing under the front bunk which surely would have come down on her head when I jumped off the rear bunk and the tongue and dolly jack came crashing back down.
 Or the time I pulled out the break-away cable from the tongue and drained my battery the first night of a 5 night dry camping trip.  Had to ruin the sounds of nature and run the generator and charger for 4 hrs. the next day getting the battery back up to a full charge.
 
 Thanking everyone just hit me this afternoon as I was doing a quick inspection of the PU before leaving the place when I realized that I was actually checking for specific damage that I had heard had happened to others.  As opposed to doing a check for the heck of it and not looking at the critical area s of the PU such as the stabilizer s for damage.  I can only imagine the intense anger and frustration the person who s thread I read where they didn t realize one of their rear stabilizer s had been torn off and they were 5 hrs. from home trying to pop-up with 3 stabilizer s and some firewood under the fourth corner.

[Ab Diver]

 Red neff Barchetta
Quite a while ago there was a thread about all the stupid things we *didn t* do on our last camping trip (or something along those lines). The thread grew into a list of all the things that *don t* happen to all of us anymore, cuz we ve learned how to prevent them from other PUT members.
 
 Same basic thing as what you are talking about, Jeff. The sharing of knowledge and experience on this forum has made our camping trips MUCH more enjoyable and error-free.
 
 My latest tip was this little fan that goes inside your fridge to keep everything the same tempurature. I m gunna have to thank that guy the next time I see him. []

[tlhdoc]

 Red neff Barchetta
We have had a PU for 7 years and we still learn things here.  That is why I am here.

[barbjeff]

 Red neff Barchetta
I must agree with all the comments previously posted. The wealth of knowledge and experience that members of this board have shared and are willing to share is almost daunting to the newbie.
 I clearly remember doing some of  my research here before buying our first PU  and was overwhelmed by the responses on the board, to my e- mail, and even one phone call to my questions! What a great organization to be associated with!
 I hope that I can continue in that tradition of sharing my PU experiences, good, bad, and embarassing with others

[George]

 Red neff Barchetta
For those of us relatively new... is there a collection of " most important threads"  somewhere on here?  The one about all the SPUTs you don t do anymore would be good to read.  How far back is it?
 Thanks,
 
 -George

[Red neff Barchetta]

 Red neff Barchetta
George -
 Check your " inbox"  in your " my profile"  area.
 I sent you some info.

[popupcop]

 Red neff Barchetta
Yes we all have learned much on this board.  I am glad you had piece of mind by keeping the keys but I think I have read here that generally all Coleman keys are interchangable....so it may not be wise to leave valuables in your PU when taking it for service.

[Red neff Barchetta]

 Red neff Barchetta
You are right popupcop.  All Coleman PU s are keyed alike.  It would be silly to key each one differently, especially since a popped-up PU has so many other ways to get into.  If anybody really wanted in when the PU is closed all they have to do is modify something to raise the roof or break the silly little door or front storage trunk locks.
 I just meant that it was nice not to have them (the mechanic s) need to be inside the PU, so I took the keys with me.  I know the place well enough (been going there for 15 years) that they wouldn t try and get in without my knowledge or my keys.