shoreing up the dash. I used a huge foot print cuz I don't know how strong the Engen cover is so I wanted any dash weight distributed over a large area. I'll stain the whole thing to match JeNNYs colors eh as best I can.
JeNNY (2015 FR3 / 30DS)
2000 Jeep TJ Moab Rock Crawler
2013 Jeep JK
USS Seattle (AOE-3) 84-88 Wayne
US Army 06-15 Sherry
Have put a little over 3000 miles on our FR3 25DS since October on multiple trips and despite a few little problems (jacks getting stuck, steps wearing out, windshield leak) we love our RV. Perfect for some 30-somethings and a couple of small kids. Get nothing but compliments from people everywhere. We pull an older wrangler and bikes when we're mountain biking but really couldn't ask for a better RV for us. Been all over Colorado but looking forward to our trips to Telluride in a couple of weeks and to Grand Tetons in a month for 10 days.
Have done the CHF and steering stabilizer and that fixed the swaying by 85%.
Just had a solar system put in today and knew it was going to get used. Nothing fancy but enough to keep the batteries topped off. Could've done it myself as I have with other popups in the past but was hesitant to cut the roof. Solar Johnny was the best! If you're in Denver and want a solar system put on, contact me and I'll more than vouch for him and his work! Top notch.
The dash rattle was getting to me so I took some of your ideas and built my own little brace that also serves as a phone/gadget holder as well as a little inverter mount. No more of that.
The vinyl tiles come tomorrow for the backsplash behind the stove and bathroom sink.
Most of the problems that I read about and what we've experienced are small in nature and just needs a little elbow grease or ingenuity and patience to get the fixed or manageable. If you skip over to some of the 200k rigs and their forums, you'll read alot about the problems they have and their frustrations.........it happens to them all so don't be afraid to dig around and understand your rig and get a little dirty when needed!
Desert kicker, can you please post the dimensions for that dash support box you made? Thank you. I suck at wood working, but would like to try to build one.
Thank you
JeNNY (2015 FR3 / 30DS)
2000 Jeep TJ Moab Rock Crawler
2013 Jeep JK
USS Seattle (AOE-3) 84-88 Wayne
US Army 06-15 Sherry
I think it was 10.5" wide x 8.25" tall. You will need to lift the dash up ever so gently to slide/wedge the support under the dash. I also put a pad under the back edge of the support so as to not rip or tear the wrap that it sits on. If you are really good, you should probably make the back of the support a little shorter than the front as the doghouse cover slopes up from front to back. I didn't do that so you'll need to be careful when wedging it in so you don't rip anything under it.
It's only a 1x6" deep as I basically built a 1x6" box, put a 1x6" on the back to make sure nothing slide out the back on the bottom shelving but then that allowed a couple of inch gap on the top so that I can run the inverter wires through the top and into the support. I put a 1x6" in the middle to really do the supporting of the dash and it also separates the overall box so that you can put the shelves on the left (or right sides) if you wanted. I used 1/2"x6" for the "shelves". I then just stained it with dark walnut gel that we had left over from a front door re-staining we did a while back. Put it on with paper towels so that it looked a little aged like the floor. I did the same thing with the middle round table (can see it a bit in the picture) I put in between the captains chairs. I put walnut on the table, sanded it a little to take the darkness out, then put on a ipswich pine stain/sealer to try and make it look more like the floor. Wasn't perfect but I think it turned out ok......again, I'm no finish carpenter!
If I can do it..........anyone can!
__________________
2014.5 FR3 25DS for the family!
1989 Wrangler YJ for fun!
29er Mountain bikes for stress relief!
As many RV trips as possible for the lifestyle!
11-1/4" wide
9-1/2" tall in front
10" deep
7-1/2" tall in back (tapered to fit)
The 2 x 4s that cantilever the dash fell out, so instead of trying to put them back I built this with the help of a woodworking friend. I couldn't see an easy way to put the 2 x 4s back, and it seemed like a cheesy setup.
The support is wedged in there pretty tight, but can be slid out if the doghouse has to be removed for some reason. In retrospect, it should have been built with more surface area on the bottom.
Thanks to the people that posted the vinyl backsplash idea!
The 6-pack you buy from Home Depot is enough to do the wall behind the stove/sink and the bathroom under the mirror in a 25DS. I say it's enough but was left with only 1/2 sheet but had to cut another half sheet down to fit in the bathroom.
Measure twice and cut once!
__________________
2014.5 FR3 25DS for the family!
1989 Wrangler YJ for fun!
29er Mountain bikes for stress relief!
As many RV trips as possible for the lifestyle!
On that Home Depot stick on stuff. Can you give me a part number or something? Went to a large Home Depot last night and looked for an hour. Asked a couple clerks. All they had (and said they were aware of) was the standard backing that you install with grout, etc.
It's only available online. Vinyl backsplash in that come in 6-packs.
__________________
2014.5 FR3 25DS for the family!
1989 Wrangler YJ for fun!
29er Mountain bikes for stress relief!
As many RV trips as possible for the lifestyle!
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