Finally bought one.

I finally found  TT that I liked for the price I wanted to pay.  I got a 1987 Terry resort 28 footer. Paid an even $1000 for her. I'm REAL happy with the purchase.  The guy that had it got it in some sort of trade and never used it so he didn't know anything about it. I was skeptical, but for $1000 I was willing to chance it.
Spent the weekend going through it.  I was pleasantly surprised at a few things that work, and a bit disappointed at a few things that don't.

Pics coming later today.

I'll start with the bad.

Fridge= freezer freezes but fridge part just gets cool. Either on ac or gas
HWH disconnected and parts are missing.
Electric brakes non working
holding tanks moniter system doesn't work
bathroom sink is cracked
Shower valve does work
leveling jacks are gone
awning is gone
all the roof vents are cracked (they were taped over to keep out ant water) WHEW!

now the plusses

Tires are just 1 year old and look like brand new
Furnace works
all the lights work
ceiling is perfect
stove and oven works
water pump is good
all windows are good. (couple of the cranks are stripped)
siding is decent other than one dent where the awning hit it during a storm (awning removed at that point)
holding tanks don't leak
carpet, linoleum, furniture in good cleanable shape
roof is in very good shape just needs a recoat

There is rot in the front and back drivers side corners from the windows down. I'm talkin just a 1 foot wide section on each end. I think the water damage came from the windows or the screwed on outside molding where the sides meet the front and back.
It's not going to be an easy fix but it's a doable project for this winter. I'll use it like it is for now.

Like I said. I'll post some pics later today. I wish I had some before we cleaned the inside and out. The upholstery and such was HORRIBLY dirty, and the outside was green with tree sap and such. I wasn't thinking and didn't take any "before" pics.

Good morning and welcome to The RV Forum.

It sounds as if you have a real project.  It should be a lot of fun getting it in shape and a lot more fun taking it on the road.  There is a lot of RV project experience here so when you have questions or need a bit of assistance figuring things out we can help.  And we enjoy it.  Take a peak at our library.  There should be some helpful info there.

Join our discussions if you like.  It is a great way to get to know folks who share an enthusiasm for RVing.

If you feel comfortable doing so, we would be interested in learning more about you.  Like where is home?  Do you plan to be week-enders, full timers, or what?  Etc., Etc.

Welcome aboard!

Heres a few pics.

Hers a few more.
First pic shows the rotted corner.

geodrake said:

If you feel comfortable doing so, we would be interested in learning more about you.  Like where is home?  Do you plan to be week-enders, full timers, or what?  Etc., Etc.

Welcome aboard!

Click to expand...

I'm a 42 year old contractor from Montpelier, Ohio. Married to my wife Monica for 22 years. 3 kids all moved out.
This is actually the second camper we have had. The first was a very rotted Jayco 2850. I sold the Jayco and have been searching for the "RIGHT ONE" for awhile now. I thought for awhile that I wanted an RV but when reality set in I decided a TT was just better for us.
We are just weekenders if you could even call us that. I have never once stayed in a campground. We use the camper for weekend parties, camping in my friends woods, RC airplane events. Our first ever campground weekend is planned for June 25-26-27. Luckily our friends that we hang with used to go campgrounding a lot, so they will know all the protocols and such.
2 weeks after that is the RC airplane combat nationals in Muncie, Indiana for 3 days. 3 weeks after that is a big biker party in Vanwert, Ohio for 4 days. Yep the pressure is on to get this baby ready.

While my wife was cleaning and scrubbing the inside I played around on the outside. I got all the lights working and electric brakes working. (ends up the problem was in my van not the trailer)
They do have an issue though. I think they are dragging. After a 2 mile trip just to check them out the wheels were scorching hot. I'm talking burn your finger hot. Gonna have to disassemble each wheel and go through them. (wanted to repack the bearings anyways)

Noticed a drip from the drain pipe on the gray water tank. Appears that the hanger has come loose and was likely flexed enough to break open a glue joint. Looks like it could be a real PITA to fix so I may leave it go for now and put it on my winter fix list.

Now that my wife is done with the cleaning I'll move inside and start fixing cabinet drawers, roof vents, etc.

Fridge problem has me a bit lost but according to the Norcold manual, I can remove it and lay it on it's left side for a couple hours. Apparently the ammonia and water seperate and cause clogs. Laying it on it's side fixes this. (I hope this is all it needs)

It looks pretty decent overall, so some TLC ought to make it a good camper for your needs. Good luck with the fix-up project!

Yep I think it's gonna work out great. I think now that $1000 was a great deal! Needs a lot of little things and a couple big items but I'm bettin another $1000 and it will function like a new one. The only reason I think another $1000 is because I want to put in AC.

AC $500
HWH $200
New front door $150
Awning (found them for $300)
Spare tire and rack $100
New battery $100
roof vent covers $100
Roof coating $150

Yes this adds up to more than $1000 but I'm hoping to pick a couple things up used and save some bucks. Plus I could live without AC.

Relative to your fridge, it may be working OK.  It takes a while, with the door closed, for the refrigerator part to cool down.  You might try putting a temp gauge in the refrigerator part to see how cool it gets.  If the freezer is freezing, then I'd say the refrigeration unit is working properly and, at worst, all you have  is a circulation problem.  They are not as robust as your home fridge and all cooling is done via natural convection.  There are small fans available, powered by 2 D cell batteries to aid air circulation in the fridge which is an issue if you have it stuffed FULL of food and air circulation is impaired.

Normally these units have a finned aluminum structure at the top rear of the compartment and it gets cold and all the heat in the box is removed by this finned aluminum piece.  Any serious build-up of corrosion or oxide on this piece will impair its cooling ability.

Nice rig & it sounds as if you have gotten a bargain. 

You folks are in for some fun!

AIM,  looks like you got a handle on the repairs you need to make.  You may want to find a RV Salvage yard. You would be surprised how much you can find there at a descent price.  In Southwest Missouri, is Colaws RV salvage, and I found a lot of pieces I needed for my old class c and 5th wheel. The small parts weren't the drive to get, but the major stuff was worth it.  Also do your home work on pricing new parts, there are on-line parts stores that have good prices and have free shipping on some items.

As others have said, let the fridge run all day and check the temps with a thermometer. These types of refridgerators take a while to cool down. For general maintenance, I've been happy with the "Trailer Life's RV repair & maintenance manual". A decent book all in all.

As suggested I'm gonna let the fridge run all day once. I think before I do that though I'm going to remove it and lay it on it's side for a couple hours like the manual says. If nothing else it will allow me to inspect the inner cabinet for water damage. The vent cover is broken and has allowed rain to enter the top. No rot is evident at the top but I'd like to see behind and make any repairs while the fridge is out.
After this I will run it for 24 hours on electricity. Allow to warm up for several hours and then a 24 hour run on propane.

Wife and I went to the camper surplus place yesterday afternoon. Looks like My $1000 estimate is a TAD low.

18' awning = $380  (+$50 if I want a power awning)
AC = $400
Front door = $100
4 leveling jacks = $80
Spare tire, cover and bumper rack = $70
2 roof vents and 1 vent w/ fan = $45
Fridge vent cover = $20 (if he could find one)
Deep cycle battery = $95
roof coating = $150
This big sticker for the back That I thought was cool = $50

All of this and the ol camper would be in pretty top notch shape.
He didn't know what the price on the HWH was. (the guy that handles them was gone while we were there)

$1390 + HWH I'll just stick with $200 for now = a grand total of $1590

Add that to the original $1000 price for the camper and we're at $2590
That's about $500 more than I had hoped for but probably not a terrible deal.