After our marathon drive to Elkhart, we slept soundly in spite of the fact that Duncan RV Repair is located just a block or so from a major railroad switching yard, and day and night you can hear the screeching of steel wheels on steel rails, and the banging and clanking of railroad cars being shuffled around.

While Miss Terry was having her morning coffee and checking e-mail, I went to the office and checked in, letting them know which site we were in, though that probably wasn’t necessary, since the only RVs in Duncan’s camping area are our Winnebago Ultimate Advantage and an Alpha motorhome.

We went over the things I needed done that I had listed when I made our appointment (fix water heater, which works on gas but not electric, and install our Wilson Trucker antenna on the roof of the motorhome for better reception with our Verizon air card), and then, when I discovered that Duncan is an authorized Onan service and repair facility, I added a couple of other tasks (oil and filter change, lube job, and new fuel filter on the motorhome, and service our Onan diesel generator). As long as we’re here, we’ll get everything done we can.

Later on, a service tech named Marco came out to the motorhome to go over our job list again, and since it was noon by then and he would not be able to start on our rig until about 2 p.m., he suggested that we wait until today, and he’d pull it in first thing and have the whole day to get things done, rather than start, then have to button everything back up at closing time and move the motorhome out so we could sleep in it overnight, and then do the same thing this morning all over again. We agreed, and promised we’d have the motorhome ready to go at 9 a.m. today.

With that all arranged, we drove to Phoenix Commercial Paint, where we have had our bus stored since we left the area. Owner Michele Henry greeted us, and we checked out the full body paint job she was finishing up on a Fleetwood diesel pusher. That lady does great work and is a stickler for getting every detail perfect!

We checked the bus out to be sure it was ready for its new owner on Friday, then made a quick stop at RV Surplus to say hello to our friend Trina Ambris. By then it was late in the afternoon and we were ready for dinner.

The storm that has been moving across the country began with sprinkles as we were driving back to our motorhome, and we wondered how bad it was going to get. We have snow showers predicted for the next several days, and temperatures in the 20s. Not exactly perfect RVing weather. We look forward to getting back to the South to soak up some sunshine.

Bad Nick is no fool, he spent the day inside writing a new Bad Nick Blog post titled How Do You Put A Deadline On A War?. Check it out and leave a comment. 

Thought For The Day – Bad decisions make good stories.

Register Now For Our Arizona Gypsy Gathering Rally

I stole the title of today’s blog from our dear friends Ron and Brenda Speidel, who presented an excellent seminar by the same name at our Eastern Gypsy Gathering rallies this year and last. One of the most popular seminars at our rallies, the Speidels show RVers how they can save tens of thousands of dollars by upgrading and refurbishing their current motorhome or fifth wheel trailer instead of buying a new one.

Ron and Brenda know what they are talking about; they have turned their stock 2002 Winnebago Journey DL motorhome into a palace on wheels with the addition of a new custom full body paint job, custom built computer work station/dining table, replacing the original kitchen sink with a larger style, and several other projects. Most people who see their coach cannot believe that it is almost eight years old! It looks like a much newer, much more expensive motorhome.

Yesterday we visited their rig to admire their latest addition, a beautiful wood floor installed by Brad and Hall, an RV furniture dealer here in Elkhart, Indiana. Monday they will take the Winnebago to another local shop, Duncan RV Repair, where a new shower unit will be installed.

While they have invested some money in upgrading their RV, Ron says it has been a fraction of what it would have cost them to buy a different motorhome.

There is probably no better place in the country than the Elkhart area to refurbish an RV. Long known as the RV Capital of the World, you can find shops offering every service needed to complete any RV upgrade project here, as well as RV supply and surplus parts stores that have anything you might need. Some of the best known companies that we have dealt with ourselves, or whose work we have seen are listed below:

Phoenix Commercial Paint, (574) 238-5668 – Michele Henry does first class custom RV full body paint jobs for much less than anybody else in the RV industry. Most folks who have shopped the competition can’t believe the prices she quotes, and when they see the end result, they are always delighted.

Focal Wood Products (574) 773-4268 – We are just two of Amish craftsman Carlyle Lehman’s many satisfied customers. He’s the man to see for custom RV furniture.

Brad and Hall (574) 522-7435 – For RV furniture and flooring, the crew at Brad and Hall have seen many RVers driving out with a smile.

Duncan RV Repair (888) 738-6226 – For everything from general RV repairs to custom installations, these folks can do the job right the first time. 

RV Surplus (574) 264-5575 – When we built our bus conversion, we saved a fortune by shopping at RV Surplus, where they have anything and everything that goes in, on, and under an RV.

Sierra Custom Interiors (574) 848-1300 – Michael Greene builds custom interiors for horse and cargo trailers, and has a lot of creative ideas you might be able to tap into.

Master Tech RV Services (574) 522-6224 Master Tech offers a full line of services, from repairs and upgrades, to paint and graphics.

These are just a few of the companies here that can help you transform that plain vanilla RV into a custom home on wheels that will serve you well for years to come, for much less than the cost of purchasing a new RV. So if you’ve been thinking about buying a new RV, think again. You may be able to get what you want for a lot less than you would expect to have to pay!

Thought For The Day – Growing old beats the alternative of dying young.