15+ yrs of sitting..and the Coach made it home :)

[RJ]

Gerry -

it pulls like a monster to the right, it wants to put you in the wheat, but it was managable...

Before you spend a dime on tires, run the coach over a commercial truck scale to find out how much weight you're carrying on each axle.  Divide that number by the number of tires on the axle to get the average weight being carried by each tire.  Add 200 lbs to this number as a "fudge factor" for "stuff." 

Now go to the tire manufacturer's website and find the tire inflation load charts based on your tire size.  Find the pressure that most closely matches the weight you arrived at earlier, and inflate the tires to that psi.  (I personally round UP to the next 5 psi.)

After readjusting the tire pressures properly, take the coach out for another run and see if maybe, just maybe, that was the problem.

Started the steam pressure washing today...and the soda blasting will be following here pretty quick....

Be aware that the soda blasting WILL mar the anodized finish of the aluminum.  I had that done to my 4106 after it got "tagged" in the temporary storage lot.  After that, you could still see the "tags" in the aluminum, even tho the paint was gone.  Only way to remove was to paint it.  And yes, the guy (a colleague) knew what he was doing - he's been blasting for over 20 years - he used the smallest, finest grain soda available for the job.

everything below that, polished aluminum to a mirror finish....

FYI, polishing the aluminum siding on a GMC has been cussed/discussed on the two big bus bulletin boards numerous times over the years.  Cliff's Notes version: It's a lot more complicated than polishing the stainless on an MCI, plus requires constant repolishing, because of oxidation.  Do a google search on this BBS, plus the Archives over at BNO (www.busnut.com) for more info.

. . . tried reverse gear today, and what do ya know, it worked like a charm...

So all it took was "knowing the secret," eh?  That's good!

Finally, speaking of tires:

If you're going to be in the market for new, be aware that GM designed the powertrain around tires that turned 495 revs per mile.  So, when shopping, try to find replacements that come as close as possible to the original, for OEM performance.  You can use 22.5 or 24.5 inch rims, that doesn't really matter - it's the tire revs per mile that's the important number.  22.5s are the most popular, btw.

Tires that turn LESS than 495 will give you slightly better fuel mileage, tires that turn MORE than 495 will have the opposite effect.

The HD truck tire market is currently in the middle of converting over to metric sizing, similar to what our autos have used for a decade now.  Thus a 315/80R22.5 is roughly the equivalent of a 12R22.5, an 11R22.5 crosses over to about a 295/75R22.5.  But again, pay attention to the tire revs per mile number while you shop!  (Plus load range, based on the weight you're carrying.)

FWIW & HTH. . .

[Ed Hackenbruch]

Well since he said that the tires are "total crap" and need to be replaced anyway, that would be the first thing i would do.....driving it afterwards for a mile or two should tell if it makes a difference or not and should not cause a lot of wear.  Then i would be looking at the suspension to see what kind of shape it is in.