Another repair

Monday, October 22nd, 2007

RAIN!

Spent the day in a repair shop – had the oil and air filter changed. But the main reason for the visit was my door. I met a mobile mechanic, when walking Penny around the park, who took a look at the door, which is again causing major problems – as in, I have a lot of trouble simply opening it and closing it.

Some may recall that last year, on my way up to Alaska, I had been following a big 18-wheeler up a narrow two-lane road. He hit a big tree branch and broke it off – it spun back and hit my passenger side mirror. I thought it had hit and bounced away. Not! When I arrived at the RV park a short time later, I couldn’t get out of the coach!

Turns out the branch had somehow spun off my mirror and smashed into the top hinge on the door before falling away. Messed it up really badly. A mobile mechanic came and did his best to beat it back into place, so I could get in and out of the coach, but he warned me that it would ‘remember’ the damage and try to move back into the damaged position.

Many times over the last year, I have taken a hammer to the hinge, trying to beat it into submission. Had a new hinge installed last January when all the other major repairs were made, and that helped for a while. What I really need to do is order an entire new door and frame, but I’ve been told it’ll cost about three grand, so I’m not rushing into it.

When in Connecticut for repairs a few weeks ago, one of the mechanics worked on it for a long time, but whatever he did, it had now reached the point where I had to throw a shoulder into it from the inside to get it open, and I couldn’t close it securely when leaving the coach, or I’d never get it open. Have had to climb in a window a couple times now to get it open.

So – this local mechanic had some hydraulic tools to force major bending – hopefully this’ll last a while. Cross your fingers, please!

mechanic
Lamb Group Truck & Equipment Repair
8326 N Wilderness Rd (US 25N)
Mt. Vernon, KY 40456
606-256-5262