The one I looked at today.















Pretty clean underneath. Needs a bath, some paint...carpet...mechanically sound I think.

Lotsa looks, but no comments. He is askin 7k. I need some feedback people!

This coach is 25 years old, which says a lot for any vehicle. Barths have good bones, & a good name, & that's what gives them value. The rear bath 28 footer is probably the most popular floor plan. It's practical, & the size is modest.

$7K doesn't sound like a bad price if there are no major issues with the coach or mechanical components. At the end it's your decision, always remembering that fair market value is determined by agreement between a willing buyer & a willing seller, & a Barth is an investment in fun, not a financial investment.

Most coaches this age have a lot of deferred maintenance. I think most of us have spent at least $5K on mechanical repairs, upgrades, replacing appliances, etc. before we were satisfied with our coaches. At least two had an engine blow on the way home from the purchase, & another one burned to the ground on the way home. One or two have been pleasantly surprised at how reliable their coaches were from day one, & how little they had to spend to bring the coach up to their standards.

Whether you buy this one or not, be prepared to spend some money on your coach. You may be disappointed if it's a lot, pleasantly surprised if it's a little.

This coach is a quarter-century old. At the end, you alone are responsible for deciding whether the possible risks or rewards of buying a coach that age predominate. It has been often-stated in this blog that an advantage of the Barth is that won't fall apart faster than you can repair it.

I'd offer this advice if you decide to make a deal: 1) Don't move it from where it's parked until you have insured it, including a good road service policy. 2) Lube, oil, & filter, at least; double check the condition of the antifreeze, & replace any suspect mechanical mechanical components; tires, belts, brakes, etc. before you leave town.

Most coaches receive little use. Those for sale have usually been parked for longer than usual. Stuff deteriorates faster from disuse than from regular use, & that's why a lot of folks have had trouble on the way home. The more you can forestall by doing deferred maintenance before you start home, the better off you'll be.

Others may have more advice, but good luck whatever you decide.

quote:

Originally posted by jsloan:
I need some feedback people!

Seeing that we talked about this in the Chat Room last night, I decided not to post the same answer. I figured you were interested in it and I didn't want someone jumping you to get it.

To recap...
Mary Ray: just do it!
Bill N.Y.: You go for it
Mary Ray: you have our permission to purchase it
Rusty: we can't give permission to buy until he posts 30 more pix
jsloan: i dont have 30 more pics
Rusty: Then you don't have our permission...:roflmao:

BTW: we are usually in the chat room talking about different things. Stop by after 9pm Eastern is your best bet... Last nights topic was Jeff's snoring and my sleeping habits. Rusty came in after the setup and said..."Coming into the chat during an odd interchange"

Yes, you would have had to been there.

quote:

Originally posted by jsloan:
I need some feedback people!

I will echo Roy's post, word for word.

And, here I go with my usual kvetch: NO FLOOR PLAN!

What's with these people? How hard is it to make a simple drawing? BTW, graph paper is really great if accuracy is a consideration.

When I was Barth shopping, I bugged the heck out of sellers as to the plan and measurements. I fly for free, and looked at a number, but I wouldn't walk to the next block to look at a coach without seeing a floor plan.

OK, now that that is out of my system, my own preference here is against a rear bath.

There is a some floor plan discussion HERE.

And HERE.

This is a decision that only you can make. Did you go back today and drive it? Did it say "take me home". If there are no real problems with the coach and it is what you and the wife like then "take it home". Like Olroy said, some have good luck and some don't, but I have always been a gambler and have come out lucky on the two that I have. There have been some necessary repairs and some money spent just because I wanted something for my coach ( that I may not have needed) but it is my money.

quote:

BTW: we are usually in the chat room talking about different things. Stop by after 9pm Eastern is your best bet... Last nights topic was Jeff's snoring and my sleeping habits. Rusty came in after the setup and said..."Coming into the chat during an odd interchange"

Yes, you would have had to been there.

Another odd thing was that I had been in the room for a half-hour, then exited (no one was there), and immediately re-entered. This is s common "feature" of the chat room.

Did he buy this thing or not. The suspense is killing me

So tune back in next week when .......
Mary Ray it is getting me too. Doris

"Did he buy it or not"

Jsloan was on the chat room last night and he is still thinking about it.

It's a positive. I will have a Barth in my driveway this week.

Jslone,
You better hope some Barth nut with a roll in his pocket don't come down that hwy and spot my girl sittin out front. LOL :-)

quote:

Originally posted by dogill:
You better hope some Barth nut with a roll in his pocket don't come down that hwy and spot my girl sittin out front.

This is your coach then? Last time we heard from you it was 12/01/05. Good luck with the sale... If you have any additional pictures send 'em my way and I'll get them up for you.

quote:

Jslone,
You better hope some Barth nut with a roll in his pocket don't come down that hwy and spot my girl sittin out front. LOL :-)

Hey!! That ain't funny! I'm gonna be over there to pick that baby up tomorrow or Wednesday....and park that thing around back where it wont attract any attention!

Hey Bill, yes its me and mine and it has been awhile since I've been on the forum. I didn't have a "for Sale" sign on her and was not all that motivated. Jslone just had a sharp eye and good timing.

Truth is, we've used her very little since the wife's 5-way bypass surgery eighteen months ago and I hate to see her just sit there, unused on a regular basis. We all know that is the worst scenario for a Barth or any MH.

I just put new rubber on her last year and have less than 100 miles on the new tires.

He's going to have to repair or put new headers on the generator and rebuild the generator tray so I cut the price accordingly. This is the coach I bought from old poster "Ron" in 2004.

I told jslone to check out this forum and search for post of "Dogill @ Ron" and he would find every problem that Ron or I ran across during our ownership. I credit my friend Ron, NASA EE, for not only saving this Barth, but making many great improvements to her, including but not limited to new Torley headers w/flow masters, air bag shocks, new frig, and going through all the electrical circuitry.

The old girl still runs like a top as Ron and/or I spared no expense on maintenance.

I told jslone everything that ya'll told him about a 25 year old MH, "expect to always expect anything and always carry spare everything (belts, hoses, fuses, etc, etc,). Things will happen, even to the new quarter million dollar rigs like Ron bought (LOL).

I hope it will make jsloan as good a MH as it did us and he seems like he will fit right in with you guys. And, I can't thank you guys enough for holding my hand through the gremlins I experienced as a newbie Barth owner.

btw, nice pics Jeff!