I thought a Barth had corrugated sides?

Some do, some don't, some have partial of both. My Aristocrat is all smooth.

Need pix showing more of the coach, but I don't recall a pre-'90s Barth with smooth sides, nor the small window.

Photos HereIMHO This is the same coach.

The owner sent me some photos and yes it is the same coach. I have owned and sold a lot of RV's in my life. Don't sellers understand that when you want to sell something it has to look good. Owners sometimes use older MH's as storage sheds and load them up with junk. Then they take photos with all kinds of stuff inside. Or they take photos from 1/4 mile away! This owner did take 5 photos and sent them to me. I also found the previous listing on the forum. Owners should understand that a Classic unit will be sold to a special buyer who probably does not live in your hometown. A buyer needs lost of information. And maybe 20 or more photos. Costs zero to take digital photos. Take the time to write up a good factual ad. Sometimes the owners are older and may not be capable of doing the above. But surely they have a friend or family member that can assist.

Great advice.

I think your last point is well taken. Due to the age of our coaches and when they were purchased, many owners are not computer/digital savvy. The resulting ads are far from ideal. Digital photos are indeed free but the process of getting them attached and sent is beyond their skills. Blurry, distant photos are too common. I am always amazed by the clutter…

They are well advised to find a friend or relative to tweak the ad. Not just the year… include model, price and gas/diesel in the title. If the price changes, the original thread poster can edit the thread title with the new price. A few here have done that, it is the best way to get the price change noticed and keeps the listing up to date.

It helps when we paraphrase the ads we repost here: often the direct links, i.e. craigslist, will disappear in short time.

These coaches are not for everyone, as they get older they need attention.

The variation in Barths still amazes me: Here we have an 82 Euro style with smooth sides!

Steve: I am still a Barth novice. What is a Euro Barth?

From about 80 to 82 Barth had an arrangement to buy fiberglass front ends for coach bodies from a manufacturer in Europe. I think they were also planning to try to market the coaches in Europe. Most are 28 footers on the GM chassis. There were some shorter ones, I think 22 was the shortest.



I'm not sure how many were made. You can find more here on the site. Danny Z has the most well known Euro around here, I think.

quote:

Barth had an arrangement to buy fiberglass front ends for coach bodies from a manufacturer in Europe.

Interesting.
All this time I've been thinking the FG panels came from one of the various suppliers in MichIana, with Barth merely using the name "Euro" because of the similarity with some of the "caravans" sold across the big pond.

Studying the RV industry has been a hobby for me. I often wonder how come some companies from the 70's survived and others gradually failed. Barth was a good product in it's day but it seems they lacked marketing skills and focus. Their dealer network was poor ( at least in Canada). Who in their right mind would import front caps from Europe? Very expensive for a product that could easily have been made in the Indiana area for half the price. Perhaps if things were done differently Barth would still be around today.

Hmm.. I think I am mistaken on this one. Might have been thinking of the Iveco. Let me see if I can find the references….

Barth's demise was due to several factors, IMHO.

A major one was cost; the robust superstructure was expensive, both in labor and materials. By comparison, my ex's uncle bought a new '94 (same year as my 28') 34' Fleetwood Bounder (then the top-of the-line) diesel (underpowered with the C5.9 160HP) for $67K. My Breakaway sold new (I have the invoice) for $117K. As far as dealer support is concerned, the uncle bought his Bounder from a very large dealer. It spent 16 of its first 24 months in the shop, and by that I mean IN the shop - not taking occasional trips TO the shop. He finally got so frustrated that, still having a leaky shower, headed to Denver and made Fleetwood ship the replacement and install it there. (Of course, his judgement is questionable, in that he traded it on a Georgie Boy)

While the Monarchs and Sovereigns had updated interiors, Barth retained the same conservative formula for years. Personally, I like the plain but well-executed interior in my Breakaway.

Competitors added slideouts, while only one Barth had them - built for the owner as the last one built.

quote:

Originally posted by Mogan David:

quote:

Barth had an arrangement to buy fiberglass front ends for coach bodies from a manufacturer in Europe.

Interesting.
All this time I've been thinking the FG panels came from one of the various suppliers in MichIana, with Barth merely using the name "Euro" because of the similarity with some of the "caravans" sold across the big pone.

Here is the post I must have been thinking of, an early one by our now departed Bill h. One of my all time favorites.

https://www.barthmobile.com/eve...391068061#2391068061

quote:

One of my all time favorites.

Ahhhh, the good old days...

About once year I go back to this thread for a chuckle. Wish I would have met billh. We saw things differently from time to time, but he was a huge asset to the site and will be missed.
As far as the nosecone, I never heard they were made offshore, I always heard the name Euro was because the Europeans liked aerodynamic looks and this was Barth's way of giving them something other than a wall up front.
The seam between the fiberglass and the aluminum needs attention from time to time. A 30+ year old coach always does. I like the coach being talked about here, and think it would be a good find for the right person.