Can anyone tell me if my 77 29' would have a model name such as Regency or Regal or ??? I only know mine as a 1977 29' Barth

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Brad
1977 29' CLASS EH!

I believe there was only one "model" offered in varying lengths and a long list of options during that era.....

My '78 is a Model 24, indicating length....(w/ chrome letters: "24" riveted next to the door).....Ads from that period also refer to length as the distinguishing characteristic between offerings, with no mention of a "model", i.e.: A Barth was a Barth was a Barth.....Seems that the early '80's saw the first named models.....

My '71 25' is a Barth Limited. There is "Limited" in script just to the rear of the door.

It appears that by 73 Barth no longer had limits.

Just aft of my door are two letters, not chrome "25".

Now including the big offsets on the bumpers she is closer to 30 but as California has a limit of 30 feet for beach camping I tend to stress the modle setting and gloss over the bumpers and motorcycle rack.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by timnlana:
It appears that by 73 Barth no longer had limits.

hmmm- maybe yours wasn't a limited model? they certainly existed within a year of yours.

ours was built in late 1972 and is titled as a 1972 model, although not actually registered until early 1973. Just aft of the door is "Limited" in script.
it is also a blue plate california original.

Boonville appears to be located in a lovely part of California but as it is a ways up the road from Studio City it may be a while before we can do a side by side check.

My chassis may be a 1972, the Barth was titled as a 1973. I need to check the chassis numbers on the front, one of these days. As I am sure you know the Barth plate added a Barth number so checking the P30 plate is the real test for the chassis.


My 1973 Barth 25 has a center bath. The walls are done in some type of Vinyl over plywood. The cabinets while real wood are not cherry wood, the finish is less than yacht quality but may have been redone. The exterior was painted what some gentlemen might call “salmon” it sure looked like pink to me. When I got it the paint was white oil base poorly brushed over the pink, a step up none the less. The upper part of the coach has the "Station Wagon" phoney wood stuff on it and this stuff has not weathered well, I am using a heat gun to remove it bit by bit.


I wonder if the limited tag denoted a higher end fit and finish for the interior.

While the choice of wood in my coach is less than I expected and the wall coverings are not wood, the furnishings are top notch and the original slat blinds done in very 1970s yellow and rust combinations were as I recall costly at the time.

My 25 is clearly a Barth but may have been a less costly version. I found mine in the East, with more than some rust in the undercarriage; congratulations on finding a California coach.

The P30 chassis has the standard 454, oil and transmission coolers added at some point as well as a real nice iron head Onan. The running gear was sure top notch.

hmmm...
Studio City? I thought you had been in the Bay area, only a few hours away...

truthfully, I thought perhaps the 'Limited' on the side meant it was a less expensive model. The walls are apparently some type of wood-look paneling. Although it was probably considered nice in 1972, it's not anything fancy. Lacquered real wood doors on plywood cabinets that have darkened so much as to virtually obscure the grain. The ceiling is plastic coated something-probably ceiling panels?

As previously stated elsewhere, we got original documents with our 22 footer. Amongst them is the 14 page Barth Owners Manual. I just looked in it and found:

"The interior walls are finished in high pressure plastic laminate, is best cleaned with liberal application of suds from a mild household detergent, with a small amount of bleach (Clorox, for example) added to the water. A damp bristle brush can be used for scrubbing to loosen and remove the soil. Then the surface should be rinsed with clear water and wiped dry."

The counters are also a high pressure plastic laminate, which looks like Formica.
care for the wood is a rag dampened with plain water so as to not damage the lacquer.

we've no idea of the original exterior of ours. Previous owner polished much of it, but close examination reveals top and perhaps other sections had been painted at one time. We intend to Snow Coat the roof this summer as there's a small leak (probably where the ladder was partially pulled loose) and it'll be cooler should we make it to Burning Man this year. Long term plan is to repaint portions of it and finish polishing other portions. However, other commitments limit our time, focus, and energy for such endeavors... which is why the plans are 'long term'.

Vehicle I.D. on ours is CPE372J110541, indicating it is a 1972 model year. (we even have the original 'Protect-o-plate" and 1972 truck warranty folder that came with the chassis part. it was first registered in San Diego area in January 1973 and spent most of its life there when not on the road. However, the last 10 years or so it spent most of its time being stored on an avocado ranch, and being moved once monthly. Thankfully, prior owner renovated much of the interior. He replace TWO layers of orange shag carpet with wood in the center section and dark gray automotive carpet in the cab and the bedroom/dining in the rear. he also removed the stove and put a bench seat in its place, plus updated the upholstery and curtains.
ours has the center bath... and it is TINY-maybe a footprint of 30"X 36". it does have a nice monomatic toilet which we've not used-yet...

AS for running gear, ours has a Chevy 350. it's adequate, but more power would be welcome on steep inclines or when passing.

We bought it from someone who'd moved from Santa Cruz to Austin Texas last year, so had to go to Austin and drive it back to Boonville. Thankfully it still had the original California tags so registration was both easy and inexpensive. You probably got a better buy on yours...with the rebuilt engine and 3' longer; plus you paid a couple of grand less than I did and it wasn't 1800 miles away.
I love our Barth. It is way cool...but it needs engine and front end work before another trip in it. the "quart every 1000 miles" oil leak I was told of before buying it actually was more like "quart every 400 miles" on the road home. the 'average of 10 miles per gallon' was more like 8 MPG. The 'front end alignment' was done without replacing worn parts... so all of that still needs doing.
It'll likely be sitting more than driven - for awhile anyway.

I don't know if ours has oil/transmission coolers.

We've been wondering how much hassle it'd be to replace the current engine with a diesel one rather than repair this one...we'd dearly love to have an RV we could convert to run on SVO or Biodiesel. However, then we'd have to switch generators to diesel as well since it feeds from the same 50 gallon fuel tank as the engine.

we don't even have a good mechanic lined up yet for the work it really needs...the only really good one in our valley "doesn't work on trucks". we're hoping he'll see it as a car since it IS titled as a 'Housecar'. However, the other vehicles needed attention first...so more Barth repair has been put off until at least June...

Cool, you folks have the toaster; yep it does need to get on the road more. I am sure you will have fun with your new Barth, hopefully we will see you at the burn next year. We spent our vacation time sailing in Mexico this year so there is no time off left for the burn. The Barth does make the burn lots of fun, as you made it back from Texas OK you may wish to just pack up the extra oil, a good drip cloth so you don’t leave a mess at black rock and just go; save the work for later, this approach works for me. Take it easy, driving slowly saves fuel and you see more.

The engine swap is a project that can be rewarding if you have done this sort of thing before, have welding equipment, the ability to design and improvise when required, three to five thousand dollars (assuming you are installing used gear) and a couple of man months set aside; woman months work too if you are blessed with a woman in your life who can wrench and weld.

Rather than the pulling the engine how about putting your time, energy and fortune into a nice set of solar panels and a battery system to run the coach when you are off the grid? This may be something that gives you a bit more bang for your treasure. Then if you have a generator you can sell it and offset some of the cost, well that is my plan (read unbudgeted dream) at the moment.

Parts for our Chevy engines and P30 chassis are dirt cheap and a budget of $500.00 if you are rational or up to $1,300.00 if you are as nutty as I am will allow you to get the gas engine and suspension up to a lot better than new condition. Most of this stuff is easy to do, Ok the learning thing can be a pain. You will need a decent set of tools; Sears or even Home Despot have nice sets of ratchets and open-end wrenches you can buy if you don’t have them; I don’t find the sets with screw drives and pliers very attractive; I prefer Channel-lock brand crescent wrenches and Kline pliers but Sears has a good deal on screw driver sets. Good tools are a blessing and I find pay for themselves by the second job. Oh yea with good tools and a set of Latex or the like gloves you will have far fewer scraped knuckles or cuts.

Once the new parts are installed you can pay to have the alignment or other adjustmetns done by an expert. I find experts love to work on stuff that has new parts and where all the adjustment points are lubricated and move easily. This can save you a considerable amount of money and the quality of the work is entirely up to you, it's that personal empowerment thing, Yea Burningman.

Tim

P.S. Don't sweat the oil thing too much.

If it is a leak and it is a gasket that is easy to replace or better yet just tighten, go for it. If the engine is using the oil, it appears the best thing to do is just to drive it. I was uptight about the oil thing on my coach but I found reading the many posts on this site about oil use very illuminating. It appears for Chevys that don't get used a lot this is just the way things are.

Tim, I appreciate the suggestions. However, I prefer to pay another to do the wrench work if I can afford to. I don't enjoy the work, and hate getting oil and grease on my skin or clothes. Would you be interested in trading mechanical work for cabin time at a quiet forest retreat center? I could arrange that if it doesn't conflict with any of the group reservations here...

I think I could be 'as nutty as' you about suspension upgrades, so that it handles as well as possible. I haven't driven it yet, my partner insisted on doing the entire drive from Texas and recommends I don't drive it until we get some front end work done. He complained that he had to fight to keep it in its lane anytime we were passed by a truck or other large vehicle. It would move up to a foot laterally in the bow wave of a big rig. If repairs are to be done, I want the best that I can afford to have done. as for the engine, I don't need it souped up, just tuned very well and with all oil leaks repaired. Then I can put AMSoil in it and not worry about lots leaking out.

I do have a decent set of Craftsman sockets, but most of my open/box end wrenches disappeared along the way between the apprentice days and now. just odds'n ends remain. I know how to use them, but am not skilled and don't enjoy the work.

There's paperwork from a shop in Santa Cruz indicating oil leaks from oil pan, timing cover, valve covers, and fuel pump, which Paul didn't have fixed. less costly to just keep filling it up. However, the leaks are worse than he reported from his drive East. In theory I could fix all but maybe the timing cover...but don't want to expose myself to the oil, etc. I was a professional landscape manager for many years and had plenty of exposures to petro and other chemicals...enough to last a lifetime, thank you.

the engine doesn't appear to burn any oil, just slings it out. that makes for a somewhat stinky ride since the cab A/C hasn't had a belt since the owner prior to Paul and we like open windows. we also need to replace the thermal acoustic foam that used to line the engine housing cover and probably replace the weather-stripping around the edges. that'll reduce the aroma and heat leakage inside the cab. The heater core has small leak(s) so it's disconnected, and the air hoses from it to the inside vents are missing... there's a lot to do when we have energy, focus, time.

we do have the ORIGINAL Onan gas generator. a bit noisy by modern standards, but functional. low hours too for 30+ years old. but it would be really hard to sleep with it running underneath the sleeping compartment, powering the roof A/C. I think a portable solar array with a good extension cord, tripod stands, and more batteries will be the way I choose to go...after more important repairs are done.

I really do not like the idea of driving a vehicle that leaks so much oil anywhere. it is really hard on the ecosystem when thousands of us idiots do that, and there are millions of leaky vehicles on the roads. However, we'll take your suggestions under consideration when planning August. I'd really enjoy making the Burn for the first time this year as I have many friends who will be there, including one elderly couple I'd love to see there.(he is 80)

One thing we'd need for sure is to replace the bathroom window, which "was lost" during the drive from Santa Cruz to Austin. Paul fabricated a not-very-functional Plexiglas replacement, but it doesn't seal at all, so everything would be full of powder-fine dust after a week on the Playa.

anybody have a clue where we could locate a replacement 1972 bathroom window, with it's metal frame? the outer frame is still there, just the parts that opened are gone.

quote:

Originally posted by geoffrey:
In theory I could fix all but maybe the timing cover.

After you remove the water pump the timing cover is really easy. The one thing to note would be how much play you have in your thrust bearings.

I had one 350 Chevy that I replaced the front timing cover seal. After it leaked again I removed it and thought that I would replace the front timing cover - still leaking I tried again with a better GM brand seal and got the same results - It wound up being too much play in the thrust washers. The crankshaft kept moving back and forth. Pulled the engine, yanked the pan off and replaced the thrust bearing - never had a problem with the motor again. Got that 5 year old Chevy Van for 800.00 with 32,000 miles on it. The previous owner said it leaked shortly after the first year.

The good thing... No frame or lower body rust

Bill N.Y.

We did the solar thing on the boat this year, quiet power is great. Each solar cell we have puts out about 8 amps at about 20 volts, we think it will take five or six cells to run the air conditioner on the Barth. Throw in batteries, a nice inverter as well as the stuff to feed the batteries from the solar cells and it does add up. One or two cells will do a great job for everything except the air, so we shall see. None the less the dream remains to go down the road with the roof air on and the engine air pulled off and sitting in garage. The engine air makes getting to the power steering pump and a few other things on the engine a real pain, it would be nice to bid it a big aloha.

Yea that Onan, or at least ours, sure makes a racket and as you say it’s right under the bed. We found that running the generator for about an hour OK make that two hours in the evening cooled the Barth down for sleeping and then we turned it off. The Onans we have in our coaches are actually rather desirable, do a search on this site for “onan” there is a guy a bit north of you that works on Onans and he spoke highly of our vintage generators. Heck maybe we can raise enough selling them to go solar, we’ll see.

The bath window on our coach is also in very poor condition, if I replace it I’ll drop you a note; maybe you can use the parts but this is on the August/September list. I have not found a direct replacement and I have done some searching. I think I will have to do some cutting and put in a new window; at this point I plan to put in a substantially larger window. There is putty like product we used on boats for years called Dolphinite, it never quite dries and something similar might be the temporary ticket for your bath window, maybe model clay will work. This way you can pull it apart later without a huge clean up.

I get more than a little evangelical about the joys of self-wrenching, while I’m self aware, like most evangelical I love to pontificate and there is little stopping me but I fully appreciate your observations about the filth factor. I spend more than a bit of money on engine cleaner for my stuff before I’ll work on it. The offer to exchange work for some cabin time is sure nice but I’ll have to pass, like you I have limits on what work brings me joy.

It is good to hear the oil leaks are not from that front or back seals, they require a major mining project to get to. The timing cover is as you have noted also a bit of work. The other stuff might be a good place to start, I wonder if a local school offers service through their classes, replacing the gaskets might be a good student project as it does not require a great deal of skill just a lot of time. I’ll bet you can just tighten the oil pan, tighten or better yet leave the timing cover alone (Bill sure knows more about this than I ever will, good points he offers, I’d replace the valve cover gaskets, and at least on my coach I use an electric fuel pump so I would remove the mechanical pump and have a cover installed , they cost about about three dollars gasket included.

Good Luck:

Tim

you guys!!! you make me want to want to get out there and do it myself. However, I had major health problems some years back from the accumulated residues of excessive exposures to too many toxins. I'll do anything to not be that sick again. I've learned to avoid exposure to petrochemicals, organophosphates, anything with artifical scent, and aromatic polycarbons other than natrually derived essential oils.
I have real respect for those who can work with these substances for decades without apparent ill effects.

however, I know the limits of my body in this area. If it involves working with toxic stuff, I have to have someone else do it. I definitely can't tolerate most engine cleaners - and couldn't use such products here onsite anyway as there is no safe place for any runoff to go. ALL liquids, etc. used in removing the residue from the engine and it's compartment, PLUS the residue, would have to be carefully collected and taken to the county waste disposal facility.
Better to take it elsewhewre for that to be done.
I do appreciate the tip on the play in the thrust washers.
Tim, thanks for the suggestion of Dolphinite. the crude window currently there needs reshaping to fit the opening, but something like modeling clay might work for sealing it up just for the Playa.
thanks for the good will.

Geoffrey;

As I said, I'm a little nutty. So for what it is worth here is something I'm considering for the bath window.
http://www.newfoundmetals.com/catalog/pg02.html

Are these port lights cool or what? You know all things considered they are only about 30 to 50 percent more than an RV window they should last forever in the bath/shower area and are unlikely to leak when doing outside loops in my fully areobatic unlimited barth 25.

Update, maybe I'm not so nutty. Check out their composite port lights. The price is less than most RV windows and they sure look good.

http://www.newfoundmetals.com/catalog/pg14.html

I hope you don't have the impression I leave a toxic trail behind me when I working. I don't think any of the people on this site do. I do want my grand children to be able to drink the water out of the tap as we do and also enjoy abundant sea food.

Yea I do work at home but I do not run glop down the street and into the storm drains. My engines get cleaned off at the local spray it yourself car wash in the approved engine cleaning bay, it would be rude to use the other bays and mess up the water recycling at the car wash. I like your postings, it is very nice to see a person that uses a simular approach and is aware of what is around them.

Tim

Tim, I like your posts as well. i look forward to meeting you in person when opportunity presents.

I might consider doing my own repairs IF I could have a clean engine to work on. however, the closest car wash is 26 miles from home...which means by the time I got back I'd have fresh oil in many areas from the leaks, wind, etc. And, considering the car wash IS in Ukiah, which is only about 16,000 people, it may not have an 'engine cleaning bay'. I'm accustomed to Ukiah not having things I want to get. the internet and home delivery of orders is a necessity for convenient survival here in the boondocks. It's not like I can run down to the store and find what I need... the closest full size grocery is almost 30 miles from home in Ukiah, and most things in our local store are pricier than they are in San Francisco!

No, I didn't think any members here leave a 'toxic trail' from leaky engines, etc. Most members who post here seem to have newer &/or better maintained coaches. They also seem to be able to afford those 30 to 40 footers AND the fuel for them. I never even anticipated I'd own an RV and am thrilled we have one even if it is somewhat funky in some areas. the inside isn't, by the way. the bed is very comfortable and bigger than king size.
I agree the port lights ARE cool. makes me want to run measure the space our window was to see how much one will cost us. later, after workday ends. I really like the "TriMatrix ones".
OOPS, time to get back to work.
thanks for the link and suggestion. you aren't THAT nutty.
geoffrey

Tim and Geoffrey, How about posting some photos of your rigs. I would really like to see your interiors. My '73 has the rear bath, no identification aft of the door. Bill