Hey Rusty
I once owned a Trek, a 99 model. I loved the layout, particularly the spacious rear bath. In fact, there's an interesting article in the December Family Motor Coaching magazine about Bill Mumma of Cincinatti, who had a motor home custom built and it included some of the ideas he had after owning a Trek as his original coach. But I must tell you that I put almost $10000 into the suspension of that P30 solid front axle monster and it still handled like an elephant skating on marbles. My current motor home is a 28' Regal on a P30 chases with independent front suspension, and although it doesn't have the layout I like, it's good enough and I can drive it anywhere, anytime, snow, high winds etc. and not have a worry. The Trek scared me to death. The 6.5 was ok but just look at the diesel page and you'll see it's not the best diesel out there. Bill Mumma put a big Cummins and 6speed Allison in the front of his custom built coach, not the underpowered 6.5. Having said all that, "Are we our brother's keeper?". Yes, if we honestly think we can give advice that we think will benefit him in the long run. I hope you wait for the Barth you want, even if you get a Barth that falls short of that before the perfect one comes along.

Hey Rusty, I think if you buy a Barth it will keep it's value better then that Trek. That way when you are ready to trade up you might be saving money.

I know what the NADA book says for an older Barth but like FUNKYWAY said: "When was the last time you saw a 29 year old SOB that wasn't parked in a ditch with weeds growing through it?"

Boy Howdy! Guess I'll think twice before saying something nice to an sob buyer on this site again! As Dave said, there are plenty of sites out there that cater to RV owners. Think I'll start the search now.

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Dan & Suzy Z
'81 Euro 28

Thanks for the enlightenment - perhaps I didn't make clear previously that the SOB isn't committed to yet.

I'll be putting it to an extensive road test next week. Before a final decision, I also intend to test-drive the Breakaway, as the comments and concern on this forum about the short wheelbase may not really affect the roadability. My dwarven Class C is relaxing to drive, and I don't want something in which driving is a constant argument.

There's only one way to find out - drive 'em both, and see if I'm Man Enough for either (if I'm not, I'll come up with some cock-and-bull story).

quote:

Originally posted by Rusty:
I didn't consider any to have been rude, just rightfully enthusiastic about Barths.

The posting about my non-Barth choice wasn't to ... inject an SOB into the Barth forum...

Thanks to my own research and this forum I recognize that this SOB isn't in the same league as a Barth...

Anyway, since I started this thread, I thought the polite thing to do, rather than quietly abandoning it and slinking away, was to let folks know where it ended up, and why.

A class act till the end. Thank you Rusty for your time here. I hope that whatever you decide you get long life out of it.

Do yourself a favor and weigh that SOB before you buy it. The P30 is not as heavy duty as that Spartan so if your looking pound for pound that might be a concern.

Dave said: "As I recall those Treks were overweight by a couple grand out of the factory."

Good luck and don't "slink away"

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1991 Barth Regal
460 EFI C6 Transmission
33' Oshkosh/John Deere Chassis

http://www.TruckRoadService.com/

"Without Trucks,

America Stops"

[This message has been edited by Bill (edited January 19, 2006).]

quote:

Originally posted by Danny Zeeff:
Boy Howdy! Guess I'll think twice before saying something nice to an sob buyer on this site again! As Dave said, there are plenty of sites out there that cater to RV owners. Think I'll start the search now.

I don't think we need to get that drastic. Remember that it takes all kinds to get along and some just express themselve a little different then others.

I know I ain't leaving!

I still hope Rusty will choose the Barth.

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1991 Barth Regal
460 EFI C6 Transmission
33' Oshkosh/John Deere Chassis

http://www.TruckRoadService.com/

"Without Trucks,

America Stops"

Some of you may think I am over zealous about Barth's, go to a Barth Rangers Rally sometime. Speak negatory about Big B there and the wimen will tar and feather you and run you out on a rail. I'M JUST KIDDING (almost) When Lee Merriman puts his coach up for sale some day, wanna bet he'll ask $100K+ firm for that 31 foot Breakaway. But, I'll tell you for sure that coach is 75% better than it was when he drove it off the factory line.

And, so I have a little 'tude. I am a 57 year old adult with low testosterone...I'm justified. And I did not whack on Rusty directly, only out the side of one eye...the bad one.

By the way, Danny Z, drives a cool conversion bus. He could do Barth comparisons but he does't. Danny's cool about it, and we all know it's a reeaally cool bus.

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Nearly Ready to Buy a Barth...Help Me!

Are you sure? I think it should have read...

Help me...I'm think about buying a Trek!

He, He, He, He,

------------------


1991 Barth Regal
460 EFI C6 Transmission
33' Oshkosh/John Deere Chassis

http://www.TruckRoadService.com/

"Without Trucks,

America Stops"

Rusty, good luck stargazing. I used to host parties for the local A.S. until I sold my dark sight farm.
It comes as no surprise to me that Rusty is a class act and I took his comparisons as almost an apologetic justification of why he would settle for the SOB. I can say without exception the people I knew through astronomy were and are selfless in that area. I don't know what they are like in daylight but at night they come out just as the stars and other phenomena of the sky, available for all.
I remember being on a business trip that ended on a Friday very far from home but very close to the Okie-Tex Star Party. I took my binoculars on the trip and ducked out for the weekend to attend the starparty. What a blast, it seemed everyone wanted to offer the poor waif the opportunity to take a view through their optics.
In Barth terms this was, come tour my coach, and the range was from super modified trailers to the best of the largest. Not just a tour but, come look at the modifications we did in the engine compartment to improve access etc. and look at the...
Delete my registration if you like but I thought some replies were a bit testy.
I still enjoy the forum and if I ever commit to a road warrior it will probably be a Barth.

Enough already! Let's move on.

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"You are what you drive" - Clint Eastwood

Rusty,

When I first got married I use to talk to my wife all the time about the stars and the planets. I showed her Mars and went out on my porch for some night time viewing of different things.

She decided to buy me a telescope for Christmas but I never got around to really enjoying it as I have zero experience with that type of stuff.

How does one get involved in a "star party" without being in a club? I think I would like it but I don't have that type of networking in my blood. I would be a fish out of water and would feel a little awkward.

It sounds neat and a great way to see that the center of the universe is not ones own problems as we ourselfs are only a flash in the pan in the grand cosmic scheme of things.

------------------


1991 Barth Regal
460 EFI C6 Transmission
33' Oshkosh/John Deere Chassis

http://www.TruckRoadService.com/

"Without Trucks,

America Stops"

[This message has been edited by Bill (edited January 19, 2006).]

Bill, this is a result of one google, http://www.astronomy.net/astroguide/club/
New York

* Amateur Astronomers Association of NY
* Amateur Observers' Society of New York, Inc.
* Astronomical Society of Long Island, ASLI
* Buffalo Astronomical Association - BAA
* Catskills Astronomy Club
* Martz Astronomical Association, Inc.
I don't know if any are close to you. Check Sky and Telescope at your local library they list all clubs and societies in one issue each year, or used to.
Your story reminds me of the stargazer pick up line,"Any guy can promise the moon and the stars. Only an astronomer will deliver."

"Are you sure? I think it should have read...

Help me...I'm think about buying a Trek!"

I would never burden myself with an obligation to think....

ccctimtation, I think most amateur astronomers are willing, if not eager to help newbies. I, like a lot of seasoned stragazers, spend a lot of time helping new astronomers with their alien equipment - our feeling is that their enthusiasm for astronomy may be fleeting if they can't get the equipment to work. The Cosmos will still be around next week; a newbie might not be. Of course, newbies are attracted to me by my stunning good looks (best viewed well after sunset on a moonless night....).

Anyway, I test drive Conrad and Cindy's Barth tomorrow, and the [expletive pre-deleted] Monday.

However, I have a question that's now puzzling me - how many chasses are called by GM the "P-30"? I've heard, here and other places of a "heavy P-30", "light P-30", and so forth. There seem to be as many "P-30s" as there are Chevrolet models...

I don't relish the idea of driving long distances on a chassis pushing its limits.

humbojb was kind enough to share his "adventure$" with the solid front axle version (I really liked that graphical desciption - I could understand that! Yet the P-30 under his Regal sounds like a brute). All I can figure is that there is at least a "heavy" P-30 (Barth Regals) and a "cheap" P-30 (Most other makes).

Does anybody know what the variations are?

quote:

Originally posted by Bill:
Rusty,

When I first got married I use to talk to my wife all the time about the stars and the planets. I showed her Mars and went out on my porch for some night time viewing of different things.

She decided to buy me a telescope for Christmas but I never got around to really enjoying it as I have zero experience with that type of stuff.

How does one get involved in a "star party" without being in a club? I think I would like it but I don't have that type of networking in my blood. I would be a fish out of water and would feel a little awkward.

It sounds neat and a great way to see that the center of the universe is not ones own problems as we ourselfs are only a flash in the pan in the grand cosmic scheme of things.

Star parties can not only be a great way to learn about your own gear, but also the night sky itself, and best of all, to mooch views through others' sometimes-very-expensive scopes. At the Nebraska Star Party, we have a kind of "musical scopes", where we turn our own scopes over to another observer and go use someone else's...at the last NSP I turned over my computer-controlled 11" (about $5K as equipped) to a mother-daughter pair who had a little, but very fine, 3.5" ($240), and "borrowed" a 28" ($25K) from its owner, who used my little 6" ($2K) in the meanwhile. Scope costs don't make for class distinctions, however; we're there to have fun.

Anyway, there's a one-nighter 1/28: http://www.astronomy.com/asy/community/events/event-info.asp?eventid=150 and the NEAF in Suffern (generally on the advanced side, but there may be some basic techniques covered) 5/6-7/06.

To supplement what ccctimtation posted, hHere's a another directory of astronomy clubs: http://www.astronomyclubs.com/1/190/0/0/select_state.aspx

The premiere star party near you (and considered one of the best in the US regardless of location) is: http://www.bfsp.org/starparty/

Caution: Stargazing can be addictive! (I've only been doing it 49 years, and can give it up anytime...)

Interesting thought about your scope and prices. When I got my 8"sct around 1980 it was nearly maxed out and probably around $2500 to 3000 counting tripod, now that same price gets the computer driven version. The quality will probably be a little better since fewer hands push glass now.
For any interested, my cheap advice:
1. Buy a pair of high quality 7 to 10x50 binoculars. They are very good for astronomy and if you decide being out in the dark is not for you, you will have a nice pair of binos.
2. Get a sky chart, translation road map for the sky. You can get one that is interactive from www.skyandtelescope.com
3. Don't buy anything else except a membership in a local club. Try everyone else's scope until you find what suits you.
4. When gazing in the winter remember this is an anerobic sport and dress like it is 20 degrees colder than it really is. Nothing like standing stockstill to determine the stockstill chill factor.
5. Remember to keep the lights off.