Should I be cautious about a 1972 -- probably a 27'? What should I be wary of? It sounds in good shape.

Where to start...one of the first things to know going in is that this would be a Project, meaning that you would need to be prepared to spend a few thousand dollars and to do, or have done, a lot of work:

1. Fluid flushes and changes (engine, transmission, cooling system, differential, generator crankcase)
2. Change belts and hoses
3. Tune up
4. Tires
5. Brakes
6. Shocks

Then there're the things that may need work in the living area:

1. Water pump
2. Toilet
3. Refrigerator
4. A/C

I bought my '89 24' SOB two years ago, and put over $4K into it. Among other things were new wheels and tires, carb, A/C compressor, house A/C, alternator, engine water pump, house and engine batteries, house water pump, and engine fuel pump. Now of course, I'd not hesitate to take it across country.

Anyway, if you're not mechanially inclined, you should have it checked out by a competent hard-nosed mechanic. And print out and use Dave Bower's pre-buy checklist here

Hi Dewey,

Should you be cautious about a 1972? Absolutely!.......You should be cautious about a 1972 ANYTHING If I were to offer any advice, it would be this:

You need to do a bit of self-examination to determine if you're the kind of person who not only enjoys using but MAINTAINING a relatively complex piece of machinery that's over three decades old. In my case, I purchased a 26 year old Barth in very good condition, but it had its share of warts, and I knew that going in....Fortunately, maintaining & improving my Barth gives me as much pleasure as traveling in it (well, almost).....

I think a key ingredient is your willingness and comfort level with DIY projects in many varied areas - electrical, plumbing, engine, drivetrain, carpentry, painting, scrubbing, sanding, hydraulics, air conditioning, etc.
If you plan to farm most of this work out, then you need to RUN, not walk, away from this deal, or any deal involving an older coach.....

On the other hand, it may provide you with tons of relatively low-cost enjoyment IF you don't mind getting your hands dirty and your mind challenged, plus a fair share of occasional frustration.

The newest Barth is now over 10 years old...hundreds more are 15-20 years old, and some of us are operating machines over 30 years old. If you review Dave's great website here, you'll find about 1250 postings on Tech Talk, dealing with problems, add-ons, mods, etc. There's also about 85 postings for Barth Journeys...There's a reason for that.....

Lastly, don't ever try to justify motorhome ownership from a strictly dollars & cents standpoint...You'll drive yourself crazy, and in the end you'll never like the answer that always comes up anyway.....Some things in life should be Just Because........

My personal summary of three years of 1978 Barth ownership probably goes like this:

Original Cost? - Somewhere south of $6k
Add-ons, mods, repairs? - a tad south of $6k
Sweat Equity? - Hundreds & hundreds of manhours
Current Market Value? - Somewhere south of $6k

Pride of ownership & enjoyment? - Priceless....

Good Luck!

Lee's conclusions mirror mine. I've said it before, but he says it more elegantly.

Same here - with a motorhome one enjoys the issues of maintaining a truck as well as maintaining a house.

A motorhome is far more liberal in filling a "honey-do" jar than any house can be.

No matter how well a motorhome has been maintained, there are many, many things that will require attention. The issues never cease, but if one recognizes that a motorhome is a demanding mistress in perpetuity, and that one never gets it "fixed for good", then the voyage is worth the effort.

But the rewards of the freedom a motorhome provides just can't be quantified....

If it has split rim wheels, mine did, many places will not work on them. I went junk yarding and got new rims for twenty or twentyfive dollars each, the opening price was $70.00 each Caveat Emptor, shop around. I painted them, they were ugly; this cost three cans of comet, sand paper, eight cans of paint and two days.

READ ABOUT WINDSHIELD HEIGTH! Dave had a really good posting on the site about this, some of the older coaches have low windshields that you can not get glass for anymore. There is always a work around, heck with a little welding you can build a frame and use custom cut flat-glass like you see on the school busses but this is a bit of work.

My wife and I enjoy our 1973 twenty-five foot Barth a great deal, it is much better than the rental coachs we spent well over a thousand dollars a week to use. It floats over the grape vine (This is the name of the interstate 5 pass from Los Angeles to the central valley with one heck of a grade thank you) passing anything we please. It is solid and rides well; now while it is in un-restored condition and more than a little rough on the outside it still generates a great deal of positive comments. A Barth is good for the ego. My 1973 drives better (one heck of a lot better thank you) than a six month old RV I rented several years back to see how we liked the RV thing, the rental had about 10,000 miles on it;

The previous posting do an excellent job of outlining what you may expect and cover the technical issues well therefore I have chosen to offer an anecdotal response.

Please understand that I do my own work hence I take the time required when working on the coach to return the coach to as new or better condition. If you are employing other people to do this their time as yours has value and this level of work can be costly. The engine and chassis parts for our vintage coach are readily available and dirt cheep.

Lights and the like, I went out and purchased LED stuff at the truck stores because they look cool. On our vintage coaches there is no "stock" absolute standard so for lights and such I just got what I liked, my coach was an east coast resident for a while and the lights and a few other things rusted. You may want to crawl under the 1972 and look at the pipes for the gas to the stove, they are just steel and might be a good barometer.

My Barth is built on a Chevy P30 frame with a Big Bolck engine. There is a whole hot rod industry that sells gages, speedometers, any gage you could dream of, engine and transmissions that boggle the mind, superchargers are available fom a company in Ventura and even high rent steering wheels are all available for chevys of our vintage; stand aside Jay Leno. There are all sorts of things you can do if you wish (The Barth is more fun than the Harley) or if it is just a repair, parts as I said are not big money.

The engine in our coach is original and quite robust however:

1) I replaced the exhaust. Big chrome headers, about $250.00.
2) I replaced darn near every wire that runs to the engine because the way they were routed they had worn through in spots; the previous owner told me he had "unexplainable" electrical problems. Pull one wire, draw a picture, pull another, add to the picture and put them back one at a time. Not too difficult but it did eat up two weekends, I work slowly so if you were to employ someone to do this it could prove costly. Now that it is done, given that the coach is pre-smog and hence simple, I clearly understand what goes where and how things work, this brings a deep peace of mind when I drive.
3) There are still some gaskets that need to be replaced, as I am doing the work the cost is fifteen or twenty dollars including new shiny stainless nuts and bolts….ooooh sparkly.

I replaced the break cylinders, all the pads, the shocks, the power steering lines, the belts, the belts got replaced more than once there was an alignment problem but learning is a good thing. You will find some postings with highly thoughtful and helpful responses to my questions on Dave’s site (God Bless Dave and his family). The list goes on but the list is maintenance items that you will have to face with any motorhome that is more than 10 months old.

So in short, the 1972 is easy to work on. It is pre-smog hence simple and low cost, you can do the work if you wish with hand tools. I do have lots of tools, a suitable sound system, air tools including an air drive pop rivet tool and an expansive paved place to work at my home and this is good. The work is rewarding (yes I do become frustrated when things go differently than expected) and can be done in simple steps. Now here is the single most important fact, we have used the coach much more than I have worked on it.

If you do not wish to work on the coach as it is built on clearly understood technology I suggest developing a relationship with a local shade tree mechanic; budget for some work based on his suggestions and over time let him bring things back to pristine condition; it sound like you are starting with good bones.

Can you just drive it? Well yea but if you read postings on other sites you will hear more than one story about “We spent a gazillion dollars on our new Wandermasher69000 and had to have the following long list of stuff fixed under warranty after we broke down in Badwater Flats and spent the night fighting off rabid desert pack rats ”. It is my feeling that these issues are best addressed before a trip.

I suggest the following approach, drive the coach to the beach or one of our other fine state parks located less than 100 miles from your home once a month for four or five months at the end of this you will have isolated and been able to address 99.9999% of what needs attention. I think you will then, if you drive the coach once a month, enjoy another 40 years of excellent service from the 1972 Barth.

Yep it is old, yep it is different, yea you will have to do stuff to it. Yes it will cost you less than half of what the depreciation on a five year old coach will add up to over two or three years. Besides that "newer" coach will more than likely need the same work, it will just cost a bit more.


Barth, Barth; no wood to rot, no impossible parts to get, just drive the son of a (gosh what word should I use here).


There are no bombs or unknown issues with a 1972, it is state of the art and hence everyone knows how they work. Parts are not single source or impossible to get. If only it were metric, I still don't get that english fractional measurement thing.

All the best:

Timothy

Just to put into depreciation into perspective, a friend of dad's has a Foretravel which he figures that it loses $4,500 a month. You could buy several different Barth's in a few months at that rate.

Indeed - my ex-wife's uncle had a 34' SOB DP - in the $90K range. Drove it 4 years, took a $50K hit on trade. The current SOB, new, $130K, after 4 years is in the $70K range.

Again, about perspective, how many SOB's of '72 vintage are even still on the road? I'd bet that as a percentage of total production, more Barth's are still serviceable than any other brand.

I bought my '89 24' SOB two years ago, and put over $4K into it. here[/QUOTE]

I hasten to ask this question...but I couldn't find the reference to the acronym on this site. OK, here goes, what is the meaning of "SOB"? Yeah, I know. But seriously. Sorry to ask.

FNG (Fellowship of Newguys)
Tim

S omething O ther than B arth

If you are somewhat mechanical minded and the price is right go for it. Back in 2001 I ask Dave Bowers the same questions.
I bought a 1976 Barth 27 footer, I have done all the upkeep
myself and put many many miles on it, we just got back from a wonderful four month trip to Florida with out a problem. The Barth still has the original frig, two roof top air cond units, everything is 1976 vintage and still works.

Thanks to Dave Bowers and this web site I have enjoyed my Barth for many years now.

Ralph Glover
1976 27' Barth

[QUOTE

Thanks to Dave Bowers and this web site I have enjoyed my Barth for many years now.

Ralph Glover
1976 27' Barth[/QUOTE]

Ralph,

I could not agree with you more. What a web site! Everyone has been extremely helpful and knowledgeable too. I appreciate everyone's time & expertise. And thanks, Dave!

Tim

FWIW, I was using a '73 GMC 3/4 HD 4x4 PU as my daily driver for the last few years (until gas went over $3). It's still running fine.

Older vehicles are just fine if you can put up with a few foibles.

Rick, a WTB