Today started with a call to Weller Truck Parts. I spoke with John in the Weller steering department in MI. I explained to John I needed parts as soon as possible since I was broke down in Austin. John checked stock and the parts were available in Irving Texas. He asked me to expect a call from the Irving Texas store. Weller in MI has developed the steering gearbox swap database and work with RVers to make sure we get the right parts for a Sheppard to TRW swap. They also give special pricing to the RVers swapping steering boxes. Donna, Mav, and I went to Macs for our morning Diet Coke and before we got there Weller Irving called. They said they had everything ready for us. We chose to make the drive to Irving and back to make sure the parts would be available as soon as Fleet Maintenance was ready for us. We took off at 9:30am and got back to the Coach about 6:30pm. Having the parts in hand now enables me to tackle this project myself if Fleet drags this out. We are VERY anxious to get on the road. I “can” do this myself but would really prefer professionals do the job. My fear is Fleet will keep delaying. The good news is as soon as they bring the Coach in they now have everything they need for the swap/repair. Weller has been very supportive and knowledgeable.
Tomorrow is the “how close are we to getting in for repair?” conversation. Based on that we will decide if I do this myself. The challenges doing this myself include:
- 500 lbf torque bolts – requires big cheater bars or expensive torque multiplier tool
- Handling a gearbox that weighs 80 lbs
- Drilling a 2″ hole in a steel plate 1/2″ thick that also requires a right-angle drill
- Somewhere between $100 and $400 worth of tools I will probably never use again.
- Finding a location I can use to perform major maintenance.
Maverick was very disappointed with today’s activities. He has been accustomed to walks on trails with waterfalls. We did end the day with a very brief sunset walk at Ladybird Lake.