Monday, Nov 15th, Prince of Tucson RV Park

Greetings!

Just before we left Santa Rosa, I attempted to fix the roof vent on our Airstream.   There is a lever which, when rotated from just above the bed, cranks up one side of the lid.  It lets in fresh air, and through which you can see the stars in the dark Arizona night sky.

That’s if the little plastic wheel on the end of the lever rolls well up a track in a corresponding metal sleeve attached to the lid.   For some reason unknown to me, the plastic ball broke at the end of our last trip. 

My attempt to fix it began by driving around to the various RV parts stores in our area, only to find that the now common replacement lever was attached to a turning arm which was an inch longer than the one my Airstream accommodated (think screw hole placements).  Plan B went into gear, and I found a metal washer the size of the plastic wheel, and I used some pliers to fashion it into place on the end of the lever.

Perfect., except for one small catch.  The larger rectangular lid to the vent pivots on one side (opposite the side where the lever arm lifts the lid) by snapping cuts in the lid into opposite cuts in the Airstream roof.  And there’s no way that you can snap that side into place from inside of the Airstream.  It has to be done from on top of the lid (hanging from a crane so as not to damage the malleable roof?).

I did my best to put it into place, crank the handle tightly shut, and vow never to open it until I could find a RV shop with a crane.  And not tell Pat.

One day into the open road wind, and that night Pat looked up from the bed and remarked, “I’ve never been able to see the stars so clearly before”.   I'm sure that somewhere in the Sierras lies my large plastic vent cover, a hole where the lever arm was attached.  We’ve located an Airstream service shop in Tucson where we’ll be taking it in tomorrow morning to see if they can fix it.  I am really glad that it hasn’t rained since we left.

Here's a link to the three shots I took of Saguaros in a field at Sunset in eastern Tucson (and didn't step on any cactus in the process): Tucson Saguaros.

Gregory