LD Construction March 19, 2016, 06:39:30 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159473I was examining the aluminium panels on our LD and couldn't figure out how they are attached to the underneath structure. On Airstream Trailers, one can see lots of rivets, which explains how that RV is constructed. But I can't understand how LD panels are attached? And that is someone one should know!Ed & Margee - '09 LD Purtis Creek State Park
Re: LD Construction Reply #1 – March 19, 2016, 06:52:36 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159474They are attached by screws at the roofline, the floorline, and by compression or gluing at openings and caps.Steve
Re: LD Construction Reply #2 – March 19, 2016, 07:43:36 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159476Ed-You may have already run across a link to Sharon Wallace and Bill Wethington's blog entries describing how Bill rebuilt their LD. If not, here's the link to the first blog entry.It's not the same detail you'd get with assembly drawings or pictures from the factory, but I found it informative.Mark
Re: LD Construction Reply #3 – March 19, 2016, 08:21:25 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159477Thank you Mark for the link to that website. What an amazing project, one that I hope that I never have to meet up close and personal! Margee and I have tentative plans to visit the factory about this time next year. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to watch some of the construction or see some unfinished LD's. And it would be treat to meet some of the people who may have worked on our '09 MB.Ed & Margee Fort Worth
Re: LD Construction Reply #4 – March 21, 2016, 01:37:20 am Yahoo Message Number: 159506Give them a call first- we were there two weeks ago for a new AC install. My wife asked Todd if we could look in on the factory. His answer- "No." I did get in the back when Vince asked me to check the function of the new AC- not much activity. I think we caught them during a lull in production.
Re: LD Construction Reply #5 – March 22, 2016, 11:02:24 am Yahoo Message Number: 159520We were at Mothership a couple weeks ago, over a couple days, to have Vince do some work. We are very pleased with Vince's support.But we were disappointed when Steve, Todd and Vince all said no to a tour:-( Everyone but Vince just seemed to ignore us. I guess they are not interested in selling us a new one.Bob & Cathy in Turtle, a '01 RK
Re: LD Construction Reply #6 – March 22, 2016, 03:46:56 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159523Most companies have a policy about the public being in the their production areas due to liability issues. I assume that insurance companies point out that they won't cover accidents occurring in these areas that involve the general public. That's just the way it its.
Re: LD Construction Reply #7 – March 22, 2016, 04:05:39 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159524Although they wouldn't let us tour the factory, they did allow us to see our LD while it was in production. We went more than once during that time. Of course that was eons ago while the original owners were still alive.Dick
Re: LD Construction Reply #8 – March 23, 2016, 12:42:17 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159529Our experience visiting Lazy Daze was different. It was back in October. It's a 7 hour drive for us and we got a late start so we arrived close to closing time on a Friday. We wanted to see and drive a 24' TK to decide if we wanted to order one (we owned at 2013 Roadtrek Agile SS at the time - a class B Sprinter).Even though we were so late, Todd had a rig ready for us to drive. Both my wife and I put it through the paces. Then, back at the factory, Todd took us into one the workshops so we could see one of the other floorplans and some options not on the new one we had test driven. It definitely wasn't a factory tour, but it was nice to see a little behind the scenes and Todd was very happy to stay late and didn't rush us.As a result of that visit we decided to sell our class b and buy the 24' TK, which is scheduled for June delivery. It does sound like they're very busy right now.Jim & Deb Langley Santa Cruz, CA
Re: LD Construction Reply #9 – March 23, 2016, 02:12:32 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159533Jim and Deb -May I pick your brains a bit? We have had a Lazy Daze Twin King (ten years) and a Rear Bath (seven years), with a 40-foot DP for eight years in between the two Lazy Daze models, and are now contemplating the purchase of a Class B so that we can travel without an auxiliary vehicle, since having two drivers is becoming unworkable.My focus has been on the Pleasure-Way Excel SD, but at twenty feet, it is nearly as long as a Lazy Daze TK, but not nearly as commodious or livable.We have tricked out our RB to the max as far as self sufficiency goes, but have found we are just not using it because it is stored off site from our house. No regulation Class C vehicle is allowed to be stored in our complex, hence my obsession with a Class B. My feeling is that if there were a Class B in our carport that I could prep by myself, we would hop in for some short adventures more often.We are no strangers to the smaller size Class B, having grown up with two different Volkswagen campers over the years (1978 Campmobile, a 1987 Westfalia, and currently, a Sportsmobile PH), but none of these smaller-sized units have the amenities (or larger size) of the more recently-minted Class B units.My fear is that we are so spoiled by the roominess of the Rear Bath that the small size of the Class B may not be workable, and we would massively regret the change out. Can you please share what it is/was about the Agile that encouraged you to move to the Twin King model Lazy Daze?Thanks for any insight from anyone who has made this switch - either to or from a Class B! ;->Virtual hugs,Judie http://dorrieanne.wordpress.com
Re: LD Construction Reply #10 – March 23, 2016, 03:43:18 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159534Hi Judie, I'm happy to explain our decision. It wasn't easy - and since we haven't taken delivery of our LD, and have never owned or rented anything larger than our 20-foot Roadtrek Agile SS, it's possible that we may decide that we made a big mistake (pun intended).Like you, it seems, we started with Westys and still own an '87 Westy Weekender that we love. We upgraded to the Roadtrek because we wanted a bathroom, kitchen, nicer bed and the 19.5mpg Mercedes diesel. It'll help to know that we are dog lovers and have 3 Aussies, medium size herding dogs. I'm also a bicycle fanatic, ride every day (I've ridden in Sierra Vista even) and must bring at least 1 bicycle and a folding trainer device the bike mounts to for riding when it's impossible to ride on the road.Still, with the 3 dogs, all their equipment and my bike toys, we made the Roadtrek work fine for 3 years and 35K miles. We drove it cross country and back, too. We camped in it for up to 2 weeks at a time. The bikes rode on back on a rack. The dogs were held by seatbelts on the rear seat. The dog equipment (an X-pen - wire enclosure) was stored beneath the rear seat as there's no exterior storage on the Agile SS.If you've driven a Mercedes platform Class B or B+ you have experienced the amazing car-like performance. We loved that and the gas mileage, of course (20mpg). We did not like the crazy high cost of the oil changes. They're only required every 10K but ranging over $300, it adds up. Also, you must heed every warning from the onboard computer giving messages on the dash way more often than we ever expected. There's the diesel exhaust fluid that needs filling often, too.But, the thing that pushed us over the edge was the small refrigerator mounted down next to the floor and the tiny bathroom and shower. We made it work, but started realizing that we could boondock longer if we could carry more food and even just a short camping trip we would run out of the goodies you like cold, like beer, etc. The shower worked but it's so tight that the shower curtain is right up against you the whole time.Then we had an incident up in Oregon where we luckily spotted, ran back to the RV and chased someone trying to steal the bikes off the rack away. After that, I would remove them and put them inside everytime we stopped and at night.The other thing that started bothering us was a slight claustrophobic feeling inside the Roadtrek. You can sit in back on the bench seat comfortably, but you only have small louver windows that don't let in that much air. You can open the rear doors fully if the weather is nice, but you need to lower the spare on the Agile first, so we usually only opened one rear door.Your other choice is to sit in the front chairs and that's okay but feels more like you're driving again than resting at home. Thinking about what was bothering me, I realized one day that it was that the sight lines out of the van were blocked by the passenger's side wall that's taken up by the bathroom door, and that gave a confinement feeling. Even in our Westy you can see in all direction out of the van, and even open the slider fully.Speaking of the slider, that may be the worst feature of the Roadtrek. It's hard to open and makes too much noise when you close it. Getting up early to ride, I would have to sneak out one of the front doors so as not to wake Deb, which isn't easy when the seats are facing backwards.Sorry, this is way too long already. To sum up, all these things got us researching and deciding on the LD. The open floorplan, outside storage, full bathroom and fridge and even retro look appealed to us and we're hoping the oil changes cost a little less, too ;-) We realize our mileage will be awful compared to the Roadtrek but it'll always be far less than hotel rooms. Oh, I almost forgot. One of the big deciding factors for me was realizing that the bikes can ride safe from thieves inside over the cab.Hope this is helpful and I'm happy to answer more questions, We think that even without the dogs and bikes, that we'll still find enough advantages that we won't want to go back to a class B rig. One thing that's hard to do in a Class B is invite friends in to hang out. You can do it but everyone feels like they're invading your personal space. The LD should be better for that, too - a nice perk on rainy days for playing games, etc. Jim & Deb Santa Cruz
Re: LD Construction Reply #11 – March 23, 2016, 03:51:40 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159535Hi Jim -If agreeable to you, please contact me off list, as I have other questions. Hubby did postgrad in physics at UCSC and was (before bone debilitating cancer) as avid a cycler as you seem to be. Much in common! ;->Virtual hugs,Judie judieashford at earthlink dot net
Re: LD Construction Reply #12 – March 23, 2016, 05:08:22 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159538Mostly a young in cheek reply, but maybe something that may be of help Judie, http://bringatrailer.com/2016/03/18/the-drivers-rv-bmw-turbodiesel5-speed-1986-vixen-21/Requires that your able to drive a stick, but the floor plan is close to a TK. Designed to put in a standard garage. If possible the owners are more cliquish than LD or Air Streamers.Here is the Craig's List add. 86 Vixen motorhome 21' 30mpg BMW diesel power - $25000 (College Place, WA)
Re: LD Construction Reply #13 – March 23, 2016, 07:13:24 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159540Hi John -Yes I remember drooling over those units way back when, but the purse whispered "Volkswagen"! There were a number of different, innovative designs back in the 80's, but none seem to have really survived. I had brochures for most of them as the designs really intrigued me. This was back in the days when we had "brochures" to read, rather than "websites".I eventually narrowed the field to Lazy Daze, ProVan, GTRV, Adventurewagen, and Sportsmobile. I still have the brochures from three of those companies, and have the products from the Lazy Daze and Sportsmobile. An Adventurewagen, ProVan or GTRV ever crossed my path, but a 1985 TK Lazy Daze popped up in the Bay Area in 1991, and we snagged it. The rest is history, as they say. ;->Thanks for the trip down memory lane!Virtual hugs,Judie
Re: LD Construction Reply #14 – March 23, 2016, 11:16:44 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159541We and a Vixen kept passing each other as we were traveling to Quartzsite in January. It looked really cool, low & sleek. But you obviously can't stand up inside - the main reason I had to give up camping in my Honda Odyssey.Susie 2007 MB
Re: LD Construction Reply #15 – March 24, 2016, 02:26:06 am Yahoo Message Number: 159542Jim, thanks for posting that detailed reply about your decision to move from an Agile SS to a Lazy Daze Twin/King. Although my circumstances and requirements are different from yours and Judie's, it still made very interesting reading.Andy Baird
Re: LD Construction Reply #16 – March 24, 2016, 04:23:46 am Yahoo Message Number: 159543It's a push button pop top. But yes and I am not sure about the CCC, and all the tanks are smallish. Now that I have a Mid Bath I don't either Gina and I could turn back the clock. We don't do traveling light very well.But if one had come up when we gave up car camping (still using my REI Half Dome) It would have seemed big.Please excuse me for getting off topic. John
Re: LD Construction Reply #17 – March 24, 2016, 11:17:30 am Yahoo Message Number: 159546Thanks, Andy. I have been thoroughly enjoying and learning from your amazingly rich, informative and expertly-written websites (I work as a technical editor in the bicycle industry). You've created a fantastic resource. Moving up from a Westfalia to a Roadtrek Class B and now to a genuine RV is a big step for us. Having experts like you sharing your knowledge is a tremendous help. Thanks again,Jim Langley
Re: LD Construction Reply #18 – March 24, 2016, 11:53:17 am Yahoo Message Number: 159547Jim - I'm VERY familiar with your writings!!!! I'm a long time cyclist (still recovering from a double pelvic fracture from a cyclist vs skateboarder accident) also....and my bike(s) also "spend the night with us" indoors....you'll see in the photo section a few pics of my rig with one of my road bikes propped against it.Thanks for the hours and hours of reading enjoyment!!!Bill 2013 31' TB
Re: LD Construction Reply #19 – March 24, 2016, 06:44:04 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159558Whoa, Bill, sorry to hear about your accident - sounds bad. I hope you're back on the bike ASAP. I broke a hip sliding out on black ice once but that was minor compared to you. Thanks for the kind words about my cycling writing and for the tip to look for your pics of your rig and bicycle. I'll do that. Looking forward to seeing your setup.Thanks again! Jim Langley awaiting completion of 2016 24' TK
Re: LD Construction Reply #20 – March 24, 2016, 09:53:36 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159561Hello Jim. You looked at our TK at Morro Bay. If you would like some pictures of it being built, send me your e-mail address. Give you something to look at while you are not so patiently, waiting. Ed etdcaw at yahoo dot com
Re: LD Construction Reply #21 – March 25, 2016, 05:26:57 pm Yahoo Message Number: 159586Thanks, Ed! I'll do that right now.Appreciate it, Jim
Re: LD Construction Reply #22 – March 26, 2016, 06:41:52 am Yahoo Message Number: 159597Your e-mail never came through. ? Ed
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