Newmar is ready to build our new motorhome! It will spend 5 days on the main assembly line and we get to watch!
Ellen, I and Ron (the little white haired kid), jump in the Subaru and head off to Nappanee, Indiana to watch the motorhome get built. It’s 850 miles away and thank God the Subaru gets almost 35 miles to the gallon.
We finalized our order in early May and Newmar has been busy since then building the chassis up to floor level, making all the cabinets and preparing all the other sub-assemblies that will now converge on Building 7 in a carefully orchestrated plan to assemble the “House” on top of the chassis. It takes 4 to 5 days to complete the process through the line. The fun part is… We get to see the progress being made twice each day, at 10am and 1pm, and even get to take pictures!
On day 1 the chassis enters the building and they start on the plumbing and some interior walls, then they bring in the outer wall frames and the kitchen slideout so they can finish the plumbing. While the walls were going up we were allowed to autograph inside the sidewall with a sharpie “WooHoo Norm & Ellen 6-10-15”.
Production on day 2 starts with the installation of the roof frame and ceiling, then it hits electrical and they run over a mile of wiring for all of the plugs, lighting and all of the other systems needing 12 volt and 120 volt power. They install the TVs, Stereo, dashboard electronics, etc. and begin insulating the walls. It looks like a mangled mess right now, wires everywhere, stuff half installed, but tomorrow it gets fiberglass.
The coach moves quickly through fiberglass on day 3. They actually glue the outside fiberglass to the studs and use only a few screws around the perimeter to hold it in place while the glue dries. The front and rear caps have arrived from the molding shop in the next town and they get assembled with lights, windshield, etc. The caps get lifted by an overhead crane and positioned precisely and attached to the coach. Now it’s starting to look like something as they install the entry door and the baggage doors and fenders.
Ready for Day 4?... Gee, No, Sorry, we can’t do that. You see, it’s Friday and we NEED to drive back to Massachusetts for a Wedding on Saturday afternoon!
Ellen, I and Ron (the little white haired kid), jump in the Subaru and head off to Nappanee, Indiana to watch the motorhome get built. It’s 850 miles away and thank God the Subaru gets almost 35 miles to the gallon.
We finalized our order in early May and Newmar has been busy since then building the chassis up to floor level, making all the cabinets and preparing all the other sub-assemblies that will now converge on Building 7 in a carefully orchestrated plan to assemble the “House” on top of the chassis. It takes 4 to 5 days to complete the process through the line. The fun part is… We get to see the progress being made twice each day, at 10am and 1pm, and even get to take pictures!
On day 1 the chassis enters the building and they start on the plumbing and some interior walls, then they bring in the outer wall frames and the kitchen slideout so they can finish the plumbing. While the walls were going up we were allowed to autograph inside the sidewall with a sharpie “WooHoo Norm & Ellen 6-10-15”.
Production on day 2 starts with the installation of the roof frame and ceiling, then it hits electrical and they run over a mile of wiring for all of the plugs, lighting and all of the other systems needing 12 volt and 120 volt power. They install the TVs, Stereo, dashboard electronics, etc. and begin insulating the walls. It looks like a mangled mess right now, wires everywhere, stuff half installed, but tomorrow it gets fiberglass.
The coach moves quickly through fiberglass on day 3. They actually glue the outside fiberglass to the studs and use only a few screws around the perimeter to hold it in place while the glue dries. The front and rear caps have arrived from the molding shop in the next town and they get assembled with lights, windshield, etc. The caps get lifted by an overhead crane and positioned precisely and attached to the coach. Now it’s starting to look like something as they install the entry door and the baggage doors and fenders.
Ready for Day 4?... Gee, No, Sorry, we can’t do that. You see, it’s Friday and we NEED to drive back to Massachusetts for a Wedding on Saturday afternoon!
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