February 2016 Pre-trip and Trip Reports

Jbrostek, Golf cart sounds like it will look very nice once done. Our trailer is sealed up pending this weekend weather. You can keep the majority of the snow and I really will not complain. But in the end Mother nature will do what she wants, all we can do is prep and wait. I have gas for the generator, propane in the trailer, and more than enough food. So we will check, double check and continue to get ready for this upcoming trip. Meeting tonight, so not much getting done for the rest of today.
 
Spent the day washing and cleaning up the outside of the camper. Noticed some seals on the roof that needs some attention, going to the local rv store tomorrow and pick up some lap sealant. We're supposed to get some bad weather tonight so I'll see if we have any leaks, fingers are crossed!
 
I think the cart should turn out pretty sharp and go well with the blue one we built last year. The tins are getting paint this weekend or week, I just ordered the new seat covers. Tomorrow is going to be in the high 20's during the day and I am highly considering rolling it out and power washing it. But that may wait till we get a few warm days next week. I am not sure yet which I will be doing first.

This storm sounds like a whopper and a lot of snow for us. Current forecast is 20-25" with the possibility of 30-36. For VA that is a lot of snow and will take days to dig out. At the same time I expect the towing calls to be insane all weekend as people either attempt to go out when they should not or plow trucks breaking down.
 


Still not a fan of the FP system at all. Really I cannot plan my days that far in advanced. I know the kid trip will be more structured, but the adult trip never is anything close to structured.

The good news is the truck is now 100% wired, replaced the fuel filters last night (change was due at 22,500 I am at 21,500.) Instead of spending the evening as I wanted vacuuming, cleaning up and putting the bedding on I was running around preparing for this storm. While PA might get some good show, we have a blizzard warning for my county starting tomorrow and they are expecting 18-25" in my area. This area does not do snow well so first I had to make sure I had fuel for the generator, top off propane bottles, check supplies and bring some wood in from the stack, and put more under cover on the deck.

Tonight I am going to work on the RV some, get the house vacuum out there as the built in is great but lacks a beater bar for the dog hair. Make the beds, put some more dry goods away and then close the slides before this storm dumps snow all over the place. I am really hoping it wont be much of a storm, but you never know.

On the golf cart project I have yet to get the power washing done, its been too cold all week and now the storm. But I did take care of chassis a little by repacking the front bearings and checking all the bushings and steering linkage for issues. The body is out for paint, first we where going to go with a maroon color. After not finding a factory color we liked we actually went for the late model Ford Tuxedo Black Metallic. That tied in with the tan of the tops and seats and some stainless trim should look pretty sharp.

Looking forward to updates on this. I'm shopping for a beater cart to transform.
 
I forgot to mention earlier, that after washing the camper today, Ed Aliner looks really nice, and every camper dealer should throw in a man lift with the purchase of every fifthwheel! Just my thought for the day,
 
I found that my 3 step step ladder and my RV brush I can get all the way to the top of the RV without issues. Roof I just go up on the roof. But I need my fiberglass 8' ladder to wax the darn thing, at that point I would much rather a man lift!!!! I know there are many reasons the detailers where no longer allowed up in the loops to clean and detail and RV, but man o man it was nice to just leave for the parks and come back to a cleaned and waxed RV for WAY less then it would cost me locally.

dmaxphil - If you poke around youll find some of our previous projects on this board. I need to find a better photo sharing site to get them uploaded too, but ill get some of our cart builds up somewhere and shoot you a link at least.
 
Last edited:


I found that my 3 step step ladder and my RV brush I can get all the way to the top of the RV without issues. Roof I just go up on the roof. But I need my fiberglass 8' ladder to wax the darn thing, at that point I would much rather a man lift!!!! I know there are many reasons the detailers where no longer allowed up in the loops to clean and detail and RV, but man o man it was nice to just leave for the parks and come back to a cleaned and waxed RV for WAY less then it would cost me locally.

dmaxphil - If you poke around youll find some of our previous projects on this board. I need to find a better photo sharing site to get them uploaded too, but ill get some of our cart builds up somewhere and shoot you a link at least.

I've built one before. The last had a 6" lift. This time I think I'm going for more of a lowered look.

i-r37cwrn-XL.jpg
 
The family and I will be visiting FW Feb. 5-9 for Mardi Gras break. We have stayed in the cabins once and stayed in a rented class c once, which we are doing again this time. I am picking up a brand new class c from Cruise America in Chicago on the Tuesday before our arrival and driving home to South Alabama. We will be arriving to FW on Friday night and I cannot wait. We are renting an RV because we are thinking of buying one and want to "try it out". Rambling over....

I will be posting a trip report after. One question, that perhaps you all can help me with. I understand that the 6 seater golf carts are based on availability, and we have reserved a 4 seater. How likely are we to get a 6 seater when we arrive this time of year? Also, we are arriving between 9:00 and 10:00 pm. Will the carts be available when we check in? TIA for any help you all can give. We are super excited about coming and looking at more trips to the Fort in the future.

DisneyDadof5
 
Started packed clothes in the camper today, more to load up tomorrow. Also installed a light sensor in our Mickey Street lamp. Suppose to be warmer tomorrow, I need to reseal some seems on the roof and clean it while I'm up there.
 
The family and I will be visiting FW Feb. 5-9 for Mardi Gras break. We have stayed in the cabins once and stayed in a rented class c once, which we are doing again this time. I am picking up a brand new class c from Cruise America in Chicago on the Tuesday before our arrival and driving home to South Alabama. We will be arriving to FW on Friday night and I cannot wait. We are renting an RV because we are thinking of buying one and want to "try it out". Rambling over....

I will be posting a trip report after. One question, that perhaps you all can help me with. I understand that the 6 seater golf carts are based on availability, and we have reserved a 4 seater. How likely are we to get a 6 seater when we arrive this time of year? Also, we are arriving between 9:00 and 10:00 pm. Will the carts be available when we check in? TIA for any help you all can give. We are super excited about coming and looking at more trips to the Fort in the future.

DisneyDadof5

Welcome to the show brother.

I would advise on calling them and seeing if you can secure the cart PTA if at all possible. There aren't that many of them, at least not from what I have seen on prior visits so I would say try and snag one in advance. There is always the chance that one may not be available on arrival but could open up during your stay so if that is the case put in a word that you would like a chance to upgrade your cart reservation.
 
Started packed clothes in the camper today, more to load up tomorrow. Also installed a light sensor in our Mickey Street lamp. Suppose to be warmer tomorrow, I need to reseal some seems on the roof and clean it while I'm up there.

Randy,
Not sure what type of sensor you installed but I tried this and it didn't work for mine. I used the one that you screw into the lamp and then screw the bulb into the sensor. It gave a strobe light effect. My best guess is because of the light reflection inside the globe caused the sensor to think it was daylight and immediately shut off. I eventually settled for a timer to keep mine going at appropriate times. Let me know if yours works and what kind of sensor you went with.
 
This is the one I use,
Screenshot_2016-01-25-09-16-34_zpsgxzczazu.png

$15 at the Home Depot. I mounted it on the backside about 4 inches below the light. When I get home I'll post some more pics.
 
Alright, that sounds like it should work. The ones inside the globes certainly don't. Let me know how it goes.
 
So when it was over, you had a really long wait just to get out of the "cattle pen" as I called it. There were several of us making mooing sounds while we were waiting to get out.

Reminds of days in the military (Particularly Basic Training).
 
Well I made it through the storm unscathed. Though it took many hours of shoveling the kubota from my neighbor and a snow blower to get the 39" yes that's right 39" of fallen snow and up to 12' drifts off my truck and driveway just to get roadway access. The trailer fared very well as it was on the perfect side of the storm and the drifts where nowhere near it. But of course that meant an entire weekend I got nothing done other then shoveling, keeping the fire going, snuggling the pups and enjoying some hot coco and some adult cocktails.

The area is pretty much still in a shutdown though roadways are opening as well as businesses but work is closed with telework so I am working from home. The good thing is I have gotten a lot of indoor chores knocked out lately. Mostly on the cleaning front but hey anything is better then nothing at all. I did start organizing and packing, got all the cameras and memory cards back in the same place. Cleaned all the lenses too. Started to pack the warmer weather clothing in a bag to take out to the trailer once snow shoes are not needed to get to the door.

Not sure when the body will be ready for the Golf Cart, but with a 3' tall pile of snow in front of the garage door, I can't even roll it out to power wash it. I hope to get that done soon. The truck did great in the snow the two times I did have to go out there to help someone. Otherwise my plan to hunker down and take it easy was a no biggie.

less then 3 weeks left to go, so now its time to really focus on the packing and hope we get no more big storms.
 
Last edited:

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!











facebook twitter
Top