May 6, 2015, Wednesday, Gaffney, SC
Day 6

Wake up is 6:35 am today, ugh!  This is the day for servicing the coach.  We are first in line at 7:45.  The tech takes our coach and after a brief inspection comes to get us so we can see our coach 6 feet in the air.  Pretty neat walking under the coach but Rosemary seems to stay just outside the perimeter.  Tech shows us where everything is located including the fan clutch which we suspected was bad.  Sure enough the clutch was leaking causing oil and dust to accumulate on the fan.  Back to the waiting area and fortunately I was sitting down when rep came out to tell me the price of a new clutch.  I give the go ahead and was told coach would be ready about 4:30.  We head to the Freightliner manufacturing plant a few miles away for the 10:30 factory tour.  Tour was fantastic.  Watching the chassis being assembled, it is amazing how many parts there are and that the thing actually works.  On the bigger chassis with the 600 hp Cummins engine, they actually have to put a 2000 lb. temporary lead weight on the front so the front does not lift to the sky from the weight of the engine.  Maybe one of these days I’ll get to test drive one of these power behemoths.  I would never want to own one since I would not like to halve my 10 mpg.  A couple hours to kill in the afternoon became a dangerous thing.  With nothing else to do in Gaffney, we went to the rug shop next to the outlet mall.  Yes, we bought another rug for the coach.  Back to get our coach (thankfully we have a large credit card balance) and another night stay at Freightliner’s campground.  I’m thinking tomorrow maybe seeking a new mortgage loan. Well at least we picked up batteries.  The candles do look pretty neat.  Rugs too.

May 5, 2015, Tuesday, Gaffney, SC
Day 5

Second and last day of camp and another 6:45 am start.  Did not finish until 5:45 pm.  Lots of material to cover.  Got a good handle on the maintenance required and at what intervals.  Dinner in the coach was Daddy Joe’s leftovers, still yum!  After a drive to downtown Gaffney to see the sights and finding the sidewalks rolled up, we head back to the outlet mall, supposedly to walk but thanks to the Rubens, Rosemary just had to have the faux candles electrically controlled by a remote in varying colors.  The three candles need 3 AAA batteries each. Got to coach and discovered I have 2 such batteries and both have leaked.

May 4, 2015, Monday, Gaffney, SC
Day 4

First day of Camp and alarm set at 6:45 am.  Rosemary is up at 6:40 and therefore, so am I.  Had heater on set at 68 but it never cycled on as the coach only got to 68.  Drat, heat wave!  Camp was fun and informative.  Learned I need to replace my crankcase filter every 36 months and my service appointment Wednesday just happens to be my 36 month service.  Filter failure can damage the engine which could lead to a $38,000 replacement and a bit of interruption of the trip.  Dinner catered by Daddy Joe’s BBQ was an unexpected jump on my BBQ tour.  Food was good and included BBQ coleslaw.  After dinner, got to Walmart car service center at 6:30 in time to get a new tire.  Honda all fixed by 7:15, so fast we had to go to the outlet mall which, unfortunately, is open til 9 pm.. Bought some sneakers and a rug for the coach.