New Jayco Flamingo owner!

I'll assume that its an Outback version so you take take it on unsealed roads. You didn't mention whether you ended up buying new or second hand but not much has changed.

If youplan on doing a bit of offroad work I'd get underneath first and check/tidy/strengthen any pipe work and wiring. Most of its pretty good but the electric brake wires on my second hand Dove were asking for trouble so I tidied it up and covered all the wiring.

If you plan on running the 3 way fridge while driving I would very seriously look at upgrading the power wiring to the fridge. It will run on the standard wiring but won't be very effective because of voltage drop. If the van has a battery in it that you want to charge from the car alternator you'll need to upgrade to a 8B&S grade wiring anyway. Search thru the achieves and there is heaps of info about this sort of electrical work.

I've made dust screens using plastic sheeting and velcro that cover the vent on the van door and the vent above the fridge on the bench top. These stop a lot of the dust getting in - but remove the one above the fridge when setup and using gas. Also travel with the sink plug in place.

I've just fitted some computer fans to the exterior vent of the fridge to help get the heat away and increase cooling efficiency. Don't turn the fridge on and fill it full of goodies and expect it to get cold in anyless than 36hrs. Best thing is to run it on 240v for 24hrs to get cold - then add food - then leave for another 24hrs before connecting to the car and heading off on your trip.

If its second hand, get a phillips head screwdriver and go around and tighten every screw that you can lay eyes on....they have a habbit of lossening.

I could go on with all the stuff I've done but some of the things I'd need to show you or they mighten be relevant to yours.

Ask questions though. I've picked up lots from this site.

Enjoy mate. My missus and kids love our Dove.

Hi, I have the eagle outback and here are some extra notes. 1. Go to hardware store and buy a few plastic painters drop sheets for about $1 each. Keep these for when you need to pack up in the rain. Spread them over you beds so the tarps dont wet everything. You can just throw away when your finished. 2. If you are going to do off road stuff look at modifying the rear wind-down supports at the back so they are quickly removed because they will rip off if you bottom out. Havent done mine yet. 3. Keep your sullage pipe out of the van at all times dont put it in the front box as they stink!! I am storing mine under the side out of the way by fastening some mesh in a shelf type arrangement. 4. If you are stopping a few days and camp under trees get a cheap tarp to put over your flys because the trees will stain them really bad 5. I think yours has the full wardrobe as well. I put shelves in mine to put the cloths on. I dont take dinner suits so the shelves are more practical. 6. If you have the bag awnings and store the camper outside, find the 2 screws that hold them on and mark where they are on the bag. undo the screws and remove the bag awnings by sliding off. Takes 2 minutes to slide off and on. I do this because water does get in the bags and not good if you didnt open them after a few months. 7. Camp level for the fridge. Make sure you have some timber with you to put under the wheels. 8. Make sure when you close it all up you retension the cables by winding the handle in the up position until a bit off wait is felt and never unwind more than 1 turn of slack. 9. Check the rear wheel carrier. If its like mine it can go in 2 positions close the the rear or further out. Further out is better because if someone rears you or you reverse into something it gives extra room that may mean the van is not damaged. Thats about it, they are great and no real problems, just little things mentioned above.

Good luck with it! We ordered our new 2008 Jayco out back Swan in January and are still waiting, The dealer did say it would be the middle of April before we got it. Seems like years ago we ordered it. I try not to think about it and hopefully the time will go quicker. Another way to get ideas is the Jayco forum on yahoo and also the Jayco site itself has a forum for Jayco owners.

Typical forum though, all the arguments and sooks and slanging matches, but there is still some great ideas on there as well.

Good luck and hope you get heaps of fun out of it. Sure you will.

Karen

Hi All

We had a 2004 Out Back Finch, had Bed Flys for both ends made up,
and a good quality Annex, for when you stay for longer periods,
also the annex came in handy for the Porta Lu at nights, so the
Cook didnt have to do the long walk to the amenities block.
the only thing we didnt like was pulling the bed ends out every
night when we were travelling. other wise they are a good start off
camper.

Cheers
Daza