I Hope I'm in the Right Place

[Silverwheel]

Hello all,

I'm just really hitting the anxiety over what I did.  I bought a 1998 E-150 conversion, with the intent of ripping out what was necessary to go, fixing what had been neglected, and putting in what I'd need for a short-term (3 months max) rolling house.  

I didn't pay a lot for it, the body's straight and there's very little rust.  I've bought new tires, new brakes, had the front end mostly rebuilt, new windshield and got one of the rear quarter windows made right.  And that last part was not easy, considering that both the conversion house and the glassworks were out of business.

I have an appointment to get the valves looked at and I spent this morning trying to figure out about the driver's seat.  As nearly as I can tell two of the motors don't work.  So, to my first question:

Can I convert this back to a manual seat?  Or is that just not a possibility?  It has Flexsteel seats up there, and there's a lot of wiring that seems to have nothing to do with the seats, because there was a television in here once.  

Or would I have to buy another seat?  I'd like to rig it with a swivel, so that the two front seats can be used for indoor seating when parked at a campsite.  But right now I'm wondering if I should just cut my losses.  I only paid $1,500 for it and with all the work I've done so far I'd need $5,000 to be back to status quo ante.

So, first: what about that seat?  Next, if I keep it I'll need a lot of advice on how to rip out the interior, how to replace it (there are a lot of groovy overhead lights built into wooden trim strips.  I'd have to put them back.  But there are also just on the sides like cup holders, a 4-disc changer, an extra cooling blower...and I think I'd have to take it all out.  But I'm concerned about pulling something out and finding that I've created a short that killed the electrical system or something.

No, I don't know a lot about this, I'm not ashamed to say.  When I flew jets I had to know how to talk to the mechanic but I stayed out of his business.  

So, hi.

 

[bullfrog]

Just make a comfortable place to laydown and go to sleep and give you some privacy. If necessary a way to deal with bathroom needs at night. Sleep in it a few nights and envision what you have seen others do and determine if they will work for you. Simple.

 

[RvDreams]

Welcome Silverwheel to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[kklowell]

As long as the mechanics of it are good, then you probably want to stick with it as the rest of it could be done over time. I'd just take Bullfrog's advice and make it comfortable to sleep in and proceed from there.
You could get another seat from a salvage yard probably. Maybe even find some swivels there.
And, hi!

 

[tx2sturgis]

Welcome and don't give up on it just because the seat motors are out...

Look over this website...then give them a call if your local guy can't make any progress:

https://www.coachsupplydirect.com/rv-products/rv-seating-parts/

 

[tx2sturgis]

And another website for Flexsteel parts:

https://www.braddandhall.com/productcart/pc/viewCategories.asp?idCategory=99

 

[highdesertranger]

If the motors are bad they can be rebuilt. Highdesertranger

 

[tx2sturgis]

Seat motors can fail of course, but what's more likely to fail is the switches or the wiring....maybe even a fuse. 

Maybe the OP will let us know what they find.

 

[cyndi]

I have a 97e150 conversion that I bought in 2014. She's a beast and just keeps on rolling. The previous owner took out the front seats that rotated and reclined. He replaced them with the passenger seats from the second row. One day I'll replace at least one of them with new swivel seats. In the meantime, the current seats are functional

 

[john*thomas]

As noted above it's more likely the switches in the seat are bad. It would seem a waste to give up on what you have already done because of a bad switch. Swapping out the switch would be far easier than converting the seat. Fixing the seat won't give you a swivel though.

 

[TravelingZombies]

Sounds like you've put some time and money into getting it mechanically sound and if the valves are good then I'd personally make it sleepable and comfortable. As far as a bathroom try a lug a loo or camp where you have other options. Good luck ?