Tiffin Motorhomes In Red Bay, AL
Well, the time has finally come.
I know you all have been looking forward to this maybe even as much as we have.
The build of our new motor home starts this week! We are super excited. Even more so now that we are here.
At this point the chassis is built and waiting in a lot somewhere.
Wednesday, January 29th it starts in the mechanics shop.
Thursday, January 30th it moves to the weld shop.
Wednesday, January 29th it starts in the mechanics shop.
Friday, January 31st is where the real fun starts. That’s when it hits the main factory stations. Where the coach will really start to take shape.
By Wednesday, February 5th the coach will be completely built and on it’s way to paint.
The paint shop is the longest process. This will take around 2-3 weeks.
Yes, we plan on being here throughout the whole process. Tiffin is such a great company in the sense that when you order a new coach, you can actually walk the factory floor with your coach and watch it be built. Talk to the workers building your coach. Take as many pictures as you like. Which as you all know, I will be doing.
Our days will start like this.
Coffee!
Coffee! Coffee! Coffee!
I say this because here at Tiffin, they start their days at 6am!
Yup…you heard me right.
S-I-X AM!
Certainly not what we’re used to. But it’s all good. I’m sure we will be too excited to over sleep.
Now I’m not really a coffee drinker but by day 3 or 4 of waking up yet again for a 6am work day, I’m sure I will be coffee’s latest convert. My sister-in-law’s will be so proud, heavy coffee drinkers that they are :)
Now, we did get here early and boy are we glad we did. After some careful consideration, we did end up changing a few things on our order. And with the extra time with us arriving early, they were able to accommodate most of those changes.
I say most because it’s amazing just how many people have a hand in building your coach.
You see, Tiffin builds most everything here, on site.
Woodworking Factory
Someone’s Washer And Dryer Cabinet
From all the cabinetry like this washer and dryer cabinet…
The Giant Gluing Machine
A Slide Getting Built
…To all the walls, slides, floors, ceilings and roofs. The giant gluing machine in the above picture is just caked with glue. This is one of many where glue gets sprayed or rolled onto a surface and then something else gets adhered to it. I know, I know, the detail I give is outstanding. I wasn’t really around for when they were running anything through it, so I’m not sure what actually goes through this one.
In the other above picture is an actual bedroom (bed side) slide (the white box). It’s laying down so the inside of the slide is facing up and the guys cut out the windows, then attach the inside wall panels, which already have been insulated and such. Once the wall panels are in place, with glue and screws, they cover and seal this blue plastic tarp inside it. It reminded me of a pool liner. That’s how thick this plastic was. After it’s all sealed up with the orange tape they attach a hose to it and it sucks all the air out and bonds the inside wall panels to the outside slide. You can kind of see one in the lower right corner of the picture that’s in the process of bonding. Note how tight the blue plastic is on that one vs the one they are just putting on.
Their are many aspects to making a coach. The cabinetry for our build should be done. The slides (like the above picture) will be made tomorrow, Wed, January 29th.
And then their’s this…
A Panel For Our Shower!
While wandering around today and meeting people, we were looking high and low for anything with our number on it. Could not find a single thing. Until our last stop.
This shower panel is actually ours! We were so excited.
You see, everything that is built will have our build number on it so further down the line they know which coach it goes into.
And when I say everything…I mean everything has this number. All the way down to the cabling.
All the different stations have their own schedules for building things. Cabinetry, showers and vanities, kitchen. Once the slide frames and walls are done they then go to the station that starts placing things inside those slides, such as the kitchen cabinets, vanity and sinks, couches, etc. So when the coach gets to that station the slide gets attached to the unit, fully finished. This saves time by doing things at different stations. And this is how they can build a coach in 4-5 days.
It’s simply amazing.
David Checking Out A 45LP Basement Area
Then we got to the end of the line where they do the final prep, placing the Diamond Shield, final QC, etc.
Their were some 45LP’s coming off the line and yes, you are able to walk into them. So David and I took this opportunity to go through them again. As you can see, David took this to the extreme. He crawled into the basement looking to see where he can plumb our water softener.
So…Tomorrow, Wed., January 29th, we will start our 6am days as our coach starts in the machine shop.
Our days will be filled with following 96415, our order number, down the line.
We hope to bring you daily updates right here on our blog.
Oh…and if you were wondering what the cats think of the new coach coming. Well…
BK On The Dash Enjoying The Sun
They are just thrilled.
Can’t you tell?
So happy for you both i know how long you’ve waited for this day.Look forward to your travels and your great blog.Bob in Md
Thanks Bob! We are so excited. And of course, some what nervous to say the least.
WOW!! It will be pretty exciting around there for a while. We envy you. Have fun
Wow, so many interesting things going around the factory.
This home will be have QC from A to Z
Good Luck, Guys
Very interesting to see the factory pics along with your descriptions. I’m curious about that crazy looking gluing machine. From the amount of debris laying on the main platform, it looks like it might’ve eaten an RV and spit it out! Hopefully it’s just between cleanings. Anyway, love your blog, and am happy you’ll be able to see your new RV built. Tiffin is a great company.
Hi Rodger…
The machine we found out adds glue to the top of the ceiling panel before it is pressed into place on the main roof structure. It also does other large panels that require a lot of it’s sticky power. Yes, we have seen a lot of cut off items as things are trimmed etc. Before each new section comes into play, the area is cleaned to some degree. After the line closes, the evening crew comes in to clean up for the next day. It really is an interesting dance they make all together.
Love your blog and looking forward to following your build.
Don’t you LOVE the Blue Ground effects on the coach that David crwaled in? When we were there last week I feel in LOVE with them.
LOL…I installed LED lighting on our coach back in 2010. It seems to have caught on. ;) I will also have the LED’s on the new 45LP, but will make a change. That being, I will be having installed 3 color LED’s that I brought with me vs just the blue so then I can make the color any color I would like. We like them as in dark places, it is nicer to walk by your coach and the ground is lit up so you can see.
Yawn…more coffee!!! Need adrenalin for the long, exciting days ahead!
David, yes your LED idea did indeed catch on and it had “staying power” as evidenced in the LED lighting surrounding the Starship Enterprise as Captain Kirk was able to gaze upon it lit up on his approach to his command at Star Fleet. That’s my brother…making the world, and beyond, a safer more colorful place! Thanks Bro!
It’s so very cool that you can watch your new home being built! I am happy for you both and the kitties too!
Love and hugs….
very exciting! We are about to order our 45lp and wondered if they will do extra lighting features. Are you staying in your old rig while the new one is built? We want to go watch ours be built too.
Can you explain the colored ground light change you made?
Hi…Congrats on looking to purchase a 45LP. It is going great here and to be able to be here for the build is an experience like no other. So for sure…plan to be here!
We are staying in our current coach in the Tiffin Service Center (Camp Red Bay). We will then trade this in with Davis Motorhome.
As far as the ground lighting…They are going to wire it up but I am supplying my own LED’s. They use just blue, I use tri-color so then I can make any color show up. The only difference is I use a controller and they just go right to 12V. So I will take their 12V power and power the controller that then controls the LED’s.
Really enjoy your blog. We’re planning on heading out on longer excursions once my wife wraps up some projects. Nearer term, we’re heading to Phoenix in 2 weeks to escape the cold Canadian winter.
I’m curious to what is happening with your current rig once you make the switch?
Yay! Can’t wait to follow along with you as your coach is built. Since we bought ours used we haven’t been through the process. And can you believe that even though we spent 2 weeks in Red Bay, we never made it on a factory tour? Although the service bays are pretty interesting in their own right. Not sure if/when we’re going to make it to Red Bay but excited to read about your experience there!
You are right. We are very excited. The daily log is quite interesting and am really enjoying following “your footsteps”. Enjoy your day.
I’m looking forward to reading about your build – I know you guys have been waiting for this for awhile now! So glad it’s finally begun! :)
Great blog and we are looking forward to you journey,as we are in the process of ordering a new 45ft. Also.mgood luck and wel’ll be watching.
How much does it cost to build a coach ? How much did it cost you?
You should call around for pricing or just look on the Internet. It greatly different based on what you want and need and like.
I would like to know the brand and type of coffee maker you have. Love watching you guys
Hi…It is a Jura Micro 9. It is a Super Automatic machine so it is not on the cheep side. Here is a link to it on Amazon where you can sometime find them at a good price under NEW and USED link… https://goo.gl/YAfKB1
Hey David. We hope your world is spinning in a greased groove. When you first ordered your new rig, given the numerous beautiful upgrades and changes did you order directly from the manufacturer or from a dealership? Have a great time on the road.
Hi…For Tiffin, and most manufacturers, you need to go though your dealer for any change requests. You let the dealer know what you would like and they will ask the manufacturer if they will do it and for how much.