Older TM wear and tear

Hi....first time poster, and TrailManor hopeful owner.

I thought I was lucky to see an Ebay auction for a 2000 2720 nearby me in Grand Rapids area of MI. Upon going to look at it, though, I was a bit dismayed by the condition of the camper. There was a lot dirty in the interior, but also, there was a lot of marring on the roof, and walls, and outside surface. The person who listed said it was their in-laws, but she thought all that was from when the unit is opened and closed.

Is this normal type of wear and tear on these units? I've seen older than this, that seem to look a lot better. But, the internet can lie. The few Ebay pics for the one I looked at don't show it's true condition either.

So, I wanted to ask if this was normal, or even close to normal wear, for a 2000 TM? It would take ton of work to get the one I looked what I'd call acceptable for camping.

[Bill]

Keeping the outside of any camper clean is a labor of love. You need soap and water, elbow grease - and some specialized cleaners to take off the road grime and bugs. But this is not a deal breaker (though it can be a deal-improver!)

Same goes for the inside of the camper.

Mars (marks) on the outside can come from two places. The first, of course, is mechanical dings, and you have to decide how much they matter to you. You can paint them, but it is hard to suck out any dents.

You may find "stripes" of black wear where the seals of one shell run against the outside paint of the other shell. A stripe across the outside roof of the rear shell is not unusual. You can put a strip of UHMW tape (Search for it) along this stripe to prevent further rubbing.Similarly, a stripe across the inside ceiling of the front shell is not unusual. UHMW tape will do very well here.

Basically, I would expect that a 2000 unit would be in great REAL condition, as opposed to COSMETIC condition. Always assuming that it hasn't been mistreated. But you can use the cosmetics as a bargaining tool.

Hope this helps

Bill

One thing I've noticed when looking at pictures of TMs on eBay is that quite a few of the sellers use pictures from the TM web site. It's easier to copy them that to actually take pictures of the one they're selling. Of course the pictures are perfect, so when you see the actual unit it may be completely different.

The pics on that auction were actual pics of the item for sale.

As far as the exterior, yeah, they definitely look like marks from "scraping". One is right near the entry door, in kind of a part moon shape, from bottom left to upper right.

Interior...hard to tell. Sure looked like a lot of cleaning, and still I'm not even sure you could remove every noticable thing.

After finding your great site, and the ones that go for sale here, I think I'll turn my attention away from that one.

Originally Posted by Billybgame

As far as the exterior, yeah, they definitely look like marks from "scraping". One is right near the entry door, in kind of a part moon shape, from bottom left to upper right.

We saw the same "moon" shape pattern right behind the entry door, on the back shell. I thought someone had tried to clean the unit, and then did a poor job. I cleaned the TM (it really had serious black streaking), and it cleaned up beautifully, but it is back to the black streaks again after only 5 months. The moon pattern is back. The seal on the left side of the door rubs this area as you close the front shell of the TM. I am going to see if I can keep the door seal cleaner to remedy this problem.

mtnguy

FWIW, after I remove the black streaks, in two trips they are back. I don't think there is anything you can do about it except to keep washing it.