Orion Shock Absorbers

Just been browsing the Bailey site and it appears that Al-Ko shock absorbers are now standard fit across the Orion range,good move IMHO :-

EXTERIOR FEATURES

• AL-KO galvanised steel chassis, braking system and running gear
• AL-KO chassis mounted spare wheel carrier and spare wheel (steel spare wheel)
• AL-KO AKS 3004 Stabiliser
• AL-KO shock absorbers
• 13 pin DIN standard caravan connecting cable
• 14" Alloy wheels with bespoke caravan tyres
• Two part large aperture Hartel door with moulded interior liner, window, blind and waste bin
• LED awning light with integral water management system
• 'Polyclassic' double glazed windows throughout
• Centrally mounted easy-access gas locker
• Dedicated battery box with exterior access door

Mind you it also says that in the door there is a window with a blind................................

Ian

I Wonder...............................

Just been watching a video on Caravan Times about the new Bailey Pegasus GT65.

This new van now has the large panoramic front window first seen on the Unicorn 2.

The representative from Bailey said the window had been very successful on the Unicorn and prospective customers had been enquiring where else it may appear so they decided to put it in the new Pegasus.

It just got me thinking,I wonder if it will be a feature of a new Orion 2 ??

Ian

Manchester Caravan Show

Visited the Manchester show yesterday and really enjoyed it,but a bit of heating in the venue wouldn't have gone amiss it has to be said.

Not really much,if anything,new on the Orion front.

There was a 400/2 and a 430/4 present and they seemed to be stimulating a lot of interest.

Unfortunately they seemed to display what  sadly seems to be coming Baileys trademark and that is poor finishing in some places.

The plastic "coving" that runs the width of the van on the ceiling in front of the washroom on the 430/4 was coming adrift and there were gaps between the van sides and the cupboards near the entrance door.

On the same van there were gaps in the shower sealant and some screw covers missing,also in the shower.

Not good enough,especially on a show van.

The show was opened by Marina Sirtis ( no me neither ) who had appeared in Star Trek and lived in a caravan whilst on set,and that was it.

If you read about her on the web she has never been in a caravan apart from that.

They had an Orion dressed up to resemble the Enterprise though :-

Ian

It's A Gas.

Was down at the van yesterday and decided to check the blown air heating worked OK on gas as we have never used it because we have always been on EHU.

Turned on the gas at the bottle,then switched on the gas heating,nothing.

Played about trying to eliminate gas lock-outs as per the instructions,still nothing.

Fan up,fan down,switch up,switch down,still no heat just cold air via the fan.

It was then I noticed there are four gas taps under the oven,one for the hob,one for the fridge,one for the oven and another one with an odd logo on it that doesn't really look like anything.

I turned this fourth tap on and voilà the heating worked.

Now there will be some of you reading this who are no doubt thinking that this is obvious and that I am as slack as a bottle of crisps,but it wasn't obvious to me as the tap concerned is on the other side of the van to the heating controls,the water heater for instance has its own gas tap by the side of it and the handbook is rather ( read very vague ) on the subject.

So if you are freezing your nuts off and want to run the heating on gas,under the oven is where you will find the gas tap.


Ian

Lagged Again.

Called down to the storage today and applied some zip ties to the exterior lagging I did last week.

Should keep it nice and secure.

As I had a roll of ThermaWrap left over I decided to do the pipes under the rear dinette seat,more to use the lagging up really as I don't suppose there is much heat loss in the short pipe runs.

[ Apologies for the quality of the pictures ]


One thing I did notice is that there was a small amount of condensation under the rear dinette seat even though the cushions were on end,definitely not a leak.

I put a condensation trap down there and removed the cushions completely to let plenty of air round.

Might be somewhere to keep an eye on.

Ian