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Buying used Northstar, print this off....

Posted: October 7th, 2015, 8:17 pm
by zildjian
UK Models popular;
850 Single cab
750 King cab
700 Double cab


When buying any used camper we always recommend taking along a damp meter these are cheaply available from Ebay £8.79
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and simple to use and can save you a lot of money and act as a bargaining tool.

Try everything electrical you can, ask about heating and water systems, and decide if its been lucky enough to enjoy winter storage out of the elements or has been damaged in the past


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Spares & advice; Greg Holman at Niche marketing Manby Lincolnshire; 01507 327172




Bodywork; Nose cone seal (sleeping overcab area) can perish over time allowing the weather in,
wooden base underside, get underneath and take a look, scuffs and scrapes are OK chunks missing and holes of any sort need checking in more detail,
there have been mention of roof issues in past with earlier model which had to go back to dealership for extensive repairs/replacement so again look carefully for evidence of water ingress using eyes,nose & damp meter!

Refrigerator; fridge works on 3 Way gas/240 & 12v, ask to see it working on all three.

Fixings; tie down points integrity, walk around and look for corrosion of the metal components, and condition of surrounding bodywork,
Also; Northstar fixings differ from majority of other demountable's as they fix with a steel pin emerging through rear bodywork of truck, you won't be able to use eyebolts in load bed as you would usually

Boiler servicing; anode in boiler is sacrificial feature (Corrosion device) ask if ever changed (sometimes under warranty)

Legs; Usually powered on Northstar, a hand held remote control on long lead plug in beside leisure battery, these can get dropped over time and damaged inside, also cable itself can get pulled taut and loosen wires in multi-pin plug on each end, replacements are available from States but pricey, good news is most computer hardware specialists locally may be able to repair as same as networking cables
also check four legs work without binding if camper been bumped into in past during loading

Heating and water; water pump
On-board gas; ideally it will benefit from a professional going over all the gas components, has it ever been a problem or indeed been examined?
Electrical; has the 240 Volt system ever been checked or failed in use ?


got something to add ? either post below as usual, or mail me it for inclusion in print-off Zildjian

Re: Buying a used Northstar, print this off....

Posted: October 7th, 2015, 8:39 pm
by lamp-it
Useful, thanks there are always a couple of things i later kick myself i never thought to ask when i view something




good idea

Notes on fridge use query...

Posted: November 14th, 2016, 5:51 pm
by zildjian
"I remember on my Northstar on the fridge you could select battery, gas or mains.

If you select battery but have your cable attached to the truck then it will draw from truck. Same as a caravan hence you should always disconnect power cable from truck if you do not want to drain truck battery. It will then use demountable battery"


ALSO

'Go careful with the glass fuses in the power board. They're a pain when they break in the channel. If this happens and you don't want to be sticking pliers into a electrical circuit use a de-solderer tool.
Obviously don't use the soldering gun to heat it up. Stick the tip of the de-solderer tool into the fuse holder, flick the button the vacuum usually pulls the glass out'


(Well it did for me twice)

Thanks to Rob for link to these specs

Posted: December 17th, 2016, 10:45 am
by zildjian
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Re: Buying used Northstar, print this off....

Posted: June 26th, 2017, 9:43 am
by zildjian
Leg motors;

The powered legs on Northstar (like many others) are susceptible to weather over Winter and frequently either go slow or stop, they can be serviced & reconditioned but try blowing an air line through the plastic motor casing first to remove debris before writing them off!

Re: Buying used Northstar, print this off....

Posted: September 2nd, 2017, 6:21 pm
by zildjian

Re: Buying used Northstar, print this off....

Posted: September 8th, 2017, 8:53 am
by derestrictor
doesn't mention that 'anode' that can be replaced when corroded, that should be like a service item i think

Re: Buying used Northstar, print this off....

Posted: October 6th, 2017, 1:38 pm
by zildjian
Measurements for camper

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