What size & brand LCD flat panel?

[Tully]

Will be picking up coach this Saturday. First thing I want to do is pull out the front 25inch tube tv and replace with a flat panel LCD.

Has anyone done this modification before. If so, what type/brand Tv as well as size did you use.

The current set up appears to have the tv mount on the drivers side just above the driver on an angle.

Also, wanting to pull the 13inch out of the back bedroom and replace with a flat screen. Same thing, anyone do this change out and if so how and what did you use.

Thanks,

Tully
1990 Prevost Country Coach

[lewpopp]

Tully,

I replaced both of my interior TVs with flat screens. The rear is not HD but the front is.

I purchased a 26" Westinghouse from Sams Club. I am very satisfied with it. I had to some chopping to get it in the hole and then some more to get it to center in the space.

I would suggest to get someone who has done this before on another coach. Mine is just set in there and is slightly loose cuz there is no room for a mount.

The old ones were sure heavy and Iwas glad to lighten the load.

I couldn't mount it on the outside of the cabinet because the overhead cabinet was already a headknocker.

[merle&louise]

Tully,

I just replaced my old TV with a 32" LCD Sony Bravia HD. My cabinet width was 31 1/4". The flat screen TV was 31" exactly. After we stuck on the little rubber cushions it was a perfect fit. We cut out some 3/4" plywood L shaped blocks, screwed them to the cabinet and the TV just sat down perfectly.

We tested it this past weekend driving from Houma, LA to Houston via I-10. If you are not familiar with that stretch of road it is the roughest in the nation. The TV stayed in the cabinet so I guess it passed the test.

The key is finding the correct width TV for your cabinet opening; all of the sets out there are different sizes. Just bring a tape measure with you when you go shopping. Good luck:D

[Tully]

I guess that is the ticket. Get to measuring once I get coach on Saturday.
There are so many mounting systems today. I may just have this done by a local coach shop here and pay the $95.00 per hour. Would think they could knock this out in 1-3 hours tops. May be worth the $100-$300 bucks to have it done right and look pro-installed.

I am pretty handy. However, this is something I think I need to pull out and look at real close to see what my mouthing options are.

If there was some type of inner sideway on the inside of the tv enclosure, I could put a swing-out mount and be able to unlatch the tv, when parked for better viewing angles. Would just have to figure out a way to keep the tv pull tight against the enclosure while in transit. Basically the tv would be mount with tv portion just outside the current mounting box, if they makes any sense.

Tully

[dale farley]

Tully,


I removed a 20" TV and installed a 26" Sony Bravia in our bus, and it fits very nicely in the space. I ended up adding two pieces of plywood between the bracket and the 2x4s shown in the picture. I did that to get the TV out far enough to let me set it in place then lock the bracket. I added a vertical 2X4 on each side before I attached the horizontal 2X4s. The one on the right side had to be cut down significantly, because there is not room for the whole 2x4. More like a tapered 1"X 2". The most challenging part was getting the bracket positioned where the TV would set as close to the hole as possible and still allow me to hang it and lock it. I spray painted the 2X4s black so they couldn't be seen from the side of the TV.


I bought the Sony at KMart for $664. I got the bracket from Wal-Mart for $79.95. It tilts, so that makes it easier to attach the TV in such close quarters. I did see other 26" TVs that were cheaper, but this one fit the space best of any of them.

[bill&jody]

bill replaced both our tv's over a year ago with samsung.

so far, so good. here are some pics from the thread. since then, the external wiring is clean and the cabinet behind is finished and painted black. it is a great place for the components.
http://forum.prevostownersgroup.com/showthread.php?t=690&highlight=flat+tv

[Tully]

Both installs look very very nice. Cannot wait to see what I have to deal with and just how I will install. By the looks of it, I could go both ways. Will keep all updated and certain I will have additional questions.

Thanks,

Tully

[Judi Brown]

We put a 26" Insigna in the front and fit perfect. Bought 32" sony Bravia
for rear and when unpacking, read warranty and it said not for RV use.
So we don't know if should install or not.
Judi B

[MangoMike]

Judi,

I'm not sure, but it sounds like they're worried about the vibration issue and the warranty.

Mike

[Tully]

Does anyone have pic's of an install on the back tV?


Tully

[dale farley]

Judi, I too saw that Sony said don't use in an RV. If you ask a knowledgeable salesman, I think they will all tell you that virtually none are recommended for use in any application that is not stationary. When looking, I couldn't find any that said they were recommended for an RV. There may be some, but I didn't come across them.

[tdelorme]

Tully, here is a picture of the rear TV mount in our coach. I ended up using a different mount, but the frame up is what I think you are looking for. No comments on the carpentry work, I had to cut the brace down in order to get my hand back in there to hook things up. Unless you install a real small set, the new flat screen is going to stick out a bit but it's no big deal. The other picture is the front flat screen.
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i174/tdelorme1/tv4.jpg

http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i174/tdelorme1/tv5.jpg

[dale farley]

Ted, I feel right at home with that carpenter work. We all know that utility is more important than aesthetics. Especially when it isn't seen.

[tdelorme]

Thanks, Dale. I got the brace installed and Jan pointed out that the plug was in the upper right side of the cabinet and that no earthly being had an arm long enough and skinny enough to reach the plug. So, I grabbed the sawsall and went to work. Looks bad, works fine, but like you say, it's not seen.

[garyde]

I replaced my outside TV this year with a 26" Panasonic Flat Screen. There were posts on other sites several years ago regarding Plasma TV's not working at higher elevations. I do not know if Liquid crystal has the same issues.
My Coach came with a 32" Photonics in the front and a 30" Sharp in the bedroom.

[Ray Davis]

My previous CC had a flat screen installed up front, replacing a regular TV. About 2 years into my ownership, the TV failed to turn on. Ultimately I traced it down to the power-brick, which was used. It was dead.

I spoke with Nick Hessler, and he indicated that some of the power bricks used on these flat screen TV's don't like the modified sine wave coming out of the inverters, and eventually croak.

I wasn't able to find a direct replacement, but purchased instead a 12V power supply from an electronics store. Worked fine when I sold it, but I don't know if that power supply will ultimately do the same.

Ray

[Tully]

So we took off the wood face plate today and pulled out he old tube tv. I ended up getting the 26 inch Sony Brav. edition.

Lots of open space to work with. We are going to cut plywood to the size of the opening. Will cut and weld a metal plate to size of back of tv mounting and attach to plywood. Will us a piano hinge that will run from the top to bottom of the opening. Basically the tv will be mounted and will open and close on the hinged mount to give access to the inside of cabinet. You will pull tv from right side and will swing open. Still looking into how the door will stay shut. Idea?

Have already installed the Winegard In-Motion dome on top and going to run antenna cox- to front of cab and drill entry hole.

The fun then begins with trying to wire all this up.

The nice thing is the the storage compartments up from and above have lots of room to expand for surround sound and such. My concern? Can I put an exention style power strip to take the two recepticals to 4 or six? Is this a big issue?

Will try to keep updated and post some pic's as we get further along.

Tully

[phorner]

I doubt that you will have any problems installing a power strip. Another advantage of the LCD TV is that it draws less current than a tube TV.

We also have the 26" Sony Bravia installed in the front of the bus and it has worked out perfectly.

When completing your wiring, I suggest that you run a separate line from the satellite to a dedicated input on the TV. That way, you can simply use the TV remote to switch back and forth between satellite and cable/antenna. No more having to get up and select a different input from the switch box!

You can also do the same for a DVD/VCR player, as the Sony has several inputs.

Good luck with your project....

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

So we took off the wood face plate today and pulled out he old tube tv. I ended up getting the 26 inch Sony Brav. edition.

Lots of open space to work with. We are going to cut plywood to the size of the opening. Will cut and weld a metal plate to size of back of tv mounting and attach to plywood. Will us a piano hinge that will run from the top to bottom of the opening. Basically the tv will be mounted and will open and close on the hinged mount to give access to the inside of cabinet. You will pull tv from right side and will swing open. Still looking into how the door will stay shut. Idea?

Have already installed the Winegard In-Motion dome on top and going to run antenna cox- to front of cab and drill entry hole.

The fun then begins with trying to wire all this up.

The nice thing is the the storage compartments up from and above have lots of room to expand for surround sound and such. My concern? Can I put an exention style power strip to take the two recepticals to 4 or six? Is this a big issue?

Will try to keep updated and post some pic's as we get further along.

Tully

Not sure sure about your components and exactly what you are doing, but as far as a latch goes, if you put the hinge at the top to swing the unit up for access to the back, gravity would keep it closed and a piece of velcro on the rear would hold it shut.
Photos are always nice.

[Tully]

Well I think my buddy is going over-kill on this. Wanting to take metal framing and out-line the box opening to make it more rigid. Then wants pre-fab his own mount and have swing out on an all metal (not wood) door. He has spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to keep the door closed. Looking at all kinds of items. Spring loaded, locking latches...

Im thinking to keep it simple with the two 2x4 blocks and get a simple bracket for $80.00 and be done with it.

Want to get this tv hung and wired. Looking like too much planning and thought is going into it.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh Wellllllllllllllll.


Tully

[Ray Davis]

In my previous bus, the TV up front had been replaced with a flat screen. Whoever did the switch simply built a plywood mount (basically an L bracket), that the TV mounted to directly with screws through the back.

The bottom piece of plywood, was beveled at the end, so it would slip under another piece which held it from tipping forward (if you can imagine this. otherwise I'll try to draw a picture).

The whole thing was held in place by a couple of screws, holding the base of the plywood mount in place in the cabinet. When I needed to get inside I had to remove the outside bezel (wood, 4 screws), and unscrew a couple of screws in the TV base, and pull it out straight forward.

Whole thing couldn't have cost more than $5 to make, and worked great.

Ray

[dalej]

Ted, this is the only thing that worries me about your setup, see photo for a better look.

I really think that two angle pieces of stainless steel or aluminum would help support the bracket where the blue lines are but on the back side. It just looks like where the red line is, is where it will crack or break with the weight of the tv and bracket.

[tdelorme]

Yes, Dale, I agree that that setup had a weak point even though it is 3/4" oak. Like I said toward the end of the post, I ended up using a different mount. The one shown had the TV sticking out from the wall about 3". With the new mount the TV is flat against the cabinet. So far, So good.

[Tully]

Ray

Am interested in the old set up you have. Having a difficult time on a visual level- can you scratch me out something.

Sounds like if put a wooden platform or L style ledge if you will on bottom outside cabinet and put a header on top grooved- I could mount the TV to plywood. I could simply slide the entire wood panel with tv attached down this grooved track. Simply slide out to right to gain entry for cables and such.

If that makes sense?

Tully

[Ray Davis]

Let's see if I can do that. I'm not much of an artist, but hopefully these two pictures will illustrate it.

First image shows view from side of base. The top is a view of a simple plywood piece that is used to hold the base from tipping forward. The base unit slides on the floor of the cabinet, and wedges underneath the "lip"

2623


This image shows a front view of the base. Holes are drilled in the back to allow screws to mount into TV mount plate. Weight is supported by the vertical panel, and the floor of the cabinet.

2624


Whole thing had to cost all of $5 worth of plywood. This set pretty much flush inside the opening, with a wooden bezel (like a picture frame) around the edge.

[Tully]

Well after many hours of doing prefab work on square tubes we got a real nice bracket which is very solid. Bought the 26 inch Sony Bravio and it is by far the best fit and picture.

Bit the bullet and installed a Sony MV900 Surround sound system. The speakers I sware are on 1 1/2 inches in size. Wired the front seating area and the whole bus shakes now watching a good hi-def dvd.

It took a lot longer to install but we took our time and tied everything
very very nice and neat.

Will try and get pic's up. It really turned out so nice.

Have the plug in so I can have my lap top show up on the 26 inch tv. Real nice option.

Tully