Red Bay, Alabama

Forty-five miles southwest of Muscle Shoals lies the thriving metropolis of Red Bay, Alabama. This town of some 3,500 souls lives and breathes two things: Sunshine Dog Food and Tiffin Motor Homes. Sunshine is a huge mill that produces dog food under a variety of names from local crops. Tiffin Motorhomes is the other major employer in town and produces 12 motorhomes a day of various configurations. Over 1,500 people are employed by Tiffin at the Red Bay plant and at satellite shops. For example, the paint shop is in Mississippi, just six miles from Red Bay, and employs a sizable work force.

When we arrived here Tuesday afternoon, we set up at the Red Bay Self Service RV Park just west of town. One of four rv parks in town, it is a gravel lot cut out of a hay field, but does have full utilities and level sites. The cost is $20 per night, as most of the "inhabitants" own Tiffin motorhomes and are here for some type of service work, so they don't need or want a lot of amenities. This is not a place where anyone wants to be, so it becomes a bare minimum existence until work can be completed. Of 18 or 20 sites at this location, we have the only non-Tiffin motorhome. We're the token "off-brand" in a sea of Tiffin products. The other parks in town are likewise just holding lots for people needing service and they are full! We drove around Red Bay Tuesday afternoon (15 minutes start to finish) and noticed a lot of gloomy faces. In talking to some of the neighbors last evening we were shocked at some of the stories.

One gentleman had need of a bit of paint and body repair. After arrival and inspection, the estimate came in at $22,000! He agreed, reluctantly, and work began, but when it came time to paint, the paint shop covered up all the ventilation holes for his rv type refrigerator and caused it to malfunction. He's left with melted ice cream and thawed steaks and is waiting for a new refrigerator! Another couple came in for an air conditioner replacement a week ago, and now is waiting for a second a/c unit (somehow it got messed up while the first was being replaced) and a new top for their slide out because the workmen tromped on it while on the roof and damaged it! We're hearing stories of Tiffin employees doing unauthorized work during their shift in the factory directly with the customers. Major no-no!

Anyhow, we came to Red Bay to take a tour of the assembly plant, so today, Thursday, we arrived at the Tiffin Visitors Center just after 9:00 am, prepared to watch and learn.

With a 1976 Allegro Bus at the side, and manually operated gas pumps in the front advertising gas for 14.2 cents a gallon, we were immediately taken back to the days when Bob Tiffin started his fledgling company in an abandoned cotton warehouse, using parts purchased from a defunct mobile home builder and help from family members.

Can you say green shag carpet?

Our first stop on the tour was in the cabinet shop, where all the cabinet pieces are made from large stacks of Cherry or Alder boards. Hundreds of pieces are made, molded, and marked for use on a specific motorhome.

Large CNC (computer numerically controlled) machines make cutouts in everything from the large slabs of fiberglass used for sidewalls to countertops.

Then on to the frame area, where welding and bracing is done and coated to prevent corrosion.

And large plastic inserts are installed to prevent moisture from getting into the storage bays.

Another CNC machine automatically cuts window and door openings in a complete fiberglass/foamboard insulation unit. Miscellaneous small cutouts for lights and the like are done here as well.

Complete roof assemblies are created using a tubular aluminum frame with large pieces of shaped foam insulation glued to it. The foam pieces have been cut for a specific motorhome, and have light and a/c provisions built in. Here one roof is waiting to move to the assembly area, while another is built on the table below.

Add together a whole bunch of metal, armloads of foam insulation, a huge chunk of fiberglass with glass in it,

two and a half miles of electrical wire already woven into a loom specific to each coach,

stir in roughly three weeks of labor, and a motorhome pops out of the oven! Give it a little TLC and a quick cleaning, and off she goes to a proud new owner!

D and I spent about an hour after the factory tour looking at motorhomes that had just been completed. We were investigating floor plans, colors, and amenities to see if anything struck our fancy. While we would not disparage Tiffin products in the slightest, we decided that their products need just a little more TLC for us to be ecstatic over them. I guess we'll have to go home "with who brung ya" for now.

Taking a last look around town, we saw the old, and now closed, Red Bay Hotel. The town is nowhere near the ocean, so the name is a bit misleading. The "Red" come from the red dirt in the area, and the "Bay" refers to the huge quantities of Bay trees that existed here in the past, but are now mostly gone; much like the Red Bay Hotel.

Across the street from the hotel is the Mason Jar on Main restaurant. Now, you gotta understand that there aren't a lot of restaurants in town, but what few there are have a great reputation for good food. The Mason Jar is no exception. Only open until 2 pm, it's a lunch spot with hamburgers and sandwiches and the greatest sweet tea we've ever tasted!

Our lunch was served with Wickles Pickles, an Alabama business, and let me tell you, we loved them! Turns out the nearby Big Star Market carries the brand, so we hopped on over to pick up a jar or two! There's just something about a sweet, spicy pickle chip with a hint of jalapeño pepper and a crisp texture!

We'll say goodby to Red Bay tomorrow morning. Mission accomplished. There's a couple hundred miles of road out there that we haven't been on, so we gotta get going!