RE: What are most common greenhorn mistakes?
Here's one good tip fer' ya',,when you hook your fiver to your truck raise your front landing gear 1" off the ground then go into the truck,apply your trailer brakes and slowly pull ahead to make sure the hitch is locked,i do this every time and my truck bed and fiver have never been in contact!!!
Have fun!
Red Green:
A man only needs 2 tools:
If it moves and it shouldn't - duct tape
If it doesn't move and it should - wd40
RE: My life's next chapter
NICE COACH and welcome to the party!! The best rig to have is one that's paid for and I woulkd have no problem if you parked beside me so good luck!!!
RE: Age old question.
The absolute best is the truck in my sig.HMMMMMM,,,,,,
I really like my Dodge Ram 3500 diesel dually,the 6.7L Cummins is rock solid and the exhaust brake is out of sight,it's a great truck and I would buy another in a heart beat but mostly,,,they just look so damn good!!!!http://i728.photobucket.com/albums/ww289/MPI_Mallard/SUNP0003.jpg width=800
RE: To Fifth wheel from Class A with toad
We had a coach n' toad too,on a family trip to Marten River as I was going down the hill that goes into North Bay the brakes suddenly felt mushy,i was able to stop and went to the nearest Canadian Tire store only to be told they don't work on motorhomes,that piece of junk turned into a fiver and a Dodge 3500 right quick!!! As far as how convenient a fifth wheel set-up is I can park,unhook,level and extend my slides in about 15 minutes or so without breaking a sweat and that's without a auto-levelling system too(my next big purchase)and there is a definite learning curve but after a bit it becomes second nature. In my opinion there is a real difference in costs,you reduce the need for maintaining a second vehicle and oil changes and such are easier to get done. If you do go to the dark side with the rest of us be serious about your tow vehicle,i would recommend a 3500 diesel dually with a 8' box,it's a bit hard to park at the walmart but I always park at the back to avoid getting door dinged by idiots but with the right truck you'll be very pleasantly surprised by the ride,my coach made me feel like one of those oarsman chained to a paddle,after6 hours i'm toast,with my rig I can go all day,it tracks like its on rails and that 6.7L Cummins rolls down the road with authority and my exhaust brake makes easy work of the backside of those smokey mountains!
Your on the right track!
Red Green:
They say necessity is the
mother of invention,
don't know who
the father is,
probably remorse.
RE: Long Box vs Short Box
Good advise on taking a pass on that ford,myself I wouldn't go with a short-box,too many compramises to validate it also I think the shorter wheelbase would be a slight disadvantage. If your going to do any serious fifth-wheelin' you'll need to step up and get a proper tow vehicle,3500 diesel long box,something that you can keep as you trade up through the years.
RE: Canadians buying RV lots in Florida
After some diggin' I found that our banks in Canada simply won't go near a lot in the US and the TD in Florida will have nothing to do with a lot alone in Florida however they will consider a a finished lot with a permanent park-model but that's simply not what I want,when I go home all I wanna' leave is concrete,a shed and a golfcart and taking money out our investments is out so I guess i'll just keep on renting!
Thanks for your input!
RE: Tools and Maintenance Items for the Full Time RV Life
This Is what never leave without;
-hammer/axe/hatchet
-full set of pliers and assorted plumbing tools+snake
-full set of wrenches/allen wrenches/full socket set/impact sockets
-drills/impact gun/rivet gun
-20 ton bottle jack/2 ton floor jack/four jack stands
-air compressor/hose/air guage filler
-10" miter saw/jig saw/circular saw/recipical saw/brad nailer
Believe it or not I or someone else ends up using these tools at one point.
RE: Pulling A Fiver With A Extended Cab
It's funny but iv'e never thought of that! I guess we are so used to seeing four-doors that when I see a two door it stands out! In the end I really can't see having anything different than what I have now,it really serves the purpose it was intended for,i agree that length and width can be a royal p.i.t.a at the local grocery store but I guess that's a needed butt kickin' I gotta' take to haul my 16.000lbs+ fiver up and down the road safely I guess.
RE: What method do you use to jack up your 5er or trailer?
I raise my fiver up with the four hydraulic stabilizer's then jacked up each wheel usung a 10 ton bottle jack placed at the shackle,do what I need to then move to the next wheel,i'm sure there are better ways to do this but this method worked for me and my fiver.
RE: Spare Fuel
I carry three five gallon cans,one for diesel/truck,one for gas/generator and one for boat/outboard motor mix and at the end of a run I put the diesel in the truck and gas treatment in the others. One time I pulled into a BP station for diesel and the place was a total dump and the guy in front of me was telling me how slow the fuel was pumping only then to be told by the attendant that the lazy owner hasn't changed the tank filters in forever so I immediately poured the five gallons of diesel into my truck and headed for the next station and my fuel injectors remain happy to this day!!
RE: Conditons heading south after Christmas
I take I-75 down and layover twice at a Flying J,i have a genny so i'm totally self contained,i just can't justify spending $40 rupees to sleep on a lot overnight and Flying J really puts out for its RV customers!
RE: Hand Guns
Two years now full-timing,on the way down and on the way up we overnight at a Flying J,never once felt the need to be armed,read all the previous posts and see how many other seasoned full-timers have never needed to be armed,if your going to park your rig at some low-life bar or boon-dock in some ghetto and go looking for trouble you will find it but this thing we do doesn't bring my rig anywhere near anyplace that I need to worry about,we travel from gated rv resort to another gated rv resort! If some bandito stops me at a traffic light pointing a gun to my head and wants my truck and fiver I say take it then I'll call the cops then my insurance agent the and get a new truck and fiver.
RE: First Time Snowbirding Experiences
This is our second winter here in Florida,actually wer'e heading home tomarrow and this is how we will live until we aren't able to do it anymore! Our first winter was spent at Deer Creek Golf and RV resortclickand it was great however i don't golf and that was all there was to do there but we practically had the pool to ourselves and everything was very close also we had friends that have been going there for some time so i marked it a good first season but we did check out at least twenty+ other resorts from Tampa to Okeechobee and so on and i discovered that there are a ton of resorts but most are either too small to accomodate our rig or too old with no internet at the site and 30 amp power or just plain old,run down dumps that have seen better days. as far as the "wing it" theory goes if your going in november you had better have your lot reserved or you'll have problems getting what you need let alone what you want! For this season Frau Blücher and I decided we wanted water access and so i went digging in the web,i found this siteclickwich led me to our now permanent winter hide-out in beautiful sunny St.Cloud,this place is perfect(for us mind you)you see i figured out what i need in a site,50 amps,high-speed internet at the site,nice big lot with a shed,gated and most of all on a lakehttp://i728.photobucket.com/albums/ww289/MPI_Mallard/2012-2013%20Florida%20pics/DSC02000_zps8a105c75.jpg width=800,wer'e actually thinking of buying our own waterfront lot here. Now i'm suggesting this is the way to go but it worked very well for me and there are A LOT of private sites for rent in Florida and with a lil' digging you'll be amazed what you can get but i wouldn't wait.
Red Green:
There's only two things that excite
a man, expensive toys and real
expensive toys.
RE: Got bad news today, now depressed!
86,feels like a 100 today here in beautiful sunny St.Cloud Florida!!!Leaving for home on friday,expect to be severly depressed until next October!!!
The view
http://i728.photobucket.com/albums/ww289/MPI_Mallard/2012-2013%20Florida%20pics/Picture025.jpg width=800
Red Green:
If life gives you lemons, throw 'em into
a quart of vodka.
RE: DW won't drive
Frau Blücher does most of the driving,,,,,from the passenger seat of course lol,she won't even drive my truck(poor thing's so lil' she can't see over the hood) and it would be great if she would spell me on the helm but she simply won't even entertain the notion but after reading the previous post i feel a little better now that i know i'm not the only one out there "driving miss Blücher" so as the beauty of the open road passes my by while i'm concentrating on my driving you can just call me Jethro and say "drive boy!"
http://i728.photobucket.com/albums/ww289/MPI_Mallard/iK5aGlSrs4u8c2xaUh.jpg
Red Green:
Remember, I'm pulling for ya. We're
all in this together
RE: Bed tonneau covers
I have a Retrax tonneauClickand i'm thrilled with it!! I have my stock locking tailgate so with the Retrax locked i now have secure stowage in the bed of my truck and as a full-timer believe you me thats important! When i'm hooked to my fiver it locks in front of the hitch again giving me secure storage forward but mostly the guy's at Retrax are outta' sight when it comes to customer service AFTER-THE-SALE,last summer the end panel on my tonneau seperated from the rolling cover and without question they offered to replace it free if i paid the shipping,,,after five years,,thats a company that stands behind their product!!!
Red Green:
As you get older, you realize you can't always get what you want,
but if you try sometimes, you can get yet another financial setback.
