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Subject |
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Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: Is there such a thing as a comfortable RV folding couch?
We tried putting an air mattress on top of our foldout bed and only succeeded in putting a hole in the mattress. We have since decide that using an air mattress on the floor is a better solution.
We have used several air mattresses over the years and have found out that the Aerobed is by far the best (also most expensive). It seems to out last several of the cheaper ones.
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curt12914
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08/24/08 06:22pm |
Hybrid Travel Trailers
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RE: Diesel air filter restriction indicator?
The correct name is a manometer.
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curt12914
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08/19/08 07:21pm |
Class A Motorhomes
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RE: FORD TRUCK OWNERS ONLY NO BRAND WAR
Absolutely love it! However you will suffer some MPG because of the new emissions equipment.
Do you think the mileage will get better in a few years, when they figure out more economical ways to meet the emission standards?
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curt12914
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08/18/08 01:02pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Chevy v Ford fuel consumption?
The 454 was noted to burn pistons. I had an older Holiday Rambler (P-30) and a friend had an older Allegro (also a P-30) both with 454's and both of us replaced pistons. I replaced one piston and sold it. He replaced one and the second time ruined the engine. It is now a hunting camp in the woods.
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curt12914
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08/18/08 12:56pm |
Class A Motorhomes
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RE: Black Tank Valve Seeping
The valve has an O ring around the perimeter that seals it. With age, it deteriorates and stretches. Eventually it could stretch enough that it will open very hard and you will probably pull the handle off trying to open it. (I speak from experience here!)
A new valve is around $20, easy to replace and you will save yourself a nightmare later on!
It's quite easy to change the valve on most trailers (if you can see it and it is easy to get to). Empty and flush your tank. Put a pail under the outlet after you empty it and leave the valve open overnight to dry it out. There are four bolts to remove and you will probably have to pry the flanges off the valve.
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curt12914
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08/18/08 12:45pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: fifth wheel that can be pulled by 1/2 ton pickup
There are those that have duallies and then there are those that admire duallies....There is only two classes
Ken
No, there are three classes! There is the class that pulled with dual wheel trucks, buried one on the beach at the Outer Banks of NC, traded for a single rear wheel truck and liked it so well he has since traded for another single rear wheel truck.
I'll vote for a fourth class. Those, like me, that have a dually and hate it.
It's clumsy, traction is terrible and virtually impossible to rotate the tires on, since only the outside duals are aluminum rims.
There are advantages to the duallys, but for those of us that use it as a daily driver, the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages.
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curt12914
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08/18/08 12:34pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Camp Chef Stove
You guys are costing me money (again). Anyone know who has the best price on a Camp Chef Ultimate Turkey Roaster (that I had never heard of until this thread started)?
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curt12914
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08/16/08 05:32am |
Camp Cooks and Connoisseurs
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RE: fifth wheel that can be pulled by 1/2 ton pickup
PS I do not recommend this approach. For most people it is a recipe for disaster. Keep within the mfg's ratings.
I agree 100%.
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curt12914
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08/16/08 05:28am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Two Honda EU2000i generators overload
For some reason, the AC units seem to restart harder than initial startup, but the Honda's still should do it.
What other loads do you have on? Are you using your electric water heating element? Is your refrigerator on electric? Do you have a converter that charges at a high rate?
The problem may not be the generators, but the combination of other loads with the AC.
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curt12914
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08/15/08 07:45pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: fifth wheel that can be pulled by 1/2 ton pickup
This is pretty much off the subject, but when I see these weight threads, I always think of a neighbor who had the first gooseneck trailer I ever saw. He had a early 70's Ford F-250 (390 motor, I think) 4 wheel drive. He towed a trailer that carried his Case backhoe that weighed somewhere in the 7 ton range, so he was probably towing close to 9 tons total. He used the same truck for over 20 years, until he retired and sold everything. I never heard of him having an accident with it and never heard of him having a lot of problems and he towed almost EVERY DAY with it.
I guess someone forgot to tell him he was overloaded!
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curt12914
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08/15/08 07:36pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: fifth wheel that can be pulled by 1/2 ton pickup
If you max out any rig your performance and reliability will suffer. I recommend using the 20-25% of the 5ers GVWR if for nothing else a margin of safety. All the truck manufactures know weight ratings help to sell there trucks, I believe they will list the maximum weights they can safely carry. I towed overloaded for years telling myself it handles fine. Once getting a TV over rated for the load the difference was amazing, fuel mileage also improved. Braking was unbelievably better, the driving experience much more pleasurable, and without a doubt safer. Max your truck out for all it has if you like, never again for me.
You advocate 20 -25% as a margin of safety? So you're pretty much agreeing with the guy that says anyone towing a fifth wheel should have a one ton dually!
A lot of you guys put a lot more faith in the manufacturers GVW than I do. I see different GVWs listed for a truck with the same frame, springs, brakes, etc., but different engines, transmissions and gear ratios. That might make a lot of difference to a guy that is driving through the Rockies, but for a flatlander, it doesn't mean a lot.
I've seen comments about air bags, helper springs, exhaust brakes, power enhancements, auxiliary transmissions, etc. don't change the GVW of the truck. You're right that it doesn't change the door sticker, but most enhancements do make the truck able to carry or tow more weight.
What do you thnik about the over the road drivers that are hauling oversize loads? Some things just don't come apart enough to bring them down to normal sizes. We just had some transformers go through our area that weigh over 40 tons. Where would a guy buy a tractor that has a GVW to tow that.
As someone that has driven large trucks all his adult life, I can tell you the weakest part of any truck is the nut behind the steering wheel. If you have any idea of what you're operating, you can take precautions to operate it safely. Some people aren't safe with an empty one ton dually.
Go ahead, flame on!!!!!!!!
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curt12914
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08/15/08 07:37am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: fifth wheel that can be pulled by 1/2 ton pickup
I wouldn't. Not enough truck for stability reasons. One ton dually much better.
Maybe a HDT (Class 7 or Class 8 truck) would be better. That should be enough truck to tow a 5000 lb fifth wheel!!!!! I'm sorry, but a one ton dually isn't needed (and actually looks a ittle ridiculous) to tow a small fifth wheel.
Starting about 4 years ago, the tow ratings of "half-ton" pickups increased drastically and is often higher than some of the older 3/4 ton pickups.
Check the weights of your truck and try to find a fifth wheel that matches it. A couple brands that come to mind are Jayco and Cougar. There are many others, but I just can't think of them. I'm sure others can recommend many other options.
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curt12914
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08/12/08 05:57pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Best place to buy generator
http://www.mayberrys.com/
http://www.alamia.com/
http://store.wisesales.com/
http://www.speedwaysales.com/
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curt12914
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08/12/08 09:58am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Kill-a-watt at Camping World for $25
Is there a Kill-a-watt that can be plugged into a 30 or 50 amp receptacle? Then you could plug your 30 or 50 amp RV cord into the Kill-a-watt to monitor the RV usage?
It would be nice to know how much electric our RV uses when plugged into our daughter's 30 AMP outlet.
Shirley
If you have the adaptors to get down to a 15 amp plug, you could (and I have) easily plug it into the main umbilical cord and turn things on one by one, to find out their current draw.
I have never seen one for 30 or 50 amp plugs.
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:50pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: EZ or giant level?
Now "clickable" http://www.tweetys.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=12248
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:43pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: NY to Michigan - thru Canada or not?
The good thing about going by Toledo is that it's pretty easy to stop at Cabelas in Dundee. It's a great break and we always leave with less weight in our wallet and more stuff in our rig.
My favorite Cabelas story is about a friend who was going to the Michigan NASCAR race (which is next weekend) with us. He had never heard of Cabelas, so I sent him a catalog. He told me he would go with me, but was sure there was nothing he would be interested in.
Since we couldn't get into the campground at the track until the next morning, we planned on staying at Cabels overnight (they welcome RV's for overnight parking). We went in to the store for a couple hours that day and he spent $400. The next morning he wanted to go back in before we left.
Sorry for the rambling.........
Don't forget that fuel is much more expensive in Ontario, border wait times are up (both ways), and there is always a chance of a "Secondary inspection" at customs that can hold you up for hours. I would bet you could easily wait an hour at Niagara Falls and an hour at Detroit customs on busy days.
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:37pm |
Roads and Routes
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RE: Electric water heater and A/C, not good at the same time?
I'll play around with it....One question, does anyone how long it takes to heat the water with gas? (best guess)..
Jim
The propane water heater is much faster than the electric element.
It's hard to say how fast (you can easily time it, since it's easy to tell when it's running when you are near it outdoors), but I would guess it will heat a tank full of water in about 5 minutes.
I always think of the electric element as a supplement when using a lot of water, like when taking a shower, or to maintain the temperature once the propane and electric have it hot.
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:21pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: Electric water heater and A/C, not good at the same time?
I just saw a post about a Kill-A-Watt meter from Camping World. Apparently they are on sale for $25 right now.
They are a great tool to tell what your various loads are.
You can start different things and find out what they are drawing.
It's also possible your 30 amp breaker is weak.
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:16pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: Kill-a-watt at Camping World for $25
I love my Kill-A-Watt meter.
The only problem is I told many people how great it is and someone is always borrowing it.!
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:09pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Bristol Race Camping
It's been a few years since we went to Bristol, but we camped at a drive-in movie place. I went to the track's website and I believe it was Twin City Drive-In & Campground, 2512 Volunteer Parkway, Bristol, TN, 423.968.7083 (Copied and pasted from their website.)
It was reasonably priced, relatively quiet at night and about .8 miles (a pretty easy walk) from the track. The best thing about it was that it is all uphill from the highway and very dry. I don't know if you have ever been to Bristol, but some of the camping is in very low lying, flood prone areas, that quickly turn to mud if it rains.
If you do stay at the drive-in, find out when the parade of haulers is going into the track and bring a lawn chair to see it out front of the drive-in. It will be in the evening and it's pretty cool to see.
They have a speed street type of setup on one of the main streets in Bristol (the Tennessee - Virginia state line runs down the center of the street).
There is also a place that has the greatest smoked meat sandwiches ever, that is a couple miles from the track. It's not uncommon to see some of the drivers or crew members there. Maybe someone can help you with directions.
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curt12914
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08/11/08 06:02pm |
Campgrounds, Resorts and Attractions
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