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RE: Goodyear Endurance is 5 years too old?
I would not be afraid of these American made tires even at 7 years old. Just keep the tire pressure where it's supposed to be. The last set of tires (not Goodyears) I took off my 5th wheel I kept for use on the boat trailer which is not driven over 40 miles per day when used. They are now 8 years old and still no sign of cracks or any problems. Like everything in today's economy tires are profanely expensive. I believe when possible you need to get all the wear out of things before replacing.
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Likes to tow
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05/16/23 05:52pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: B&W Companion hitch removal
Just got a new truck with the puck system. Bought a B&W Companion hitch that weighs about 230 pounds. What have those of you that have a similar hitch done to remove the hitch without straining your back.
First remove the head from the base. Now release the pucks and lift and slide the base to the edge of the tail gate. Stand on the ground at the tailgate and remove, EZ-PEE-ZEE.
The base to my Ford hitch does not look like this one. I can see this would weigh much more and would require a different approach.
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Likes to tow
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05/11/23 05:54pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: B&W Companion hitch removal
I don't think that my B&W Companion hitch weighs 230 pounds. I remove the head unit and then remove the base. I can do this in about 5 minutes by myself and I'm 70 years old.
I'm 75 and do it exactly like this. Although I'm very careful with lifting the base. I keep it at waist level and lift it onto a stand I put beside the tailgate. Bending over to sit it on the floor is going to be an issue.
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Likes to tow
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05/11/23 04:04am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: 5th wheel suggestions
Your experience is very similar to mine. I had 4 truck campers in the early years and when I retired the move to a 5th wheel was part of the plan. I'm now on my 3rd 5th wheel. Yes, I'm getting old !!
The first two 5th wheels were used. We started with a 24 Low Profile Forest River and soon traded for a mid profile 32 CrossRoads Cruiser. Like all RV's you have to look hard for any sign of leaks around seams and windows. Delamination is a cruel result with no repair possible. You're going to have trouble finding a two bathroom model under the 33 ft range. Rear bunk room models are very nice if you have guests, they can be found easily if you look online. RVtrader.com is a good place to look. Be prepared to drive a few miles to get exactly what you want!
Our current and last 5th wheel is a Grand Design Reflection 31' with 3 slides and a rear living area. The kitchen is in the center of the trailer. We soon discoverd years ago this is a good layout for us. Most campsites have a better view out of the back than on each side due to those other folks camped beside you. Our first 5th wheel had a rear kitchen and immediately we discovered that small window over the sink did not allow much of a view. Large windows in the back afford much better possibilities at most campsites. This will be a take away for you with a rear bunk model.
This last 5th wheel we bought new and there were issues, all covered by warranty. It seems there is nearly no quality control at factories and they rely on the dealer to correct issues. I fixed many issues myself but it did require 3 trips to the dealer (30 miles away) and a waiting period to get things resolved. This is a good thing about buying used, someone else has gone thru the shake down and all issues should be resolved. Never forget the delamination issues caused by leaks. This you can see and if you do then run away!!
The main difference you will notice in moving into a 5th wheel is the fact that trips will now require more planing!!! Not all campgrounds, especially state and national parks can accommodate large RV's due to length and overhead trees. Getting in a out of fuel stops can be challenging because pumps now require you to pull forward toward the building. This is so the attendant can observe activity at the pumps without a blocked view of the first row. However people parking in front of the building does not allow you to swing wide enough to get out. Also beware the back of a large 5th wheel will pivot in a tight turn and some accidents have occurred where the back of the 5th wheel hits a gas pump!!
With diesel you can use truck stops which is much better for maneuverability.
My plan is to keep this 2017 5th wheel a few more years then move back to a truck camper!! I have never been turned away from a crowded RV park when using a truck camper. They will find somewhere to put you normally! We once parked along side the park office and plugged into the outlet on the building. Big rodeo in Cody Wyoming and there were no more sites anywhere. We were heading home and were only needing an overnite. They made room for my truck camper!
So to sum it up, nothing is perfect. You have trade offs you must deal with. Truck camper is a very easy unit to travel in. If you can park the truck then there is no problem. With a large 5th wheel in tow you have to plan ahead and beware of boxing yourself in or finding a parking lot big enough to park sideways over several slots. WalMarts and such will normally have room for you to park way out from the building for a shopping trip, some even allow overnight stays. 5th Wheels are very stable to pull even with some crosswind. Good choice over a bumper pull RV for that reason.
Good luck in your hunt
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Likes to tow
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04/13/23 04:04am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Creak when reversing the fifth wheel
You need someone to stand beside your rig and try moving back and forth to see if you can duplicate the sound. You can't solve it from the cab of the truck. Had problems like this before with my old hitch. It was the mounting bolts in the hitch to the frame of the truck. My new Ford has the puck system and a B&W hitch. There is no noise from the B&W
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Likes to tow
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03/18/23 08:26am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: New Tires
My belief is that since the spare usually but not always is kept out of direct sunlight it should be good enough to continue being a spare for a while. My trailers have all had the spare underneath the frame and on the rare occasion that I needed to use or inspect it I found no cracks or obvious signs of deterioration. Age of the tire figures into the equation because after around 6 years they are not supposed to be used as a permanent tire. As with everything in our world right now tires are very expensive and buying 5 just to put one underneath as a spare is wasteful. But it depends on your financial situation and peace of mind. All of my spares on my RV and both boats are older tires that I have either pulled out of service or they came with the unit when new and I never replaced. I do however once a year check for dry rot and obvious knots or bulges or signs of separation. Keeping the lug nuts checked for proper tightness is more important than keeping new rubber as a spare!!
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Likes to tow
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02/27/23 10:43am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Bicycles
My Grand Design Reflection came with a 2 inch receiver on the back. I purchased a bike rack and use that on the 5th wheel receiver. Works very well.
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Likes to tow
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02/16/23 06:36am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Not bad for 11 years and 240,000 miles.
Maybe Likes to Tow should focus on towing?
Just sayin
Love the old truck and camper pics. Reminds me of the one my dad had with his 72 Ford long bed. I loved that truck.
Mike
I've had 4 truck campers and my last was a 10' Starcraft we bought new and had it on an F250 with the camper package which included overload springs. I also put air bags on it. Once while coming back from Wyoming I weighed the truck with camper on it and subtracted the weight of the truck. I was shocked at the weight of just the camper with water, propane, batteries and all our stuff. 3980 lbs was just too much for an F250 and that explained all the roll I got when on a crooked road. My camper supposedly weighed 2600 lbs according to the sales literature. I guess that was without the loading jacks.
My point is this, when you buy a truck to carry a truck camper be very informed about the road ready weight. If you are carrying close to two tons of tall weight and blow a rear tire things are going to get dicey in a hurry!!
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Likes to tow
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12/28/22 10:04am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Not bad for 11 years and 240,000 miles.
https://i.postimg.cc/bwQm6ZXd/IMG-1108.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/6pNk5Jt2/IMG-1111.jpg
Still running the factory brakes.
New fuel pump at 180,000.
Miscellaneous items and regular maintenance.
Doesn't use a drop of oil between oil changes
and that's carrying the 4000 lb camper fulltime.
It sure has been and still is a great truck.
The truck in this picture does not seem capable of carrying a camper of this size, especially 240,000 miles?
https://i.imgur.com/6DjAQmbl.jpg
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Likes to tow
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12/23/22 10:19am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: No scheduled maintenance on Ford Superduty
It's the same transmission and you are correct there is no scheduled maintenance. That said, I've read that it's recommended you change the transmission fluid around 90k miles.
I have a 2020 F350 6.7 and the transmission is starting to concern me. Aside from shifting very hard in 2 and 3 (it's always done that), the other day it shifted out of drive. I started to pull out of my drive and it just disengaged for about 10 seconds, coasted and then only revved until it banged into gear eventually. Thank goodness I hadn't pulled out onto a busy road. I've also had issues in 4WD. I was towing in some sand a few weeks ago and I put it in 4WD. it started to work fine at first and then wouldn't take fuel at all. It just died when I hit the the throttle. Of course I've had these things investigated at the dealer and they can't ever seem to replicate the issue. We are downsizing to a smaller motorhome and frankly I'll be glad to be rid of the truck. It's nice when it's working but I cringe at potential issues on such an expensive truck. I sleep better knowing it's still covered under warranty but I really worry about long term issues with it. Been lots of reported issues with the new transmissions and in most cases Ford doesn't want to step up.
This 7.3 gas with the 10 speed pulls my 5th wheel as good as my old 2005 Ram 5.9 Cummins. I did not want a new diesel due to all the changes in recent years due to EPA regulations MPG is almost the same, maybe a mile or two less towing but without the trailer it gets about the same mpg.... Just can't understand why no scheduled maintenance!
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Likes to tow
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12/22/22 02:09pm |
Tow Vehicles
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No scheduled maintenance on Ford Superduty
I have a 2021 Ford F250 with the 7.3 gas engine and the 10 speed transmission. It was bought new and has 20k on the odometer. Supposedly there is no scheduled maintenance on the transmission! I've always changed transmission fluid in all my previous trucks at 30k miles but the dealer says this will not need it. There is no dipstick!
Also......... Is the 10 speed in my F250 7.3 gas the same as the 10 speed used in the F350 thru F550 with the 6.7 diesel engine????
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Likes to tow
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12/22/22 11:27am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Not bad for 11 years and 240,000 miles.
Is that truck rated to carry that camper weight?? Looks like a short bed truck without dully wheels and I doubt it can handle that!!
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Likes to tow
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12/22/22 11:20am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Roof tear along edge ...
Seems like anymore people will catch you at a vulnerable position unable to fix things yourself and just throw a ridiculous price on it to see if you will take the bait. If the repairman has other work lined up he will put a high price on you to see if you bite. If you do he will put other work on hold and go do the ridiculous priced job. Go find someone with less workload and get an estimate. Get on youtube and see how others have fixed problems like this.
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Likes to tow
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10/01/22 06:05pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Observation--newer trucks tow fivers a bit nose high
I've always had 2 wheel drive trucks and never thought much about bed height. When preparing to order my 2022 Ford F250 I was thinking about getting 4WD due to pulling the boat out of the back yard sometimes on wet grass or soft soil. When looking at the new 4 WD trucks I could not believe the height of the bed!! Why do they put all those iron spacers between the rear springs and axle?? I ask a mechanic friend about removing them to lower the bed and he said it could be done. Rather than have to spend all that money on a new truck and then being forced to modify it I just ordered another 2 WD. It was only slightly taller than my 2005 Ram 2500 2 WD. I never realized how much bigger the whole truck was until I put it in my garage! The truck seems wider, taller bigger hood and the seats set lower in the cab. I'm only 5' 7" and with the seat as high as it can go I can just barely feel like I have a good view of the road. When I hook up the 5th wheel however it sits at the proper height and is not nose high. So if you can do without 4 WD just get a 2 WD and save several inches in height. I did get the locking differential though and have not had any trouble in my back yard getting the boat.
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Likes to tow
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09/09/22 01:06pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: B&W fail or Operator Error?
B&W hitches are very good but if you don't get the handle all the way back and pin it correctly this can happen. Also if you get the kingpin over the jaws this can happen. A pull test should have caught this. Now I'm worried about my B&W pulling a trick like this!!
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Likes to tow
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08/26/22 02:40pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: 5th wheel & Half-ton TV Thoughts
I was talking to a neighbor last week while he was showing me his new Chevrolet 1500 4X4 Crew Cab. While he was talking I opened the door and looked at the payload label in the door jamb. Max combined passengers and cargo was only 874 pounds!!!! In other words if you took 4 or 5 heavy adults with you there would be no capacity for ANYTHING ELSE!! I was totally shocked at how little it could carry. To make him feel better I remarked that it probably had a good soft ride. But essentially worthless as a "truck" I thought to myself.
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Likes to tow
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08/02/22 01:46pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Where is the photos
I agree that there is good advice on forums and have had help from many folks over the years. However, when the questions start to run at the edge of absurd it makes reading them tedious. Example: Everything runs great in my 2001 Casita but when I stop at rest stops my A/C and outlets are not working. What is wrong with this camper? Does it need to go back to the dealer for repairs?
There are certain levels of non-intelligence that just make my head want to explode.
Their voter registration card should be pulled!!
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Likes to tow
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07/29/22 10:35am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Where is the photos
I would bet that a lot of RV owners don't visit any forums at all.
They should!! This is how I found the massive problem with grease on brake shoes caused by Lipert using the wrong grease. It ruined the brake shoes and there was a massive replacement program for those who had recently bought new trailers. Grand Design sent me complete brake clusters for all 4 wheels. This was not a "recall" and thus I would not have known about it had I not been on this and other RV forums.
Also back in 2005 I was all set to order a new F250 6.0 diesel tow vehicle. This would have been my first leap into diesel so I was very green and uninformed. Luckily the forums were ablaze with bad reviews of the massive 6.0 diesel problem Ford was having. It changed my thinking and I ordered a Ram Cummins 5.9 even though I had always considered myself a Ford man. The Cummins ran 12 years and 130K trouble free miles.
You can get bad reviews or information from forums but I have found them to be very helpful and informative on critical issues!!
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Likes to tow
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07/29/22 07:52am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Where is the photos
Most of the younger folks are going to Face Book, or Instagram.
Ken
Agree!! I find myself laughed at for continuing to use Email and Forums.
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Likes to tow
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07/29/22 03:17am |
Fifth-Wheels
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