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Forum
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RE: Bigfoot tripping house GFI
Just for grins, unplug your fridge AC cord inside the outside fridge access cover.
Reset your GFI and see if it trips again.
Some reading here if anyone is interested.
https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/19658290/srt/pa/pging/1/page/1.cfm
More reading on the subject. Nice to have an understanding of the fridge and GFI's.
https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/19726244/srt/pa/pging/1/page/1.cfm
Jim
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bigfootford
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09/09/20 11:20am |
Truck Campers
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RE: bigfoot on shortbed srw
I just reviewed 6 years of different model years of BF brochures 2000 -2008 there are no 2500 series 9.6 listed as for short bed use ,
they only list 9.4 and once an 8-11 b was listed as for short box use
OOOH, where is the OP? I kind of knew this but did some assumptions.. Guess we need the WHOLE story eh?
Jim
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bigfootford
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09/01/20 06:30pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: bigfoot on shortbed srw
Ok, got that over with...
My 9.6 2500 weighs right at 4200lbs loaded with water, food and clothes.
My f250 is a supercab gasser and weighs 5,800 lbs. SRW. Total weight of truck and camper is 10,060.
My rear axle weight loaded is about 66xxlbs.
I have 19.5 tires and Air Lift air bags in the rear. I run about 40psi, just enough to level the truck.
Camper bought new and has been on 2 f250's. Camper has about 200,000 miles on it.
I have no other suspension changes.
Tire capacity is 4950lbs each so I have lots of reserve weight capacity on the rear of my truck.
I would check your tire capacity.. and figure that camper will weigh about 4K loaded. Decide later if you need air bags and anti sway etc.
Jim
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bigfootford
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09/01/20 02:15pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: bigfoot on shortbed srw
Original post says 9.6 short box camper on short box truck. Don’t see sagging issues with that. Old non basement BF’s had sagging issues, but haven’t heard of it with newer ones. Lots of plywood in the construction. Had my 2002 9.6 LB on LB truck for 14 yrs from Alaska to Texas to Maritimes with never an issue.
Wow, I totally missed that the OP said sb 9.6... Thankyou...
Sorry OP for missing that...
My 9.6 lb on a long bed does sag a bit. Not bad but you can see it. It is a basement 9.6 2500.
Jim
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bigfootford
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09/01/20 01:43pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: bigfoot on shortbed srw
The 9.6 BF is not built with enough fiberglass frame structure to support that much weight hanging over the rear of a short bed truck. Also center of gravity would actually reduce front axle weight. My 9.6 only puts 300lbs on the front axle..
.
I have a friend that has an older BF that is 11'5". Even on a long bed the rear of the camper has sagged quite a bit and caused a delamination of the internal structure of the walls at the rear overhang. He fixed that but the sag was not much better.
My 9'6" does sag just a bit back there too and that is on a long bed. No structure problems though... 20 years, lots of miles and many rough roads! All the way to Prudhoe bay and more.
Lastly... Both the gray and black tanks are in the overhang... 50 gallons when full. Along with that part of the fresh water tank is in that last 1.5' of overhang... A short bed would place about another 2' of water weight in the short bed overhang of the camper.
The 9.6 holds about 50 gallons of fresh water...
Jim
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bigfootford
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08/31/20 11:09am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Any experience with GreenLiFE Lithium-Ion Batteries???
Well there is a cog in the wheel...
25 amp max charge rate!
https://azimuthsolarproducts.com/product/12v-100ah-sio2-battery/
Battery Type
SiO2 Composite Electrolyte Battery
Nominal Capacity (25°C/77°F)
100 Ah (1.2 kWh) @ 20 Hour
Nominal Voltage
12V
Max Charge Current
25A
Max Charge Voltage
14.7V
Internal Resistance (25°C/77°F)
=< 6.8 m?
Max Discharge Current (25°C/77°F)
900A(5S)
Depth of Discharge
100% DOD
Operational Temperature
-40?C to 65?C (-40?F to 149?F)
Self Discharge
< 1.6% per Month
Life Cycle
3400 Cycles at 40% DOD; 1500 Cycles at 80% DOD; 620 Cycles at 100% DOD
Dimensions
16.8 x 30.7 x 21.5 cm (6.61 x 12.08 x 8.46")
Weight
27 kg (59.5 lbs)
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bigfootford
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08/29/20 11:42am |
Tech Issues
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RE: What's changed about camping?
Lot's you have listed have been going on for years.
Pretty sad. The only way to get around lot's of those issues is to do your trips/camping after school starts. Impossible with kids sadly.
One more thing that really is bad that many state campgrounds have been taken over by commercial companies thus no forest service. The prices have doubled and tripled in popular areas.
Jim
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bigfootford
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08/02/20 10:10am |
RV Lifestyle
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RE: Tank drop!
Oh Arctic Fox had serious trouble years ago!!!!
https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/21247815/print/true.cfm
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL1437/6215710/19441226/312443304.jpg
Jim
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bigfootford
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07/26/20 10:40am |
Truck Campers
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RE: After 25 years the water heater - UPDATE page 5
Think the Atwood water heaters were all aluminum so no anode.
Maybe the older ones were steel.
Well at least you were not on a long trip and the thing let go...
You will like the auto ignite....
Jim
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bigfootford
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07/20/20 10:35am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Reddog1 "Wayne"
Today we attended a family gathering to remember Wayne and his goodness! Just family. It was a wonderful remembrance of who he was as a person. He is missed by all of us...
Jim
Let me tell you that the hours our TC forum moderators put in to do what is needed and is not for the faint of heart! Wife n I have traveled and camped with Wayne n wife a lot over the years. If there was internet he was on being like a Sheriff in an unruly town..hahahaaa The TC forum was like that in the 90's!
He was devoted to the job, no compensation what so ever, not even a thank you from anyone. All of the Rv.net Moderators receive no compensation!
Here is a great picture of him at it as I walked in after we settled and got set up to enjoy the surroundings!
https://i.imgur.com/Y6TVuqhl.jpg
Jim
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bigfootford
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07/06/20 11:38pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Reddog1 "Wayne"
His hobby and love of making and fabricating led to him building a great little Suzuki Samurai.
He and I did a 3 day Rubicon trail trip years ago. He did the trail 3 times.
Here is a short film I took you all will enjoy. This was with a 4.16:1 Tcase his next trip was with 6:1. Much easier on the rocks..hahahaa
https://youtu.be/f8sO3SBsSGk
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bigfootford
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07/02/20 01:55pm |
Truck Campers
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Reddog1 "Wayne"
Well we have lost another member of the TC forum. Wayne passed away yesterday after a short battle with Pancreatic cancer.
He was one of the first moderators for the TC forum. He and Brad had their hands full during the early years of the TC forum as members were exchanging ideas, technical help and all the other things that TC'rs deal with.
A few pictures for some of us to remember him by.
We had a West Coast TC Rally. These pictures are from that event. We had a big group of TC'rs.... Sadly this was our last one.
Many of these folks are still members of RV.net TC forum!
https://i.imgur.com/sr67Vubl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/fLQs6L5l.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/xroNXVMl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/xhYZDrBl.jpg
Jim
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bigfootford
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07/02/20 11:33am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Fridge won't fit
What is wrong with these camper mfg's?
No way to remove a fridge?
That is some damning engineering in my opinion, or lack of!
We love our BF as we have a couple of others. One camper, a 80 6pac the fridge would fit through the door as the door was BIGGER than todays RV doors...
Are the RV door companies in control of the construction of these campers and RV's?
Just maddening that they are just following the HERD!
Thank god our Fridge is still functional and it is not too techieee. So we can replace the cooling unit if needed. . 20 years and counting and it cools like a champ!
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/26/20 08:33pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Fridge won't fit
Boy that is a bummer.
Here on this forum I have never read that the fridge had to be taken apart to go out the camper door opening.. hahahaa. I did say "door opening".
Everyone I have read about had to remove the whole door frame and the fridge door.
Well at least you got it out but now what.
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/24/20 09:46am |
Truck Campers
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RE: A camper you may never see in your lifetime
That bed space is unusable for most. Make other side fitting 30-40 gallons of fresh water tank and you have perfect truck for mid-sized TC.
Too bad TC owners are minority and can't make enough demand for manufactures to consider the options.
Great point!
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/16/20 11:46am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Weatherproofing 04 Bigfoot
A 3000 series Bigfoot is not a two piece shell like a 2500 or 1500 series. It has a Fibercore wall structure and a seamless rubber roof. I don’t believe Heng’s was used al all on the 3000 series from the factory.
Great catch! BFgrey.
Did not look at the mod number, just assumed that the OP was talking about the 2500/1500 Models....Bigfoot 10.11SL is a 3000 hard side type..
The OP will have to disregard the parts we all wrote about the shell 1/2's seams...
Sorry OP!
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/16/20 09:31am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Weatherproofing 04 Bigfoot
Congratulations on that barn find!
Our camper is 20 years old and has traveled almost 200,000 miles on 2 trucks.
It was exposed to sun and weather for it's first 10 years then we built a camper cave for it.
So here is my answers to your questions:
1. I too use the Hengs that is used to seal the vents etc. I do use tape to mask off so the lines remain nice. I clean as much of the dirt off the old surface as I can.. I get up on the roof and inspect each year but I probably do re-seal every other year and only where the cracks are. I have not removed the old sealer. I remove the tape pretty quick after I re-seal. Makes the sealer round off nice.
I have had to replace the fridge vent hood and that was some work..hahahaa. I also have replaced the fridge vent to put a better fan in.
2. After about 5 years I noticed that there was some small gaps in the Butyl tape seal between the window and fiberglass. So during the warm season I tightened the inside screws by just a bit. I found some screws that were totally loose... So after contact was made screwing them down I probably snugged a 1/4 to 1/2 turn on each screw. It took about a month and the tape was really oozing out of the outside surface.. I observed that some of the oozing tape was dirty so that meant that there was no sealing going on. So I watched and finally those spots were oozing clean sealer. After about 6 mos I used a razor blade and removed the excess tape. I did this one more time a few year later.
A bud of mine has a 1987 BF.. All of his windows were leaking because of the tape not sealing. He removed all his windows and re-sealed them. That is a real chore!
3. I have not touched the seams on my camper nor has my bud in all the years. He removed the silicone that was put on the outside of the seam but I did not. The silicone has little mold dots on it but I ignore that.
The way the top over laps the bottom is sealed quite well. I have not heard of anyone having trouble of leaks from those areas.
One thing that is important is the running light seals. Especially the front ones. I had one leaking and the only indication of a leak was the front bed vertical cabinet on the passenger side. It had moisture. WTHeck I said....
I pulled the 1" trim inside that vertical cabinet and then the trim across the bed fwd wall. The water was coming in and running along the foam seams over to the cabinet!
I looked at the way BF had sealed the lights and then I sealed the outside of the lights with a clear house window sealer, not silicone. That was over 10 years ago... No more leaking.
That pretty much covers the sealing and maintenance.
I do wax mine about every year and when I wash it I use a wax as you dry Eagle One.
Congratulations on your find and hope that you will enjoy yours as much as we have ours.
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/15/20 09:57am |
Truck Campers
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A camper you may never see in your lifetime
Back in 07 we were traveling and seeing all the sights in the Dakotas and saw this camper.
There was a big family and the grandparents. It was the grandparents rig. It was still in perfect condition inside and out.. Incredible. Note that it was built in 1972!
Here is a link to my album. I did not take pictures of the inside.
Take a look at the spring near the rear axle. When making a turn that axle actually will shift to keep the tires from scuffing.. Pretty clever.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/TXBs2r48wibFYaiF9
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/14/20 10:31am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Tie-down systems performance/safety vs cost
What is the goal when wanting to keep your camper secure?
Keep the camper from sliding back.
Keep the camper from bouncing and shifting.
Keep as little load on the camper tie down points as not to damage the camper.
Happijack's do all 3.
Fast guns do not keep the camper from shifting backwards
Fast guns if not set up properly have damaged campers.
Question to all...
When on a road with ruts etc does the frame twist and if so what happens with Fast Guns hard contact because they are attached to the frame?
Happijacks are attached to the bed in the front and are at an angle so they hold the camper forward with very little hold down force. The rears are attached to the bumper which is flexible and are set up to have very little down force.
Been using the same Happijack takedowns for 20 years and driven over some hellacious roads.
Camper weights 4200lbs... Never had 1 problem with the camper shifting.. Over 200,000 miles on the camper 2 F250's.
Would I use Fast Guns? Probably not.
Jim
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bigfootford
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06/12/20 09:58am |
Truck Campers
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RE: F250 Payload Capacity
Yellowlightning look at Specta's signature... His weight!
You can not go by the sticker weight. Sticker weight is without a fridge, water heater, stove, water, mattress and on and on!
Kenny
2011 Chevy 2500 HD 6.0L 4wd Regular cab.
What real trucks really look like.
1995 Lance 945 Onan QG 2500 LP
6580 lb truck 10540 fully loaded
His weight is 10,500+ just like several of us. My weight is 10,400 too!
My Bigfoot camper's sticker says 2,600! Fully loaded it is 4,200.
Not sure what Specta is running for tires and rims.
Jim
Not, it has everything but battery(s), water, & propane. Why would they give the weight minus equipment? That's nuts. Added weights what you put in.
They use to call it wet weight... Water and propane. The stove, fridge, seat backs, battery etc are considered options thus the lower weight.
Seems that in the past couple of years mfg are now including the weight of options.
Jim
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bigfootford
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05/28/20 09:48am |
Truck Campers
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