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RE: First time tower - multiple questions
What I would do (what I did). I'm towing with a Chevrolet Suburban. I bought it with a travel trailer in mind. Then, I purchased my WD hitch. Lastly we went to the dealership and picked out a trailer that was well under the weight rating. Our limit is 7200. The dry weight of the trailer is 5800. Once we bought it the dealership set up the hitch for free (yea, right).
Lessons: Let a pro set up your hitch for you. I bought the anti sway but, in 4 years of regular towing haven't had any issues that required it. Years ago, before the motorhome, we towed and did have occasional sway issues. Now, none.. Getting the hitch right will solve a lot of problems. Also, I added SumoSupersprings to the burb so it rides flat. I see people towing with their noses pointing up. Boost up that rear suspension. The Sumos are a cheap and easy fix.
When you load up the trailer effort to even out the weight distribution but, really avoid going too heavy on the backside of the trailer. Having a trailer loaded heavy on the back end can really give you some sway grief.
Get use to doing walk arounds. Better safe than sorry. Even if you think you know that you got it all right, walk around before you drive, every time. Here's a biggie.. If you're in the process of hooking up the trailer and you get sidetracked for any reason, mentally start the process over when you get back to it so you don't miss a step. I learned this from pulling a toad behind a motorhome. Big things can go real bad. Double checking as a habit is quick, cheap and easy. I had a buddy whose son hooked his toad up to the motorhome and off he went. When he got to his destination the toad was gone, MIA. He had no idea where he lost it. It was later found by the sheriff down in some woods off of the interstate. Lots of issues there but, the lesson is never trust anyone. Verify for yourself.
The Durango is a short wheel base. Consider in your long range plan getting something with a longer wheel base. Keep your speed down. I see people blowing me off the road towing travel trailers well over the speed limit. My personal limit is 65. I'll get there, I won't have met any troopers, I won't go over the speed limits of my tires, and my bowels will be normal. Just relax. If you can't relax when RVing then when can you?
Have fun with the process. It's exciting to buy a new RV. Don't over expect, as Andy Griffith would say. These things just are what they are. We love RVing. It's all about the lifestyle, not nearly as much about the hardware. The RV gives us a level of freedom we wouldn't otherwise have. In that respect it's worth every penny.
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falconbrother
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07/30/20 07:26am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: OK what you got ?
That's some serious tow limitations. I'd trade my TV for no less than a Suburban, Expedition, etc.. I'm pulling 5800 dry with a big slide out. I can't imagine how you'll stay within a safe hitch weight, much less actual trailer weight once it's loaded and ready to go. Don't risk safety. One big incident or crash will take all the fun out of it.
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falconbrother
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07/30/20 06:53am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Travel Trailer Rubber Roof Blew Off
Been there , done that . Since I lost a roof 12 years ago we have had 5 RVs with fabric roofs . I now check my roof for " bubbles " , when I find one I drive brass carpet tacks down in loose area and cover with self leveling Dicor . Once I sliced with a razor knife and lapped over before the Dicor .
If I found that my roof was bubbling up this is exactly what I would do. I would try to find some flat head brass screws. I would worry that tacks could be pulled out with the bubble. I see lots of 5th wheels flying a bubble down the interstate, and a few travel trailers. Looks like a common issue. I miss they days of tin RV roofs.
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falconbrother
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07/30/20 06:43am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Black Water Accident
I hate to even tell this one.. We were at a dog show a few years ago that is notorious for doing a not so good job of assigning campsites. They gave me a tough site to get in with the sewer line being uphill, slightly. Well, the guy said, just walk the hose up with your hands and empty it that way. It's easy he says. I do it all the time he says.. So, I go to empty my tank and walk that hose and wouldn't you know it.. It was a multi hose distance. One of the connections of the two hoses comes apart and I get it but, good. Head to toe. In that instant I was most thankful that no one saw a bloody thing. Then I hosed off as good as I could and stripped off everything into the garbage bag you get reincarnated as when you die as Hitler. I took a shower, put on some clean clothes and found a laundry mat. It was on the bad side of town so, robbery was a real concern.
When that happened we had just traded out old class A motorhome on a new travel trailer. The travel trailer has big tanks. Knowing what I know now I could have gone the whole week without worrying about emptying the black tank.
I didn't gain any super powers but, that arm that grew out of my back itches from time to time..
All of the perfect people won't understand a thing that happened here..
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falconbrother
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07/01/20 03:10pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Towing a 4500lb TT with an SUV
I tow 5800 dry with my 1500 Suburban a lot and have been doing so since early 2017. I mostly tow with little or no water on board, certainly not full tanks. I figure my actual weight is more like 6500 to be safe. We're probably under that. Our weight rating is 7200. To be honest that Suburban handles the weight fine, especially with Sumo Supersprings. But, I would rather have the 2500. All of the extra tow capacity you can get will make it more pleasant of an experience.
Forget gas mileage. Safety and lack of stress is way more important. For that weight range a Suburban or Expedition would do great.
BTW, I don't get much different gas mileage towing then when not. I'm not in a hurry. I drive 65 MPH pretty much all the time on the interstate. If I get to a hill where some speed wants to drop off I will let it a little bit. My driving style is vacation style driving..I'm not in a hurry to get there or get home. Plus, I like my transmission, etc, etc..
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falconbrother
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07/01/20 02:49pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Motorcycle Towing
I have seen travel trailers and fifth wheels leaving bike week every year with a motorcycle trailer behind the camper. It doesn't look like a wonderfully great idea but, I have seen it. I'd want a camera looking at the bike trailer if I did something like that. Also, kinda looks like a funky train going down the road. Is it legal? Apparently so, in some states. I never looked at the hitches but, my guess is that they welded up a receiver to the frame or something like that. Although, I can't imagine there's a lot of weight on that hitch. When I pull my 900 pounds of Valkyrie Interstate on a trailer behind the Suburban I really don't feel it back there.
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falconbrother
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07/01/20 02:35pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Backing that trailer into a tight campsite..
I have had limited success with the scoop.. I find that I do better to pull past the site a good bit, site on the left (although I have done it successfully on the right side) and carefully push it into the site by watching the trailer axle locations.
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falconbrother
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06/25/20 01:29pm |
Travel Trailers
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Backing that trailer into a tight campsite..
I think I do everything pretty well with the travel trailer. But, backing into a tight campsite sometimes just stresses me out. In September we went down the the beach and that was the tightest spot I have ever tried to get into. I managed it with the help of a neighbor. This last week we were down at the beach again, fairly tight spot, I ht it pretty much the first time.
I spoke with the guy that hauls trailers back and forth to campsites. He said that there's no perfect. He said he picks a spot on the ground as his pivot point. He comes in at an angle and when that spot is between the trailer axles he "jack-knives" the trailer into the spot where he wants it. Nevertheless, backing 30 feet of trailer can be stressful.
Any tricks or pointers you use?
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falconbrother
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06/22/20 06:14pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Covers. Who uses them? Who doesn't?
Have never used a cover and never plan to. The ones that use covers where I store mine turn to rags in no time. I just wash the TT 4 times a year and scrub the roof with a mild soap.
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falconbrother
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06/22/20 06:02pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Full Circle back to TT
We started with a van camper in 1987. Since then it was a cabover, travel trailer, class A and now back to a travel trailer. I don't much miss the class A motorhome. I only miss it on the road being fully self contained. If my wife needed to use the bathroom or make something to eat she just could. We only had to stop when I had to pee. But, the maintenance was WAY more on the class A. Tires, $3,000.00.. Two oil changes every time, two fuel filters, two engines to maintain (not including the toad). We always take a midwinter trip to the coast. When it was freezing cold out I about froze driving that thing. The windshield was just a big freezer and running the heat didn't help much. Crosswinds were a bear. For what we do, I prefer the travel trailer. It's no harder to get from point A to point B than a motorhome. It's much warmer in the dead of winter. If my life were to radically change I might consider another motorhome. For now the TT is the better way to go.
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falconbrother
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06/22/20 05:55pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Towing Travel Trailers
My experience has been to get the hitch set up right and you won't have any issues. The mechanic at CW set up our hitch in 2017 when we bought a new TT. They got it right. We've towed many miles since 2017 with no memorable white knuckle moments, other than the massive pot hole we hit a couple of Saturdays ago on the way to the beach. Been passed by speeding semi's and been in storms with crosswinds. No issues. I'm a big time DIY guy but, I don't trust myself to set up a WD hitch and get it right.
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falconbrother
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06/22/20 05:38pm |
Travel Trailers
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Grey tank mysteriously filled
We went RVing to the beach last week.. It rained for like, 3 days. I was rolling in the awning and heard the kitchen sink gurgle.. I pushed the test button for the grey tank and it showed full. My wife and I discussed the possibility that I forgot to empty it after the last trip, which I was sure was impossible. Then I started running through my mind all the ways that water gets into that tank..
I walked outside, pulled the handle on the grey tank and, clearly it was in fact, full. So, I'm stressing since our trip has literally just started. I walked into the bathroom to see if it looked like the black water tank was full, it wasn't. That's when I noticed that the bathroom sink was running.. DW had brushed her teeth and forgot to cut it off.
Always check the simple stuff first.
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falconbrother
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06/21/20 07:13pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: First Aid Kit Contents
Make sure that you have some basics to go a couple of days treating an injury that didn't require a doctor. Last September we broke down in the middle of nowhere on a hot road in SC. I burned myself but good being stupid. The tow truck dropped us at a campground near nothing and took the Suburban to be repaired. We couldn't get anywhere to supply up, other than what was in the Campground store, which wasn't much at all. I had purchased a first aid kit at a military surplus store. Bloody lucky for me that it had everything I needed to treat burns for the three days we were stuck in the backside of nowhere.
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falconbrother
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06/19/20 12:54pm |
General RVing Issues
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Why are people not opening new campgrounds/RV parks?
For a number of years RV sales have been red hot. But, at least within 400 miles of where I live I haven't seen a new campground or RV park open in probably 30 years. It seems to me like it could be a very good and secure investment. If they didn't sell another RV for a decade there would still be far more of them out there than full hookups to put them in.
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falconbrother
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06/03/20 08:50am |
RV Parks, Campgrounds and Attractions
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RE: From motorhome to travel trailer
We started out in a van (1987), then a cabover, travel trailer, then a class A motorhome. We traveled in the motorhome for a decade. I enjoyed it but, it was a lot more maintenance. In 2017 we bought a new travel trailer (our first brand new unit). For the most part, I prefer the TT to the motorhome. The things I sort of miss about the motorhome is being fully self contained, the bathroom and generator out on the road. And, having a toad if you break down. What I don't miss is every bloody thing else. Freezing in front of that big windshield in the dead of winter. 3 grand for a set of tires.
We have a bathroom now but, it requires pulling over. The maintenance on a travel trailer is much less. I have the quick lube axles so, very easy there. Brake adjustments are easy. Wash the roof, et al, a few times a year. Lube the slide out rails and the TV antenna. 15 minutes to winterize it a couple of times a year. Super easy.
If you're going long distances just get more tow vehicle than you think you need. Just enough to be legal will do it but, not the fun way. If I were going spending long hours for days on the road I'd rather have the motorhome. For a week here and a week there I much prefer the travel trailer.
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falconbrother
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06/03/20 08:11am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: My Chevrolet Express van Class B- camper
Years ago my wife and I bought a 1977 Dodge factory hippie van. I had brand new carpet in it from ceiling to floor. It had the dinette/bed in the back, the closet, sink, ice box and cabinets. We left the bed a bed. I was driving down a long lost highway and saw a crashed class B in a junk yard next to the highway. I had $175.00 in my pocket. With that I bought a big window and the roof AC off of the crashed van. I added the AC unit, a Coleman, and the big slide open window. I wired it for shore power and also added a microwave oven. We made some curtains for it and had a porta pottie. That was in the mid 1980s. Since that time we have owned a couple of travel trailers, a slide in cabover camper and a class A motorhome. They have all been fun but, that old van was the most fun we ever had RV-ing.
We would get off of work on Fridays, load up the pups, hit a grocery store on the way out of town, and go camping. The freedom to go at a moment's notice was amazing. Yes, it was cramped after a few days but, for long weekends there nothing better.
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falconbrother
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03/20/20 09:13am |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Were older travel trailers built better?
I had a 1991 Prowler 15 footer back in the day. It was bloody heavy for a 15 footer. There were things about it that were better. It had a metal (probably tin) roof that would way outlast a rubber roof. It felt more solid. My 2017 is probably more refined but, not as solid feeling. Better made?? I'm not convinced.
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falconbrother
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02/06/20 09:28am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Will my truck tow safely in the Smokys?
I pull my #5800 dry weight 27(30) footer through the Smokies with a 1500 Suburban. I was nervous till I did it the first time. On that day it was hotter than blue blazes. But, the Suburban didn't complain any. Do not use Overdrive. Be gentle with the tow haul, this is not a race. When you hit a steep incline pull it down a gear to keep your RPMs up. I pull Black Mountain at about 32-3300 RPMs which is about 47 MPH. I don't have to get on the gas very hard to do that and I'm passing the semi-trucks. I avoid the two lanes unless I know exactly what I'm getting into. Or, have a educated idea that I'm not heading for a dead end or hairpin turns. Take it easy, let the other driver's worry about themselves and you'll be fine. Oh, for the downhills.. For example I start at the top of Black Mountain at about 35MPH and I have no issues going down the mountain. It's easier than when I had my class A motorhome.
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falconbrother
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02/05/20 01:59pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Help!!! Frame broke
ERnurse16, So sorry you are dealing with this. Are you saying the coupler broke off of the trailer? That's scary. I figured those things would be overbuilt. How hard can it be to beef it up ever so slightly? Geeze Louise..
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falconbrother
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02/05/20 01:33pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Towing with silverado
Boxers are great dogs. We like the flat nosed, short coated dogs at our house.
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falconbrother
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02/05/20 01:17pm |
Travel Trailers
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