40' Diesel Pusher wandering on the road

[klr650goldwing]

Yesterday I talked to a guy who said he bought the above referenced rig new and sold it three months later because of how difficult it was to hold on the road. He said the wind blew it around severely. I'd never heard of that before. Is that true?

[Acampingwewillg]

So Willie, you actually knew the man? That's pretty cool. The "Howard" stabilizer itself is quite the mechanical marvel. I know that they use to be big in the trucking industry also. My Vogue had this as standard equipment and as I stated, I love it.

[Cloud_Dancer]

Acampingwewillgo wrote:
Not sure how popular they are nowadays, but certainly Steering stabilizers use to be recommended. I happen to have one that as far as I know, is not made any longer, "Howard Power Center Steering Stabilizer". Presumably one of the better ones ever made. Long story short, it works very well in holding you on the road with little effort. No cross wind problems, no Truck passing issues and minimal steering effort.

As I recall Blue Ox made a similar product and other manufacturers such as Steer Safe had some too.


As related previously, there are plenty of approaches available to correct such an issue...

Thanks for mentioning my ole friend Dee Howard, a true inovator. He knew quite a bit about hydraulic feedback circuits, and aerodynamics. He invented and produced a very successful thrust reverser for jet engines. He had a shop on Rhapsody St in San Antonio (not far from my place). He also had 2 large hangars at San Antonio International. He also designed a couple of stability-enhancing mods for Lear Jets.

[univmd]

For the above referenced rig it could be true.

[Acampingwewillg]

Guess that's what makes the Howard so good...it's is adustable and I often turn it completely off when driving in town. On the highway, I wouldn't be without it!

[Ivylog]

Often it’s the nut behind the steering wheel that needs tightening. My “new” ride had a steering stabilizer on it and I found it made driving tiring where my previous rig (same chassis) did not. It wanted to center the steering even though with a cross wind the steering needed to be off center. It also made turning the steering wheel harder so I disconnected it which got it back to what I was used to. I recently needed the steering wheel turned 45 degrees to go straight...was glad I didn’t have to fight the stabilizer too. I may make a air operated slip connection so the centering can be moved from center and reconnect it.

I would not add a stabilizer unless it is adjustable.

[Acampingwewillg]

Not sure how popular they are nowadays, but certainly Steering stabilizers use to be recommended. I happen to have one that as far as I know, is not made any longer, "Howard Power Center Steering Stabilizer". Presumably one of the better ones ever made. Long story short, it works very well in holding you on the road with little effort. No cross wind problems, no Truck passing issues and minimal steering effort.

As I recall Blue Ox made a similar product and other manufacturers such as Steer Safe had some too.


As related previously, there are plenty of approaches available to correct such an issue...

[janstey58]

Don't these guys take the potential new units for a long test drive??

[maddog348]

Bad Dutch, Bad ~~ Ya beat me to it.

[ArchHoagland]

DutchmenSport wrote:
"40' Diesel Pusher wandering on the road" ????

Did it ever find it's way home? :B

Some who wander are not lost.

[DutchmenSport]

Delete

[Harvard]

Cloud Dancer wrote:
This scenario has be played out over and over. It takes a qualified driver to simply test drive it, and tell you what you need in order to either fix the problem OR get rid of the problem.
One thing is for sure, the caster adjustment is worthless if the front end does not have sufficient weight(load) to produce caster authority.
If you take a empty shopping cart that has a front caster that wobbles like crazy,....just load up the basket and it will solve the problem.
Don't take my word for it, just try a few changes that make sense. But then, this would take someone who knows which chassis features produce good directional stability.

I like the term "caster authority". Having the experience of going from +3.5 degrees to +5.5 degrees caster even though at the same weight, I still think I know the feeling.

[Tom_Barb]

In our couch you can feel the wind, but it is no horror story, very easy to compensate. what bothers us more is a rutted road.

[Cloud_Dancer]

This scenario has be played out over and over. It takes a qualified driver to simply test drive it, and tell you what you need in order to either fix the problem OR get rid of the problem.
One thing is for sure, the caster adjustment is worthless if the front end does not have sufficient weight(load) to produce caster authority.
If you take a empty shopping cart that has a front caster that wobbles like crazy,....just load up the basket and it will solve the problem.
Don't take my word for it, just try a few changes that make sense. But then, this would take someone who knows which chassis features produce good directional stability.

[klr650goldwing]

We just walked briefly along a beach while on a morning walk. So I didn't get to ask him all the questions listed here. It was just a brief encounter that surprised me to the point I wanted to hear from the experts. Thank you