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Originally Posted by jerrymrc
That Chevy must have been straight off the dealer's lot and under warranty because in the 12 years I have owned my Dodge it has racked up about $300 in repairs and $150 was for an alternator. In the same time my father and his Chevy Diesel has spent over $4K keeping it going. Just saying.
Yeah but his has 300K miles, yours has 11,000
Back on the Camper Subject:
A couple weekends ago, we took out the Fleetwood Popup. I'd been working on it for a week or two, cleaning it, checking supplies, battery, water system etc.
This is how the trip went down:
Rental truck, wiring issues for some reason, only running lights will work, no brake or turn signals. I can't keep messing with it, not even out of the driveway yet. Had to get on the road.
Arrived to camping destination, FOUR people spotting for me as we get the camper parked. (Dad, Wife, the kids) all say "you're ok, ok, looks good"
Kid... Dad, I hear something? Sounds like water?? Crap, they had me drive the camper (pop up) right over a big boulder, Smashed the water tank brackets and the water tank, ripped off the hoses, all the water is draining out. No way to fix, water is nearly all gone now. Good thing we brought bottled water too.
Get the camper opened up, setup the awning, RIPPPPP! Awning falls right off the seam, apparently the stitching has rotted holding it to the rubber strip on the camper. Ok, Rig up some tie down straps to hold all that together.
All is good.
Evening falls, find out the battery is dead. It was fine for weeks before the trip, tested great with 50 amp load, no issues. Solar panel I have isn't enough to charge it up from that deadness. Well, I did have an LED light I rigged up before the trip, it does work with what juice is left in the battery. Happy family, can play some board games before bed. (too lazy to move the truck and setup borrowed jumper cables)
So, just an FYI, prepare the most you can, it might help. If you get a popup, do an axle flip so the camper is higher off the ground. It could prevent some damage. Get some LED lighting setup for inside and outside. Make or buy some kind of jumper cable setup to feed the camper from the truck, nothing heavy duty, but long enough to reach without rearranging the whole camp.
So I'm keeping more items that I might need, in the camper itself. Jumper cables. More LED Lights. Larger solar panel. Water problem, just be more careful where I park. Carry cargo tie downs, very useful.
Just my PopUp story to give some food for thought.
Sometimes people trip and fall down stairs.
Sometimes assholes push people down stairs.
That doesn't mean "stairs are bad" nor does it make someone who pushes someone down the stairs any less of an asshole.
Never a dull moment when comparing trucks. Haha
Sounds like it was a rough first time out. Good tips on those things. The little things like that go a long way when removing headaches from a trip.
Are campers like motorcycles and other items and go down in price during winter?
Unless i am misunderstanding your terminology and you did an axle over - under, not actually flip the axle. In that case i apologize. Which i have seen while looking at pull behinds.
An axle flip may cause issues down the road, especially now the bow / camber of the axle is upside down. You can loose alignment once flipped, affecting not only tire wear but overall handling.
Easiest way to get ground clearance, put suspension on top of the axle. Dexter makes a spring Over-Under conversion kit.
The Great Kazoo's Feedback
"when you're happy you enjoy the melody but, when you're broken you understand the lyrics".
I've not changed my camper height or axle/spring flip. You do have to purchase the spring mounts and have them welded on the other side of the axle. Or you can have the dealer do this, but I'm not sure of the costs involved from the dealer. I've no need at this time for the height increase, the axle will still be the same, just the body of the camper would be up out of the weeds a bit more. (and the water tank)
Best advice, get out and check things yourself before relying on the other folks to guide you. LOL
I've been renting a truck instead of taking mine. The old GMC (1985) has no radio, working AC etc. It doesn't like the summer heat either (vapor lock). So it's cheap enough to rent a modern truck and make the family happy during the trip. Rental 3/4 ton Crew Cab 4x4 is $300 for Friday/Sat/Sun return monday morning. I also get to do a real world test drive the different makes and models this way.
Sometimes people trip and fall down stairs.
Sometimes assholes push people down stairs.
That doesn't mean "stairs are bad" nor does it make someone who pushes someone down the stairs any less of an asshole.
Where you camped at? looks nice and people free.I've not changed my camper height or axle/spring flip. You do have to purchase the spring mounts and have them welded on the other side of the axle. Or you can have the dealer do this, but I'm not sure of the costs involved from the dealer. I've no need at this time for the height increase, the axle will still be the same, just the body of the camper would be up out of the weeds a bit more. (and the water tank
The Great Kazoo's Feedback
"when you're happy you enjoy the melody but, when you're broken you understand the lyrics".
Yep, shooting a new model, weekend of field testing.
Between Leadville and Buena Vista... private land bowhunting jamboree
Was not people free... couple thousand people I believe. Different angle looking down on camp... lol.
Sometimes people trip and fall down stairs.
Sometimes assholes push people down stairs.
That doesn't mean "stairs are bad" nor does it make someone who pushes someone down the stairs any less of an asshole.
You made all those folks walk up the hill
The Great Kazoo's Feedback
"when you're happy you enjoy the melody but, when you're broken you understand the lyrics".
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