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RE: Sea eagle boats
Call me crazy, but isnt this forum for truck campers?
The OP has a truck camper. We all know many of the TC forum members are not very fond of outsiders. Many of the TC posts could easily fit into many of the other general RV'g categories.
True I do agree, but just because a person has a truck camper does not mean that you should post whatever you want in the forum. I would assume most people going thru this forum are looking for information having to do with truck campers, or something related to TC's or their P/U that is hauling the TC, or towing something with a TC installed. Not something about what a person thinks about a boat. I could understand if you were asking a question about towing a boat with a truck camper.
Putting the boat in the camper lighten up buddy
I agree ... lighten up. There have historically been a fair amount of boat related threads & posts in the TC forum. Those who aren't interested in boats (or other seemingly unrelated subjects) need not click on the thread in the first place. If a thread is too far afield, a moderator will surely move it to the appropriate forum.
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DonCurley
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05/22/12 10:31pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: First rot
A penetrating liquid epoxy?
Examples ... Liquid Wood, Rot Fix, Git Rot, Rot Terminator, etc., etc.
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DonCurley
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05/17/12 06:07pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: pop up crank. Can it be removed cuz its in the way.
Any idea how one could make a cordless-drill attachment? It would be sweet to use an 18V drill on low-speed/high-torque setting and raise it up and down effortlessly.
To each his own, but I personally wouldn't want to go the route of a cordless drill/driver. I may be old fashioned in this regard, but I want to "feel" the manual rack & pinion system working as I raise the roof. I have twice had an issue that I was able to sense (due to the increased resistance in my hands) that allowed me to stop, clear the problem, and then try again without any consequences. With a cordless drill/driver on the low-speed/high-torque setting, you might just power on right by the issue and potentially end up with a stripped or otherwise damaged rack & pinion system that would be expensive & difficult to replace.
Despite my potential concern above, if you want to do this, it would be simple enough. Just cut the gear head off the HECO crank with enough excess and firmly chuck it up in the drill/driver.
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DonCurley
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05/17/12 01:19pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: pop up crank. Can it be removed cuz its in the way.
These cranks can sometimes back out of the receiver as you crank up the roof (which can provide a lot more excitement than one desires). :E
I have developed a simple method of gently hitting the back of the sideways/lateral part of the handle with the palm of one hand for each revolution of the crank with the other hand. This keeps the gear head end fully seated in the receiver and stops the business end from creeping out and potentially becoming disengaged.
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DonCurley
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05/17/12 12:08pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: scisor's steps
I have been unhooking mine and putting inside the door.
I always do the same as well. We do too much challenging off-road travel to leave something like that hanging off the rear. On the other hand, for most folks doing more highway & occasional/milder off-road stuff, collapsing the scissor steps and bungee cording them in place seems to work fine.
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DonCurley
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05/17/12 07:34am |
Truck Campers
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RE: pop up crank. Can it be removed cuz its in the way.
The design and fabrication quality of the HECO crank handle has always been pretty poor IMO. Many folks have broken their crank handles, and I have also gone through three of them since getting my Outfitter Apex 8 in 2007. It's HECO's position that some pop-up TC manufacturer's have too heavy of a roof for the original design limitations of their rack & pinion lift mechanism (especially when one adds an A/C unit, solar panels, storage units, and the like to the overall weight of the roof). I don't know whether that is the case or not, but the crank handles are often not up to the task over multiple uses (which is why I always carry a spare).
Over on the Outfitter Owners Group forum, I previously suggested cutting-off the gear head and securely mounting it in a beefier handle that would additionally have a bearing in the grip portion of the handle. One of the other members got a Harken winch handle for sailboats and did just that. Here is a pic of the before & after results of his effort:
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/DECJ1/LONGHANDLEsmall.jpg
I have also obtained a Harken winch handle and will be doing the same shortly (although my Harken is a fixed length winch handle without the telescoping handle as shown above). I will carefully drill out the business end of the Harken winch handle and will then insert & double pin the cut-off gear head portion from a new HECO crank handle.
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DonCurley
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05/17/12 07:09am |
Truck Campers
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RE: pop up crank. Can it be removed cuz its in the way.
johnhealey1776 ... here is what you have been trying to post:
http://i.imgur.com/NSDcl.jpg
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DonCurley
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05/17/12 06:51am |
Truck Campers
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RE: 10 years on the Truck Camper Forum
Doesn't pay to do any thinkin' and suggestin' around here. :)
From what I understand Brad, it doesn't pay not to do any thinkin' and suggestin' around here either. :B
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DonCurley
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05/16/12 10:16pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: pop up crank. Can it be removed cuz its in the way.
It may well look like a home made crank handle, but that is in fact the crank handle supplied by HECO for a lot of the pop-up camper roof lift systems out there. According to HECO, the small brazed area is there to fail should too much weight or tension be encountered.
And yes, the crank handle is made to be removed between uses. Sometimes the handles get a bit stuck in the receiver. With the roof properly secured, try very small back & forth radial motions with the handle end, while trying to slightly draw back on the shaft section of the handle, and you should be able to "walk" the gear head portion out of the receiver in the track section.
By the way, you can get replacement handles directly from HECO, from a number of pop-up camper manufacturers, or from some on-line vendors. I suggest always having a replacement crank with you as they can and do fail (typically at that brazed area).
Good luck!
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DonCurley
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05/16/12 06:49pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: KYB or Rancho Shocks
Don't the little adjusting knobs on the Rancho shocks eventually freeze up so you can't adjust them? I've heard that so I went with KYB MM.I think they are right when they say, 'they are stiff but not aggressive'. Mine are holding well, still feel new after about 30 k miles so far.
That's a pretty well worn story.
Yes, in some environments, the underlying metal parts below the plastic adjustment knobs can get frozen up over time. The trick (documented on RV.net many times before), is to pre-lube the adjustment assembly when the shocks are new and you will then have no issues. Beyond that, the Rancho's have a lifetime warranty and Rancho will replace them for no charge if the adjusters stop working.
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DonCurley
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05/05/12 01:06pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: KYB or Rancho Shocks
It's great to hear that your KYB's are working well for you.
Truth is, dumping the typically crappy shocks the factory puts in for almost any good quality aftermarket shock will give you that "wow" feeling.
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DonCurley
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05/05/12 10:39am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Is there a lift system designed to put Kayak on TC roof
Ed,
First off, check out this YouTube video ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sLxs1wz5cw
This is probably overkill for an Outfitter pop-up, but it does get the job done.
Here's another set up for a larger RV ...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1pna2c2eTM&feature=related
And yet another ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0COMeWX588
This one looks interesting too ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3y5CJSqv7nw&feature=related
Beyond the above, I don't know if any of the following will work for a TC application, but here are some links to check out:
http://www.orsracksdirect.com/malone-telos-kayak-rack-lift-assist-mpg351.html
http://www.outdoorplay.com/Malone-Auto-Loader-XV-Kayak-Roof-Rack
http://www.prolineracks.com/rollerloader-abb-rl-kayak-roller-caddy-rack.html
http://www.paddling.net/buyersguide/accessories/showProduct.html?prodID=998&manfID=166&cat=&PHPSESSID=8eqalhrvfdjeck9771dj9d4995
Good luck!
Don
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DonCurley
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05/01/12 11:35am |
Truck Campers
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RE: FORUM CRASH ?
Same here ... RV.net has been more down than up, so I have been using the Woodall's portal.
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DonCurley
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04/29/12 02:00pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Otto Step
Thanks guys, my big concern about the 250lb rating was the "downward force" where it's lagged into the camper. I didn't know if that would be the weak spot as I don't want to rip out holes on the camper. As Mike has pointed out in another thread there is aluminum framing 1 1/2" down below the door of the camper with wood framing behind that. I would think if it would fail it would be the glowstep itself and not literally rip off the back of the camper. But figured I would ask to make sure if I have to go with a 5-step system.
Unloaded the rear of my tailgate is right at 35 1/2" off the ground. When loaded I'm guessing i'll see it sit about 4" lower to the ground, however I think I need the 5-step system since the framing is likely 40+" from the ground.
The 4-step is a 34.5" mounting height (Rated @ 325lbs)
The 5-step is a 42" mounting height (Rated @ 250lbs)
Appreciate the help all!
Jason
With my Outfitter Apex 8 pop-up TC and Dodge 3500 both loaded, the rear threshold area where my rear scissor steps are mounted is 36" off the ground (which is pretty close to the bed surface of my truck). I use both a 24" wide 4-step Brophy scissor stairs unit at home and a 20" wide 4-step Hijacker scissor stairs unit for camping, which both fit into a v-shaped bracket on the back of my camper. The v-bracket is mounted onto a beefy piece of 1/4" thick structural aluminum angle by way of 5 machine bolts/nuts with the aluminum angle held in place by vertical carriage bolts/nuts that penetrate the aluminum threshold plate as well as the lower rear framing member of my Outfitter TC.
Getting the proper number and type of fasteners appropriately sunk into a sound area of your camper is of course key to not having that be the weak point of the rear entry system.
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DonCurley
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04/14/12 05:04pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Otto Step
One thing having never used them, would you consider the 250lb rating being "safe"? I personally would rather go with the glowstep but the rating has me concerned.
What specifically is "unsafe" about the 250 lb rating? As scissor stair/steps go, 250 lbs is a pretty high rating and the construction of the Glow Steps seems to be one of the more robust designs out there. And as clinthia & kerry4951 indicated, the 250 lb rating coming from Torklift is likely on the conservative side of things.
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DonCurley
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04/14/12 03:30pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Inside the belly of the beast...Lance1131
It seems our camper was built by a crew of seasoned craftsmen who knew what they were doing and enjoyed doing it. I guess they're all retired now.
Unfortunately, that same likely development (and the predictable results from same), could easily describe a huge number of other products and industries across the country. Pretty sad actually.
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DonCurley
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04/14/12 01:51pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Happi Jack NOT under TC Warranty!
I had to send a jack in to HappiJac and the process was easy. Turned out to be a bad motor winding. Got good service from HappiJac, no problems since.
Call ahead to get a return authorization number.
I've also had responsive & good service from Happijac (in my case for a sheared-off jack mounting bolt).
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DonCurley
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04/14/12 07:59am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Otto Step
I second the Torklift Glow Steps & Glow Guide approach.
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DonCurley
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04/14/12 07:55am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Happijac website mistake?
Good thing the dude from Eagle Cap Owners Forum didn't see that!!!
New York lawsuit alert!
Keep in mind that "dude" and "Eagle Cap Owners forum" are copyright protected. :R
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DonCurley
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04/04/12 10:56pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Happijac website mistake?
I think Atwood and HappiJac are now both owned by Lippert....
Well you're no fun :B
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DonCurley
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04/04/12 10:26pm |
Truck Campers
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