New to the whole RV lifestyle, howdy!
Howdy all, Aviator41 here hailing from Oklahoma currently. The wife and I have decided to relive some childhood memories while making some new ones of our own. So, we jumped into the deep end of th...
Forum Discussion
Hi,
I would not get the air bags, you do not need them.
When I put my camper on my 1975 F-350 SRW, it would squat about 4", this is normal, and expected as the suspension compresses about 1" per 750 pounds of load.
When I was driving back to Pea Ridge one summer, I was getting tired just west of Oklahoma City, and found Red Rock State park just south of I40, it turned out to be a great find!
My Grandmother grew up in NW Arkansas, and I stayed at Beaver Lake, a great campground. It is just upstream of Table Rock lake, outside of Branson MO. I would recommend all three as a good place to shake down the RV! You can get some experience towing through a small town along the way. .
Have fun camping! And don't worry about missing all the crowds on the holiday weekends. In retirement, you learn not to camp those weekends! Much quieter the following week!
I have 400 watts of solar that I installed myself. IT is pretty easy to do, and I used the refrigerator vent to run the wires down to the solar controller, then to the batteries. My solar panels back in the 90's cost a arm and leg. 120 watt was $428 back in 1999. Now you can buy a 140 watt panel for about $229. The dealerships charge a arm and leg for a system, the manufactures are stuck in the 1990's pricing, and want to charge $1,100 for a 90 watt panel, so forget them!
SunElec.com has the 140 watt panel with a aluminum frame and 12 volt nominal output last time I checked it was about $230.
I would recommend a PWM controller, they are only around $20, and you can spend more money on the panels, and get more power. AliExpress.com Search for PWM 20 amp solar controller, and then search by free shipping and lowest cost.
You can get #10 UV resistant wire at Home Depot, and I cut 4" long 2" angle aluminum for brackets.
This is my front pair of panels. 120 watt mounted on a curved roof, 102" wide.
This is the mount it is held on with three rivets into the frame, and then the bottom half is 6" long aluminum, with nutsert in the upper piece, bolt you can not see from the outside edge pointing inward.
This picture shows the bigfoot panel mount sold by RvSolarElectric for $35 a set back in 1994. I wonder what they cost today?
This picture shows the panels tilted while I was working on the roof.
Have fun with your new RV! I hope you have a great time going to Alaska. Did you get a copy of Milepost yet? It will be very helpful in planing the trip. Because you want to be back to the US border by the middle of September, it might be a little to late to consider a trip this summer, unless you really get ready fast. It is a trip of a lifetime, and I would recommend staring by visiting Yellowstone, then Glacier National Parks, followed by crossing into Canada in June.
Then take your time, get to Alaska in a week or two. Spend time at the lakes and fish. You are not allowed to bring handguns into Canada. I am not sure about shot guns or sporting rifles. I would plan on leaving them at home. I did bring a boating flare gun - I figured any bear would be afraid of it.
Unless you plan on letting them search your RV for a REALLY long time at the boarder crossing, I suggest that you search your RV and make sure there is not one stray bullet left rolling around in a cubard or something. If they find a bullet, they will search to locate the gun it fits in, and then arrest you for bringing in a gun to Canada.
Fred.
I would not get the air bags, you do not need them.
When I put my camper on my 1975 F-350 SRW, it would squat about 4", this is normal, and expected as the suspension compresses about 1" per 750 pounds of load.
When I was driving back to Pea Ridge one summer, I was getting tired just west of Oklahoma City, and found Red Rock State park just south of I40, it turned out to be a great find!
My Grandmother grew up in NW Arkansas, and I stayed at Beaver Lake, a great campground. It is just upstream of Table Rock lake, outside of Branson MO. I would recommend all three as a good place to shake down the RV! You can get some experience towing through a small town along the way. .
Have fun camping! And don't worry about missing all the crowds on the holiday weekends. In retirement, you learn not to camp those weekends! Much quieter the following week!
I have 400 watts of solar that I installed myself. IT is pretty easy to do, and I used the refrigerator vent to run the wires down to the solar controller, then to the batteries. My solar panels back in the 90's cost a arm and leg. 120 watt was $428 back in 1999. Now you can buy a 140 watt panel for about $229. The dealerships charge a arm and leg for a system, the manufactures are stuck in the 1990's pricing, and want to charge $1,100 for a 90 watt panel, so forget them!
SunElec.com has the 140 watt panel with a aluminum frame and 12 volt nominal output last time I checked it was about $230.
I would recommend a PWM controller, they are only around $20, and you can spend more money on the panels, and get more power. AliExpress.com Search for PWM 20 amp solar controller, and then search by free shipping and lowest cost.
You can get #10 UV resistant wire at Home Depot, and I cut 4" long 2" angle aluminum for brackets.
This is my front pair of panels. 120 watt mounted on a curved roof, 102" wide.
This is the mount it is held on with three rivets into the frame, and then the bottom half is 6" long aluminum, with nutsert in the upper piece, bolt you can not see from the outside edge pointing inward.
This picture shows the bigfoot panel mount sold by RvSolarElectric for $35 a set back in 1994. I wonder what they cost today?
This picture shows the panels tilted while I was working on the roof.
Have fun with your new RV! I hope you have a great time going to Alaska. Did you get a copy of Milepost yet? It will be very helpful in planing the trip. Because you want to be back to the US border by the middle of September, it might be a little to late to consider a trip this summer, unless you really get ready fast. It is a trip of a lifetime, and I would recommend staring by visiting Yellowstone, then Glacier National Parks, followed by crossing into Canada in June.
Then take your time, get to Alaska in a week or two. Spend time at the lakes and fish. You are not allowed to bring handguns into Canada. I am not sure about shot guns or sporting rifles. I would plan on leaving them at home. I did bring a boating flare gun - I figured any bear would be afraid of it.
Unless you plan on letting them search your RV for a REALLY long time at the boarder crossing, I suggest that you search your RV and make sure there is not one stray bullet left rolling around in a cubard or something. If they find a bullet, they will search to locate the gun it fits in, and then arrest you for bringing in a gun to Canada.
Fred.
