Wadcutter wrote:
ShapeShifter wrote:
Then you haven't seen mine.
Gee, ya think? Only how many million total RVs in the US?
Yep, the odds of running into one are low. And I know you haven't seen mine since I've never been West of central OH! :W
I'm not trying to give you a hard time. I just wanted to let others reading this thread know that it is possible to have an RV that approaches or surpasses the 20K limit. I feel it's important since that is one regulation that does seem to apply even if you're not commercial. I agree, 99% of the people probably don't have to worry about it all. Of the remainder, some have to look into their actual weights and never have to give it a second thought, while some will have to always struggle with it. As the trend has been for units to keep getting heavier, the problems will only get worse. (Although with the recent fuel price and economy pressures, maybe that trend will slow down or reverse?)
However, if your rear axle is over 20K then you could have a problem if weighed more than you think. For example, let's say your rear axle weighs 23,000. The fine in IL for being 3000 lbs over is $165. If 3001 lbs it's $260. IL is cheap in that regard compared to some states. But the real problem would be after paying the fine. The fine is not a permit to move. The problem will be when forced to get legal weight before moving.
I understand what you're saying. I don't weigh myself on every trip, and I'm sure my weight distribution varies from time to time. If I end up being over on the rear axle, and if I get stopped, I will usually have a full water tank. That's about 800 pounds of weight that's pretty much over the rear axle that I can always dump in an emergency. Hopefully, if everything goes wrong and I'm over and get stopped, it won't be by much and that water will be enough weight that I can shed to become legal again.
I do keep an eye on it, but I'm not paranoid about it and don't lose sleep about it because I know I've got some water weight leeway if there is an "oops." The biggest problem I have is my DW, who can't understand why there are empty cabinets that she can't fill. (And who just recently asked if we could get a golf cart lift to hang on the back of the rig -- I said absolutely no way! :e)
I appreciate the efforts you've been making in this thread, and I hope you don't think I'm giving you a hard time or trying to be argumentative. That's not my intent.
