Forum Discussion
- My Northstar has the umbilical at the rear of the camper, and I like it. There is no loop of wire hanging down and there's no crawling under the camper to plug it in once loaded. It's certainly better than having to raise the camper and pull partly out from under it because you forgot to connect the umbilical during loading.
I don't tow, but I do agree with the downside of having to use a Y if you do. It does also add several feet of wire to the charging path, but I have solar so that's not much of an issue for me either.
My $0.02...
Dan - The windows are nice looking, but I hate crank style windows. That aspect, plus wanting dual pane windows is why I upgraded to all new windows from a place in Vancouver, WA
wnjj wrote:
IMHO the power cord change is a step backward. It should be a removable cord with a choice between the original spot and the rear. Many of us use our 7-way for trailers which is why we have campers in the first place! Truck manufacturers provide "camper wiring" harnesses to the front of the bed plus 5th wheel guys often install them up there and it's not like it's difficult to do.
Also what little battery charging the factory wiring did will probably be gone by the time it goes all the way to the rear then back to the front of the camper where the batteries are (or should be).
Very well said, I agree with all of it.- Windows are nice. I don't however know the motivation. 'Frameless' seems a visual-but I haven't pursued the advantages. Dual pane anything is desirable.
Rear umbilical, I'd agree with others, I'm not sure. I know many folks do utilize the bumper plug for camper, for whatever reason don't add a dedicated bed plug. In that case it would save some wire lengths and the minimal cost to add bed plug. I simply see it, unless batteries (&weight)are toward rear just more unneeded wire.
For those that tow would still require adding another plug or y adapter. Or worse running an extension to use existing bed plug.
Id be rewiring the camper for front plug. For me getting under camper to plug in, the extra wire run, rear umbilical doesn't sound like an 'enhancement'. - My truck had no 7-way in the front of the bed. I used the "Y" for over nine years, with the TC cable in the front of the TC. I recently added a second 7-way on my rear bumper, toward the outside. For me, I find it easier to plug the TC into the truck. I have never had any issues, but it really would be no big deal either way. I added the second receptacle so I did not have to get under the truck to connect the cable to the "Y".
It is a small thing, but if I needed to, I could load my TC on a different truck, and would only need to be concerned with tie-downs, the electrical is in place.
Wayne wnjj wrote:
gerrym51 wrote:
these enhancements are sweet-especially a much easier way to hook camper to truck power-should have thought of it sooner
linky
power coupling 6th item down-so simple
7 way umbilical cord at rear of camper
video link
linky2
IMHO the power cord change is a step backward. It should be a removable cord with a choice between the original spot and the rear. Many of us use our 7-way for trailers which is why we have campers in the first place! Truck manufacturers provide "camper wiring" harnesses to the front of the bed plus 5th wheel guys often install them up there and it's not like it's difficult to do.
I tow and a Y would just be another thing I'd have to misplace/break. Plus a loop of cord running back and hanging down to the hitch is just another thing that can get snagged by brush on a double track dirt road. In the bed its protected.gerrym51 wrote:
these enhancements are sweet-especially a much easier way to hook camper to truck power-should have thought of it sooner
linky
power coupling 6th item down-so simple
7 way umbilical cord at rear of camper
video link
linky2
IMHO the power cord change is a step backward. It should be a removable cord with a choice between the original spot and the rear. Many of us use our 7-way for trailers which is why we have campers in the first place! Truck manufacturers provide "camper wiring" harnesses to the front of the bed plus 5th wheel guys often install them up there and it's not like it's difficult to do.
Also what little battery charging the factory wiring did will probably be gone by the time it goes all the way to the rear then back to the front of the camper where the batteries are (or should be).
I love the windows, though. I saw that style on a 5th wheel this summer and was amazed at how good they look. Plus, no sealer to replace around them.- The problem with cord at the rear is then you have a bunch of extra cord to tie up so it stays out of harms way.
And for people that tow, which probably is a good percentage of camper owners, then you have to buy some sort of Y adapter.
