Fulcrum point

I did not direct your attention to the video to be silly or because I do not understand basic physics, the reason was to point out that there are many factors that come into play when being cautious about being in the bedroom area when camper is off the truck.
I believe that on my camper the front jacks are solid , however the camper is old and I don't think I would want to trust them. I also point out that when the camper is on its jacks the wind or other conditions can play a part in that trust.

I find it counter productive to use words like "silly" and to infer that no one is smart enough to comprehend the physics of a camper. The camper did tip over, so you might just look at the video anyway. It didn't just fall down.

mkirsch wrote:

northshore wrote:
This is something I worry about also, I did find this you tube vid about this camper falling over. The camper jack may have been weak, wind or some other outside force could have contributed to the camper falling over. This guy seems to think that the camper being loaded with weighted items in the bed area was the cause. The video starts pretty slow, but if you can stick with it, he finally gets to the idea of the video".Uprighting The Fallen Truck Camper" is the title of the video. I would guess there are others.
Just something to check out.

I don't even have to look for the video.

The jack(s) collapsed, period.

That is NOT NOT NOT the camper tipping over using the front jacks as the fulcrum point. The camper fell down; it did not tip over.

Show me a camper that is tipped over with the rear end sticking up in the air, and the front jacks intact. You can't. It has NEVER happened.

I really need to stop reading this thread.

I dont think anyone is being silly but cautious. I can only speak for myself, I dont have an engineering degree but I consider myself to be pretty sharp and extremely mechanically inclined. What I can tell you is with my 91 Sunline that 60 or so percent of the weight is in the front drivers corner.Fridge, propane, sink, domestic water. The rear has a 10lb heater and an empty waste tank.(I can feel this severely in the manual jacks when lifting it) The AC unit is somewhat centered front to back but is set more towards the passenger side I'm assuming to balance it out. There are so many different floor plans so this varies for everyone. We have already had one gentleman state that his one camper will teeter so its not impossible.

This does lean me towards not using the jacks when unloaded for any more then stabilization. I can see where they could shear a pin or blow out a bevel gear. It also makes me want to try to keep the front a few degrees higher then the rear.

I'm really surprised as to the different responses to the thread and enjoyed it.

If anyone has more to add from their experiences please do. I'm finding it interesting and entertaining.

Thanks!

Ed

northshore wrote:
This is something I worry about also, I did find this you tube vid about this camper falling over. The camper jack may have been weak, wind or some other outside force could have contributed to the camper falling over. This guy seems to think that the camper being loaded with weighted items in the bed area was the cause. The video starts pretty slow, but if you can stick with it, he finally gets to the idea of the video".Uprighting The Fallen Truck Camper" is the title of the video. I would guess there are others.
Just something to check out.

I don't even have to look for the video.

The jack(s) collapsed, period.

That is NOT NOT NOT the camper tipping over using the front jacks as the fulcrum point. The camper fell down; it did not tip over.

Show me a camper that is tipped over with the rear end sticking up in the air, and the front jacks intact. You can't. It has NEVER happened.

I really need to stop reading this thread.

Ranger Tim wrote:
I find it hard to sleep in the cabover when off the truck. I worry about this too much to get any rest. Until I get a firm foundation in facts/data I will continue to worry. I guess it's time to investigate thoroughly. With the Admiral and myself it is every bit of 400 lbs. up there, although I won't go into a further breakdown of our respective weights.

The wet weight of a Wolf Creek 840 is 3004lbs per Truck Camper Magazine's buyer's guide at http://www.truckcampermagazine.com/buyers-guide/hard-side/wolf-creek-camper/

Most of that is in the full-height section behind the front jacks. Heck just the weight of the fresh water, propane, and batteries will counterbalance you, and there's a whole lot more than that back there.

Your measly 400lbs is not going to tip the balance.

This is one of my pet peeves. People are just being SILLY when they worry about the camper tipping over from their weight in the cabover. It just goes to show that people have no concept of weight and/or didn't listen in 7th grade physical science class.

There is absolutely NO WAY for the camper to tip over from someone in the cabover bed. PERIOD.

Even the lightest camper weighs close to 1500lbs loaded and ready to camp. BIIIIIG box in back. Teeny-weeny box in front. Where do you think the bulk of that weight is?

There's about 1200lb of camper, appliances, and stuff in the back, and about 300lb of framework, mattress, and bedding in the cabover. Add your 260lbs, and you still have over 2X the weight in the back counterbalancing you.

Front jacks collapsing is something else entirely. In that case the camper did not tip over using the jacks as a fulcrum. The front jacks collapsing changed the fulcrum point to the rear jacks, and we don't live in Looney Tunes Physics world, so the camper clearly would have no choice but to fall over.

I have a Travel Lite 770SL and it's only about 1400#s dry. We always use my camper off the truck because my wife has MS and we need it at ground level. I use a screw jack at all 4 corners with a 2x6 on top of the jack pad, and with the camper jacks also supporting the weight. I'm about 240#s and the wife soaking wet, 100#s. I've never felt that the camper was tippy, pretty solid I think. If my 1400# camper is good, those with heavier campers should rest very easy. Accidents of tipping over are more likely do to jack, structural failure, or improper set up.

This is something I worry about also, I did find this you tube vid about this camper falling over. The camper jack may have been weak, wind or some other outside force could have contributed to the camper falling over. This guy seems to think that the camper being loaded with weighted items in the bed area was the cause. The video starts pretty slow, but if you can stick with it, he finally gets to the idea of the video".Uprighting The Fallen Truck Camper" is the title of the video. I would guess there are others.
Just something to check out.

I find it hard to sleep in the cabover when off the truck. I worry about this too much to get any rest. Until I get a firm foundation in facts/data I will continue to worry. I guess it's time to investigate thoroughly. With the Admiral and myself it is every bit of 400 lbs. up there, although I won't go into a further breakdown of our respective weights.

I have been wondering about off truck use since I got it and need to contact Northwood to get the facts. If I do get any official info I'll post it. Until then some investigation and testing may be warranted. Of course, I'll be watching this thread as well.

With my old 10.5' camper, there was no problem at all using the over cab bed area when the camper was off the truck.

With my old 8.5' camper, there also was no problem using the over cab bed area when the camper was off the truck.

With my dad's old 8' camper, there also was no problem using the over cab bed area when the camper was off the truck.

All of the above campers had rear full baths with holding tanks in the rear.

With my current 8' camper, I found out when I went up there, that there is a problem with using the over cab bed when the camper is off the truck. I felt it starting to tip and come off the rear jacks. This camper does not have a bath and only one small holding tank, for the kitchen sink, which is up front. The only heavy thing it has in the rear is the furnace, which isn't that heavy. So, I don't use the over cab bed area in this camper when it is off the truck.

Here's another way of looking at it;

If the cabover bed tilted on the front legs with a 250 pound man up there, then the rear legs have less than 250 pounds between them when the man is NOT in there. Put a scale under each rear leg and see what the weight is. I would bet that each rear leg has over 500 pounds per leg when on level ground and the camper level.

If the entire bottom of the camper is supported doesn't make any difference. YOu are still describing a teeter-totter with either the front legs or the front edge of the camper base.

Now if you REALLY wanted to test it, attach a ratchet strap to the back of the camper with an inch of slack. Climb into the over bed and if it does tilt, it'll only move an inch and you can climb back down.
But I would bet that you would need at least 1000 pounds on the over cap portion to lighten the back enough to maybe get it to tilt/tip.