I hit a unmarked speed bump at about 25mph or so on a main st (by a school. The truck & camper bounced pretty hard. I pulled the rear mount down about a 1/2" or so & disformed the aluminum trim & side metal a bit. I know I broke the wood framing up inside, as this was already a weak side from a previous mishap. I have a Lance 880 (wooden framed camper), that's kept inside & in good condition. I believe that I am using the Happy Jack spring loaded tie downs. I don't have them adjusted very tight at all. My question is: I assume there's a better tie down system that maybe would have prevented the damage? (can't remember there name right at the moment) but there's a review on them. My other question is, I know one can damage anything but would a aluminum framed camper would probably handled this better, but maybe the frame would have bent & deformed the outer fiberglass? What's the opinion's out there regarding wood framed versus aluminum? At least I can repair it (this winter) by opening up the side & using Epoxy & new wood where I would be kind of "dorked" trying to fix an aluminum framed one myself. Sorry for the long post!

Sorry to hear about your damage. I think the review you mentioned was the one I just wrote about the Torklift FastGuns: FastGun ReviewI can only speak for myself, but I much prefer aluminum frames over wood because of the potential for rot with wood.

Please report the speed bump. I hit one in a parking lot the other day in my Mustang and bottomed out. I looked back and the bump was at least three times higher than a normal one and unpainted. No, I wasn't going fast, but somehow I had no idea it was going to be that high.

I prefer my aluminum sided wood framed camper because of being able to repair it. My father's franklin was about 35 years old before he finally tore it apart. But on hind sight, wished we had just rebuilt it section by section.Don't think an aluminum frame camper would have handled your situation better nor would the fast guns have helped much. They have spring, but not that much.If the speed bump was on public road and unmarked, take pictures of the scene, damage, and get a repair estimate. Then file a claim against the proper entity using their proper form.

I have an aluminum framed camper and hit an unidentified speed bump at much less speed than you and separated my rear cap from the rest of the frame. Most aluminum framed campers are light on the amount of welding / bracing. They are lighter, not necessarily stronger in my opinion.

Having flash backs to the culverts in the streets of Wall, South Dakota that caught me by surprise, got lucky in nothing in the frame appeared to have broken, but it futzed the siding all up and had to thump it back into position.

Hit a Speed Bump then "Crunch" | Good Sam Community

Super_Dave
Explorer
Jul 10, 2013
bjbear, I tend to think like you and believe there should be something in the system that is "break away" before really expensive stuff starts to fail.
JoeChiOhki
Explorer II
Jul 10, 2013
realter wrote:
JoeChiOhki wrote:
Having flash backs to the culverts in the streets of Wall, South Dakota that caught me by surprise, got lucky in nothing in the frame appeared to have broken, but it futzed the siding all up and had to thump it back into position.

That's what you get for stopping for free ice water and 5 cents coffee.:B:B

And Pie :p.

Actually, it's what I get for not following the GPS' advice, as it tried to direct me out via a main drag and I went through the residential area :p.

I spent the night before in their RV Parking alot, which is, ironically, right across the street from the rather expensive RV Park.

I actually liked Wall, SD and I plan to return there when I make a repeat of the GNRA in a couple years (Bout how long it will be for my work contract to wrap up and a second short one to push me into the better weather season.
silversand
Explorer
Jul 10, 2013
....this had already happened to a former member of this Forum with a very well built totally aluminum-framed camper. The aluminum *tubing* (hollow) with a steel bolt passing through it simply sheared through the tube (not quite like butter, but pretty close!).

Think about it: a thin-walled aluminum tube with steel bolt through it...just the act of torquing the eyelet through the hollow aluminum tube will partially squash the aluminum, forget about any emergency catastrophic instantaneous stress on this assembly from an 7000 LB truck bucking/launching a 3000, 4000+ LB camper with just a 3/8 inch eyelet through aluminum tube with a 3/4 inch washer !

Aluminum framed campers should employ a solid aluminum block insert about 10 inches long (inside the aluminum tube framing) through which the tie-down eyelets are attached. Wood framed campers should absolutely have 2 appropriate metal plates sandwiching the wood framing where each of the 4 eyelets attach....

S-
GMCPU53
Explorer
Jul 11, 2013
We were traveling thru Freeport Maine on the way to Recompence Shores a couple of weeks ago. There was a raised crosswalk in town, it was marked but I missed the sign , braked at the last minute, and only went over at about 15 mph... but the camper jumped up in back seemed like a few inches... then hit hard. Both rear fastguns came undone at the bottom and were hanging from the camper tiedowns. I was real fortunate and only bent the frame mount slide in brackets a little, I was amazed that the tiedowns didn't pull out of the TC , and there was no damage to the bottom of the TC. I am paying a lot more attention now !

Joe
RobertRyan
Explorer
Jul 11, 2013
Airstream67 wrote:
Good point made. It's sometimes discouraging to pay the fuel bill for our heavy iron chariots, but they are as tough as a hammer.

They do not have a problem bending them here, US Pickups have to be beefed up to take the hammering they get here.
Joerg68 wrote:
Just be glad the frame of your truck is still straight. With the often overloaded smallish pickups over here in Europe, the energy would have likely bent the frame above the rear axle

That is the problem in using a pickup bed rather than a Utility bed for Asian sourced Pickups. You do not have that problem here. Too many stresses on the chassis with a Pickup bed.
Airstreamer67
Explorer
Jul 12, 2013
Robert, that's quite a speed bump. Ours are designed a bit differently.

Ours are not as easy to see, especially if they're not marked as in the OP's case.
RobertRyan
Explorer
Jul 13, 2013
Airstreamer67 wrote:
Robert, that's quite a speed bump. Ours are designed a bit differently.

Ours are not as easy to see, especially if they're not marked as in the OP's case.

You get a lot of unwanted "Speed Bumps" in the Australian Bush,so a properly designed chassis and tray can avoid the damage.
ticki2
Explorer
Jul 13, 2013
RobertRyan wrote:

They do not have a problem bending them here, US Pickups have to be beefed up to take the hammering they get here.

That is the problem in using a pickup bed rather than a Utility bed for Asian sourced Pickups. You do not have that problem here. Too many stresses on the chassis with a Pickup bed.

From the pictures they sure look like modified Asian trucks to me . How are the frame stresses different between a pickup bed and a utility bed ? They are both fastened to the frame .

You have posted many interesting pictures in the past but I would be more interested in seeing your rig and where you have taken it , and how it has held up .
RobertRyan
Explorer
Jul 13, 2013
ticki2 wrote:
From the pictures they sure look like modified Asian trucks to me . How are the frame stresses different between a pickup bed and a utility bed ? They are both fastened to the frame .

You have posted many interesting pictures in the past but I would be more interested in seeing your rig and where you have taken it , and how it has held up

I had a rig, based on a Ford Falcon Ute bed quite a few years ago. now it is hire motorhomes or looking at shows and talking to manufacturers.
I am quoting from Ute bed a now US manufacture of started by an Australian.
Ute®Beds for large pick-up trucks are load-rated to 8,000 lbs (4-ton). Beds for small to medium sized pick-up trucks are load-rated to 5,000 lbs (2.5 ton). In fact, the beds can probably carry more load than the truck is designed to hold. The aircraft grade T-6 extruded aluminum gives the bed its superior strength.

US Pickups in Australia used for any work related use i.e substitute for a Ute get a flat bed i.e work as a "ute'. MOST US Pickups retain their Pickup beds if they are going to be used as 5th Wheeler tower, general driver or have a US Specific Truck camper.
In Europe Pickups are very rare indeed, Joerge80 and Sabconsulting can verify that, so the industry we have here modifying Pickups does not exist. In the US going from what I have personally seen and the various trip reports ,use is not as extreme as it is here. They also modify and strengthen the chassis as well here
F250 Flatbed conversions.

A flatbed conversion crossing a river.
ticki2
Explorer
Jul 14, 2013
RobertRyan wrote:
ticki2 wrote:
From the pictures they sure look like modified Asian trucks to me . How are the frame stresses different between a pickup bed and a utility bed ? They are both fastened to the frame .

You have posted many interesting pictures in the past but I would be more interested in seeing your rig and where you have taken it , and how it has held up

I had a rig, based on a Ford Falcon Ute bed quite a few years ago. now it is hire motorhomes or looking at shows and talking to manufacturers.
I am quoting from Ute bed a now US manufacture of started by an Australian.
Ute®Beds for large pick-up trucks are load-rated to 8,000 lbs (4-ton). Beds for small to medium sized pick-up trucks are load-rated to 5,000 lbs (2.5 ton). In fact, the beds can probably carry more load than the truck is designed to hold. The aircraft grade T-6 extruded aluminum gives the bed its superior strength.

US Pickups in Australia used for any work related use i.e substitute for a Ute get a flat bed i.e work as a "ute'. MOST US Pickups retain their Pickup beds if they are going to be used as 5th Wheeler tower, general driver or have a US Specific Truck camper.
In Europe Pickups are very rare indeed, Joerge80 and Sabconsulting can verify that, so the industry we have here modifying Pickups does not exist. In the US going from what I have personally seen and the various trip reports ,use is not as extreme as it is here. They also modify and strengthen the chassis as well here
F250 Flatbed conversions.

A flatbed conversion crossing a river.

I agree that the Ute bed or flatbed is more useful and in most cases stronger than a standard pickup bed . I use an aluminum flatbed myself . What I don't understand is how it would increase the strength of the trucks chassis . As the Ute manufacturer stated the Ute bed can probably handle more load than the truck is designed for .