Forum Discussion

lincolnmatthews's avatar
Jul 09, 2013

Hit a Speed Bump then "Crunch"

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!
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Sorry to hear about your damage. I think the review you mentioned was the one I just wrote about the Torklift FastGuns:

    FastGun Review

    I can only speak for myself, but I much prefer aluminum frames over wood because of the potential for rot with wood.