1996 cardinal by cobra

[Shifty_85]

Brand new to the 5th wheel world. picked up our 1996 31 Cardinal by cobra this march. looking to make a few upgrades to it then hit the road. i think we did pretty good for 4500.00 everything works and its like a time machine back to 1996 the people before took amazing care of it!

pulling our new toy is my 2000 F250 7.3 ext cab long bed 4x4 with only 58,000 miles * had 38,000 when i bought it last june from my dealership for only 7700.00 **All those numbers are not typos!!** picked up a reese 16K 5th wheel hitch for 500 bucks a few hours of drilling later it was in there!











Glad i found this place lots of good info and seems pretty active.

i do have a few questions and will try to space the out.

This is our first 5th wheel we went from a good size tent to this so we are very excited. it came with all the manuals for everything too witch is extra nice!!

1st thing i really want to make a bigger battery tray right now it just has 1 12 volt batt. i was thinking of 4 12 volt battery's in a nice custom tray at the front. What types of battery's do you suggest? ive been reading on the 6V vs 12V and we will be doing alot of boondocking and running the fridge/ AC from the battery's with an inverter.

2, Question what type of inverter would be good to run the slide outs AC and fridge off the battery's? i was thinking around 3000W but im not 100% sure on the draw etc etc

3. Solar panels ive seen a bunch of these all over but im not sure whats good what works what doesnt etc etc. Any suggestions? **i am going to run a good sized charge wire to the 5th wheel from my truck as well**

4. pull out couch recommendations? being it has to go through the door im not sure where to find smaller couch's with pull outs.

5. We have 4...yes 4 dogs. 2 husky's and 2 hound mixes what would be a good tie out or a way to let all 4 of them out? ive been looking at picket lines but the lines from the main line are not very long at all.

6. a more sturdy door lock? we will be on the road and living in this for the next few years is there anyway to beef up the door lock??

Feel free to reply to any of these just put the number next to it. Sorry a little long winded for my first post but this seems like a great forum with great people im excited to be a member!

**edit didn't know photo bucket did that imgur is better anyways**

[Charley67]

I had a similar landing gear problem. The fuse near the switch was good, but it turned out there was another one near the battery that was blown. Some of the wiring on the plug on my truck wasn't right, and it caused the fuse to blow.

[Shifty_85]

There is a hitch on the back of the FW and we have 2 kayaks ive searched but only found a few hitch kayak holders and they are not cheap. Does anyone know where I can get a good quality double kayak holder and not break the bank?

May even just pay a friend who is a welder to make me one.

[Shifty_85]

Thanks all ill check. The slides work fine when plugged into the shoreline. Just didn't know if using the manual crank over rides something. Ill check for a breaker / fuse. Thanks all

[MFL]

It will normally take a well charged battery to run the landing gear or slides. For these large draw items, the power through the converter is not enough on it's own. Plugging into truck can help, but again, not a strong power source, with the small wires connecting. You can use heavy jumper cables from truck to camper battery to operate landing gear.

Also, there should be a square type circuit breaker, very near the battery (follow wire coming from battery) that may have tripped. It should reset, but may need replacing. It may be located on the basement inside wall near battery.

Jerry

[Edd505]

Shifty_85 wrote:
oh one problem i am having is the landing gear. When i first picked it up with my truck plugged in the electric motor worked. well when i got home it would not so i used the crank handle.

well after that even after being plugged into a 30amp shoreline and leaving it plugged in the landing gear will not go up with the electric motor i dont even hear a click.

is there something that i need to reset for the electric to work again?

Thanks all

There will be a fuse to the motor, cold be near the battery or the motor. If the fuse is good check the ground. No noise the motors not running. If the motor runs there is a shear pin on the motor gears.

[Shifty_85]

oh one problem i am having is the landing gear. When i first picked it up with my truck plugged in the electric motor worked. well when i got home it would not so i used the crank handle.

well after that even after being plugged into a 30amp shoreline and leaving it plugged in the landing gear will not go up with the electric motor i dont even hear a click.

is there something that i need to reset for the electric to work again?

Thanks all

[Shifty_85]

Thanks for the feed back!

Do you recommend any company's for the battery,solar panels, and inverter?


Also ill have to join that cardinal one thank you!! Edit just looked there seem to be a few different ones do you know the website?

[Nv_Guy]

1: Buy true deep cycle batteries, the combo deep cycle / starting "marine" will not offer the performance or lifespan.
2: Inverters: Buy a good quality, name brand inverter. Something that offers true sine wave, the cheap inverters are not efficient and can do weird things. I had one customer that had a cheap inverter and it made the picture on his TV green.
3: Solar panels: Again, buy name brand, and get a solar controller. Consider portable panels, as shade reduces output considerably.
A good sized charge line is a good idea, but remember unless you tie into your truck's charging system via the voltage regulator (not recommended, very complicated and your alternator is probably already near capacity) all your 5th wheel is going to get is partial charge. Your coach batteries wont get a full charge.

[Flintstones]

This is such an excellent post! I love all the pictures, and the units looks so very well cared for. Please consider joining the Cardinal RV Club, these are passionate Cardinal owners who I am sure would love to hear your story, see the pictures, and help you out with anything Cardinal. Best of luck with your Cardinal by Cobra!

[MFL]

Can't help much with the questions, but can welcome you to the forum, and comment on your rig. That is a nice looking FW, and from the pics, very well kept. Tow vehicle with 7.3, low mileage, a great find also.

Good luck on your travels, and keep active on the forum.

Jerry

[Shifty_85]

1. yes it is a RV type fridge. even with a charge cord from my F250 it would be better to run it propane while going down the road?

4. yeah pull out couch's are not the best at all just looking for something more comfy couch wise and better looking the one from 1996 is nice but dated.

5. yeah that is very true not very hard to get into at all.

thanks for your feedback!

[frankwp]

First of all, welcome to the 5th wheel world. Great times are ahead. Can't see any of your photos though because of the Photobucket thing. I'll offer suggestions for some of your questions.

1. Assuming the fridge is an RV type, you'll be better off running it on propane. AC will be out unless you bring along a whole other trailer just for the batteries. Better option would be to use a good quiet inverter type generator. Yamaha & Honda are the gold standard, but there are other brands that are cheaper with similar performance, just not the quality or long life.

4. We have yet to find a pull out couch that is comfortable for sleeping 2. Doesn't mean they aren't out there though. A good blow up mattress with a foam topper can be pretty comfortable.

5. Not much point to beefing up the lock as there are many other easy ways to break into an RV. Sad but true.