Keith099
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Re: how long is your tear down/setup time?
20 mins setup if I'm not aiming DirecTV dish. Wife has become excellent at knowing what to do as far as lowering power stabilizers close to ground while I'm unhitching, setting up interior items, bleeding air out of faucets, and turning on A/C and breakers, water heater, etc. Setting tripod and aiming dish is an extra 5-10 mins, depending on if I'm having to find satellites through holes in tree cover. Teardown depends greatly on if it's going to storage or if we're going someplace else in the next couple-few weeks. Teardown, we pick up the chairs and other junk the night before, especially if it's hot out. At that point, as little as 15 mins to run up stabilizers, hitch up, and unplug.446Views0likes0CommentsRe: F150 3.5 Ecoboost-length and weight of camper you're towing
brulaz wrote: I had a 2011 Ecoboost... There was a jarring tranny clunk when downshifting downslope into 4th. Mine does that too, maybe once in a 300-mile trip. Downshifting into 4th when decelerating, maybe 1 time in 100, it sounds and feels like I hit a cinder block. First couple times, wife and I got a bit concerned. Now, three years in, it's just a pause in conversation and you pick up the sentence where you left off.613Views0likes0CommentsRe: F150 3.5 Ecoboost-length and weight of camper you're towing
2012 F150 EcoBoost Max Tow Package not HD. I pull a 32' Jayco 28DSBH with it. Roughly 7000-8000lbs loaded, depending on trip length and if I'm carrying potable water. I think it's about 6300lbs dry/unloaded including weight of dealer add-ons like power jacks, etc. Pulls it plenty fine from New Orleans to Destin, with a few rolling hills towards the end. We even did New Orleans to Disney in one day; next time, that'll be a 2-day drive. Unhitching and setting up was the lasting I wanted to do after a 12-hour drive. I set cruise control, with transmission in manual mode 6th gear at 69-70MPH and average 8.6MPG. At 65MPH, I get closer to 9.0MPG but not quite 9.0. At 75MPH, it plummets to 7-something MPG. I have E-rated LT tires on the trailer . Not a chance I'd go over 64.9MPH with ST tires. Totally different topic though. I wouldn't hesitate to pull 35-36' with the truck on the usual trips the wife and I do with the kids, but weight would be something I'd pay closer attention to. When the camper is full-loaded, it pulls fine, but stopping isn't exactly sports car-esque. Really hilly or mountainous areas, not a chance I'd attempt it with my current truck and camper setup. I'd go under 5000lbs loaded, 4000 dry and probably end up with something around 24-28', with length being less of a concern than weight. Or better yet, I'd probably not have a half-ton pickup at all. One thing I would have done differently is get 18" rims at time I ordered the truck. 20" wheels wear very hard on the shoulders of the tread when the truck is loaded, even with tires at max load PSI as per sidewall. 20" rubber is also a little bit pricier than 18." I use the Equalizer (I think 12k but maybe 10k) hitch and sway system, and I'm very happy with it. Keeping the two bolts that hold the sway bar sockets onto the hitch head at proper torque about every 1,500 miles makes a big difference. I can feel a lot more sway when they need to be re-torqued. I can almost forget the TT is behind me when cruising on the interstate. Not really a good thing when changing lanes though. ;) Weight matters a lot more than length once you're out of the parking lot.612Views0likes0CommentsRe: f150
3oaks wrote: Keith099 wrote: If you're going to buy a truck for a specific repeated use, leave some headroom. You know you'll always end up with a few hundred pounds of junk onboard. What if the next camper you really want is 1000 lbs heavier? Now you're looking at shelling out for a new truck too. Every time I read a comment like that, I just laugh. If that were the case, everyone should start out with no less than a 450 truck. "what if", "just in case", etc. Hyperbole much? I said 1,000lbs not 10,000 lbs. It's about having payload to spare, and a little room for or unexpected developments. If you prefer to end up riding with 6" of squat turning 4,000 RPM once the wife and kids load all their 'necessities,' go for it. Planning to run maxed out from the start is a bad idea. Trailers don't get lighter after you buy them.386Views0likes0CommentsRe: f150
It's not about peak output. What's it's horsepower at 2200 RPM? That's the measure of how much air it can displace at speed. I don't like approaching GCWR for a number of reasons. First, you're pushing a fairly expensive truck to its max. That'll get expensive quickly. Breakdowns will ruin a vacation in a hurry. Having that little extra power is nice when merging into traffic. It's easier to drive and less stressful. Increased safety and control when needed. I wouldn't think twice about making a 100-mile trip on mostly flat road at or even 10% over GCWR. Repeated 400-mile trips on steep grades with a little occasional rain, nope. If you're going to buy a truck for a specific repeated use, leave some headroom. You know you'll always end up with a few hundred pounds of junk onboard. What if the next camper you really want is 1000 lbs heavier? Now you're looking at shelling out for a new truck too. Note in Ford's towing guides they always say trailer weight with zero payload in truck and only a 150lb driver.385Views0likes0CommentsRe: f150
Ford rates them at 7,600-8,300 lbs towing. I'd keep it under 5,000 lbs with 3.31 or 3.55 gears. Under 5,750 lbs with the 3.73's. Think 25-27' lightweight with 1 slide. Lower profile, less height. Keep width 96" or preferably less. Frontal area will be a limiting factor depending on towing/cooling options, you'll be limited to 55-60 sq ft. Will it pull a trailer? Yes. A big trailer? No. It would pull a 4500 lb 24' trailer fine. Anything more, after a couple hours, you'll be wishing you had the V8 or the 3.5 EB.385Views0likes0CommentsRe: Problem with TV
A lot of codes when set will disable cruise control. It's a limp mode/ engine protection thing. Anything with fuel pressure, especially low pressure, will do it. Clogged fuel filter would be my stab in the dark guess. Not knowing what kind of truck you have leaves a lot of guessing to be done. If it's a Dodge, the cam position sensors will do exactly what you're describing, but then I don't know the year. Yours might not even have a cam sensor.232Views0likes0CommentsRe: Slide out question - reliability
The problem is with the design itself. There's no way those 2 motors will ever run at the exact same speed and power output. One always ends up pushing slightly harder. That one takes 80-95% of the load and ends up working almost twice as hard as it's designed to. Other effect is the slide not going out straight and square once the motor starts dying. that can mean you won't get a good seal and have eventual water damage, or as a worst case, jump the whole thing off the tracks. Buddy with a 2012 toy hauler has the Schwintek slides. Got stuck about 8" out while he was bringing it in. Dealer said to bring it in and they'll fix. Sure, but how do you bring it there with this obstruction sticking out? Next trip, the big rubber seal came loose on the interstate and was flapping 8 feet behind the slide. Unless you have some very sophisticated sensors and controller, you cant run 2 electric motors like that and expect it to work right.227Views0likes0CommentsRe: Difference in finding camp spot or towing w/ 28' v 30 v 32'?
From what I've seen, my 32' can fit about anywhere except tent or the real pop-up sites. My truck is a F150 Supercrew short bed, so about 1 ft shorter than yours. Might matter for back-in sites lacking on opposite side swing clearance. I think 34-35' is where possibilities start dropping quickly. For scouting sites, Google Earth's measure tool is your friend. I use it often, and it's amazingly accurate.475Views0likes0Comments
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