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Thread: Epic Rookie RVer Fails !!!!
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01-04-2019, 09:16 AM #161
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Didn't mean to diss Hart's totally. They took good care of me in the end, and afterwards, including storing our trailer there for winters most years - until we got the GD; it was just the conversation that Friday afternoon. They were in business in Butte for probably 50 years and were the only RV game in town for a long time. They no longer deal in RVs but are only a storage facility to my knowledge.
Gary & Erin + Kitty the '85# Border Collie/Lab
2015 303RLS
2018 F350 CCLB SRW 6.7PSD (1st Ford coming from '05 Duramax)
http://www.kleenoilusa.com
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02-01-2020, 10:38 PM #162
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Went to pick up our 369RL from a private seller. First 5th wheel i have ever had. He said let me show you how we do it. Went through his process, ok looks good, let's do this on my truck. I back in and it clicks (ONCE).. He says "you're good, I having watched a video since i had never done it before said "I should pull forward a little to make sure it locked" he being the experienced one says"no need you're good" Ok, then he wants me to lower it onto the truck, start lowering and it starts sliding. He was videoing and it is hilarious to see me trying to stop 18,000 lbs of rolling RV with one hand. Luckily the stabilizers were not all the way retracted so there was NO DAMAGE to anything.
2. A week later, we want to try it out on a shakedown trip, make reservations at a park 20 minutes from the house for one night. As we pull out of the driveway, I tell the wife, I need to remember to slow down while doing this. Pull into registration, get the campsite number and head in. First issue, as I come around a corner, grandma and two kids on bikes are in the intersection. ok, no problem. I stop and patiently wait. and wait and wait. as the kids do circles in the intersection. Grandma finally pulls her head out and waves them over to her. Straight across from the intersection, so now i have to turn short so i don't run over the group. Lucky for me the inside turn is covered with volleyball sized rocks so as we went over them the trailer just rocked a little. So now I am a little stressed and we still looking for the campsite. The road made a sharp right turn with untrimmed bushes on the inside corner. As I was focused on finding the campsite and not on my driving or 39' trailer, YEP, turned into the bushes and scraped up the entire side up with the bushes. I will admit to saying a bunch of choice words directed at myself. (90% buffed out the rest is there to remind me SLOW DOWN...
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02-18-2020, 10:51 AM #163
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Or, "Why I have a new Grand Design"....
I was pulling my Raptor 26FS on private property, so very relaxed. Nothing to hit, right? Took a sharp turn, then felt a tug. Uh oh. The right turn was at a fence post. It had raked the aluminum skirting along the driver side, then hit the wheels, and bent the axles, just a bit. Oops.
I settled down about 3 hours later, after getting parked. We had our campout for the weekend, and due to the bent axles arranged a tow.
Tow company arrives Sunday with a long flatbed. I had mentioned how tall the trailer was (11.5 feet at roof edge, not including AC). No problem he says, with his 42 inch trailer. Then he proceeds to have me drive into town, so he can use a parking lot to load the trailer. Not having a good feeling, I proceeded to film the next hour of comedy as they tried to load the toy hauler on their trailer.
Next day, "where's the trailer". It shows up 2 days later at the RV repair, and they call to tell me that my roof is destroyed. Tow company says that they won't speak to insurance. I call tow company. Cursing starts, and he threatens to sue me over insurance fraud. Roof wasn't his fault. I hung up on that. Working with insurance, we called clearing house for towing, Agero. Turns out that they have a claim process. 3 weeks later, reimbursed for the roof in total, no arguing with anyone. After settling all of that out, we're looking for another trailer, and while not looking to purchase new we ended up that way with the Imagine XLS 22MLE. Definitely wanted shorter after the toy hauler.Charlie and Barbara
2017 RAM 2500 - 6.4 Hemi
2020 Imagine XLS 22MLE
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03-17-2020, 03:47 PM #164
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3rd or 4th time hooking up 5th wheel, landing gear fully retracted. Pulled away and BANG, camper falls on bed rails, I had forgotten to pin the jaws shut. Luckily the bed rails saved the bed from any damage.
Not so much a rookie move but July 2019 I pulled over in a rainstorm and sat thru baseball size hail. Completely demolished my truck and roof of camper. Really put a damper on the weekend2015 Momentum 350M / 2020 GMC 3500 AT4 SRW Duramax
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03-18-2020, 09:02 AM #165
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You will probably NEVER do that again ( glad that the damage was slight) but maybe you can create a habit of testing your trailer brakes as you begin to move. Doing it not only forestalls a hitching failure but it also tests the trailer's brakes before you hit the road.
Put the truck in gear, foot on the brake, and squeeze the trailer brake controller in the truck full-on as the truck's brakes are slowly released and it begins to creep forward. Watch in the rear-view mirror as the truck creeps forward, watching the trailer on the fifth-wheel hitch, until the braked trailer holds it back. If the truck doesn't creep much (starting up an incline, for example) add just a bit of the accelerator.
Welcome to the forum and the always-something world of RV-ing!Mark - 2018 Solitude 310GK - 2017 F-350 diesel SRW short box - Pullrite Superglide hitch
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03-26-2020, 11:35 AM #166
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Previous Fiver and truck...... didn't use the slider on the hitch. dooooooh trying to back in at nearly 90 degree angle to get into a site and dented the C-pillar on the truck. Luckily didn't do anything to the RV. Dent was about 1" in and no biggie. never had it repaired and doubt the buyer even noticed it.
Note to self..... don't be lazy and release the slide for maneuvering.
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03-31-2020, 04:43 PM #167
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Well - I guess I can put in my not rookie mistake. Friends and us were towing to another friends daughters wedding in Southern NC. Actually 17 miles from Myrtle Beach. This was from North Central PA where we live. We left in the late afternoon in heavy rain. We finally pulled over just north of Richmond VA in a Walmart PL to get some rest. Everything is good. Now mind you, this was in my previous TT - a 28 ft Keystone Bullet. He was pulling a 38 ft 5er. Next morning we left, and stopped to get gas somewhere in NC. No big deal right? We pulled in with him on the left side pumps facing the building, and me on the right side. Via two way radios we decided to get out we would criss cross. Him first turning right going in between me and the building, then me turning left to reach that exit. As he goes by I waved at him and, being me, maybe made some other hand sign joking around - totally not paying attention. As I pull out turning left - as in not pulling ahead - just turned left - not a care In the world. DW says - "shouldn't you have" - VERY LOUD CRASH with very sudden stop- "pulled further ahead, ohh Bob". She then gets on the radio and says - "Bob just wrecked". My buddy comes back with - Yeah we heard it. I finally back off the Pump protection pipe and get reoriented to get the trailer where I can assess the damage. Ya know - those pipes DO NOT MOVE. I barely scratched the paint. After I get backed in beside the store building my buddy and I assess the damage. (When I say buddy - he was the first one on the ground under the trailer looking at things). Lets see - Skirting gone on the Drivers side all the way back to the lead axle. Lead tire blown. Wheel broken in two places. Black water tube broken off. First gray water handle looked to be broken (it wasn't) As my buddy is laying on the ground checking things out he asked if I could maybe close the black water valve as it was dripping on him (It got pulled open). Me, seeing that the black water tube is missing I asked my wife to go get it from the spot by the pump. She comes back saying no way was she going out there - there was someone standing in the watery residue from the open black tank valve. It turns out the tube was still attached to the TT via a piece of banding. As I am changing the tire to the spare, DW looks at the spring hanger and says - "should that be like that" . THe hanger weld was torn 3/4 of the way back, which put the wheel assembly out of wack - a lot. After assessing it further, the inside weld was intact. We made the trip the rest of the way( 250 miles) with no issues. His youngest daughter was driving their car. He had her playing spotter behind me while he ran beside me to make sure everything was going to be OK. It was, thank goodness. This is after over 30 years of towing campers, boats and utility trailers. It was really bad when we got to the camp ground and had to tell the rest of our friends, and the prospective Bride and Groom what happened. This was 2017 I believe. We all still get together, and it, among other dumb things I have done are still a topic. Funny story now...
Last edited by SGT ROC; 03-31-2020 at 04:49 PM.
Bob (retired) & Vicki
Scuba Diver
US ARMY Vet (Go Cav!)
2019 Reflection 31MB
2019 Chevy 2500HD LT Crew Cab Gasser
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03-31-2020, 05:48 PM #168
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The fail I've already described earlier in this thread was a mild version of yours, but I had the excuse of it being my third day of ever hauling a big trailer. A more-serious brain-fart accident could be in my future, so I thought I'd relate this one which I (fortunately) only witnessed. Hope it makes someone more-aware and less likely to do this.
We were staying at Safe Harbor RV Resort near Nashville, a nice park but top-dollar-expensive and with a really hair-raising exit onto a very busy road. At busy times of day it's possible to wait five minutes - sometimes even more - for an opportunity to pull out onto the road with a trailer. Traffic flies along the road, and appears suddenly from either direction due to a curve to the north and a rise to the south. Really hairy.
As we reached the exit one morning we found an unfortunate fellow who had probably become frustrated and/or stressed by not being able to get out. He had eventually pulled out so sharply and so quickly that he'd pulled his trailer up over the guardrail at the exit - the curve of the guardrail and its posts went about three feet under his trailer, doing who-knows-what damage, and a serious wrecker was there lifting it off. A really bad day for him.
He and his trailer both looked experienced - so probably not an epic rookie fail - but maybe telling the story here will help some rookie - and me too - avoid doing it. When traffic is stressing you - even if people are behind you - take yer time, breathe, wait. You've almost certainly got enough time and breath to be patient and avoid giving yourself a really bad day.Mark - 2018 Solitude 310GK - 2017 F-350 diesel SRW short box - Pullrite Superglide hitch
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03-31-2020, 06:22 PM #169
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My wife and I had this discussion the other day - about my impatience. I have become much better with the new rig, but after a couple of episodes with the tailgate, I have a ways to go. Suffice to say I am no longer allowed to move the truck after hooking up or unhooking unless she gives the OK....
Bob (retired) & Vicki
Scuba Diver
US ARMY Vet (Go Cav!)
2019 Reflection 31MB
2019 Chevy 2500HD LT Crew Cab Gasser
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04-01-2020, 10:41 AM #170
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Have to add to the above - that this was a $5000.00 insurance bill. When getting the trailer fixed up enough for the return home - had to buy 2 spares for just in case, Straighten the spindle as much as possible, and replace the wheel bearings, and get the spring hanger repaired (had already fixed the poop chute). The trip home was uneventful and they straightened the spindle so well there was no wear on the tire at all. The spare I had put on after the wreck was shot - no tread in two places. That Auto repair place was amazing. I had made the appointment days before. When we got there they dropped everything and went to work. They even had me take their shop truck to Napa to get the new hanger and wheel bearings. In and out in under 3 hours! Great people. I think it was Advance Collision just north of Myrtle Beach.
Bob (retired) & Vicki
Scuba Diver
US ARMY Vet (Go Cav!)
2019 Reflection 31MB
2019 Chevy 2500HD LT Crew Cab Gasser
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