post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

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post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby working on it » Wed Sep 19, 2018 11:49 am

"again and again in the same way; forever" and "for this purpose" pretty much describes my build-camp-modify cycle since Oct.'11. I'll build/modify, then go camp, then modify again...always "for this purpose", but never quite reaching my goal of less work, more relaxation (which I should've achieved by now).
*Each camping trip is followed by modifying the trailer, and/or the gear carried along, always trying to address problems I had during the full cycle: hook-up, pull-out from garage,load-up, travel time, set-up, day-to-day usage, tear-down, pack-up, travel again, unloading (easier to move the trailer by hand, with 270 lbs tongue weight), unhooking, turning around in driveway, re-hooking (to the front hitch), insertion into garage bay. Much too labor intensive for my "go camping and relax" ideal. I try to cover all my needs and just end-up causing more problems (and work).
*As a follow-up of my previous thread http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=70367, describing mods I planned or made after my last (infrequent) trip, I have to say that several changes were worth the effort: jockey wheel, tongue-mounted scissor jack (for use in installing/removal of the tongue jack), deep-drop weight-distributing hitch shank (lowered the nose of the trailer several inches, leveling it, for perfect control), medicine box in cabin, and rack-mount for my pantry box. The fishing gear tube on the roof will probably rate as a success, but I didn't use it this time.
*Minor gains were made thru using some new Cooler Shock Freeze Packs in my cooler-in-a-cooler (kept meat really cold for three days), and frozen gallon jugs in the main cooler, but my attempt to use just two bags of ice (alongside old-style plastic freezer packs) failed to keep my other two coolers cold past 36 hours. I'm tired of fighting the endless ice/ice substitute battle, and will install a compressor-type fridge before my next trip.
*Other needed additions: a stepstool to help me into the cabin (my old one is too tall, now), and a large electric fan for my sitting area, to combat the oppressive heat and humidity we encountered last trip, and to blow away the ever-present mosquitoes & biting flies (worst-ever at a campsite). I also want a second canopy side-wall, because of tent-campers encroaching my site (pitched their tent nearer my pad than to theirs), and too close to my privacy/potty tent for my liking. I'm not into communal living! Bringing my electric skillet next time: my food needs are small, as I camp alone, and mostly can be done just by heating canned goods. If I need a quick meal, my Coleman stove works great, and is my first choice, but in inclement weather, it's not fast enough on set-up, cooking, clean-up, and storage times, if I need to cook in between storms, or under the canopy. My GFCI-protected skillet is much quicker, and faster in a time crunch, plus no additional pots/pans are needed. I can eliminate much excess cooking gear, too.
*Needed deletions: the hard plastic spacer between quarter-fold mattress and carpet (added after I left a door ajar under a canopy dumping water; I had standing water inside) needs to go; it makes the mattress not fit quite right, and makes entry harder. I've not had any water entry for several years now, and that problem went away. And my primary deletion will be streamlining my gear load-out. Excess cooking gear, as mentioned above, redundant food supplies (I pack enough food for 3 weeks for a 3 day trip), excess clothing (6 changes, three pairs of boots, ponchos & coats), an extra porta-potty?, and extra gasoline/Coleman fuel (10 gallons, usually). I'm not boondocking, nor ever far from stores, so it's really just excessive!
*I usually forget some ideas for changes after I return home, or forget to implement others. This time, I used my phone's notepad to jot down problems & ideas while at camp, and will use it as a checklist as I go. No more getting to camp and having the same problems over and over; I want to get it right before I give up on my 4x8, and have to go bigger. Time will tell.
2013 HHRv "squareback/squaredrop", rugged, 4x8 TTT, 2225 lbs
  • *3500 lb Dexter EZ-Lube braked axle, 3000 lb.springs, active-progressive bumpstop suspension
  • *27 x 8.5-14LT AT tires (x 3) *Weight Distribution system for single-beam tongue
  • *100% LED's & GFCI outlets, 3x fans, AM/FM/CD/Aux. *A/C & heat, Optima AGM, inverter & charger(s)
  • *extended-run, on-board, 2500w generator *Coleman dual-fuel stove & lantern, Ikea grill, vintage skillet
  • *zinc/stainless front & side racks *98"L x 6" diameter rod & reel carrier tube on roof
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby John61CT » Wed Sep 19, 2018 2:10 pm

eponysterical

tip - whitespace, short paragraphs

few of us short-attention folk will parse a wall o' text like that
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby featherliteCT1 » Wed Sep 19, 2018 6:41 pm

I agree the text is hard to read ... but good substantive content!
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby 2bits » Wed Sep 19, 2018 9:18 pm

Hey at least you are good with the bullet points hah!

Wow the weight overall and tongue weight still shocks me. I think that is a good idea jotting things down on the notepad on your phone as you run into them, I do the same thing. With a new camper it takes a full season to get settled in. What I do in the summer season when I don't camp is I pull EVERYTHING out of the camper and then do a reality check and put only the stuff back in that I used (except for safety and repair items which is a good thing not to have to use those). I had loads of stuff I thought I would use but just ended up taking space. Certain, utensils, some fun stuff, some pots and pans, electric burner GONE! Like your skillet I love my griddle! There is simply nothing as good as waking up and making some bacon and eggs with the percolator poppin and the birds waking up. Man I am ready for it to cool off.
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby working on it » Thu Sep 20, 2018 12:14 am

John61CT wrote:eponysterical

tip - whitespace, short paragraphs

few of us short-attention folk will parse a wall o' text like that

featherliteCT1 wrote:I agree the text is hard to read ... but good substantive content!

Thank you for your support!

Sorry if my posts are hard to read, frequently rambling and tangential in format, and usually contain content that may be too detailed, or just TMI for most people to truly understand; but they're meant to be free admissions of concerns I have about my trailer, and my camping experiences using same, and the how and why I create items and situations that sometimes (oftentimes) end up unfavorable.

I once possessed some writing skills, and experience in composition in HS, college, and in the workplace, but they have devolved into a combination of stream of consciousness narration + story flow-charting, with a smidgen of self-denigration thrown in (how better to evoke sympathetic responses from the audience, and to solicit suggestions?). But, instead, I more often have received negative comments about my writing style and syntax errors, not the desired helpful suggestions concerning the subject matter.

Of course, my posts could be much harder to read, by being set in all caps, all huge letters, or by being careless with frequent typographical or spelling errors...or by being a functional illiterate, as some seem to be on the forum. I have never mentioned these faults in other members posts, prior to now, but I'm sure the grammar/syntax cops have.

Parse away, my friends, especially if you're a writing professional, or educator, but also try to understand the content. Much of it is shared to educate others on how not to do things, using my mistakes as a cautionary tale to advise others. All responses are appreciated, if only to correct my errant ways. As usual, I'll be "working on it".
2013 HHRv "squareback/squaredrop", rugged, 4x8 TTT, 2225 lbs
  • *3500 lb Dexter EZ-Lube braked axle, 3000 lb.springs, active-progressive bumpstop suspension
  • *27 x 8.5-14LT AT tires (x 3) *Weight Distribution system for single-beam tongue
  • *100% LED's & GFCI outlets, 3x fans, AM/FM/CD/Aux. *A/C & heat, Optima AGM, inverter & charger(s)
  • *extended-run, on-board, 2500w generator *Coleman dual-fuel stove & lantern, Ikea grill, vintage skillet
  • *zinc/stainless front & side racks *98"L x 6" diameter rod & reel carrier tube on roof
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby crttaz » Thu Sep 20, 2018 12:53 am

Your first post and my ADD want to have a fist fight, the second post, better, JMHO.

And yes my posts can ramble and jump around. I'll go back the next day to re read and go WTF???

Oh yeah..... :beer:
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby Tom&Shelly » Thu Sep 20, 2018 6:15 am

working on it wrote:Sorry if my posts are hard to read, ... try to understand the content. Much of it is shared to educate others on how not to do things, using my mistakes as a cautionary tale to advise others. All responses are appreciated, if only to correct my errant ways. As usual, I'll be "working on it".


Shelly and I appreciate your comments! When you cover a topic I want/need to learn more about, I'll parse your sentences and add white space! :)

Tom
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby swoody126 » Thu Sep 20, 2018 7:03 am

WIP, when carefully reading/re-reading your posts ;-) i find your intended information present

the notes about knot only taking the kitchen sink butt also hauling a back up are well taken

being one who has an F-350 super-duty long bed... i also find myself dragging way too much stuff along w/ me on many if knot most of my adventures

howsumever others usually know who to ask 1st when they find they forgot something or broke something

the tongue weight of your trailer did amaze me

most of the trailers i build(mostly boat & utility) have an undercarriage mounted to an angle iron slider that can be relocated as needed once a few trips are under my belt(currently using this method on a boat trailer)

got the sliding undercarriage idea from Dilly boat trailer company way back in the late 60's when they were building the "one size fits all" style traiers

most boat trailers today are specifically built/fit to one boat w/ no accommodations for trimming the load/tongue weight and that's the style so many folks see so they think that's the way to do it...

most utility trailers on the market today have fixed undercarriages as well furthering the reasoning as to why so many individual builds turn out the way your tongue heavy unit has

yes door placement has a lot to do w/ balance butt there is some wiggle room yet

as we visited last weekend i saw many cool ideas and a lot of maximizing of "available resources" ;-)

a BUILD is seldom finished to perfection whether it be a tear a home a boat...

KEEP ON KEEPIN' ON

sw
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby working on it » Thu Sep 20, 2018 8:43 am

2bits wrote:...Wow the weight overall and tongue weight still shocks me....
Shocks me too, but I purposely built it like a tank, and every modification I've made involved adding either more structure or frame reinforcement, and/or heavier-duty, beefed-up parts. And, perhaps my weight calculations are a bit off?

I've relied on Angib's weight & balance calculator from the start of the build, with the embedded formulae extended to cover any and all added weights (most items actually weighed, some estimated) located at the correct distance from the rear (the common measurement locus) down to the nearest fraction of an inch, wherever possible. Larger items have their location noted at their center mass point, or where the mass vectors (not truly a vector, since momentum isn't a factor, but I see it as such) to the frame.

I've done 70+ versions of the balance sheet, even using it for calculating center of gravity (highly modified), and trust the results to be at least ballpark accurate. I haven't actually weighed the trailer but twice: as a rolling chassis (with floor & fenders) @ exactly 400 lbs, and as first completed (dry weight, w/o clothes, campsite gear, food & pantry gear aboard) @ 1280 lbs (1438 lbs loaded, with the loadout actually weighed for the first camping trip). Each time I moved or replaced a component since then, I've made an effort to correct the balance sheet.

There has been one notable error, though, between true and calculated weights. When I had the trailer ready to go weigh, the battery was still mounted in the galley, with only the spare tire mounted on the front wall, before I had found a tonguebox I liked (a loaded tonguebox was crucial, in my plans, to properly balance the trailer, since my axle was forward of the magic 60 % front/40% rear line). Without any tonguebox, I had calculated a tongue weight of only 40 lbs, but upon repeated use of scales for a true weight (I tried two methods, twice each), I found it to be exactly zero lbs. Whereupon I moved my Optima battery, and spare parts, tools, nuts & bolts forward into a metal Husky diamondplate toolbox, until I could find a larger one that I liked. At least now, I had some weight up there.

I weighed the tongue once more, much later, after the larger tonguebox (with considerable heavy gear loaded inside it) had been installed, using a crude dowel-upon-scale (stuck vertically into the coupler), and that weight was within 10% of the calculated weight, so I was pleased with the relative accuracy at that time. I don't remember exactly when I did so, but it was around the time I decided to start moving some items from inside the cabin to the bed of my truck (I carried two Aquatainers inside the cabin, or a full cooler, for added tongue weight). I believe the TW was in the 175 lb range?

Now, with the addition of front racks, with canopies & pantry box moved to them, and a scissor jack hanging from the tongue, I no longer need any cabin cargo for added TW; I can no longer lift the tongue without help, so I added the scissor jack/standard tongue jack (with bolted-on jockey wheel) combination, so that I can move it by myself. Maybe one day, I'll actually weigh the trailer again, especially if I downsize my tow vehicle, or the state mandates it. But not today.
2013 HHRv "squareback/squaredrop", rugged, 4x8 TTT, 2225 lbs
  • *3500 lb Dexter EZ-Lube braked axle, 3000 lb.springs, active-progressive bumpstop suspension
  • *27 x 8.5-14LT AT tires (x 3) *Weight Distribution system for single-beam tongue
  • *100% LED's & GFCI outlets, 3x fans, AM/FM/CD/Aux. *A/C & heat, Optima AGM, inverter & charger(s)
  • *extended-run, on-board, 2500w generator *Coleman dual-fuel stove & lantern, Ikea grill, vintage skillet
  • *zinc/stainless front & side racks *98"L x 6" diameter rod & reel carrier tube on roof
173193172890148599
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby featherliteCT1 » Thu Sep 20, 2018 7:29 pm

I live in a farming community where there are two farm cooperatives, within a mile of each other, both of which have drive up scales to weigh semi sized trailers loaded with grain and/or fertilizer. There is a window next to the exterior scale looking into the office building that issues the weigh tickets. The readout inside the building is digital that has easy to read illuminated numbers that can easily be seen as you sit in your vehicle.

When the coop is closed at night, I can drive onto the scales with my truck and trailer, look into the window without getting out of my truck, and see the illuminated readout showing the weight. The scale operates 24/7. Pretty convenient and quick. The manager of one of the co-ops has no problem with me doing this after hours.

I tell all of this in case you might also have a scale nearby that has a scale that reads out 24/7.
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Re: post-trip modifications: ad infinitum et ad hoc

Postby working on it » Fri Sep 21, 2018 10:30 am

* Not concerned about the true weight...my truck has no problem with 2k+ lbs (capable of towing 10k+), my other truck can haul 8k+, and any future SUV will be capable of 3500 lbs towing or more (5k probably). Plus, adding the jockey wheel & scissor jack solved the driveway turn-around problem, and since the heavy tongue weight poses no problem anymore, I'm not in any hurry to re-weigh it.

* If I do choose to re-weigh it, there's a metal sales and recycling company about 5 miles from my house, where I weighed it in the first place after initial completion (@ 1280 lbs) for free. Coincidentally, I weighed the rolling chassis (@ 400 lbs), just after I installed the deck, at another metal recycler for free, but that one is 60 miles distant. Both places were certified, and printed out a legal weight ticket (which I didn't need, as my trailer was already registered as a cargo/utility, not an RV).

* Though my TTT is heavy, it doesn't look like it's as heavy as it is, so if I'm ever pulled over, they probably won't think anything of it. Besides, Texas seems to only care about larger, heavier trailers, of 4000 lbs or more, requiring yearly inspections now. There's no chance in hell that the squareback will ever approach that weight.

* Since my future plans call for reducing the amount of (excess) cooking gear/supplies I carry along on trips, especially duplicate canned food items, ditching the enamelware pots & pans I've seldom used, leaving my cast iron skillets at home (an unforgivable sin, I know!), and using the electric skillet and an aluminum Ikea Grilla skillet (over the Coleman stove...that stays!) for everything, I should be able to lighten the pantry box by half, to <40lbs. That weight rides over the tongue, so it's a start, at least, for a weight reduction/hold-fast-at-present-weight program for my TTT.

* As I peruse my idea list, I seem to be adding more items, but this time, I'll try to make sure that they'll not add to the total weight of the trailer, and be either a welcome addition contributing to trailer comfort, safety, and ease-of-use, or not added at all...no more trying failed experiments over again, expecting different results.
2013 HHRv "squareback/squaredrop", rugged, 4x8 TTT, 2225 lbs
  • *3500 lb Dexter EZ-Lube braked axle, 3000 lb.springs, active-progressive bumpstop suspension
  • *27 x 8.5-14LT AT tires (x 3) *Weight Distribution system for single-beam tongue
  • *100% LED's & GFCI outlets, 3x fans, AM/FM/CD/Aux. *A/C & heat, Optima AGM, inverter & charger(s)
  • *extended-run, on-board, 2500w generator *Coleman dual-fuel stove & lantern, Ikea grill, vintage skillet
  • *zinc/stainless front & side racks *98"L x 6" diameter rod & reel carrier tube on roof
173193172890148599
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