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(posted in fifthwheel thread meant to be in toyhauler so now it is in both)
Have been trying to decide what to do with my hitch.
Decided to give it a go loosely following the Reese Goosebox design minus all the moving parts.
The old adapter that came with the camper was 12" from the fifth wheel plate to the top of the gooseneck ball. The new piece I made is 5-1/2" from the fifth wheel plate to the top of the gooseneck ball. Yes I still have a lever arm but it is less than half the length it was. Also it will be bolted to the camper in the middle set of holes so if you were to compare to the stock pinbox the ball is only 3-1/2" lower than the lowest stock pin location.
I poked around under the skin of the camper and all the framework looks good.
For future plans I am thinking about adding onto the entire front framework under the bedroom of the fifthwheel making the frame stronger and adding additional storage accessed from the outside. Not sure how tall I will be able to do, will need to verify clearances to the flatbed. As long as the compartment doors will be 6" tall it will be useable.
First trip out with the new hitch. Greased up the 2 zerks and put a bunch on the ball. Super easy to line up and couple. No problems and my measurements worked out just like I wanted. The pinbox is in the middle holes so it can go up or down 2". Went to a fancy campground with level paved parking spots. That was a first for me. Backed in and everything was nice and level. Never unhooked, just ran the landing gear down for some stability. The camper is 6" lower in the front than it was before when hooked up to the truck. looks like my additional storage plan will not work, but I am very happy with how everything is coming along.
Finished the Stongarms finally today. Crossmember painted, installed, and arms remounted. Looks much more appealing now.
Water filter also showed up. Made some brackets and hung it on the frame. Tucks up pretty good. If road debris gets it, that means the black outlet already got cleaned off and i have bigger issues so ill take my chances. Ordered a few more 90's to hook it up and a short hose to connect it to the inlet on the trailer.
Everything is back apart and painted. Pretty easy mod. Will sanitize the trailer and see how the water tastes now.
Water filters were far too floppy for my taste. Made another bracket to support the other side tonight. Rock solid now. Paint will have to wait as I have too much to do before Friday.
Are you worried at all of road debris (rock or something) hitting those and possible cracking or putting a hole in one? Or does it only look from the angle of the pic that they look like they sit low.
Are you worried at all of road debris (rock or something) hitting those and possible cracking or putting a hole in one? Or does it only look from the angle of the pic that they look like they sit low.
He has a monkey under there with a ball bat. The monkey will knock the rocks out of the way........
Are you worried at all of road debris (rock or something) hitting those and possible cracking or putting a hole in one? Or does it only look from the angle of the pic that they look like they sit low.
They look low in the pic, but really aren't that low. The parking spot is deceiving, as the front is cranked way up to get it level. They are higher than the strongarm rod and the stab jacks. Road debris coming off the tire would have to knock the black tank outlet off before it could get to the water filters. At that point I have bigger issues.
Heres a straight on pic of the water filters on flat ground.
Didn't measure but I'd say about 18-20" from the ground. Wife is happy with the taste of the water. I don't really drink much of it. I do feel the filters impede flow to an extent. It didnt make a difference i could tell in the shower with the Oxygenics head, but flow from the kitchen faucet seems a bit less. Overall it is workable.
Sanitizing the water system was a pain in the *** with a 100 gallon fresh tank, impatient wife and unhappy child though!
Got some mods done on the RV. Had a small water leak when pressure filling last month and took the access panel off to investigate. That got fixed under warranty, but every RV I've had that dumb panel comes off at least twice a year, and saw more dead space than usual. Decided to kill two birds with one stone.
View into storage from factory.
The dead space.
Much more useful space (sorry... crappy pic)
Access panel is now hinged, used magnetic latches to keep closed.
Already has saved me unscrewing it once, since the clowns at the dealer screwed up a pex fitting fixing the faulty valve. Which we only discovered since they put two of the valves ***** on backwards.
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