First trip with out 3326

Well we took our TM for its first outing Saturday. Our Tacoma Prerunner certainly knew it was dragging something, but it had little problem getting down the road or up the few hills along the way.

The trailer was 100% except for the oven. We never could get the pilot to light. Everything else was just fine.

As far as handling went, it was only about a 30 mile trip along Interstates. The blast off of 18 wheelers were largely unnoticed. We had a short gravel road to navigate and again it was no problem.

When we setup on the skeet range, everyone stopped by to watch us set upthe 3326. I got to say lifting the half with the a/c unit on top was a bit of a chore but doable. Its a lot easier if two people are doing the tugging.

The best advice I have, is encourage less gawking until you have done this a few times. I had to open the trailer twice today because I left the WDH pry bar in the tail of the TM!

The TM did quite well. It was a really cool night, and the gas heater kept the trailer quite toasty. The couch and dinette were wonderful as we watched "Dead Man's Walk" while Sue graded papers and the dogs picked out there own places to bed down in the trailer.

When we went to bed, Lady, our mixed breed, found the bed so comfortable she decided to pick a corner out on the bed for her napping spot. That king bed is really nice and spacious. It is also nice not to have to crawl over each other to get up in the middle of the night.

Sunday morning was beautiful. I went over to the cowboy range and met some other members enjoying the fine morning. We shot at steel targets and cleared the snake pit (pieces of garden hose in a sand box) and later watched hawks soar over the range.

Hooking the trailer back up went just fine as did the tow home. The hardest thing was backing the 3326 into the driveway. I got a few pointers from the long haul trucker across the street and got the TM tied down in the driveway.

It is a lovely machine.

Thanks to all that helped me get here...

Nathan & Susan

Originally Posted by ng2951

Well we took our TM for its first outing Saturday. Our Tacoma Prerunner certainly knew it was dragging something, but it had little problem getting down the road or up the few hills along the way.

The trailer was 100% except for the oven. We never could get the pilot to light. Everything else was just fine.

When we setup on the skeet range, everyone stopped by to watch us set upthe 3326. I got to say lifting the half with the a/c unit on top was a bit of a chore but doable. Its a lot easier if two people are doing the tugging.

I had to open the trailer twice today because I left the WDH pry bar in the tail of the TM!

It is a lovely machine.

Thanks to all that helped me get here...

Nathan & Susan

Congratulations on your successful maiden voyage!!

About the oven pilot: You don't have listed the year of your TM, but if it is an older unit like ours (2003), sometimes the safety valve near the back of the oven quits working, preventing the pilot from lighting. We had a local (non-TM) dealer fix ours, but it cost ~$100 for parts and labor.

Your front shell can be adjusted to open easier. Also, the weight in the front cabinets, and whether the TM is level is a biggie. If you have a slightly tongue down attitude on the TM, the shell opens much easier, even if the front cabinets are weighed down too much for the current torsion bar adjustment.

And about leaving the pry bar in the tail section: If you are referring to the bumper storage area on older TMs, you can get into this area by "cheating" a couple of ways. Sometimes you can release the corner latches on the back shell to loosen up the aluminum diamond plate enough to remove it. Another method is to place the diamond plate under the front tab instead of over top of it (like it should be), making it easier to pull out from under the back shell.

Many Happy Camping Trips, Chap

[Bill]

Sounds like a grand first trip. Congratulations!

Re the oven pilot. You may have known this, but before lighting anything else (water heater, refrig, oven, etc), it is helpful to light the front burner of the stove top. That gets the air out of most of the gas lines, and makes lighting the other things a bit quicker.

Bill

Well I got the oven to light finally. The previous owner told me to turn the knob a little more to left and push. Worked like a champ.

[Travler]

Originally Posted by ng2951

Well I got the oven to light finally. The previous owner told me to turn the knob a little more to left and push. Worked like a champ.

Congrats and welcome to the family

[CAmark]

Here's hoping all your problems get resolved so easily....welcome.

Congrats!! We enjoy our 3326 also.