New Owner - a Few Trivial Questions

[Denny_A]

Hello from a NEW-NEWbie;

I picked up my 2002 2720SL five days ago. So far so...good?

As soon as I finish typing and laminating my checklist, things will go better. :-/ .

I have short questions about 2 trivial fitment items, and one about equalizer load sharing.

1) Upper entry door: When the door is opened the upper half often disengages from the lower. Trailer on jacks, absolutely level. The translucent plastic "thingy", which makes the halves a whole, seems rather ill-fitted/short. Presents a security issue as well. One could prise the door open easily with a bladed tool and walk right in ???! ANY IDEAS about curing both problems with a single fix?

2) Upper entry door (again): lower horizontal edge weather strip is 30% off/hanging. Is it best to glue it or replace with ordinary household wx stripping? If glue, what kind for bonding aluminum to foam?

3) Equalizer: If the equalizer hitch is set up properly, may I ASSUME that 2/3 of the hitch load is on the tow vehicle and 1/3 on the trailer. I.e.; if 510 # total, then approx 170# front wheels, 170# back wheels and 170# on the trailer wheels. I weighed my trailer, in cold-rain conditions, while connected to the tow vehicle. Since I didn't particularly relish disconnecting in the rain to get an accurate reading, I am looking for a correction factor to best guestimate the actual dry trailer weight.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.

I found this group 2 days AFTER purchase. Could have used the great info y'all have contributed. Oh, well. Life goes on. We're happy.

Cheers, and thanks to whomever reponds,


Denny_A

Denny,

Welcome to the forum!   I think you'll find we're only slightly biased in favor of our TMs!  

Regarding your door -- you didn't say if you'd checked that the lower door panels were seated completely in the clips.  Whenever I've noticed some door alignment problems, invariably the lower door half has crept out of the clip.  That'd be the easy solution!

I'm not sure the weight distribution hitch question is so straight forward.  Best way to tell would be to weigh your vehicle on some scales, then weight it with the trailer attached.   As for what is "proper" you best ask a dealer to set up the hitch on your tow vehicle the first time, unless you either have a sense of adventure and don't mind experimenting ( ) or already know what works for you.

The weight distributing bars are like wheelbarrow handles on the back of your tow vehicle.  A small fraction of the tongue weight goes back to the trailer axle -- the lifting force applied by the bar -- and a portion is transfered by the torque to the front axle of your tow vehicle, but most will stay on your rear axle.  I guess if you want to work out the physics, given the length of the weight bars, the distance from the hitch to your rear axle, the bars' spring constants and preloads, and the trailer and vehicle wheelbases, you could come up with some numbers...

 Hi Denny,

My door fits together like yours does. Or, at least sounds like yours. I don't have a fix tho. I really never worried about it. Maybe I'm just too trusting. I did learn that when I open my door on a windy day, to be sure to hold the top half,,,,, the wind will pull it right off the bottom half if you just hold the door knob.

About an equalizing hitch,,,, I was always taught to just measure your truck at all four corners or wheel-wells, and adjust the hitch so that all four corners drop the same amount. If you simply cannot get it all equal, let the back drop a little more than the front. But really try to keep it equal. (My truck drops 3/4 inch in back,,, 1/2 inch up front, measured at the wheel-wells). Never, ever, let the front drop more than the back. I was taught that there were too many variables to count on a certain percentage of weight. You usually will transfer more trailer weight to a lightly-sprung truck than a stiffly-sprung one. (you will have to angle your hitch head down, and/or draw you bars up more to keep the back of the truck from sagging).

Not saying that's the way it is,,,,, just that's what I was taught.

Sorry I can't be anymore help.

Mack

Like Jon, my first reaction to the door was that the pin might not have been completely inserted in the clip.  The door will go together without the pin inserted, but it may be a recipe for disaster.  The only way to be sure it’s in is to look at it closely every time.

I would be concerned about fixing the stripping with glue, and would recommend contacting the manufacturer.

We've been trying to measure the height of the hitch before hooking up and then after putting on the bars, and hoping for no less than a 1/2 inch difference.  What we've done to keep the trailer more or less balanced is to put most of the weight on or forward of the axle(s).  This is a quick and easy way and it has served us so far.  Perhaps, though, Mack's more scientific method is a better approach.

Just my 2 cents

F. J. & Ellen

[Denny_A]

Appreciate the responses from all of you.

Like Jon, my first reaction to the door was that the pin might not have been completely inserted in the clip. The door will go together without the pin inserted, but it may be a recipe for disaster. The only way to be sure it’s in is to look at it closely every time.

I would be concerned about fixing the stripping with glue, and would recommend contacting the manufacturer.

We've been trying to measure the height of the hitch before hooking up and then after putting on the bars, and hoping for no less than a 1/2 inch difference. What we've done to keep the trailer more or less balanced is to put most of the weight on or forward of the axle(s). This is a quick and easy way and it has served us so far. Perhaps, though, >Mack's more scientific method is a better approach.

Sorry I didn't specify - but I have been very careful about engaging the jam and door keeper pins. The issue is about a "seemingly" short plastic, pivoting zee clip. Doesn't seem as if it can provide real security, and the door separates easily when opening.

Hmmm.... you are probably right about the stripping!

Again, apologies to all of you - I should have specified that my equalizer was set up by the dealer, and the vehicle rides dead level. I weighed it on a commercial scale while attached to the tow car. It registered 2980 lbs. I was trying to account for the hitch down force and intuited it to be around 170 lbs of an estimated 500-520 lbs. This would, if in the "ballpark", mean the trailer dry weight to be approx. 2800 lbs.

My 2002 2720 has all options but the elect. tongue jack and microwave and swing-around hitch. Maybe someone has the numbers readily available(?).

Denny, Eh!

Regarding the door coming apart...are the top and bottom door hinges aligned when the camper is open? If not, that might be causing the door halves to come undone when the door opens.
I think the manual says to open the door(s) fully before engaging the plastic thingy which the books calls a `white turn button'.
When all else fails drive by the dealer and let him look at the problem.

Dick_B

our door used to slide apart, too. being a blonde, i came up with a SIMPLE solution--at least, a solution in that i don't have to grab the top of door anymore as it swings apart. now, i can relax until somebody smarter than me figures out the root problem(hopefully either my husband when tax season is over, or, the great dealer in colorado springs,CO--also AFTER tax season!).  my "solution" is, i took one of those wooden paint store paint mixers that look like unpainted rulers--and drilled a hole in it,sawed it off to make it longer than the white thingy, and replaced the white thing. you can paint the wood white--and it works great! door never separates now enough to come apart, and it closes back like a charm. hope this helps  : sally

[Denny_A]

Sally; thanks for your input.

I just finished my mod today. 8)

Purchased a brass-finished "corner iron". Very thick - very strong. The pre-drilled holes are the same size as that on the plastic tab. Hacked it off about 1/4" longer than the original tab, beveled the edges facing the door and - Viola (as my Mrs. Malprop friend would say), all fixed. Works fine.

For extra tamperproofing, I might reattach the white tab immediately next to it, on the hinge side of the new tab, so that it can't be forced sideways from the outside (thus releasing the upper door) with a knife or screwdriver blade.

I'm not paranoid, even if everyone is out to get me!


Denny_A