R-pod Owners Forum Homepage

This site is free to use.
Donations benefit a non-profit Girls Softball organization

Forum Home Forum Home > R-pod Discussion Forums > Miscellaneous / Off-topic
  New Posts New Posts RSS Feed: Aggravations
  FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Calendar   Register Register  Login Login

Topic ClosedAggravations

 Post Reply Post Reply Page  <1 23456 7>
Author
Message
StephenH View Drop Down
podders Helping podders - pHp
podders Helping podders - pHp
Avatar

Joined: 29 Nov 2015
Location: Wake Forest, NC
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 6288
Direct Link To This Post Topic: Aggravations
    Posted: 05 Oct 2020 at 10:14pm
Originally posted by offgrid

Originally posted by StephenH

Originally posted by offgrid

Re FR actually weighing the trailers, I'm quite certain mine was not. My sticker weight numbers are identical to the published ones, the likelihood of that happening is near zero, and I've never been able to account for about 150 lbs of weight when I've compared my actual weight to published numbers.


I was at the factory and saw them weighing the trailer in order to generate the sticker. I stand behind my comment as being accurate.

So, you saw them weigh your trailer. I am not challenging that. Extrapolating from there to the statement that FR weighs ALL trailers is what I challenge. How could you know that? I'll stand by my statement that it is extremely unlikely that my trailer sticker represents its actual weight. 

I did not see them weigh my trailer. I saw the station where the final checks are done. I was told that every trailer is weighed. That is where the weight on the sticker comes from. That is why there is a variation in the weights people have posted. Some may have the same weight. Others may vary. Ours was 2770 lbs. Loaded weight is, of course, much more.
StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
Former RPod 179
Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS
Back to Top
offgrid View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 23 Jul 2018
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5290
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 8:11am
FR also says their trailers have the best construction in the business.Tongue

I don't believe they weighed mine, because the weight on the sticker is exactly the weight listed in their brochure with the options the trailer came with. That means that the actual weight matched the predicted weight to within about 0.03%. Extremely unlikely. 

Maybe their scale was down the day that my trailer came off the line and their default procedure under that condition is to put the standard weight sticker on the trailer. That kind of thing is very common in industrial manufacturing.

I tried to work backward from my actual weight to the listed empty weight and couldn't do it, my trailer is heavier by about 150 lbs than I can account for. The 150 lb number (5%) is a pretty reasonable weight variation to expect on something mostly constructed out of wood and fiberglass sheeting.  

Either of us could be wrong, or right. We just don't have sufficient information to know. 


1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold
Back to Top
StephenH View Drop Down
podders Helping podders - pHp
podders Helping podders - pHp
Avatar

Joined: 29 Nov 2015
Location: Wake Forest, NC
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 6288
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 9:20am
It really isn't worth arguing about. In any case the real thing to remember is that sticker weight is not what will actually be towed once everything needed is loaded.
StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
Former RPod 179
Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS
Back to Top
offgrid View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 23 Jul 2018
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5290
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 12:47pm
Originally posted by StephenH

It really isn't worth arguing about. In any case the real thing to remember is that sticker weight is not what will actually be towed once everything needed is loaded.

+1. And the only way to really know that is to load up and get an actual weight at a public scale.
1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold
Back to Top
pedwards2932 View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 21 Sep 2020
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 337
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 5:35pm
Well I got weighed and I am OK not a lot of room....about 150 lbs.  From my estimates it seemed a bit high.  I had noticed the black water tank guage read full but I figured it was misreading.  I checked with a flashlight and dip stick and it was empty.  Went to my gray water tank and found about 10 gals (80 lbs).  I went thru things we had on the camper we didn't need and found another 80 lbs.  I feel like I have enough room to work with.  The reason I am working so hard with this is we have never been campers and are not sure if this is what we want to do.  To be honest with all the cost, we weren't sure it wouldn't be cheaper to just stay in motels.  So before I shell out the bucks it takes to get a new TV I want to make sure it is something we want to do long term.  If we decide this is are type of lifestyle then I will sell the Escape and look for another TV.  Trading it in doesn't seem to make sense.....to much loss.
Back to Top
MoPod View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: 10 Oct 2013
Location: Pittsville, MO
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 105
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 6:43pm
Originally posted by pedwards2932

  To be honest with all the cost, we weren't sure it wouldn't be cheaper to just stay in motels.

Sometimes I think folks acquire an RV because it will be a cheap way to travel.  I have found that it is not necessarily cheaper than traveling by car and staying in a hotel or motel.  In fact I have stayed in a motel with my RPod parked in the motel lot when I was trying to cover a lot of miles and didn't want to take time to set up and take down the trailer.  There are many cost in addition to the purchase of your RV.  As was discussed here many of us have had to upgrade our everyday ride to comfortably tow my Pod.  There is the additional cost for fuel, additional time on the road to tow at a lower speed, additional cost for campsites, additional time to setup and take down and then all the specialized stuff we buy for our camper.

That said, I have "camped" or "RVed" for many years.  I like being out in nature.  I like being able to be right by the natural attraction in a state or national campground.  I like being in my own bed, with my own sheets and pillows, a shower only my family uses, and a mattress that I've selected to suit me.  I like getting up on the morning with my dog going for a walk and visiting with other RVers all while dressed in my pajamas and no one thinking a thing about it.  How often do you visit with your neighbors while staying in a hotel or motel?  I'd like to think I'm saving money, but as an old accountant I know I'm not and I don't care.  I've drank the koolaid, I'm in it for the lifestyle.  
Bill & Nancy
2015 RPod 179
Previously 2010 RPod 176
2014 Explorer Sport
Back to Top
offgrid View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 23 Jul 2018
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5290
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 7:43pm
Just to understand was the 150lbs the headroom on the MCGWR? Or was it something else?

Doesn’t surprise me you are close, most folks would be overweight. I understand your reluctance to get a heavier tow vehicle considering that you aren’t sure camping is for you. Please be very careful towing with what you have and don’t let driving the marginal TV effect your decision about camping vs staying in hotels. A heavier TV would make the driving part much more enjoyable.

I do agree that this is more a lifestyle decision than a financial one. When I want to minimize cost traveling long distance I drive my Prius and we stay in La Quintas (pet friendly inexpensive motels). The rpod stays at home. The difference in fuel burn alone pretty much pays for the hotel room on a 600 mile drive even assuming zero cost for camping. When we want to camp at our destination we take the rpod, and sometimes for convenience park it at the La Quinta for a night on the road and get a hotel room.

1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold
Back to Top
pedwards2932 View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 21 Sep 2020
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 337
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Oct 2020 at 8:28pm
Headroom at weigh in: 50 lbs on trailer and extra 100 lbs on total weight.  I have lost an extra 120 lbs on trailer with water and unneeded items.  We are only taking short trips for now and short stays so we can easily stay under 100 lbs supplies.  I know if we decide this is for us then another TV is in the picture.  It really tows well for me.....I was in Virginia beach traffic on I64 with a lot of traffic no white knuckles but I ran 55 (which is the actual speed limit but nobody does it)  Still getting 15/16 mpg.
Back to Top
offgrid View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 23 Jul 2018
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5290
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Oct 2020 at 8:16am
Originally posted by pedwards2932

Headroom at weigh in: 50 lbs on trailer and extra 100 lbs on total weight.  I have lost an extra 120 lbs on trailer with water and unneeded items.  We are only taking short trips for now and short stays so we can easily stay under 100 lbs supplies.  I know if we decide this is for us then another TV is in the picture.  It really tows well for me.....I was in Virginia beach traffic on I64 with a lot of traffic no white knuckles but I ran 55 (which is the actual speed limit but nobody does it)  Still getting 15/16 mpg.

When you say 50 lbs on the trailer do you mean the trailer weighed in at 3450 lbs? And 100 total means the combined rig weighed in at 100 lbs under the MCGVWR on your driver's door sticker? Don't forget passengers, fuel, and your weight distribution hitch in your calculations. 

As far as fuel economy is concerned you would get pretty much the same fuel burn with a heavier tow vehicle under the same conditions. We all do. Those that report worse fuel economy are driving faster, hitting a headwind, or are climbing hills or mountains. I drive at 60 and get 14 mpg on flat ground with no wind. I would get about 15.5 at 55. 

Why? Because air drag on the trailer is the dominant hp demand when towing on flat ground. That drag doesn't change with the size of your TV, because the trailer frontal area is always larger than the tow vehicle's,  but it goes up really fast with speed (its proportional to the square of the air speed). Most all modern engines have similar efficiency, they have to or that manufacturer would go out of business. So the only thing that really changes with a heavier TV is rolling resistance (which is proportional to total rig weight) but that is a small effect. 

You will feel like the towing is going fine....until its not. That will be in bad weather or in the mountains or when you have to make a sudden lane change.  I know I64 in the Norfolk area very well. I used to live on the Outer Banks. You get to go over one of the few bridges in the country where you have to stop and prove your propane tank is shut off. Those bridges can get really scary when there is a blow creating a cross wind, its best to stay off them towing when there is a nor'easter or tropical storm. 
1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold
Back to Top
pedwards2932 View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: 21 Sep 2020
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 337
Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Oct 2020 at 9:49am
Yes trailer was at 3450 and I weighed the water and removed stuff so I should be at 3330.  I was including passengers in combined and I had about 100 and that won't change.
I am very familiar with the bridges as I used to commute across the HRBT.  We are going to the Eastern shore next week so I will keep a check on conditions before leaving. I thiink on the Chesapeake Bay bridge you don't pull off you just tell the toll person the propane is shut off.  We are going to Cape Charles so it is only about an hour or so trip.
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply Page  <1 23456 7>

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down

Bulletin Board Software by Web Wiz Forums® version 9.64
Copyright ©2001-2009 Web Wiz