Bumper Mod

First topic message reminder :

A friend and I added more storage to the WC the other morning. He is a pretty good fabricator and did most of the work (I held stuff for him, got his coffee, etc.) The new storage tray can be adjusted in or out from the WC, depending on what you are hauling. This one was made to pull out far enough to load a motorcycle, if needed. Here is the finished product:



To start, a pair of receiver hitches were welded to the rear frame members...



The square tubing was inserted and bolted to the receivers. A standard receiver bolt and clevis pin would have worked in place of the bolts.



The storage tray was then welded to the basket. The left side of the tray was notched to fit the axle of my generator, and a cross bar was also welded to allow the generator to sit level. Pieces of chain link were welded around the tray for strapping attachment points...



The DW didn't see the point of the whole project until she saw the final results. And now she loves it.





I still have to move the license plate up, as it is blocked by the generator

Mopar_Earl wrote:

Freedom1955 wrote:I'm pretty sure Forest River says your not supposed to pull with water in the fresh water tank.
Probably why people have trouble with the sagging fresh water tank.

Never heard that before on any brand RV.

What good would a self contained RV be, if you couldn't haul water? I wouldn't own any RV that you couldn't haul/drive it with water in the fresh water tank and or the holding tanks. 99% of my camping is no water hook-up camping, so my water tank is always full.


Earl

My dealer told me carrying water on-the-road in the tank is a NO-NO, because the straps holding the tank are only meant to support an empty tank on highways.

My tank didn't only SAG, the straps (paper thin 26ga sheet-metal straps 3/4" wide) BROKE and the only thing holding the tank in was the corrugated plastic belly liner, which was bulging downward and tearing.

I built a welded "H" frame under the tank bolted to the trailer frame, but won't tow with any waste in the tanks. The dealer said the tanks are for HOLDING waste, not TOWING it around, so ALWAYS dump before leaving the CG.

After seeing how the fresh water tank was factory-installed, I now BELIEVE the dealer (who got this from Forest River).

Bob

bobinyelm wrote: I built a welded "H" frame under the tank bolted to the trailer frame, but won't tow with any waste in the tanks. The dealer said the tanks are for HOLDING waste, not TOWING it around, so ALWAYS dump before leaving the CG.

After seeing how the fresh water tank was factory-installed, I now BELIEVE the dealer (who got this from Forest River).

Bob

That is interesting how they assume everyone uses campgrounds with hookups. I have no choice except to take my water with me and drive back to a dump facility. The fresh water tank mounting system was junk, I have fixed that but never looked at the holding tanks.

I agree with Earl:

Mopar_Earl wrote:

Freedom1955 wrote:I'm pretty sure Forest River says your not supposed to pull with water in the fresh water tank.
Probably why people have trouble with the sagging fresh water tank.

Never heard that before on any brand RV. Is that something your dealer told you in error? The tank sags as soon as you put water in it, even when your parked. I fill my water tank for every trip and once the tank was supported, I've never had an issue since. It's just classic cutting corners to save a buck is why Forest River doesn't support the bottom of the water tank. If it was hard plastic like the waste tanks, it be ok. But they use a very soft plastic water tank that needs to be fully supported on the entire bottom.

What good would a self contained RV be, if you couldn't haul water? I wouldn't own any RV that you couldn't haul/drive it with water in the fresh water tank and or the holding tanks. 99% of my camping is no water hook-up camping, so my water tank is always full.


Earl

I'd like to hear Forest River comment on this; I seriously doubt this limitation is factual.

New wildcat brochure is pushing dry camping. How would you dry camp with out using your tanks? I still stand by my 1st statement, I would have no use at all for any rv that couldn't carry water or waste in the tanks.


Earl