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05-23-2018, 02:07 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: South Texas
Posts: 7,198
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New Greyhawk 29MV!
Well, I finally got a pic, so I figured I would officially "announce" the new rig. A few weeks ago, we traded in the Jayflight 28BHBE on a Greyhawk 29MV!
The pic is my son and I in front of the new rig, all loaded out for the maiden voyage. Our "Toad" on this trip was our 1994 Jeep Wrangler (YJ), and it did just fine. Except for one hiccup at the beginning of the voyage; I didn't actually have it in neutral because I didn't verify it was so before we took off. I stopped a few miles down the road and fixed it. I didn't have a chance to wire in the lights before we left, so I used my set of magnetic ones. On the way home the wire pulled out and the plug ripped off. It's okay, I'll just hard-wire it like I had planned. Last weekend, I traded in my Ram 2500 on a Jeep Grand Cherokee WK2 (which I absolutely LOVE; shhh, don't tell my wife!) and I'll be amassing the parts and knowledge I need to set it up to be our primary toad in the future. The YJ is great and all, but with no AC and 100+ degree weather for a majority of our traveling window, it's not so much fun; the GC will be a much nicer toad for us, and it has a low-range 4-wd transfer case, so I can still get dirty if I want to.
The MH did just fine except for a few hiccups there too. It needs an alignment ... BAD. The tires need to be balanced, and the Helwig helpers on the rear need to be adjusted. Once I get those few issues straightened out, I'm sure it will drive A LOT better. I finally found a place that can do the alignment near my home (or near enough anyway) and will get that done this week along with the balancing. The Helwigs are another matter completely. I have lots of "large" tools, and I'm relatively handy, so it should've been an easy adjustment. I fought with the first jam nut for hours, finally put a torch on it and was able to get it to move after an inordinate amount of impact gun activity. Then I went after the adjustment nut, and couldn't get it to budge. I took it to a diesel mechanic friend of mine (he has LOTS of REALLY big tools) and had him take a look at it the day before we were leaving. Turns out the threads on the U-bolt got fouled up somehow (probably because some jack-wagon jammed the jam nut up into the adjustment nut with an unfettered impact gun and stretched the U-bolt out; that would explain why I couldn't get the jam nut off ). Anyway, I'm going to either get another set of U-bolts myself, or have him fab some for me and just let him cut them all off and replace them. We left it alone so we could make our trip the next day.
I put valve extenders on the outside duallies so I could get air in them and check the pressure using the stuff I had currently available, and one of them leaked. So at the end of the trip when I lowered the MH off the jacks, I had a flat tire. Not a big deal, I carry a pump, so I aired it back up and took off the extender.
We have an intermittent fan problem in the bathroom. I think it's the switch. I'll take a look at it some day, but my plan is to put a better vent fan in anyway, so I'm not too worried about that one.
I went ahead and deleted the safety feature that disconnects the 110V outlet in the cabover so the boy can watch his movies in transit. This MH has the Garmin head unit. It's great as a navigation head unit, but it also controls all of the audio in the coach, and it's kind of clunky at that role IMO. Again, I'm getting used to it as we go... If anyone has any pearls of wisdom or tricks to use when operating that particular piece of tech, I'd love to hear them.
SUPER glad we took the advice of many here on the forum and got 2 AC units. It was pretty hot that weekend, but we stayed nice and cool. One problem is the skylight in the living area. That thing puts off SO MUCH heat. Luckily I have a good amount of Reflectix in the garage at home and I'm already working on a "plug" for that hole.
All in all, we had a good maiden voyage and most systems worked as expected. We're still getting to know one-another, and the family is still getting used to a new process. After two or three more trips, we should have things settled into a routine of sorts and we'll have a lot more fun I'm sure.
__________________
-2018 Greyhawk 29MV
-2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (JLU) (Primary Toad)
-1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ (Secondary Toad)
-2014 Jay Flight 28BHBE & Ram 2500 6.4L CC 4x4 (sold)
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05-23-2018, 02:59 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: South Texas
Posts: 7,198
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A couple other little issues:
1) The mirrors shake something fierce. I haven't really looked at them yet, but it's on my list. They're still functional, but they shake more than I think they should.
2) The Styrofoam around the water heater is rubbing on something and squeaks incessantly! Other than that, the MH is virtually dead quiet other than wind and road noise.
I'll be taking a look at these issues this weekend. Hopefully I can get them sorted out in short order.
__________________
-2018 Greyhawk 29MV
-2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (JLU) (Primary Toad)
-1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ (Secondary Toad)
-2014 Jay Flight 28BHBE & Ram 2500 6.4L CC 4x4 (sold)
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05-23-2018, 03:45 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Kingman
Posts: 620
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Camper_bob
Well, I finally got a pic, so I figured I would officially "announce" the new rig. A few weeks ago, we traded in the Jayflight 28BHBE on a Greyhawk 29MV!
The pic is my son and I in front of the new rig, all loaded out for the maiden voyage. Our "Toad" on this trip was our 1994 Jeep Wrangler (YJ), and it did just fine. Except for one hiccup at the beginning of the voyage; I didn't actually have it in neutral because I didn't verify it was so before we took off. I stopped a few miles down the road and fixed it. I didn't have a chance to wire in the lights before we left, so I used my set of magnetic ones. On the way home the wire pulled out and the plug ripped off. It's okay, I'll just hard-wire it like I had planned. Last weekend, I traded in my Ram 2500 on a Jeep Grand Cherokee WK2 (which I absolutely LOVE; shhh, don't tell my wife!) and I'll be amassing the parts and knowledge I need to set it up to be our primary toad in the future. The YJ is great and all, but with no AC and 100+ degree weather for a majority of our traveling window, it's not so much fun; the GC will be a much nicer toad for us, and it has a low-range 4-wd transfer case, so I can still get dirty if I want to.
The MH did just fine except for a few hiccups there too. It needs an alignment ... BAD. The tires need to be balanced, and the Helwig helpers on the rear need to be adjusted. Once I get those few issues straightened out, I'm sure it will drive A LOT better. I finally found a place that can do the alignment near my home (or near enough anyway) and will get that done this week along with the balancing. The Helwigs are another matter completely. I have lots of "large" tools, and I'm relatively handy, so it should've been an easy adjustment. I fought with the first jam nut for hours, finally put a torch on it and was able to get it to move after an inordinate amount of impact gun activity. Then I went after the adjustment nut, and couldn't get it to budge. I took it to a diesel mechanic friend of mine (he has LOTS of REALLY big tools) and had him take a look at it the day before we were leaving. Turns out the threads on the U-bolt got fouled up somehow (probably because some jack-wagon jammed the jam nut up into the adjustment nut with an unfettered impact gun and stretched the U-bolt out; that would explain why I couldn't get the jam nut off ). Anyway, I'm going to either get another set of U-bolts myself, or have him fab some for me and just let him cut them all off and replace them. We left it alone so we could make our trip the next day.
I put valve extenders on the outside duallies so I could get air in them and check the pressure using the stuff I had currently available, and one of them leaked. So at the end of the trip when I lowered the MH off the jacks, I had a flat tire. Not a big deal, I carry a pump, so I aired it back up and took off the extender.
We have an intermittent fan problem in the bathroom. I think it's the switch. I'll take a look at it some day, but my plan is to put a better vent fan in anyway, so I'm not too worried about that one.
I went ahead and deleted the safety feature that disconnects the 110V outlet in the cabover so the boy can watch his movies in transit. This MH has the Garmin head unit. It's great as a navigation head unit, but it also controls all of the audio in the coach, and it's kind of clunky at that role IMO. Again, I'm getting used to it as we go... If anyone has any pearls of wisdom or tricks to use when operating that particular piece of tech, I'd love to hear them.
SUPER glad we took the advice of many here on the forum and got 2 AC units. It was pretty hot that weekend, but we stayed nice and cool. One problem is the skylight in the living area. That thing puts off SO MUCH heat. Luckily I have a good amount of Reflectix in the garage at home and I'm already working on a "plug" for that hole.
All in all, we had a good maiden voyage and most systems worked as expected. We're still getting to know one-another, and the family is still getting used to a new process. After two or three more trips, we should have things settled into a routine of sorts and we'll have a lot more fun I'm sure.
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Very nice ... glad you’re happy with your purchase. I have a 2017 GreyHawk 29 W and I love mine !!
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05-23-2018, 06:38 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: Granbury
Posts: 829
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You picked my favorite Greyhawk floorplan...
Sounds like your off to a great start! Happy Travels and many safe miles in your new 29MV!!
__________________
2018 Greyhawk 29MVP
2018 Jeep 4 Door Rubicon Recon
Retired and Under New Management (See Spouse For Details)
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05-23-2018, 06:45 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Duxbury
Posts: 7,113
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Congratulations!
__________________
Rob & Kelly, Bella & Brady (Miniature Schnauzers)
2022 Eagle HT 28.5RSTS
2017 RAM 3500 SRW CTD/AISIN CC LB
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05-23-2018, 06:55 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Southern Indiana
Posts: 3,198
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Congrats on the new unit Bob. Being knowledgeable and handy is invaluable with these units.
__________________
2012 Eagle 320 RLDS
2017 Ford F-250 FX4 Crew STX 6.2l
3.73 E-locker
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05-23-2018, 08:23 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Chicago Area
Posts: 238
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Congratulations from a fellow owner.
__________________
Jack
· · · · · · · · · · · ·
2018 Greyhawk 29MV
2017 Ford Edge w/Blue Ox Setup
To Yosemite... and Beyond!
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05-24-2018, 05:28 AM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2017
Location: Las Vegas
Posts: 1,355
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Congratulations on the Greyhawk!
__________________
John & Marcie
2017 Melbourne 24L
Las Vegas, Nevada
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05-24-2018, 07:48 AM
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#9
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: South Texas
Posts: 7,198
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Thanks guys!
We're pretty excited. We made a lot of great memories in the TT, so hopefully we'll ramp that up some with the ease and convenience of the MH.
Being handy is certainly high on my list of traits, and I totally agree that you must be at least somewhat handy (or at a minimum, willing to learn) to successfully own just about any kind of camper. Either that or have DEEP pockets and connections to good technicians. My pockets are pretty shallow, so I turn my own wrenches on just about everything. Even when I have lots of money some day, I'll still do as much as I can myself just because I like it!
__________________
-2018 Greyhawk 29MV
-2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (JLU) (Primary Toad)
-1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ (Secondary Toad)
-2014 Jay Flight 28BHBE & Ram 2500 6.4L CC 4x4 (sold)
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05-24-2018, 09:17 AM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: --
Posts: 2,392
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Camper_bob
A couple other little issues:
1) The mirrors shake something fierce. I haven't really looked at them yet, but it's on my list. They're still functional, but they shake more than I think they should.
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The mirrors take a hex key to loosen / tighten in order to adjust them. I wonder if your mirrors simply need to be tightened down?
__________________
2023 Ford F-150 XLT SCREW 3.5EB (Max Tow Pkg., Black Appearance Pkg., Bed Utility Pkg.)
1727 Payload / 4150 RAWR
On the sidelines taking it all in.
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05-24-2018, 10:20 AM
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#11
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Calgary
Posts: 236
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Camper bob wrote "It needs an alignment ... BAD"
Be careful of what you ask for, a normal E Series alignment will consist of a "tweak the toe and you are good to go".
What you really need is Ingalls 594 caster bushings installed AND the positive caster as high as you can get it with the 594s. Typically that works out to be at least RH +5.6 and LH +5.4 degrees.
Be careful, that is CASTER not CAMBER. If you say +5.6 Degrees "Camber" you will be totally discredited from any further consideration and give all RVers a bad reputation. IMO.
Ford ships these E350/E450 Cutaways off the assembly line
with +3 to +4 degrees of Caster. Those settings are
OK for city driving BUT you want to have +5 to +6 degrees
of Caster for highway driving, OTHERWISE:
POPULAR MECHANICS MAY 1973:
START QUOTE:
If too little caster exists, the car will wander and weave,
thus necessitating constant corrections in steering.
END QUOTE:
There are at least two ways to increase the effective
runtime caster:
1. Decrease the tire inflation pressure to the required
minimum for load (to increase Pneumatic Trail), and or
2. Increase the caster angle during an alignment
(to increase caster trail).
If you find an improvement in reducing the tire pressure
you will be amazed what it is to add +2 degrees of caster. IMO.
The specified range of Caster for the E350/E450 is
from +1.5 to +7.0 degrees. As you can see
almost any possible setting is "within spec"
for the "tweak the toe and you are good to go"
alignment services. Stay away from Ford
dealerships and have it done at a "good"
truck front end shop.
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05-24-2018, 04:20 PM
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#12
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: South Texas
Posts: 7,198
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Harvard
Camper bob wrote "It needs an alignment ... BAD"
Be careful of what you ask for, a normal E Series alignment will consist of a "tweak the toe and you are good to go".
What you really need is Ingalls 594 caster bushings installed AND the positive caster as high as you can get it with the 594s. Typically that works out to be at least RH +5.6 and LH +5.4 degrees.
Be careful, that is CASTER not CAMBER. If you say +5.6 Degrees "Camber" you will be totally discredited from any further consideration and give all RVers a bad reputation. IMO.
Ford ships these E350/E450 Cutaways off the assembly line
with +3 to +4 degrees of Caster. Those settings are
OK for city driving BUT you want to have +5 to +6 degrees
of Caster for highway driving, OTHERWISE:
POPULAR MECHANICS MAY 1973:
START QUOTE:
If too little caster exists, the car will wander and weave,
thus necessitating constant corrections in steering.
END QUOTE:
There are at least two ways to increase the effective
runtime caster:
1. Decrease the tire inflation pressure to the required
minimum for load (to increase Pneumatic Trail), and or
2. Increase the caster angle during an alignment
(to increase caster trail).
If you find an improvement in reducing the tire pressure
you will be amazed what it is to add +2 degrees of caster. IMO.
The specified range of Caster for the E350/E450 is
from +1.5 to +7.0 degrees. As you can see
almost any possible setting is "within spec"
for the "tweak the toe and you are good to go"
alignment services. Stay away from Ford
dealerships and have it done at a "good"
truck front end shop.
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Excellent! Thank you for the tips!
I'm not headed to the Ford dealership, I'm headed to a truck alignment shop that I was referred to by a client I tend trust with these matters. Would they have the Ingall's 594 bushings on hand?
__________________
-2018 Greyhawk 29MV
-2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (JLU) (Primary Toad)
-1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ (Secondary Toad)
-2014 Jay Flight 28BHBE & Ram 2500 6.4L CC 4x4 (sold)
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05-24-2018, 04:36 PM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Calgary
Posts: 236
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Phone them and ask, should not be a difficult question to answer if they are "good".
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05-24-2018, 04:44 PM
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#14
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Calgary
Posts: 236
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Recent testimonial:
Wandering at highway speeds
Reply Post by 2kGeorgieBoy
Re:Wandering at highway speeds
Reply #36 on: March 14, 2018, 09:07:02 PM
START QUOTE:
Jeff..Although we have a 2000 Georgie Boy 31' Maverick "C" on a Ford E450 chassis, I can fully agree on the caster effects, at least for us. When we got the unit in Jan 2014, the dealer had us take into a truck shop for an alignment. It turned out OK....A trip to Moab shortly there after brought out the problems. I then started reading the threads and comments here about the caster settings....esp., from Harvard. I checked the data from the first alignment and found that it was set at about 3 1/2 degrees positive...about in the middle of Ford's recommended range. Shortly before a cross country trip to Maryland in fall of 2016, I returned to the shop where the first alignment was done. I talked to the service manager and he knew of the problems with the E450's and was happy to increase the caster as I asked. The alignment tech was also familiar with it and ended up with settings close to 5.5 degrees positive. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! The unit tracked straight down the road, passing semis no longer caused a white knuckle hold on the wheel, and overall it was just a lot more enjoyable. It did however increase steering effort a little but not anything to worry about. But, be sure that the shop you go to is willing to "think outside of the box". Our first alignment was "plain vanilla", right in the middle like it was always done. Second time out, they were very willing to increase settings beyond what normally would be done, and still stay with in Ford's guidelines (0-7 degrees, I believe). I realize that our E450 chassis is an entirely different animal than yours, but I was trying to add support to the caster increase thinking and how it helped us......if you go down that road.
END QUOTE:
"You cannot teach a new dog old tricks" author unknown.
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05-26-2018, 05:34 PM
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#15
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Surprise, Arizona
Posts: 464
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cabinetmaker
You picked my favorite Greyhawk floorplan...
Sounds like your off to a great start! Happy Travels and many safe miles in your new 29MV!!
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DITTO !
__________________
2015 GrayHawk 29MV/ Toad - 2018 Equinox (automatic)
-------
Any man can treat a lady right for one night, but it takes a great man to treat her right for the rest of her life.
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05-29-2018, 03:17 PM
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#16
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: South Texas
Posts: 7,198
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So, the alignment shop did a "tweak the toe and you're good to go" alignment for me. I was unsure of myself when I was there (I hadn't done much research, thank you Harvard; I've read your discussions in several different threads, so I'm much more confident on what I want), and I was distracted with work (I was literally working in the MH while they were working ON it! LOL!), and I was on a tight departure schedule. I will be headed back with caster specs in hand in the next week or two. It wasn't a total loss though, they did balance and true the front tires for me, and that made a HUGE difference. With the toe tweaked and the tires trued and balanced, there was a big difference, I can't wait to see what a good caster setting does for me!
I still need to get the rears balanced (I know a local shop that can do that pretty easy) and I'll be good to go there. I also need to get it back into my buddy's shop to get the U-bolts on the Hellwig helpers squared away so I can get those adjusted properly. Once the new bolts are on it, I can do the adjustments myself.
So I still have a little work to do, but I'm confident it'll be worth it...
But we had it out last weekend again. Just a short trip to my dad's place to hang out in the pool and see my niece off to college. We are getting it decorated and set up to our liking, so it's starting to feel a bit more like "home". It's weird doing all this again since we had our trailer set up the way we liked it, but it's kind of fun too.
I finally got a chance to put a piece of Reflectix up in the skylight, and it made an immediate and dramatic difference. My long-term plan is to put a piece of block foam insulation up there with a layer of Reflectix top and bottom. I want it to be removable because I really like the natural light we get with that skylight, so it'll be nice when we're not fighting the oppressive heat. We were starting to think there was something wrong with the front AC unit, but I'm pretty sure it's just that the space has a much higher heat load than the rear. With the skylight blocked off, it helps a lot, but with all the windows up there and the cab, and the more expansive space, and the door, it's just not going to cool as well as the back. At some point, I'll get my IR thermometer out and test the delta over the coils, but just by feel, it seems that it'll be within spec.
DW finally admitted to me that she loves the new MH. She really loved the trailer, and she told me yesterday that she loves the MH even more. I have to say that I agree! It's so easy and convenient! And when I finally get everything dialed in just the way I like, it'll be even better!
So, coming up I have the caster setting, the Hellwig adjustment, balancing the rear tires, a Heng's Vortex fan upgrade in the bathroom along with a Maxxair cover, I'm going to "fabricate" a place to mount my phone up in the "helm", and get the JGC set up to flat tow. Before the year is out, I'd like to upgrade the steering stabilizer as well. Then it'll be time to re-evaluate the "to-do" list. I'm never really done tinkering...
__________________
-2018 Greyhawk 29MV
-2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (JLU) (Primary Toad)
-1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ (Secondary Toad)
-2014 Jay Flight 28BHBE & Ram 2500 6.4L CC 4x4 (sold)
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05-29-2018, 03:45 PM
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#17
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Calgary
Posts: 236
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Camper Bob wrote: "So, the alignment shop did a "tweak the toe and you're good to go" alignment for me"
Even so, it would be interesting to know what the "as shipped" caster is set at?
I have theories:
If the RV is 1.5 Degrees nose down the caster might be +3.0
If the RV is 1.0 Degrees nose down the caster might be +3.5
If the RV is 0.5 Degrees nose down the caster might be +4.0
If the RV is fore and aft nose level the caster might be +4.5
The more data points I can amass the closer I might get to the way things all fit together.
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05-29-2018, 04:01 PM
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#18
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: South Texas
Posts: 7,198
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Harvard
Camper Bob wrote: "So, the alignment shop did a "tweak the toe and you're good to go" alignment for me"
Even so, it would be interesting to know what the "as shipped" caster is set at?
I have theories:
If the RV is 1.5 Degrees nose down the caster might be +3.0
If the RV is 1.0 Degrees nose down the caster might be +3.5
If the RV is 0.5 Degrees nose down the caster might be +4.0
If the RV is fore and aft nose level the caster might be +4.5
The more data points I can amass the closer I might get to the way things all fit together.
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I will definitely get the beginning measurements. As it sits right now, my 29MV rides with a slightly "nose down" attitude, even when fully loaded.
I know my in-laws have a much shorter rig, and it is significantly "nose-down". But I don't know anyone with a longer wheelbase than mine. I would think the longer wheelbase might ride more level?
__________________
-2018 Greyhawk 29MV
-2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (JLU) (Primary Toad)
-1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ (Secondary Toad)
-2014 Jay Flight 28BHBE & Ram 2500 6.4L CC 4x4 (sold)
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05-30-2018, 02:32 PM
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#19
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Junior Member
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Mountains of SoCal
Posts: 14
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Congrats on the new 29MV! I pulled the trigger on the 29MVP last July! So far we love it too.
Now, I did notice the steering/handling issue too. I still have not had the alignment check out. Now I know I MUST have it checked after reading your post.
Good information here.
__________________
Brady
2018 Jayco 29 MVP
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05-30-2018, 03:41 PM
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#20
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Calgary
Posts: 236
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BearsZX72
Congrats on the new 29MV! I pulled the trigger on the 29MVP last July! So far we love it too.
Now, I did notice the steering/handling issue too. I still have not had the alignment check out. Now I know I MUST have it checked after reading your post.
Good information here.
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Ford has acknowledged the issue with E Series "generic alignment":
E350/E450 Handling Problems are caused by too little + CASTER
Thanks to handle "ruffingit" for posting your experience.
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