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> Almost tipped it..., To buy, or not to buy?

Alaska Gal
post Apr 10 2008, 02:08 PM
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Member No.: 2,869
Favorite Truck Camper(s): Lance 1120
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: Ford F350 Diesel
Type of Tiedowns used: Don't know...
Truck and Camper Setup: 99 Lance 1120 on 94 Ford F-350 Diesel



I'm brand new to this board, and looking for advice from experienced truck camper owners.

We've had a number of different campers in the past, so know a fair bit about them, but never had a truck camper before. We recently found a camper/truck combo for sale that was an awesome deal and agreed to purchase it from the gentleman selling it. I've not yet handed over the check because we're waiting on receiving it from the bank, but the seller dropped the truck and camper off at our house on his way out of town.

While familiarizing myself with the workings of the camper I decided to plug it in to the house power to charge up the batteries (that were dead) and to run the heater and check lights, etc. I finished up, but left the camper plugged in to charge overnight, checking it once before I went to bed.

This morning as I was pouring my first cup of coffee, the neighbor knocked on my door, and I opened it to find the truck nearly tipping on it's side. One of the camper jacks had extended on it's own and was pushing the whole deal to the side. The jack motor (or whatever?) was still running, trying to push it even further.

As soon as I unplugged the electrical power the jack stopped trying to extend, but I hadn't paid very close attention to how to run the jacks since we didn't plan on taking the camper off the truck at least until Jim returns from Iraq, so I started calling everyone I know with a camper hoping to learn how to retract the darn jack.

Finally got in touch with the owner, who told me how to retract it. The remote deal didn't work for any of the jacks and so we had to retract it manually (a major pain in the @ss since the jack is the swing-out kind and the handle couldn't make a full turn).

There is some visible damage to the truck, where the camper hooks to the truck is dimpled and bent back a little and there's some denting scraping where the bumper cranked up... but my big concern is if there could be other non-visible damage to the truck or camper from the weight having been so off-center...

I had the truck checked out pre-SNAFU - it passed a mechanical inspection with flying colors.

Anybody have thoughts for me on this? Ever had a jack go rogue on you? Should I bag the whole deal?

Sorry this is so long, hopefully you at least got a giggle at my expense smile.gif
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PlayDoh
post Jul 4 2008, 05:57 PM
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Favorite Truck Camper(s): any
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: na
Type of Tiedowns used: na
Truck and Camper Setup: Vanguard P-80



QUOTE
We recently found a camper/truck combo for sale that was an awesome deal and agreed to purchase it from the gentleman selling it.


Sounds like you've already made the deal, so I'm not sure your mistake is cause to break an agreement. I wouldn't think the truck would be hurt by being like that for less then 24 hours. With that said, I'd take a look at your leaf-springs and check for cracked or broken leafs, U-bolts, shocks, and anything else visible.

I would also check the jacks before taking it off the truck, just to make sure one is not damaged, or loose. I'm not sure what kind of jacks you have, I've never seen 'swing out' jacks. But I'm no expert, either.

Once you have the camper off, and given everything a good looking at, take it on the highway and see if it handles oddly, or different. Give it a few controlled swerves, go over some speed bumps while listening for noises, or take it to a mechanic if your still concerned.

I'd also make sure the power to the Jacks, was something you had to manually connect or switch on, if it isn't already. Imagine if you were sleeping in it while it tilted? lol

Could have been worse. Buy your neighbor a box o beer.
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LindaH
post Jul 5 2008, 10:36 AM
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Favorite Truck Camper(s): Eagle Cap
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: 2007 Dodge Ram 3500 Dually (Cummins engine)
Type of Tiedowns used: Torklift w/Fastguns
Truck and Camper Setup: Eagle Cap 950, 2 100-watt solar panels, 2 6-volt AGM batteries, 1000-watt pure sine wave inverter, Motosat Executive satellite TV dish, Torklift 5-step Glow Steps.



QUOTE(PlayDoh @ Jul 4 2008, 04:57 PM)
I'm not sure what kind of jacks you have, I've never seen 'swing out' jacks. 

Swing out jacks are for dual rear wheel trucks. They "swing out" so that you can drive out from under the camper and back underneath it. If you had regular "non-swing out" jacks, you'd never be able to get the jacks past the wide dual rear wheels!

As PlayDoh said, you probably will be OK, but I would take the truck into a dealer and have them check everything and then take the camper to a dealer to make sure the jacks are still in good condition. I'd also want to know *why* the jack extended all on it's own...that shouldn't happen.

I'd be worried about two things: the battery being dead when the owner brought you the camper and the remote for the jacks not working (the two items *could* be related, but I'm by far an expert on electricity). If the battery was completely dead, I'd suggest getting a new one, because the old one is probably shot.
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beddows
post Jul 5 2008, 03:17 PM
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Working on the assumption they are happijacs, the problem may be a short in the Telco style RJ-11 plug that the remote plugs into, check the pins for corrosion. I have heard of runaway jacks when the remote gets wet. That is why on my old camper I installed a kill switch by the rear door.


--------------------
Paul Beddows
North American Truck Camper Owners
Terry (wife) & Tomas (Dog)
Abbotsford BC, Canada

2004 Silverado 3500 Dmax DRW
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