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Old 07-26-2021, 11:23 AM   #1
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Trading campers -- The rest of the story

Just thought I would post a follow up on the new camper and truck. A few numbers -- A few problems -- and some surprises.

First the numbers. Now these numbers were all on a certified Cat scale.

Truck: 2019 GMC 3500HD Denali Crew cab with standard or short 6.5 ft box and the Dura max. The weight listed is with 2 adults, full tank of fuel, bed mount tool box/chest with approximately 90 to 100# of stuff, B&W Patriot 18000# 5th wheel hitch and a Demco adaptor.

Front - 5140#
Rear - 3820#
Total - 8960#
Truck GVW -11500#

Camper: 2009 Crossroads Seville VF32KS length 33.5 ft. Loaded as we would use it - Water tank full, water heater full, and a couple gallons of water in the black tank.

Hitch: Empty- 1880# Loaded- 2440#
Axles: Empty- 9820# Loaded- 10540#
Total: Empty- 11700# Loaded- 12980#
Total load including water: 1280#

Total Gross weight: Steer Axle 5180#
Drive Axle 6220#
Trailer Axle 10540#
Gross weight 21940#

As you can tell the total on the truck is 11400# so I have 100# before i am at max GVW. I will present my thoughts on this later.

So as not to make each post too long I will address the problems and surprises in the next post.
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Old 07-26-2021, 12:11 PM   #2
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Good write up Dan.
I'll bet there isn't to many that can post their figures like that. Me included.
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Old 07-26-2021, 01:04 PM   #3
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The numbers on the truck door sticker are as follows: GVW 11500# Front axle 5600# and rear axle 7050#. Adding the front and rear axle 12650#.

So Front axle is 450# under its capacity and rear axle is 830# under its capacity. Together the axle capacities' are 12650# and the gvw is 11500# that is a difference of 1150#.

Now does the truck seem overloaded --- not in the least! The GM 3500hd trucks have a upper and lower set of "overload springs" and it just touched the top set. I have more than enough power and it stops on a dime. It pulls like it is on rails. Just my opinion but i believe the truck is under rated in its GVW.


Now the problems.
1 Arrived home from the dealer and the main slide which was ran in and out several times during the PDI broke. As the wife was running it out it made a very loud bang and quit. The motor would run but the slide would not move. After a good inspection I found that the actuator is held by 2 pins one on each side and one had broke off and allowed the actuator and motor to become no longer attached to the frame. So after several calls found a mobile mechanic that would come out and fix it.

2 the landing gear switch would stick in the up or retract position-- replaced switch.

3 landing gear was very slow. After some research found that Stromberg Carlson - the landing gear manufacturer makes a high speed motor so that was ordered along with a new metal gearbox . It is a lot faster now.

4 We had some very hard rain with a lot of wind and found water in the basement storage - so new door seals.

5 While on our first trip ran out of water. The granddaughter was along and the foot flush toilet was a new thing. Do not know if that was a factor or not but we have a 5 gallon water jug and some 1 gallon jug's so we filled the tank. It took 46 gallons the tank is supposed to hold 58 gallons. It was to the point where the pump would no longer pull water. Will have check it to this.

6 The wife noticed some water under the kitchen sink. The flexible drain line - the sink is in the slide - was cracked where it bent when the slide was closed. In the shop being fixed.

7 The black tank flush leaked under the bathroom sink -- tighten fitting up no more leaks.

8 One day/night shade string broke while traveling to the campground. Went to a locale rv store and got a re-string kit. Good as new now.

9 The camper has a whole house water filter that is located behind the utility wall in the basement. Its location will be changing shortly. The water sat in it a little too long and had a funny smell. Sanitized water system and all is good now just need to move the filter to a more convenient location to be able to drain it if we do not use the camper for a while.

Now the surprises/good things.

The wife loves the residential refrigerator and convection/microwave oven.
The dual air conditioners took some getting used to but after we found the happy spot they work great although i believe one would have been enough. One is 13500 and the other is 15000 btu. More than enough for the camper. The electric awning works great and if it should break the rewinding process is very simple just had to buy a strap.

Also if you have a camper and sell it PLEASE INCLUED ALL THE BOOKS/MANUAL'S. The previous owners did and they really come in handy a few times. We made sure they were included with our old camper when we traded.

So there was a long list of problems. Just remember this is a used camper and all in all things are not that bad. Some items were ware and tare and some things were just things that needed improvement. We are very HAPPY with the new to us camper or as the wife calls it our" forever camper". The truck does not know its is back there and the 9+ so far MPG is a big improvement over the 6-7 that we were getting.
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Old 07-26-2021, 01:09 PM   #4
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Thanks Lloyd. After years of dealing with scales on a daily basis those numbers were always important. The boss hated paying overweight tickets. .

Just a little surprised that the truck in its work clothes weighs what it does.
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Old 07-26-2021, 02:58 PM   #5
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Very thorough breakdown. Good to know you are that concerned over the numbers.
An RV is a forever maintenance vehicle. A lot of people don't know that and then run into problem's down the road.
Good luck with both the Rv and truck.
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Old 07-27-2021, 06:26 AM   #6
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Sounds like the old girl has had a pretty thorough going over. Do you feel you have all the bugs worked out?
Of course if it's like mine, you can count on something cropping up some where down the road. Hope you guys get out and really enjoy. It sure does look like a beautiful unit.
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Old 07-27-2021, 09:53 AM   #7
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Unless something unexpected pops up its all good. There are still some improvements that we want to make. The wife would like to change the bed from the king in it now to a queen. The last camper had a queen and had more room to get around it. More room to access the front closet and make the bed. Also this camper is lacking in pantry space but there is a cabinet that is by the door above the counter with shelves that could use a door or two. It would make a good but limited pantry. There are a lot of Amish in the area that have cabinet/furniture shops so will see if one can match the existing cabinet doors.

Still want to add the wet bolt kit. It has a RCA surround sound system but had to order a remote so when it gets here will check that out but not a high priority. We have a radio for outside and the TV works good. And I mentioned earlier the water filter will get relocated to a more convenient location if possible.


One number I forgot in the first post was that the truck has a GCWR of 25300#. I do not want to start a big debate but this is the number I am most concerned about. But the rig comes in at 21940# so I still have a 3360# cushion not that I will need it.

The truck has a little over 19000 miles on it and goes in the shop Friday for some warranty work - a rubber seal under the hood came off - a light in the climate control does not work and the fuel filter/water separator housing will be replaced. The water in fuel light will not turn off and the dealer checked it last week and had to order the parts. Other than that about to ware the book out looking up all the gadgets and how to work them -- and there a lot.

Hoping to go in two weeks for a weekend. Then have another week around Labor day. We try to go every weekend we can get reservations but that is getting harder to do.

We went over it pretty good but it is a used camper so there will be some things just have to find them and fix them. Some folks do not understand the constant up keep and maintenance involved in owning a camper but if taken care of they will last a very long time.
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Old 08-01-2021, 03:16 PM   #8
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Our 2014 Cruiser brochure also showed 58 gals of fresh water. Found out that included the 10 gal water heater making the fresh tank 48 gals.
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