Opened Turnbuckles

[PaulT]

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/DMV/pages/vehicle/trailer.aspx

"
Is 5.5 feet or more in height from floor to ceiling at any point; and
"
It appears that this item allows pop up campers to avoid the camper license plate at all but could not find this out for sure. Without registering it for a plate, you apparently can't get a title as needed for securing a loan. Also, it may cause interpretation grief in a LEO stop in another state.

If the back of the camper sticks out past the bumper of the truck, then its length is calculated from the front of the cabover to the tip of the receiver hitch ball mount. This was explained at DMV. Take photos of your camper with ball mount from the side view and have them handy when inside DMV.

I paid for the plate to avoid the various interpretation issues beyond my control.

Paul

 

[PaulT]

I think that two different DMV staff may well interpret attached jacks differently. But the jacks are being hauled around... Why do that if it is a permanent installation?

Having camper plates installed should be definitive. DMV has accepted that it is a camper. My $.02 anyway.

Paul

 

[ntsqd]

The Hi-lift jack has failure points built into it. A fuse blows because the circuit was overloaded. The canopy of the A-6 and F-14 and most jets is designed to fail in a certain area in case you need to eject through it.

Failure points are designed into systems all the time.

Shear pins are installed in many pieces of equipment.

The point being missed is that in these example failures they fail "safe". Things just stop doing whatever they were doing. There is no risk to life or equipment (excluding the canopy example as that is a different case altogether) when they stop. That is not the case when a turn-buckle fails because it was deliberately under-sized. Try explaining that logic to the Ins. Adjuster.

I recall suggesting the hole and safety wire idea some time ago. I think that I'd prefer a clevis end over wiring a hook as I have no faith that the wire will stop the hook from opening. It will elevate the loading required to do so, but not by a lot. So all that it really does is make sure that the turn-buckle doesn't 'evaporate' when rattled loose on Saline Valley Rd. or similar.

 

[pvstoy]

Thom the picture with the two turnbuckles, the one on the right you can't do much with it, it just a bent wire that can be bent straight with the right force. Weak design!

The one on the left has a forged opening and can assume some added strength to prevent opening up. This design can benefit with some kind of safety like a wire or such to prevent the hook jumping off the eye. It won't make the opening any stronger then how it is made. Just a aid to keep from loosing the whole assembly.

I agree that a Clevis built into the turnbuckle end attached to the eye from the camper would be the best and simplest to install.

 

[ntsqd]

No doubt that the forged hook is a step in the right direction. With the Safety Wire Mod at least it'll still be there should it work loose. As desirable as the clevis type turn-buckle might be, it would not be a surprise if there are installs where they're simply not possible to use.

The turn-buckle is only part of the equation, there's still the eye bolt(s) to consider. A fair number of those pictured are made the same way as the "bent wire" turn-buckle hook. So the same loads that will open up the bent wire hooks will also start opening them up too.

 

[pvstoy]

Yea, you are always chasing the weak link, then it becomes the wood that rips out like what Craig or others have posted. There is more leverage outside at the ends where the eyes are, you just can't stop the flex when everything flexes.

Maybe the move to turnbuckles from mounting through the floor was from Oregon where it was considered a motor home.

I mounted two campers that I had through the floor and flexed both to the extreme many times with no ill effects. Even hit a 500 pound cow elk at 60+ mph and drove over it. The truck flexed soo much that the V-8 driverside intake manifold gasket got sucked in. Clamping force did not allow the camper to move or slide around so there is flex in the bottom plywood to match the bed flex and the whole base structure moves with it. Just saying, as always, that mounting method is not for everyone. But it would be nice to know what triggered making the move to turnbuckles.

 

[iowahiker]

After reading the reports of lost turnbuckles and bent hooks this past winter, I finally settled on my choice for replacing the OEM FWC aluminum 350 pound hook turnbuckles: Jaw-Jaw marine grade stainless steel 3/8" shaft with a rating of over 1,000 pounds. I ordered a set which run about $25 each. I can not vouch for any vendor so I may order two each from two different vendors since prices were all nearly the same. My camper stays on full time so hook-hook turnbuckles are not needed for easy loading/unloading of the camper. Jaw-jaw seems to be an obvious cure to bent hooks and turnbuckles falling off (hopefully not famous-last-words). Marine grade turnbuckles provide a good choice of locking nuts and safety clips to prevent turnbuckles from coming off. Here is an Amazon example:

http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Marine-Turnbuckle-Pulley-Swivel/dp/B00PGD8BLQ/ref=sr_1_87?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1424386345&sr=1-87&keywords=turnbuckle

 

[rfg]

I'm a newbie (picking up my camper in a few weeks) but I'll ask what seems to me to be the obvious question: Given the reported issues with turnbuckles in the bed of the truck and that the can't be easily seen or checked, why don't more people use external frame-mounted tiedowns?

 

[cdbrow1]

Reading this thread it occurs to me that perhaps a different approach is needed. My inital thought is 4 stock turnbuckles (failure points) backed up with a strong braided safety cable to the frame. This way the turnbuckles could fail if the load is exceeded but the camper would still be held in place by a flexible - but strong mounting system. Redundancy.

 

[billharr]

Reading this thread it occurs to me that perhaps a different approach is needed. My inital thought is 4 stock turnbuckles (failure points) backed up with a strong braided safety cable to the frame. This way the turnbuckles could fail if the load is exceeded but the camper would still be held in place by a flexible - but strong mounting system. Redundancy.

Not a bad idea, only need two on the front to prevent disaster.

 

[craig333]

Something I've been meaning to do but keep forgetting every time I have the camper off.

External tie downs have their own issues.

 

[brianjwilson]

I had torklift frame mounted Tie downs on my last truck. The frame mounts and inserts are heavy. Very heavy if you're working on a light platform. The are bulky and stick out on the sides of the truck. I cut my mounts and re-drilled them to keep them as close to the body as possible, but still. They are expensive. You still have tornbuckles, just longer ones. I had springloaded fastguns and they were squeaky and obnoxious. When I was sideswiped, the camper tie downs were still pulled out of the camper.

Personally I'd much rather have internal tie downs. There are plenty of solutions for stronger tornbuckles if needed.

 

[100acrehuphalump]

This has been a very informative thread. Thanks Y'all.

 

[deethe]

Torklift Fast Gun Derringers will fix all your turnbuckle problems, they don't come loose and secure the camper. Add some J hooks, a couple quick links and you are set.

would you elaborate on how you utilized the derringers with the FWC in-bed mounting system? where did you add the J-hooks? could you provide a picture if you're still using this system, thank you.

 

[ski3pin]

would you elaborate on how you utilized the derringers with the FWC in-bed mounting system? where did you add the J-hooks? could you provide a picture if you're still using this system, thank you.

Here is a past thread covering -

Fast Gun Derringers

 

[cdbrow1]

I wonder what impact factors like

1. truck size (1/2 -3/4 1 ton) (heavier trucks being less flexible)
2. Camper size (Finch vs Hawk vs Granby)
3. Rubber bed pads

Have on the issue of turnbuckle stress.

Some of those features would allow more flex before a "sharp" pull. In my experience steady stress is easier for a system to handle than sudden spikes. Even an extremely heavy duty spring on the turnbuckle might help reduce the shock loads to prevent breakage.

 

[billharr]

I would think wash board roads would be harder on the turn buckles than most of the hard 4X4 sections.

 

[cdbrow1]

Has anyone looked at the Springloaded Basic or XL from Torklift?

http://www.torklift.com/index.php/products/turnbuckles/springload-xl

Seems interesting in concept.

 

[Happyjax]

Those spring loaded turnbuckles have a really shallow hook. I would be worried about a pop out or straightening on a hook like that.....
Good thread though. Lots to think about and aware of

 

[cdbrow1]

They have an -in bed model which looks to have a better hook.

http://www.torklift.com/index.php/products/turnbuckles/anchorguard