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Old 10-27-2015, 11:30 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sturski View Post
I carry enough tools in my truck to handle anything that I am capable of repairing on the road
I think this is the bottom line for this type of question. There is such a huge range of ability among members, that without knowing the ability level of a person, the question can't really be answered. Some folks, for whatever reasons, simply don't attempt to repair anything and for them membership in a auto assoc. would be more valuable than any tools. I'd say, in some ways, the tools that a person takes in the trailer are probably a mirror of amount of tools the person has at home

For me, Jim's list and his list of things that he doesn't take, seems like a good starting point for me.

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Old 10-27-2015, 12:07 PM   #22
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Just camp near Carl, he has everything you will ever need.....
Yea, Jim. Including beer and wine!
And the most important accessory of all........
the mindset that something will likely fail; it is after all an RV, and a sense of humor when it inevitably does. Like during my last trip when the %&^*#@! propane alarm went off at 3:30am the first night, 4:30am the second night, and midnight the third. The third night the tank was off and the lines had been purged. Yep, said a few expletives and snipped the positive wire. Got it replaced under warranty and the new one hasn't gone off since. When I got home, I installed an inline two prong connector so that it will be easy to disconnect if this one ever fails, and it will make it easy to replace after the 5 year period they are supposedly good for. And I should mention the day we were scheduled to head home and wanted to be on the road by 8:30, found the front passenger tire on the TV flat. Guess I was camping next to a guy named Murphy.
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Old 10-27-2015, 12:19 PM   #23
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For me, Jim's list and his list of things that he doesn't take, seems like a good starting point for me.
Whatever happened to carrying your full tool chest with you?
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Old 10-27-2015, 12:41 PM   #24
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Whatever happened to carrying your full tool chest with you?
Not allowed to double tow in many places. And the gas mileage would really drop from the weight of the portable workshop.
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Old 10-27-2015, 05:01 PM   #25
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Whatever happened to carrying your full tool chest with you?
In assembling an array of tools for our new Escape, I collected what I thought I would need, that would fit in an existing tool box, and were in my garage already. All were extras (except for the 18V drill) of any size or configuration, to what I had in the garage tool chest or hanging on the wall. I bought no new tools. I ended up at 31 lbs. not including the box itself. Whew!
The only place I can carry it is behind the driver's seat, to distribute the load over tow vehicle axles evenly. The only thing that broke on our 1st trip was the folding camp chair.--now trash! Ya' think this is Murphy's Law at work?
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Old 10-27-2015, 06:16 PM   #26
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Did similar. Tool box took up too much room in the storage box so it rides behind the passenger seat in the truck
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Old 10-27-2015, 06:37 PM   #27
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My tool bag can't weigh much over 15 lbs. Just guessing though. I always keep it in the tow vehicle, as you may want it away from the trailer.
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Old 10-27-2015, 07:03 PM   #28
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Without going into what I actually carry. In the 18 months I've had the Escape, while traveling I've used the multitip screwdriver, Philips and Robertson tips, 14v drill/driver, lube for squeaky doors, HD long nose pliers, DVM, mid size adjustable wrench, torque wrench for wheel lugs, temp gun, and a tire pressure gauge. Of course the swiss army knife gets used the most.

Spares I've used, a couple fuses given to others, waste pipe cover, pin to lock the fifth wheel hitch closed, and a couple awning ARM knobs and nuts. Can't think of anything else.

Need to add an eyeglasses repair kit.
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Old 10-27-2015, 07:15 PM   #29
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Of course the swiss army knife gets used the most.
This is a good point, Bob.

For 25 years I have had a Leatherman tool on my hip 95% of the time during the day. It is incredibly handy. Before that I always carried a Swiss army knife, but the pliers and couple other tools are now indispensable to me.
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Old 10-27-2015, 07:43 PM   #30
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Why bring any tools with you on the road? This isn't upper Mongolia with one Exxon station every nine-hundred miles, right? The listings gathered here so far are as sensible as they are obvious. Ah, tools, singularly functional apparatus dedicated to making it easy to execute a specific task. Sure, in a pinch you can turn a slotted screw with a dime but... what if that flat hurts your fingers, or it's a Robertson screw head?

You're towing up (or down) a grade on the road in the middle of no where. There's no cell phone service. It's Sunday evening, getting cold, and soon it will be dark. Suddenly you hit a big bump and you decouple! Your tongue jack gets bent! No way you can lift that coupler back onto the ball yourself, but you're on loose gravel or mud and found out your truck jack is a toy. What now?

OK, in this spirit I humbly submit there is one absolutely essential trailering tool no one has mentioned. I am speaking, of course, of yes, the humble spare jack. It lifts where no man can lift. It is, THE TOOL! Who said you don't know Jack?
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Old 10-27-2015, 07:49 PM   #31
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I have a bottle jack. Much more compact.
However, I carry most of my tools in the compartment under the floor at the very back of the RAV4.
It always has lots of heavy stuff on it, and I can't open the rear hatch more than 4 inches when hooked up.
I think I should move the tools.
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Old 10-27-2015, 07:54 PM   #32
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Ya, and hydraulics are for us weaker ones such a gift . But, sometimes they be too tall to fit under your dropped tongue. That's where you get out an entrenching tool.
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Old 10-27-2015, 09:12 PM   #33
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This is a good point, Bob.

For 25 years I have had a Leatherman tool on my hip 95% of the time during the day. It is incredibly handy. Before that I always carried a Swiss army knife, but the pliers and couple other tools are now indispensable to me.
Only 95% of the time? Mine's on from the day's start to finish. Change from work clothes to going out clothes, switch belts and the leatherman goes with me. I'd be lost without it, it's just so handy. Love the quality also. I have several cheapies that I take with me when travelling by air. I'd never put my good leatherman in my luggage and hope it was still in there at the other end.

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Old 10-27-2015, 10:57 PM   #34
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I think I kinda started this bizarre group of replies, everyone hauls stuff they think is important.


I'm a former car camper, backpacker, sleeping-on-the-beach camper.. what I no longer do is get off the "beaten path." At my age, I kinda like staying on asphalt, so no longer do I go off down some gravel road into the unknown for miles.


BUT, because I'm a former tent camper... there's nothing in Ten Forward if it breaks, I'd worry too much about fixing (while I'm out). Now, if I'm expecting to be gone for weeks/months... that would be different. BUT, unless the frame brakes... I think I could be just fine. I know how to cook food over a campfire (backpacker), flush a toilet with bottled water (you do carry an empty milk jug right?), etc., etc., etc.


Yep I carry a tool box.. it has a hammer, duct tape, pliers (everyone should experience rounding off a nut), a headlamp (with AA batteries I can steal for something else), and that's about it. I have a garage full of tools (I've rebuilt a 305CID), but I'm camping! Bring it on...
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Old 10-28-2015, 02:47 AM   #35
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I really like those inexpensive folding step stools fit easily in the frount box nice for the shorties like me.
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Old 10-28-2015, 05:48 AM   #36
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I really like those inexpensive folding step stools fit easily in the frount box nice for the shorties like me.
Even at 182 cm (near 6'), I am looking to get one, so I can get into the tool box from the sides of my F150 without climbing like a monkey. It will also serve to help me climb onto the tailgate and into the box.

I looked at the ones that mount to the truck, but to do both sides, and one for the rear, the cost of a stool looks real nice.

Never needed one with the Pilot and 19.
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Old 10-28-2015, 06:11 AM   #37
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If we could get Leatherman or Victorinox to incorporate Robertson's, I could make due with just one tool.
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Old 10-28-2015, 06:28 AM   #38
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If we could get Leatherman or Victorinox to incorporate Robertson's, I could make due with just one tool.
I have a Gerber multi tool I keep on my bicycle that has a socket which accepts standard screwdriver bits, including Roberson bits. Maybe what you want. But Bob, if that is your only tool, I would love to see you change a tire with it. LOL!

Actually, what nobody has mentioned in this thread is that the most important and indispensable tool is the one you transport between your ears. Using it properly will solve many issues.
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Old 10-28-2015, 06:54 AM   #39
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If we could get Leatherman or Victorinox to incorporate Robertson's, I could make due with just one tool.
The Leatherman Wave has two interchangeable double bits, including a #2 Robertson. I have had 3 Leatherman tools over the years, the last 2 were the Wave. I am extremely hard on these things too. Can't speak enough for the quality of the build.
https://www.leatherman.com/wave-10.html#Tools

If you wish, you can get a full set of driver bits for it. I had a set, but it was stolen with my truck last year. I need to replace it.
Bit Kit - Leatherman Hardware
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Old 10-28-2015, 07:57 AM   #40
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I have a Gerber multi tool I keep on my bicycle that has a socket which accepts standard screwdriver bits, including Roberson bits. Maybe what you want. But Bob, if that is your only tool, I would love to see you change a tire with it. LOL!

Actually, what nobody has mentioned in this thread is that the most important and indispensable tool is the one you transport between your ears. Using it properly will solve many issues.
Hi: C&G in FL... I forgot about my most favorite tool. It's home made from a 4" long piece of 1/2" copper pipe. You simply squeeze one end to almost closed and use it to slip over the pop tops of beer cans... etc. No more broken fingernails. Indispensable!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
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