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Old 09-01-2010, 12:31 PM   #1
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Unfortunate Accident

Hello Everyone,

We received a phone call from one of our customers yesterday with some very scary news...they had an accident with their Escape trailer and ended up rolling both the tow vehicle and the trailer. - Everyone is safe.

We would like to take this opportunity to remind all Escape owners.... no .... ALL trailer owners, to travel safely. Always ensure you have distributed your cargo throughout the trailer in a manner that will maintain a positive tongue load.

Safe Travels,

Reace and Tammy
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Old 09-01-2010, 01:04 PM   #2
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Sorry to hear this news. Thank goodness everyone is safe.
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Old 09-01-2010, 03:48 PM   #3
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Quote:
Originally Posted by reace
Always ensure you have distributed your cargo throughout the trailer in a manner that will maintain a positive tongue load.
This is much easier said than done, as can be seen in the table of trailer weights and thier respective tongue weights for the Escape 19s listed in the "Weigh Your Trailer" post http://escapeforum.org/index.php?top...sg8769#msg8769
To ensure that I maintain a minimum of 10% of the trailer weight on the tongue, I weigh my trailer at the local truck scale, it's free in Manitoba, and then use a Sherline Tongue Weight Scale http://www.sherline.com/lm.htm to weigh the tongue. I thought that the scale was expensive at $135, when I could theoretically get the same result using a bathroom scale with a lever of measured length, until I got one. The difference is that the Sherline Scale it is so easy to use that I actually use it.
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Old 09-01-2010, 04:26 PM   #4
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Yes, Good reminder and here, a recent casita smashed by a drunk driver http://djrimaging.smugmug.com/Other/...509_QuWf8-A-LB
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Old 09-01-2010, 04:34 PM   #5
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Sherline Tongue Weight Scale http://www.sherline.com/lm.htm to weigh the tongue.
[/quote]

Go to: http://www.campingworld.com/shopping...ue-scale/12638

It appears that the Sherline is also called Load-Master ( or the name is changed ) and is available at Camping World.

baglo
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Old 09-01-2010, 06:00 PM   #6
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Harold, that looks like a great aide to have. I checked my tongue weight right after first loading the trailer up, but since have repacked things somewhat. I think I will pick one of those up.

Glenn, it seems Loadmaster was the original name. From the page Harold quoted.
Quote:
Scale Product Evaluation, Trailer Life Magazine, October, 1994 (When scale was still called LoadMaster)
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Old 09-01-2010, 07:34 PM   #7
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Quote:
Originally Posted by reace
Hello Everyone,

We received a phone call from one of our customers yesterday with some very scary news...they had an accident with their Escape trailer and ended up rolling both the tow vehicle and the trailer. - Everyone is safe.

We would like to take this opportunity to remind all Escape owners.... no .... ALL trailer owners, to travel safely. Always ensure you have distributed your cargo throughout the trailer in a manner that will maintain a positive tongue load.

Safe Travels,

Reace and Tammy
Thanks for the info and glad to hear that everyone was safe.. I must admit I never even think about the tongue weight, much less get the actual weight.. I think I just make the assumption that the WDH will pretty much take care of it. How little I know..

thanks again..
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Old 09-01-2010, 08:03 PM   #8
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

I can say from experience that you should not use your bathroom scale to measure tongue weight, without some sort of lever system and understanding of physics. I had neither and crushed the sucker.
I should have taken it back to Wal-Mart.

baglo
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Old 09-01-2010, 08:34 PM   #9
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Glenn - I found this for how to do it with a regular scale:
http://www.rverscorner.com/tongueweight.html it should work with our 17's.


Quote:
Originally Posted by gbaglo
I can say from experience that you should not use your bathroom scale to measure tongue weight, without some sort of lever system and understanding of physics. I had neither and crushed the sucker.
I should have taken it back to Wal-Mart.

baglo
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Old 09-01-2010, 11:39 PM   #10
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

I thought the chart on Bandon trailer weighting is quite interesting. Most of them are heavy on the left side (driver's). Mine is over 200 lbs. heavier. I don't know how important that distribution is. I knew the tongue weight needs to be at least 10% of more of the total weight. I am going to work on shifting weight to the right side. Hopefully, it we get this going on the forum, Reace may have some suggestions. It is going to be hard because the plumbing, shower, stove, sink, water heater and supply is on on the left side.

What is concerning is hard breaking. With that much difference in weight distribution, won't the trailer skid to the heavy side?

Jerry
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Old 09-02-2010, 08:26 PM   #11
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Jerry - carry more beer in the fridge!

We are leaving on a weekend trip and lightly packing "Blue" for the trip. I dug out my old analog bathroom scale (now relegated to use only for tongue weight). Our 17B had a tongue weight of about 360# with a full fresh water tank and 2 mostly full LP tanks. (Glenn , the scale is only supposed to go to 300, but it hasn't crushed yet! I distribute the weight with a 1 x 6 across it.)

I think that the way Reace and Tammy have designed the Escapes (at least the 17B - the only Escape I have any experience with) has made it so that it is difficult to underweight the tongue. The axle on the 17B is wisely set far enough back to accomplish that, (as opposed to our Scamp 16 with the axle almost at half way). I am not saying that we still do not need to be aware and careful, but I think that the intelligent designs of Escapes lend itself to a safe tongue weight.
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Old 09-02-2010, 09:14 PM   #12
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Understood, but I added two feet to the rear of my 17b with the cargo carrier. I filled it up with a gas can, axes and a sledge, jack and tools, hoses and power cable, propane and butane tanks and fire-logs. Then I decided to move some of that stuff forward and replace it with marshmallows for the camp-fire.
As pointed out earlier, you need to keep heavier items over the axle to avoid weight transfer.

Last trip, I thought I noted some sway ( or maybe not - it was that slight ). So, I plan to pay more attention to tongue weight.

And, I plan to take more trips. Company offered a buyout this morning and I can't refuse $150,000 to leave just before my 62nd birthday...

baglo
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Old 09-02-2010, 09:20 PM   #13
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Sounds like Glenn is buying.....
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Old 09-02-2010, 09:31 PM   #14
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Glenn - welcome to the world of retirement! "The Best Job I Ever Had" as my buddy calls it!. Come on down to Wisconsin and sample some of my homebrews!


Quote:
Originally Posted by gbaglo
Understood, but I added two feet to the rear of my 17b with the cargo carrier. I filled it up with a gas can, axes and a sledge, jack and tools, hoses and power cable, propane and butane tanks and fire-logs. Then I decided to move some of that stuff forward and replace it with marshmallows for the camp-fire.
As pointed out earlier, you need to keep heavier items over the axle to avoid weight transfer.

Last trip, I thought I noted some sway ( or maybe not - it was that slight ). So, I plan to pay more attention to tongue weight.

And, I plan to take more trips. Company offered a buyout this morning and I can't refuse $150,000 to leave just before my 62nd birthday...

baglo
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Old 09-02-2010, 10:15 PM   #15
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Glenn:

Great news about your upcoming retirement and plans to travel more! Welcome to the wonderful world of retirement living!

When will you officially be retiring?

Brian
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Old 09-02-2010, 10:54 PM   #16
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Company wants those they accept for the buyout to be gone by Oct. 31. And I have almost all of Sept. and a week in Oct. as vacation. I may be retired now for all I know.

baglo
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Old 09-03-2010, 10:24 AM   #17
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Wow.. they have to pay you to leave
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Old 09-03-2010, 05:43 PM   #18
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Yup.

Company is doing buyouts across the country except the non-union papers in Calgary and Edmonton. There they're cutting about 30 jobs at those two papers. "Been nice employing you - see ya".


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Old 09-04-2010, 03:50 PM   #19
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

Sounds like a nice severance package however. Hit the road.....toad!
Just be sure of the LOAD..so we don't have to write an Ode....
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Old 09-04-2010, 08:08 PM   #20
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Re: Unfortunate Accident

I'm not sure, but I may be retired already. I have the next three weeks off. I have another week vacation in Oct. and they want rid of us by Oct. 31.

I will do my best not to inconvenience them.

baglo
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