Escapees January-February 2024

There are three SmartWeigh locations: Livingston, Texas; Congress, Arizona and Bushnell, Florida. We checked in with Sumter Oaks Escapees Park in Bushnell, in February 2018, and again February 2019. The initial visit provides the baseline data and gives you reassurance in the rig setup. Between these two dates we made signif icantmodi fi cations to our Airstream Flying Cloud 25 RB, such as adding cabinetry and installing a new energy system, including solar panels, a heavy-duty inverter and two GPL-six golf cart batteries. Between weigh ings, we also adjusted hitch height to level the trailer when hitched up and adjusted the equalizer bars to transfer more load to the towing vehicle. A Typical Weighing Senario John Hamilton, our SmartWeigh weighmas ter, asked us to fi ll out the SmartWeigh info sheet with tow vehicle and trailer ratings (GAWR, GVWR and GCWR) and installed tire information before we arrived at the scale. The actual weighing procedure takes less than an hour on the specially designed weighing station and cost $55 for our con fi g uration. The front wheels are positioned on the two recessed scales, and then you roll forward to weigh the two rear wheels. Your normal passenger and load con fi guration are recommended in order to provide realistic day-to-day operating conditions. Next, you return to the weighing platform fully hitched up with weight distribution system in place. Four pairs of weight read ings are taken as you move incrementally over the scales. That completes the data gathering stage, and a helpful measuring of rig height is noted on the info sheet. Weighmaster John provided us with a complete weight brie fi ng and additional information in the “Now That You’ve Been Weighed” brochure, which includes a place to record tank levels at the time of weighing. When full, the truck fuel, fresh water, gray tank and black tank levels, and the two propane tanks on the tongue will account for 1,200 lbs of consumables, This is import ant information to have. Final Calculations Finally, in the calculation phase, we trans ferred data to an Excel spreadsheet. Please

In addition to three Escapees parks, you can also have your RV weighed at Escapade, the club’s annual event. ARTICLE PHOTOS BY BROCK BRINKERHOFF #131442

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Truck with Dual Tandem Trailer | Weight Information Sheet Your appointment for weighing: _____________ Time: ____________ AM / PM

www.escapees.com/smartweigh

PERSONAL CONTACT INFORMATION (print clearly) Name Address

TOw VEhICLE INFORMATION Make Year

Model

GVWR

GCWR

GAWR Front GAWRRear

TRAILER INFO Make

Telephone

SKP#

Year

E-Mail

Type

 5thWheel  Bumper Pull

• (*) Fill in only if present on RV • Tire pressure is the pressure you would normally use or specify • DOT date code a (3) or (4) digit number at the end of the DOT info line molded into the sidewall; NOTE: it is only on one (1) sidewall of the tire; Do not assume that all are the same!

GVWR

GAWR Front GAWRRear GAWR Center*

VEhICLE TIRE INFORMATION

Normal

DOT

Position L Front R Front

Brand

Model

Size

Load Range Pressure Age code

L Rear Out L Rear In* R Rear Out R Rear In*

Position L Rear Inner R Rear Outer R Rear Inner TOw TRUCK TIRES TRAILER TIRES L Front Outer L Front Inner R Front Outer R Front Inner L Rear Outer

Normal

DOT

Brand

Model

Size

Load Range Pressure Age code

YOUR RVs MEASURED CORNER wEIGhTS (To be completed by Escapees SmartWeigh staff.)

Recorded By: _____________________

Without Trailer

SmartWeigh provides highly accurate corner weights (individual wheel weights). The weights provided by SmartWeigh are not “certified weights”, and are intended for information purposes only.

With Trailer

R Front

RCenter

RRear

R Front

Height

R Rear

download our Excel calculation spreadsheet: http://www.db26.net/airstream/links/ skp-smartweight-2019.xlsx if you wish to follow along. The blue cells show weight data that was gathered at the scales. The fi rst calculation (using hitched and unhitched tow vehicle axle weights) determines tongue weight. In our case, a tongue weight of 950 lbs. represents 16 percent of the trailer weight, which is within the recommended range (Line C). The second calculation checks axle loads compared to truck and trailer manufacturer ratings, GAWR, which are posted on each vehicle. On the spreadsheet our RAM truck under tow operates at 76 to 79 percent of manufacturers rating (Line F) and the Airstream operates at 71 and 86 percent of the builder’s rating (Line N). Note the reasonable difference of 150 lbs. between right and left sides of the trailer, and the signi fi cant difference of 550 lbs. between the front and rear trailer axles. The heavier rear axle suggests a change in the hitch height and a possible internal redistribution of trailer content. The third calculation checks Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) for truck and trailer.

L Rear

L Front

L Front

L Center

L Rear

With Trailer

Amount Paid: $____________  Cash  Check #_________  CC | Rec’d by:_____________ PAyMeNT INfORMATION

Without Trailer

Learn more about the program and make an appointment at WWW.ESCAPEES.COM/SMARTWEIGH

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ESCAPEES Magazine January/February 2024