CrazyCruzers

We'll be heading to Glacier NP next summer. I was wondering if Hwy 2 from Spokane, WA to Columbia Falls, MT is suitable for a 40' motorhome with a toad? Or do I need to head East on I-90 to St. Regis and come in from the South on 135-200-382-28. Looks like those are my choices. Is there another way?

I have the SMI Air Force One system installed on my Jeep Wrangler. The system was supplied with a coiled airline for brake control and a coiled safety cable to actuate the breakaway switch. When the Jeep is hooked up ready to be towed, both the airline and the safety cable appear to be approximately the same length. Both are shorter than the 10,000-pound safety cables connecting the car to the coach. In the event of a catastrophic failure of the tow bar, both the airline and the breakaway cable would be stretched to the limit before the safety cables were fully stretched. This means the breakaway switch would activate (a good thing), but the air line might be broken before the breakaway switch activates and certainly before the safety cables reach the end. My question is this: For the Air Force One system, must the airline remain intact for the system to work in the event of tow bar failure? Should it be the longest connection?

Thanks for the advice. I ordered a 30' extension. You're right, it wasn't cheap but I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

Is that two 25 foot extension cords in addition to your permanent cord?

We just received our information packet in the mail. On the back of the parking pass there is a statement to the effect that we might need an extension cord to reach the electric service. As noted in an earlier thread, the electric is quite pricey and, having paid for 50A service, I would hate to be parked too far away to hook up. Does anyone have any experience with this? Would I need a 15' cord, or a 30' cord? My permanent cord reaches about 25' or so.

Agreed. And it doesn't hurt to put chocks behind all the wheels.

Lots of people head for the Gulf Coast. But for those who might like the Atlantic Ocean, there's a very nice park in Fort Pierce called the Treasure Coast RV Park (www.treasurecoastrv.com), right where I-95 and the Florida Turnpike cross. A few miles to the beach, shopping, PGA golf, restaurants galore ...

We have the Verizon Share Everything family plan, with an 8GB data plan, with four phones and a 3G JetPack on the plan. Typical combined usage is less than 3 GB per month, but when our home internet went out for a week, and again when we spent a week at a no-wifi campground, our monthly usage went over 4 GB. Since an overage is $15 per GB, I figured an extra 4 GB for $20 (the difference between a 4 GB plan and an 8 GB plan) is cheap insurance for those times when we'll use the JetPack more extensively on the road.

Reading this thread raised my curiosity; Can you use the turntable when convection cooking? I thought "no" because the air must circulate around the pan, so my wife takes the turntable out and replaces it with the rack. I just checked and the rack does fit on the turntable dish so it is possible to use both at the same time. Does using the rack on the turntable while convection cooking improve the process?

Interesting info. Thanks. I got my towbar and diode wiring system from Blue Ox and they said nothing about requiring a relay, only that the lights have to be controlled by the coach. They originally recommended the additional bulb socket setup but I opted for the diodes. When I saw the new LED replacement for the bulb socket I called but was discouraged by the price. They wouldn't sell me just two bulbs. I'm now in the re-thinking mode ... !

I, too, was impressed by the SMI technology. I did the Toad installation myself, but I let the experts install the coach portion of the system. I works like a charm. I don't have to leave the key in the Toad so I don't have a battery problem and I don't have to pull any fuses.

No problem with the wiring. The diode is an "and gate." The pulsed signal is coming from the MH turn signal wiring, putting a pulsed 12 v signal to one input side of the diode. That 12 v pulse passes through the diode to the lamp filament giving you a blinking light. If (when) your supplemental braking system depresses the brake pedal, the towed vehicle brake light switch will activate the vehicle brake lights (including the third light). This puts a steady 12 v signal on the other input side of the diode, and thus a steady 12 v output to the filament. Since one 12 v signal will not override the other 12 v signal (that is, they are equal and therefore create an equal output), and the two 12 v signals do not add up to a 24 v signal, the filament sees only a steady, constant, 12 v source and becomes a steady light. Of course there are other factors involved. I already said this does not apply to towed vehicles with independent turn signal lamps and brake lamps. Also, if you disconnect the battery on the Toad, there will be no 12 v brake signal to fill in the spaces between the pulses from the MH. And, as the battery on the Toad wears down, the pulsed signal coming from the MH electrical system will be stronger than the brake signal and you will get a slightly brighter flashing light, but it will be barely discernible, and certainly not as clear as on-off-on-off. I installed the Air Force One supplemental braking system. This system activates the Jeep brakes whenever the coach brakes are applied, even when the vehicles are at a standstill. Electrically activated supplemental braking systems will probably do the same. However, if you have a momentum/inertia activated supplemental braking system, the Toad brakes are not applied when the vehicles are not moving, and you will not see this happen when you are checking your lights before leaving camp. It only happens when the turn signal is on and the Toad brake pedal is depressed. Is it a major issue or a safety hazard? No, probably not. More often than not, I'm guessing, you'll have your turn signal on long before you apply the brakes. And, again I'm guessing but it's true on my coach, the people behind you will be able to see the coach lights as well as the Toad lights. The coach lights are unaffected by the installation, continuing to flash as expected. No big deal.

I used the diodes on my Jeep. The only downside to this setup is that when you put on the turn signal and step on the brake concurrently, the light will stop flashing. The supplemental braking system will cause the steady brake light to override the pulsing turn signal. This doesn't apply to a toad with separate brake and turn lamps, but on my Jeep - and many other vehicles - the brake and turn lamps are the same bulb. Fortunately, the coach lights can be seen over the Jeep, so a flashing turn signal is still visible.

A couple of items to note: Every Pilot or Flying J will have DEF, but not every one has it at the pump. A box of DEF will run about $15 for 2.5 gallons, but pump delivery is (currently) under $3/gallon. The myPilot app (or the website www.pilotflyingj.com) will tell you which Pilot/Flying J has DEF at the pump and what the price is. The DEF pumps are arranged for the 18-wheelers, with the tanks on the driver's side near the front. I have to go through the pump bays backwards in my Itasca, and I have to move it after fueling, because the DEF tank is in the rear on the passenger's side. (I like the idea of a two-gallon gas can for the DEF, but there's no place to store it. I feel a mod coming on!) I suppose that I could get DEF from the adjacent pump if they weren't too busy. I was told (but I have not verified) that a running diesel engine will continue to run when the DEF tank goes empty, and the the engine will start two more times. This allows you to get to the filling station, and if that station has no DEF you can get to the next station. After that the engine is interlocked not to start. I don't know if it's true, and I don't intend to test it! I'm getting about 500 miles per DEF gallon.

We tow a Wrangler and the miles do not accumulate.