Are you over the weight limit?

[stik]

Originally Posted by Bigd2

Over the hill puts you somewhere around Santa Monica. I spent 30 years in the valley between Van Nuys, Encino and Woodland hills. I now live in the only state that has two governors in jail

BigD2,

I also am "proud" to say my former Governor might have made my license plates, but, correct me if I am wrong, only Big George is in prison, while we still wait to see what sentence Blago will receive.
I think we can still safely say we come from the most corrupt State in the Union, though.

[Bigd2]

Originally Posted by Dr4Film

To answer the original poster's question, YES, I am.

The federal single axle weight limit is 20,000 lbs for all highways for all vehicles. Unfortunately, there were many RV manufacturers that thought that RV's were exempt from the federal law, NOPE.

My axle ratings are 13,000 lbs front and 23,000 lbs rear. I have a CCC of 3,902 lbs without a FULL water tank which is 80 gallons or another 600 lbs.. If I were to remove 3,000 lbs or more from the coach to conform to the federal axle weight limit, that would leave me with a CCC of 902 lbs or less depending on how much water I carry. It ain't gonna happen. Plus I generally carry a full tank of water as it doesn't make ANY difference in my MPG whether it is full or empty.

Therefore, I simply do NOT make ANY plans to drive on certain highways that enforce the 20,000 lb limit, such as some of the Ohio and Pennsylvania roads.

I am a full-time Rver with a FULLY loaded coach. I haven't weighed the coach since leaving for Alaska in May 2009. I do need to reweigh it sometime soon just to double check what the changes are and to properly adjust my tire pressures.

I have been running consistently over the axle ratings somewhere between 1-3 percent. I have been traveling around the North American Continent for the past 2 years with thousands of miles behind me. Haven't had any problems yet and I don't worry about the federal axle limit. I lose sleep over other stuff but it isn't about being over the axle limit of 20,000 lbs.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

Richard..

I could not agree more with your feelings about the federal limit, which was introduced by someone else at the beginning of the thread. I was interested more in the way manufacturers have just seemed to not pay any attention to the rating they place on the axle. In an effort to make our home away from more comfortable
and attractive they have added Corian counter tops, ceramic tile floors, solid wood cabinets, elaborate entertainment systems, and the list goes on…….

We all know that there are many different axles both front and rear with different weight ratings. I think that most people try to stay within the ratings given to us by the manufacturers and do a pretty good job. I think the real question is how can a coach be manufactured and sold with an axle that has a metal tag fixed to it stating that this axle has a 20K rating and then give us an owner’s manual that states that the same axle has a 22 or 23K rating.

At any rate it all makes for some interesting conversation among all of us that have a similar interest in enjoying this beautiful country from our RV’s.

Any time I hear the words “ I am a full-time Rver” it gets my attention. I think my wife and I are headed in your direction, prodded by some Rver friends of ours in Florida. We are particularly interested in your stay in Alaska. It is definitely on our bucket list

Thanks for your reply

Dick

[Bigd2]

Originally Posted by stik

BigD2,

I also am "proud" to say my former Governor might have made my license plates, but, correct me if I am wrong, only Big George is in prison, while we still wait to see what sentence Blago will receive.
I think we can still safely say we come from the most corrupt State in the Union, though.

You are right, but I hope he is headed in that direction. Blago reminds me
of someone else who once said " I did not have sex with that woman...."
Dick

[Dr4Film]

Originally Posted by Bigd2

I could not agree more with your feelings about the federal limit, which was I was interested more in the way manufacturers have just seemed to not pay any attention to the rating they place on the axle.

We all know that there are many different axles both front and rear with different weight ratings. I think that most people try to stay within the ratings given to us by the manufacturers and do a pretty good job.

I believe that RV companies purchase their axles from vendors, primarily chassis manufacturer's. When the axles are made, I also believe that the actual limit that the axle can withstand is a lot more than the rating they put on that particular axle knowing that people will push the envelope, therefore they have to have a substantial built-in safety margin, maybe 10% or more. In most cases, when axles are made for lets say Monaco, they don't necessarily make them at different weight ratings however they generally make a couple different ones for the different classes of coaches, like say the gassers and diesel pushers but rate them at different weights depending on the size of the wheels & tires they install. Remember that the wheel and tire have to support all of that weight too. Usually those are the limiting factors more often than the axles. I have not heard too much of axles failing versus people overloading the tires and wheels and then under-inflating them, an accident waiting to happen.

Originally Posted by Bigd2

I think the real question is how can a coach be manufactured and sold with an axle that has a metal tag fixed to it stating that this axle has a 20K rating and then give us an owner’s manual that states that the same axle has a 22 or 23K rating.

One thing I learned quickly about Owner's Manuals is that the information in mine at least is too generic and is used for many of the coaches made by Monaco versus being very specific to my 2002 Windsor PBT floor-plan. When I look at the spec sheet in the rear, it lists the same information for all of the 40 foot models regardless of the floor-plan and it doesn't matter whether it is a 2 slide or a 3 slide which can be a 1000 lb difference in weight or more.

Originally Posted by Bigd2

At any rate it all makes for some interesting conversation among all of us that have a similar interest in enjoying this beautiful country from our RV’s.

Any time I hear the words “ I am a full-time Rver” it gets my attention. I think my wife and I are headed in your direction, prodded by some Rver friends of ours in Florida. We are particularly interested in your stay in Alaska. It is definitely on our bucket list

Thanks for your reply

Dick

I have been full-timing for over 9 years now and have no finish date in mine. There is way too much stuff on my Bucket List that needs to be checked off. When both the time and place comes to settle down, I plan to build a small integrated coach house whereby I can utilize the coach as additional living space for 6 months and then to escape the weather, head out on the road for the other 6 months visiting family and friends around the country.

I am headed back to Alaska next spring from our wintering in Florida to spend the summer with my two sons and grand-kids. Then back to the west coast for a few years before coming back to the east once again.

Safe travels to you and good luck with your full-time decision.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[Downsizer]

We have a very overweight and strange one. 2000 Monaco Windsor with NO slides. It is 2600 difference between R & L in rear with a final of 21,000 in rear. Normal loaded, etc. We had it weighed by Mark at Escapees in Texas and it was the first he's ever seen so out of balance!! Drives and handles fine, but whew... 2600 heavier on R side!?!?!!?!
Was nervous going to Alaska/Canada - afraid they may weigh RV's but no.....
We are just "assuming" Monaco added extra to R/S in case it was to have a slide installed during mfg??

[Bigd2]

Dr4Film
My wife and I were wondering what you did before you decided to go full time. We talked about your user name and the time you spend in California and I came up with you being a film editor. I spent 12 years between what used to be Desilu Studios and then became Paramount Studios when they opened the wall that used to separate the two studios. I spent a little time in editing. This was back in the time of
shows like Mission Impossible, Star Trek, Ben Casey, I Love Lucy, Wyatt Earp, Bonanza and the like


Getting closer to full timing
Dick

[Bigd2]

Originally Posted by Downsizer

We have a very overweight and strange one. 2000 Monaco Windsor with NO slides. It is 2600 difference between R & L in rear with a final of 21,000 in rear. Normal loaded, etc. We had it weighed by Mark at Escapees in Texas and it was the first he's ever seen so out of balance!! Drives and handles fine, but whew... 2600 heavier on R side!?!?!!?!
Was nervous going to Alaska/Canada - afraid they may weigh RV's but no.....
We are just "assuming" Monaco added extra to R/S in case it was to have a slide installed during mfg??

Bernie..

I have to admit that I have never heard of a coach with that much difference between the rear right and left axle. Have you ever had it checked again by someone else?

Dick

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by Dr4Film

To answer the original poster's question, YES, I am.

The federal single axle weight limit is 20,000 lbs for all highways for all vehicles. Unfortunately, there were many RV manufacturers that thought that RV's were exempt from the federal law, NOPE.

My axle ratings are 13,000 lbs front and 23,000 lbs rear. I have a CCC of 3,902 lbs without a FULL water tank which is 80 gallons or another 600 lbs.. If I were to remove 3,000 lbs or more from the coach to conform to the federal axle weight limit, that would leave me with a CCC of 902 lbs or less depending on how much water I carry. It ain't gonna happen. Plus I generally carry a full tank of water as it doesn't make ANY difference in my MPG whether it is full or empty.

Therefore, I simply do NOT make ANY plans to drive on certain highways that enforce the 20,000 lb limit, such as some of the Ohio and Pennsylvania roads.

I am a full-time Rver with a FULLY loaded coach. I haven't weighed the coach since leaving for Alaska in May 2009. I do need to reweigh it sometime soon just to double check what the changes are and to properly adjust my tire pressures.

I have been running consistently over the axle ratings somewhere between 1-3 percent. I have been traveling around the North American Continent for the past 2 years with thousands of miles behind me. Haven't had any problems yet and I don't worry about the federal axle limit. I lose sleep over other stuff but it isn't about being over the axle limit of 20,000 lbs.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

agreed
i went friday after my annual inspection and found with 30 gallons of water,
1/2 a bag of fuel, i was 19480 on the rear and 10600 up front for a total of 30080...so when i top off fuel it should push front up to 11000 or purt near, which is good
i suspect when we hook up the hauler it will put us very near the rear capacity did remove some heavy items from under the bed this morning....i swear i don't no where the stuff comes from or how it walks into the coach. I think lucy is sneaking in and adding rocks

[dashdriver]

One of the many reasons I went for a tag axle coach.

[Dr4Film]

Originally Posted by Bigd2

Dr4Film
My wife and I were wondering what you did before you decided to go full time. We talked about your user name and the time you spend in California and I came up with you being a film editor. I spent 12 years between what used to be Desilu Studios and then became Paramount Studios when they opened the wall that used to separate the two studios. I spent a little time in editing. This was back in the time of
shows like Mission Impossible, Star Trek, Ben Casey, I Love Lucy, Wyatt Earp, Bonanza and the like.

Getting closer to full timing
Dick

Dick,

I was born & raised in Rochester NY & spent 31 years working for Kodak in the Motion Picture Division learning all there was to the business before retiring in 1993. Went to Hollywood and worked as a Technical Director for CFI & Technicolor Film Laboratories resolving internal problems, improving workflow & production techniques as well as working directly with all of the customers correcting their problems with both TV and Feature Film productions. It was a win-win situation when everyone was happy making money. Tried to retire after 10 years in 2003 but UCLA got me to stay another 5 years to build a film preservation & restoration laboratory for them in Hollywood. I did, then hired staff and managed it until Feb 2009. Finally retired for the third and last time as I really wanted to travel to see the country that I had only seen from the air most of the time. I do some Workamping now but only on my terms and time allotted.

People will either LOVE it or HATE it. I happen to Love the lifestyle, no regrets. I will continue until I get tired of it or my health will no longer allow me to do it any more.

Good luck with your decision and the preparation. That's half the fun.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

Originally Posted by dashdriver

One of the many reasons I went for a tag axle coach.

In retrospect, I sure wish that my Windsor had a tag axle but I have no intentions on switching as I am upside down on my mortgage. Besides, I have made so many custom modifications to this coach and have gotten it almost complete that it would be very difficult to find another one exactly like it with a tag axle. I do NOT want to start over with the same modifications on another coach, so I just deal with the single axle.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[Pairajays]

The point of this post was really about rear axle rating and federal law, two different things. I believe what a lot of posters have said, the federal limit on the rear axle is 20,000 lbs. Why coach builders put higher rated axles is unknown. Probably because it takes that to support their weight. I wonder how the rating is actually determined. Could be the axle could safely support 25,000 lbs, or more, but is rated for 20,000 lbs because of federal limits, are it is 23,000 lbs because it takes that much to support the as built weight. It is pretty well established that we just don't know. It is one of those federal laws that can't be enforced because you can't be stopped just to check your weight. Some have reported scales at the entrance to toll roads and had to turn around because the rear axle exceeded the federal limit. I have never heard of a case where the coach driver was fined for being over weight.

One final comment. I don't believe a coach builder would intentionally put a rear axle on a vehicle that could not support the as delivered weight. The liability factor would be a big issue. However, i have heard of cases where the axle rating would not support the as built weight and a reasonable amount of cargo, including fuel and water. Then this get's into who made the mistake, the coach builder are chassis manufacturer.

Jim E

[Downsizer]

Hi Bigd2..
Yes... I actually had him move the scale from R to L and it still came up the same. Also, drove several miles to re-level the air bag suspension.... then, dumped all the air out to see if that worked.... no.... the site at the Escapees in Texas is a specific area for weighing RV's and is leveled etc..... weird, huh!?!?!?!