Questions for SOLO's on fueling and towing

[Afubar]

I have a question for the SOLO RVers out there. In Oregon, this has not been a prolbem as you must have an attendant fuel your rig, but when I go full time this April and will be leaving the not so great state of Oregon, how do you figure out your stopping point to re-fuel, You can't see the fuel door on the side from the mirrors,

Also, I will be using a dolly to tow my Cutlass. How do you load up on the dolly without a spotter? I've bought one of those little traffic light thingys that some use in their garages to signal when you've pulled in far enough. Think this might work for the dolly. When I load up the first time, I'll have someone there to coach the loading, will then put a mark on the tongue of the dolly so I know where to put the stop light thingy from then on. Think this will work?

Opinions, suggestions, and please remember, I'm not blond, that's just grey mxed in, I swear. (oh, and female)

And if you have any other SOLO RVer tips, bring them on.

Thanks Again
Kaye

[Rook]

Hi Kaye,

I used to live in OR...twice!....in Beaverton....retired from Tektronix.

Where to stop.....what I do is I know that my fueling intake is exactly half way between the back edge of the passenger side front window and the next window toward the rear. So....I see the diesel pump go by my passenger window and I go forward a foot or two.....and I'm perfect! The tow dolly is a bit more complex......I suspect "practice" is the answer. Rook

[Tsronco]

A thought would be to have someone stand next to your filling point then put a little dot on ur mirror where that person is standing. This when the pump matches that mark you know ur about in the same area.

That made more sense in my head now that I'm rereading it I'm not sure it would work but it's something to try

[mccsix]

Pick a spot above the fuel door and note it's distance from any part of the coach that sticks out as seen from your seat with the mirrors adjusted correctly. Once you ID it its yours forever. (you can even blue tape 1/2 of a tennis ball there till you get used to it).
To load your car, you MUST have the dolly hooked up to your MH For 1st time, line up your front wheels right against the dolly ramps and adjust them to center on the tires. You can spray paint a stripe of their location on the dolly for future reference. With your dolly hooked up to the MH slowly and evenly pull up on the ramp till you feel your wheels "fall" into the "hole" or stop on your dolly...that's it. Make sure your wheels up against the front stops on the dolly. Put on your wheel straps and pull them as tight as you can...and then some...you might want to use a bar extension to really honk down on the ratchet to tighten them. After a couple of blocks with some stop/go/turns recheck the straps for tightness.
Make sure your MH and dolly light plugs match up, you may need an adapter that any hitch place can sell you.

[Afubar]

Thanks guys, you've all had great ideas. mccsix, thanks for the tutorial on dolly loading. Believe me, I need all the help I can get. I wish there was a way around needing to tow a car, but in all honesty fear there isn't. But then again, I was nervous when learning to pull a loaded 3 horse slant trailer. I got good at backing that baby. lol I'm sure after the first nerves are over, it ain't gonna be no big thing.

Thanks again all.

Kaye

[UltraKen]

Originally Posted by Afubar

Thanks guys, you've all had great ideas. mccsix, thanks for the tutorial on dolly loading. Believe me, I need all the help I can get. I wish there was a way around needing to tow a car, but in all honesty fear there isn't. But then again, I was nervous when learning to pull a loaded 3 horse slant trailer. I got good at backing that baby. lol I'm sure after the first nerves are over, it ain't gonna be no big thing.

Thanks again all.

Kaye

Go here: Trailer Hitches at Harbor Freight Tools

and scroll down to the second row. Middle picture shows a Trailer hitch alignment kit. You put one magnet on the hitch and one on the middle of the hood. You just keep them lined up when you drive up the ramp.

Easy solution for about $12.

[Afubar]

Thanks UltraKen, the problem isn't hitching the dolly to the MH, it's more with stopping before you drive off the other side of the dolly. That's what I worry about. Infact, I bought the item you show years ago to help hitching up the horse trailer. Worder great for that.

[SuperGewl]

OK so you have the Hitch ball setup, then use it the first time you load the car with your helper. Once the car is on the dolly, place one of the magnetic ball sticks on the deck or tounge of the dolly. Make sure it is up against the front of the cars bumper. Now mark the location on the dolly where you place it. This is where you are going to place it next itme you load the dolly by yourself or even when you practice this this with your helper there. See piece of cake or at least easier.
I hope this helps.

[ronspradley]

I think this reticence of driving onto the dolly will go away after a little use. But until then, you can use something the boat trailers use to align. Some kind of upright stick like PVC pipe on each side indicating the general location of the left and right edges. Keep it between the vertical sticks. And I have not used a dolly for my toad, I tow 4 down, but there should be some kind of physical stop when driving up on the ramps that limit your forward motion. A depression that the tires drop into, or a metal barrier that says this is the end. Then you will be able to align to the middle and stop where you need to stop. Hope this helps.

ronspradley

[JimM68]

How about attaching some sort of verticle stick, perhaps a 4 foot cb antenna or something, to the dolly, such that the car bumper hits it (and moves it, which you'll see) when the car reaches the right position?

[kedanie]

If you are filling with diesel in Oregon no attendant is required. The attendant filling law only applies to gasoline.

[wa8yxm]

Well.. Experience can do it but.. Most back up camera monitors have 2 inputs. A and B, I found the B input on mine (A very special connector) and did a but of cutting and splicing and suddenly it was a very standard (RCA or Phono) connector.

I then got a "Bolt camera" this is a small round camera with a ring, designed to flush mount in a wall or panel, and drilling a hole above or below the gas cap (Below in my case) bolted it in, Ran the cables and .. When I pull into the pump. I press the A/B button, and when the pump hose is in the center of the screen.. I'm where I want to be. Every time.

[billyb]

how about taking the dolly to a welding shop and having them weld a 1/4 plate along both outside edges of the dolly and ramps , with the leading edge turned out to avoid scuffing the tire. that would guide you right into place

[Afubar]

Thanks Everyone, I'm gonna print this thread out and keep, lots of great info.

Kaye