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Old 02-16-2015, 07:33 PM   #1
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Got my EZE Tow today

My Eze Tow arrived today. Very fast to Orlando from the factory. I think I ordered it last tuesday and it was in the shipper's local distribution yard on Friday. It was delivered at 2 PM to day

Just a couple of points I've noticed so far if you're considering buying one of these. Watching the video on the website, you would think a magical truck arrives at your house, the friendly driver drops it off in your driveway single-handedly, you loosen 2 bolts and you're off to the races. Well, that wasn't quite my experience. The driver pulls up and the first thing he says is "I have no idea how I'm going get this thing off here". It took me and my son getting into the truck to help the guy wrangle the trailer from the front of the truck to the lift gate. Once it was down, I loosened the two bolts per the video, but I still had to take a pry bar to the wood to get pieces out of the way to be able to roll it out. It wasn't until I actually set eyes on it that I realized I would not be able to wheel this thing into a single wide garage door (that shouldn't have been a suprise, its pretty clear these trailers are the width of your MH and a normal single garage door is like 96 inches). But I did get it into the double side of my garage and quickly put the fenders on. I plugged the connector into my truck's trailer plug and verified the tail lights work properly. The only thing that seemed wrong is it appears the breakaway cable got crushed somewhere along the line and some of the strands are broken and the plastic sheathing is damaged. I sent Acme some pictures in an email and I'd expect to hear from them shortly.

I like what I see, it seems well made and I was able to stand it up on end in my garage where I probably will store it. Its a bit heavy for one person, but not too bad. I also asked Acme some clarifying questions about brake fluid level and tow ball height. The website said the ideal height is 14 inches, but I'm not sure if they were talking about the top of the ball or the base. On my truck the top of the ball is 19 inches. I'll have to see what the RV measures to. I'm sure I'll need a drop down adapter for the ball. I'm also not exactly sure how the extra set of safety chains hook from the trailer to the undercarriage of the car.

I'll post more soon. I just ordered an adapter for the flat four plug to my MH, a splitter cable and a set of magnetic tow lights. I believe you don't need them since the trailer has lights on the fenders, but I'd feel better with something closer to the back of my towed car.

The plan is to test tow this weekend, maybe with my truck and then the MH. We'll be doing a short drive to Gold Branch state park in central Fl the week after. Its about 140 miles so that should be a good shakedown for pulling the Murano. Our big trip is at the end of March to Nashville.







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Old 02-16-2015, 07:46 PM   #2
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Usually they specify the measurement to the top of the ball, at least that was the case with our KK-460.
Our KK was delivered to my work place (saved $75 that way). Driver dropped it off in the front of the building and I spent a cold 4 hours assembling it in a snow storm enough to get it home! The wheels weren't even on it and several bolts needed a specific torque value and I didn't have my torque wrench with me. But, when I was done I knew it was done right.
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Old 02-16-2015, 07:54 PM   #3
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It was a bit nippy today. High 60s maybe.
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Old 02-16-2015, 07:59 PM   #4
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It was a bit nippy today. High 60s maybe.
Around here we get the short sleeved shirts and shorts out!
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Old 02-17-2015, 09:02 PM   #5
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I asked about the ball height as well. Here is two e-mails I received. The first is whether the ball height was the top of the ball or the top of the coupler (bottom of the ball). The second was the actual height since it is hard to hit exactly 14 inches. My questions are italicized in black, the answers in red.

I am confused on the statement that the coupler height much be 14 inches off the ground. Is this the height of the base of the ball (where the bottom of the ball would be) or is it the top fo the ball?

Base of the ball, or to the bottom of the coupler.

Richard Brown, Acme Tow Dolly Company.


I have measured my RV receiver height and found that with a 4” drop hitch I would be at 15” base height and with a 6” drop hitch I would be at 13” base height. Neither is at the recommended 14” base height. Is there a preference to being 1” above or 1” below the 14” height?

Your hitch height is fine between 14-16 inches so 15 inches is good.


I wrap the chains loosely around each lower control arm and then into the dolly slot. I also use a small wire clip from Home Depot to clip the last link of the chain to the rest of the chain to keep it in place. I also store the ramps in the trunk of the car, which I find much easier.
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Old 02-17-2015, 11:39 PM   #6
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Like said above 14"-16" is ideal at the base of the ball...it is easy to illustrate this when hooked-up - the dolly tongue is a tad bit nose high. We use a 8" drop hitch to get to 16" above ground:
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The car to dolly safety chains will be a personal thing. We have tie-down hoops under the bumper of the car we usually tow...very easy to hook-up.

The daily hook-up and drop off should be made as easy as possible, so instead of crawling under the car for the chains, I would look for an easy hard point to chain to. If I could not find anything easy, I would add a short piece of chain with a D-Ring around the frame that can stay on the car, and hook the chain to that.

The break-away cable being damaged in shipping is unfortunate, but will be no problem because it will only pull out on a break-away situation. It could be recoated with the rubber stuff used to cover tool handles...rubber coating that hardens when drying.
Interested in what Acme says about that.

Best luck
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Old 02-18-2015, 05:30 AM   #7
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The Acme EZE TOW Tow Dolly

With regards to the breakaway cable, it appears to cosmetic damage, as in it will not impair the function of the cable. However we can send you a replacement if you like. It is a pretty involved process to change it though.
The ideal height is 14 inches from the bottom of the coupler to the ground. You need another two inches of drop.
The vast majority of deliveries are actually uneventful. Most drivers have no problem, some seem to struggle with it. It is 100% fully welded and shows up 99% assembled. It is an accomplishment to ship something this large nationwide for what they charge us.
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Old 02-18-2015, 06:00 AM   #8
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My truck driver got it to the ground without issue - I recall prying the boards off to get it out of the shipping container then wheeled the dolly into the shade to complete the simple assembly. A test run is a good idea - after a couple miles you'll know what to expect.
P.S. I cut the shipping crate up to fit in a bay - it made great camp fire wood.
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Old 02-18-2015, 06:01 PM   #9
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My truck driver got it to the ground without issue - I recall prying the boards off to get it out of the shipping container then wheeled the dolly into the shade to complete the simple assembly. A test run is a good idea - after a couple miles you'll know what to expect.
P.S. I cut the shipping crate up to fit in a bay - it made great camp fire wood.
Thanks,

How'd those nails burn?
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Old 02-18-2015, 06:06 PM   #10
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My truck driver didn't know how to get it off and if I wasn't there would have dropped it. I had to argue with him on how to get it off without damage. I don't think he was pleased, but at least my dolly was unscathed.
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Old 02-18-2015, 06:17 PM   #11
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When mine was delivered it was cold and raining sideways. Just a miserable day but my driver had a drop lift and walk around lift device with him. Everything worked out great for me. I popped off two boards with my hammer, used a ratchet on the two nuts, and rolled it out just like the utube video showed. The cold and rain were horrible that day but the dolly, the rain did not ruin how happy I am with that part.






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Old 02-19-2015, 05:50 AM   #12
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Congratulations on your purchase of the ACME tow dolly. It is does an admirable job of pulling your toad with its surge brakes and no speed restrictions. A couple of points:

Reduce the tire pressure to about 30 psi when towing empty. This will prevent the dolly from bouncing around like a ballon.

The width of the dolly is greater than your RV tire width by about 11 inches. You will need to steer for the dolly, not just the RV.

Tire marks are left on the pavement when making sharp turns. this is because the coach rear wheels and the toad rear wheels roll while the dolly wheels skid.

In tight situations it is possible to back up which cannot be done towing 4 down.

In my case all I tow is a Mini Cooper. So I modified the dolly by cutting 11 inches out of the width so the tire width exactly matches the RV. The dolly bed was outlined with 2x4 lumber so the front tires drop into this area. The straps then hold the tires down between boards. There is only one inch clearance between the Mini front tires and the sides of the dolly. This makes it very easy to put the Mini in the center of the dolly and prevents any turning of the tires when strapped down. I made ramps with 2x12s which are stored on the front of the dolly.
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Old 02-19-2015, 10:15 AM   #13
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I had a similar experience when my EZE-Tow was delivered. The Averitt driver hopped out of the truck and said, "I don't know how we're going to get this off the truck." It was one of the shorter box trucks, ~20 ft. I was his last delivery of the day and my tow dolly was all the way forward in the truck. He tried using his pallet jack but the top of the dolly (the tongue) was hitting the roof. I asked him HOW it was loaded to begin with. He said a bunch of guys literally pushed the crate all the way forward. I said looks like were sliding it out of here. We used his hand truck to slightly pick up one end and I pushed from the back. We managed to push it to the lift gate but the dolly's width was the second hurdle. We pushed the dolly out of the truck and onto the lift gate only far enough to clear the tongue past the roof. I grabbed my 2 little dolly platforms (I use them for moving my jeep axles around) and we placed the platforms under the dolly crate, about 2' off center. This allowed us to spin the crate on the lift gate so both ends were hanging over the sides of the lift gate. I held the dolly steady while he lowered the gate. We simply rolled it off and up into my driveway.

What kind of shipping company jumps out of the truck and says, "I don't know how we're going to get this off the truck." THEY are supposed to be the professionals. WHY would they even load something that big into a box truck with no means of unloading it without the customers help. I fully expected to see a flat bed with a piggy-back fork truck come down my street. Nope.

That being said, the delivery dope from Averitt in no way reflects poorly on the Acme EZE-Tow Dolly Company. Once in my driveway I was able to unpack and assemble without incident. I love the dolly and would buy again in a heartbeat. I thought my delivery experience was unique. I see now that it may be routine. Lesson learned: when scheduling a delivery of any large items specifically request the PROPER truck and tools (fork truck) for the job.
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Old 02-19-2015, 11:00 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jones47172 View Post
Congratulations on your purchase of the ACME tow dolly... A couple of points:

The width of the dolly is greater than your RV tire width by about 11 inches. You will need to steer for the dolly, not just the RV.

Tire marks are left on the pavement when making sharp turns. this is because the coach rear wheels and the toad rear wheels roll while the dolly wheels skid...
As shipped, the EZE-Tow dolly measures 102" wide. My RV is also 102" wide...I am pretty sure the Palazzo is 101" wide.
Specs Palazzo Motorhomes: Class A Diesel RV by Thor Motor Coach

The dolly should track right behind the RV as shipped. Here is the best photo I have to show the similar width.

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I submit that if the steering on the toad is allowed to fully pivot, the dolly tires will not scrub...the 3 ground contact points (RV's rears, Dolly tires, and toad's rear tires) should be able to deflect enough during turns to not scrub.
This can be seen in EZE-Tow's video:



If there is a scrubbing action, then something is not set-up right.

If towing with a light pick-up, then the dolly will be wider than the truck - and the steering of some smaller pick-ups could exceed to turn radius of the dolly/toad set - but that should not be the case for a normal Class A RV. Scrubbing the dolly tires will prematurely wear-out the tires.

Best luck
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