| Author | Message | ||
| Glenn Williams (Glenn)
Registered Member Username: Glenn Post Number: 212 Registered: 6-2006 Posted From: 216.163.56.194  Rating: N/A |
1. Weather Men are not to be trusted! 2. 14 hours of rain will turn the most solid ground into something less than solid! 3. You can be 6 inches from the pavement and be stuck! 4. Chains/towstraps should always be carried. (I recommend 2! - see point 7) 5. Know how to let the air out of your tag axle/bogie if you have them to get better traction. 6. If your drive wheels start to spin - STOP RIGHT THERE! 7. 2 4WD full size trucks can pull out a 40ft bus if you don't bury it to the axles (see point 6). Saw that done twice, today, and did it myself too. Our rally REALLY got rained on and we had to pull out 7 coaches! Only 1 needed a wrecker, and he may have been able to get out if he had hooked up to a pickup first to assist, but he was the first to try to move. No injuries to people or coaches! Some other observations - If you really like to park on grass, don't hesitate to use some knobbier drive tires. One 35ft Flx VL drove right through the same grass that stopped everyone else! Either that, or Flxibles float! ;D Also, if you like to "camp" vs. resort stay, always consider how much weight you are putting in your coach if you are building it yourself. A 45 ft Prevost with granite countertops is beautiful - but it might not come out of the same location as a 35 ft self converted MCI! I saw that happen today too. They were parked side by side, and the MCI was one of the few that did not need a tow. I do not mean any disrespect to anyone's bus, or to their choices in style. I think that new people (ME INCLUDED!) really need to think through these things as they build and then USE their bus. I'd like to thank Mike Muller, Chris (GM BUSGUY), and Tim (didn't get his last name) for helping me and many others out of the muck Glenn | ||
| Buswarrior (Buswarrior)
Registered Member Username: Buswarrior Post Number: 1566 Registered: 12-2000 Posted From: 76.71.101.218  Rating: |
Excellent topic! First thought: Buses belong on improved surfaces, be very wary to go off the asphalt in the first place. On the ground, good practice to park on a 3/4 inch by 2' by 2' plywood board under each corner... With another set to put in front of that set, to walk yourself out of the sudden bog. As long as you didn't use them all up leveling the coach.... One at the front door, a couple under your chair, all kinds of uses to flatten your world in their day job... And park expecting to have to go straight out. Turning in the slop of a damp grassy field is what traps the ones who did get moving initially... parking the rally perpendicular to the road may look really neat but will be the devil if it goes soft. On the angle parking means less turning and a safer terminal velocity to escape. Great that you saw what happens if you spin the tires... DON'T SPIN THE TIRES!!! Spinning coach tires digs holes that require expensive tow trucks. Period. This ain't your father's Oldsmobile, that coach isn't the General Lee, and you ain't Burt Reynolds. Nylon recovery straps for your bus, NO CHAINS! You can't control the other knob driving the recovery vehicle who is trying to yank parts off your coach. This is not the clean and jerk. As long as the coach driver doesn't do something stupid beforehand...a single 4x4 and a recovery strap will recover your coach quite nicely. happy coaching! buswarrior | ||
| john w. roan (Chessie4905)
Registered Member Username: Chessie4905 Post Number: 1422 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 71.58.110.9  Rating: N/A |
Chain breaks....BAM right through your windshield and maybe through your head. Those duals are trying to move the front tires that are almost sunk into the dirt/grass themselves. Since they can move forward only slightly, gravity makes DOWN the only other option. Some of the older ones know about the expression of " planking it out ". Also in those older 4 speeds, don't drive down into a park that requires backing up a steep grade to get back out, or take along a spare clutch assembly. Best bet for those small parks, and especially in the dark is to walk the route first or ride with them with their golf cart before you go to your assigned site.Oh yeah, don't forget about those humps in road, natural or man made that are high enough to hang up the center of coach belly on. | ||
| niles steckbauer (Niles500)
Registered Member Username: Niles500 Post Number: 916 Registered: 11-2004 Posted From: 173.78.29.189 Rating: |
When using a chain or a snatch'em strap you can avoid the danger of lash back by placing an old tire half way down the length of the chain/strap and let NO one stand alongside and watch - Years of four wheeling using this method and never an incident - HTH | ||
| Cullen Newsom (Cullennewsom)
Registered Member Username: Cullennewsom Post Number: 38 Registered: 2-2009 Posted From: 129.7.53.206 Rating: N/A |
A sheet of plywood ripped down the long dimension is your friend. Far superior to cramming 2x6's under the tires. |
