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soldiermedic · 07-14-2009, 06:20 PM

A courtesy park and inspection in St. Louis, MO has been extended. Since we have a 53 FC it should be near identical to this 54 FC.

Keep us posted, and PM me if you want more contact info.

Steve

cycletahoe · 07-15-2009, 12:03 AM

DanB - going with replacement option. New tongue, axle, wheels and tires. Carhauler probably the smart option (never been accused of that), but seems like cheating

and less of an adventure. I have one member lined up for an inspection and expect it to be a valuable resource.

Steve - thanks again for the invite and advice.

Best regards,
Scott

Melody Ranch · 07-15-2009, 06:18 AM

Now thats nice. Pit stop is available for you here in North Texas if you need it. Just call.

blacksheep · 07-15-2009, 07:19 AM

Wow, what a great gift!!!!

Being it is 1851 miles from Peoria to Reno which includes mountain grades it would not be wise to attempt towing unless axle, bearings, rims, tires, brakes and exterior lights are all in good operating condition.

Pulling any camper loaded on a car trailer with a half ton truck over the mountains would not be advisable. Adventurous yes, advisable, no.

Godspeed,
Trent

Mikethefixit · 07-15-2009, 07:38 AM

I don't think you are into breaking the law, we tend to bend it sometimes. Most states have a weight law that says if the trailer is over a certain weight It HAS TO HAVE BRAKES. If anything happens U are in BIG DODO.
We brought our OVERLANDER home with no Brakes about a 75 miles. We never intended to bring it when we did so NO Controller was installed in the truck. PO said he wanted it moved that day.I didn't even pay him for it.
I was a professional Truck driver with 45 yrs experience and 60 yrs of driving. I was sweating Bullets believe me and I ain't scurred of nuffin!
So my advise is, make sure it has everything working. Tires (new) Bearings packed, Lites and brakes working.Then a 1/2 ton truck should be just fine.
GOOD LUCK What a gift.
Roger

whitsend · 07-15-2009, 08:31 AM

Cycletahoe - Not sure if you've already pulled your new treasure home yet. But if not, all the above is valuable information to insure a safe trip home - for you, other motorists on the roads, AND THE SAFETY OF YOUR TRAILER!!

One thought - all the work you are contemplating to have done before the tow home begins is fine, but may not be the best use of your money. You said you eventually want to replace the wheels & tires to a different size ~ so why spend those $$ only for the haul home, then those wheels & tires are surplus. Having the axel & tongue work done in Peoria could be more expensive than doing it yourself at home or by a local shop. Just a few thoughts. There are horror stories of rusted tongues breaking loose & the trailer taking off on its own path of destruction. . . . Not a pretty sight.

I towed my '54 Cruiser (with temp lights & no trailer brakes) from N. Dakota to Central Texas with an F-250. In always perfect hindsight - probably not a good idea. I think the car hauler is a much better solution, not to mention safer option. I also think your 1/2 ton can pull that combination, assuming the truck already has a factory installed trailer towing package (radiator & tranny). It may be slower going than you'd like getting over the Rockies ~ but I'd still think doable with care. Look at all this as your first OF MANY adventures with your Flying Cloud!!

Best of luck. Please ~ LOTS MORE PHOTOS INSIDE & OUT, and a narrative of your trip home.

cycletahoe · 07-16-2009, 10:18 PM

a few more pictures....

cycletahoe · 07-25-2009, 11:57 PM

inside pics....not bad considering it has been sitting for over 20 years

nmbosa · 07-26-2009, 01:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cycletahoe

inside pics....not bad considering it has been sitting for over 20 years

This is an awesome find. Are you still planning on brining it home in another couple weeks? I saw you were planning on a new axle, tires and wheels for the trip. I did not replace my axle before bringing our trailer home (a slightly shorter distance than what you are contemplating and not over the Rockies), but did get a set of new wheels and tires. From your pics, it looks like you have a five lug split rim that I have seen pictured on another 53 Flying Cloud. You should absolutely replace them for the trip home, but don't thrown them away!

If your looking for a simple wheel to just get you home at low cost, I bought 15 x 6 inch Dexstar conventional wheels at Redneck Trailer Supply for $26.29 each on sale (regular price is $45.00 each). They come in both five and six bolt patterns and meet the specs (2,600 pound weight rating) required for these trailers. At least if you end up going with another wheel later, you won't have a ton of money sunk into these.

Good luck with your recovery. Please post more pics along the way and give us an update on your planning. Recovery stories are great to read and I found everyone here was very helpful with the planning and execution of my recovery

.

Norm

cycletahoe · 09-07-2009, 11:18 PM

We made it! Thanks to all for the advice and encourgement. Big thanks to maccamper for the courtesy inspection!!

Picked the trailer up from a shop where it had a new coupler installed and the hubs inspected, greased, and broken brake spring replaced. Hubs were in good shape - bearings looked like new and brakes engaged once spring was replaced. From there we towed it to my brother's house where we had a couple of days to shore up things before we hit the road again.

Inside had been a mouse motel for some time. Armed with gloves and masks we cleaned out all the nests (batting from the rear mattress), even a birds nest. They got in through the refrigerator vent and pretty much destroyed that cabinet area. Afterwards we cautiously plugged it in and every interior light worked - including porch light. Good sign for the exterior lights - purchased a new pigtail for them. Through process of elimination we managed to get all of these synced and going too! Few of the marker lights had to be re-grounded due to rust - other than that we were good. Brakes had been wired seperately with romex - cleaned up the connections and eliminated a short that was showing on the trailer brake controler in the truck (turned out that we had the romex wired backwards - took more time than desired to figure this out).

We put on new wheels and tires, new safety chains, new door lock to eliminate that from blowing open and off we went. First stop was the Iowa 80 truck wash - years of sitting on a friends farm had built up a pretty heavy coating of gunk on the outside. Couldn't bring it home to the wife looking like that. It towed perfect, no sway and hubs ran cool. All and all it was a long, but uneventful trip home - just as we'd hoped. Now the real fun part begins. Floor is rotted and will have to be replaced - most if not all of the cabinets too. Hopefully I can make some progress before winter hits.