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Old 05-05-2016, 09:11 AM   #121
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Lions and Tigers and....Lawyers! OH MY!

(Sorry, couldn't resist) LOL

The ol' scare tactic... just turns my stomach. Everyone scared of the unknown frightens others into doing whatever they've been scared into themselves until the equipment takes on the appearance of being mandatory.
B.S.

A weight dist. hitch does not make the ride "smoother". It makes the TV and the trailer resemble a long and rigid one-piece vehicle. Bumps and grinds are shared among the hitched vehicles and they no longer articulate individually.

On smaller and lighter trailers with medium and larger tow vehicles that articulation is a GOOD thing (IMHO) for maneuverability, rough roads with swales and backing up. On higher speed highways there is no disadvantage either.

I know someone is going to raise the "hidden monster" threat about towing without an iron-bridge connecting the two vehicles but it's just not true until you have tow vehicles too small for the size and load of the trailer. This last is where the WD/Anti-sway becomes important.

If your TV equals or exceeds your trailer in size/weight you likely do not need nor desire a WD hitch with antisway. Example: a Ram 1500 loaded for travel weighs about 7K and the Bambi's weigh about 4K-5K. This is a good relationship that does not need it.
However, if you're towing a Excell with a Honda... you need a better TV first, and a WD along with it.

(OK...I'll step down now off the soapbox....)
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Old 05-05-2016, 03:06 PM   #122
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Free sport 22 matress

Hi all,
We moved our table also...much better!

Ours is a sport 22, 2011 and we have a free matress & pad.
We needed a better matress and had a custom futon made to replace the matress as soon as we got the trailer. Matress stored in dry/clean basement.
So original matress is like new.
We live near Syracuse, NY
Robbie
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Old 05-05-2016, 07:25 PM   #123
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Originally Posted by rlewis View Post
Hi all,
We moved our table also...much better!

Ours is a sport 22, 2011 and we have a free matress & pad.
We needed a better matress and had a custom futon made to replace the matress as soon as we got the trailer. Matress stored in dry/clean basement.
So original matress is like new.
We live near Syracuse, NY
Robbie
Glad to hear that you found the modification to suit your needs and that you're happy with the change. It appears a number of us have now made this change.
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Old 05-06-2016, 08:19 AM   #124
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Thank you to everyone who added input on the equalizer bars. Our truck is plenty big to pull the trailer and new but I think we will get the bars so we feel a bit more comfortable.
The rock panels have now arrived so we should be ready to hit the road later this month. Headed to Home Depot for a mirror and Piano hinge and will work on the conversions over the summer. Safe travels to everyone!
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Old 05-06-2016, 10:09 PM   #125
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Another modification made the couch/seat deeper & the back angled. Much better.
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Old 05-09-2016, 09:14 AM   #126
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This Thread is infectious and expensive!

My trailer is a 2016 22FB Sport and I'm not sure how AS made changes over recent years in their manufacturing process. However, this is my experience.

The "dinette" move was a "piece of cake" ....it went smoothly and has been working really well.

My wife and I travel with two of our grandkids when we camp and we have always been tied down to using CGs that offer full hook ups. We live in western Montana and when you use state park, NF or National Park camp grounds your not going to have the luxury of electrical power. To solve that problem I added a 2nd battery. Next...for "occasional" videos and the ability to use two Cpap devices I am adding a small "pure sign wave" inverter. I've covered the 2nd battery install in a separate post.

To install the inverter I needed a sold source of dc power and a good ground. So in the process of looking for what I would consider "power/grounding" blocks I found them in the left front corner of the trailer in a separate partion in the front storage area. To get to it you really need to remove the front plywood section. This chore was a little more difficult in that AS didn't leave many options on their ground block.

While I had the plywood off I re-read the parts of this thread that covered adding a piano hinge to facilitate storage access.

Like others I bought my 72" hinge at HomeDepot.

This is were I ran into the biggest "hassle" of them all.

Since the plywood is already in two pcs you don't have to cut it in half...other than timing a half inch off the sides like others have suggested. But, when I mounted the hinge and then tried to lift it ....it wouldn't budge. The screws that come with the hinge pass thru the thin plywood and sink right into the support bracket. So I had to remove the hinge and re-think this process. What I ended up doing was replacing the hinge on the biggest part of the plywood(the part that actually lifts)...flipping it over and grinding down the screws on the bottom. This is no small task in that your looking at a lot of screws and you don't have much space to move the large pcs of plywood around. Thanks to a power screw driver I was able to quickly replace all the screws on the other part of the hinge and .....walla....it works.

But.....as I was preparing to put the mattress back on the bed I got to thinking that the exposed hinge with close to 50 screws would over time chaff the back of the mattress. So....to to prevent that I used three strips of the most "valuable tool" in the box....."duck tape"! I applied one strip to cover all the screw heads on each side of the hinge and a third pcs over the top of the hinge. The addition of tape does nothing to impede the action of lifting the bed. Now all I have to do is add the struts....they are being ordered.

With these additions it is time to "stop" the mods, go out and enjoy the trailer as often as possible.

Hope these little tid bits are helpful to others.
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Old 05-09-2016, 07:27 PM   #127
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Originally Posted by Rpatrick16 View Post
I added a 2nd battery. Next...for "occasional" videos and the ability to use two Cpap devices I am adding a small "pure sign wave" inverter. I've covered the 2nd battery install in a separate post.

To install the inverter I needed a sold source of dc power and a good ground. So in the process of looking for what I would consider "power/grounding" blocks I found them in the left front corner of the trailer in a separate partion in the front storage area. To get to it you really need to remove the front plywood section. This chore was a little more difficult in that AS didn't leave many options on their ground block.

Hope these little tid bits are helpful to others.
Very helpful information indeed. I sure do want to add that second battery ... so I am going to study your thread on that subject. Not being "very technical" I'm nervous to try it on my own. But I sure do want to.
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Old 05-09-2016, 07:40 PM   #128
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Originally Posted by Frank&Mike View Post
Very helpful information indeed. I sure do want to add that second battery ... so I am going to study your thread on that subject. Not being "very technical" I'm nervous to try it on my own. But I sure do want to.
Adding a 2nd battery is not the hard part....it's building a pedestal for them to sit on unless you go with one of the "super hi tech" batteries like lithium etc. In that case from what I can understand you can place them inside the trailer storage area.

Building the pedestal wasn't all that bad....I had the scrap material on hand and it just involved taking measurements and cutting the material.

If you need any details ....PM me.
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Old 05-10-2016, 03:14 AM   #129
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rpatrick16 View Post
My trailer is a 2016 22FB Sport and I'm not sure how AS made changes over recent years in their manufacturing process. However, this is my experience.

The "dinette" move was a "piece of cake" ....it went smoothly and has been working really well.

My wife and I travel with two of our grandkids when we camp and we have always been tied down to using CGs that offer full hook ups. We live in western Montana and when you use state park, NF or National Park camp grounds your not going to have the luxury of electrical power. To solve that problem I added a 2nd battery. Next...for "occasional" videos and the ability to use two Cpap devices I am adding a small "pure sign wave" inverter. I've covered the 2nd battery install in a separate post.

To install the inverter I needed a sold source of dc power and a good ground. So in the process of looking for what I would consider "power/grounding" blocks I found them in the left front corner of the trailer in a separate partion in the front storage area. To get to it you really need to remove the front plywood section. This chore was a little more difficult in that AS didn't leave many options on their ground block.

While I had the plywood off I re-read the parts of this thread that covered adding a piano hinge to facilitate storage access.

Like others I bought my 72" hinge at HomeDepot.

This is were I ran into the biggest "hassle" of them all.

Since the plywood is already in two pcs you don't have to cut it in half...other than timing a half inch off the sides like others have suggested. But, when I mounted the hinge and then tried to lift it ....it wouldn't budge. The screws that come with the hinge pass thru the thin plywood and sink right into the support bracket. So I had to remove the hinge and re-think this process. What I ended up doing was replacing the hinge on the biggest part of the plywood(the part that actually lifts)...flipping it over and grinding down the screws on the bottom. This is no small task in that your looking at a lot of screws and you don't have much space to move the large pcs of plywood around. Thanks to a power screw driver I was able to quickly replace all the screws on the other part of the hinge and .....walla....it works.

But.....as I was preparing to put the mattress back on the bed I got to thinking that the exposed hinge with close to 50 screws would over time chaff the back of the mattress. So....to to prevent that I used three strips of the most "valuable tool" in the box....."duck tape"! I applied one strip to cover all the screw heads on each side of the hinge and a third pcs over the top of the hinge. The addition of tape does nothing to impede the action of lifting the bed. Now all I have to do is add the struts....they are being ordered.

With these additions it is time to "stop" the mods, go out and enjoy the trailer as often as possible.

Hope these little tid bits are helpful to others.
Frank/Mike
Did you run into the same problem with the piano hinge and the screws? I just bought one yesterday and would like to keep it simple (if possible)
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Old 05-10-2016, 07:00 PM   #130
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Frank/Mike
Did you run into the same problem with the piano hinge and the screws? I just bought one yesterday and would like to keep it simple (if possible)
No, I'm not sure what I did differently ... but I didn't have that problem with the screws. I did have to trim the edges of the wood ... near the walls of the Airstream so the bed wouldn't scratch the sides when lifted. But no problem with the screws when I installed the piano hinge.
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Old 05-18-2016, 11:19 PM   #131
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Got the Inverter wired

I have made mention in some of my other post on this thread about adding a small 1000 watt inverter to run Cpaps x 2, and the tv while not connected to shore power.

Well, yesterday I finally got most of it done. I had already doubled my Grp 24 Interstate Batteries and I purposely chose a small "pure sign wave convert". This is the inverter that I installed:http://www.amazon.com/MicroSolar-100...ilpage_o01_s00

I installed an electrical box under the front portion of the FB base. I put the "wired remote" right next to it. Although the "dress up" wiring is yet to be cleaned up I actually used the inverter to power a Craftsman roterey saw to cut the holes for the electrical boxes. It worked perfectly as expected.
A 2nd box was installed behind the TV on the Sport 22FB. The back side of the wall were the TV is mounted is the closet so it wasn't hard to do that part. The challenge was getting the electrical wiring to the box.

Fortunately the microwave/convection oven is very easy to remove. It is not hard wired but actually plugs into a wall outlet behind the cabinet. With it removed, your at the midpoint between the FB and the closet area. I can tell you there is "no way" you could get this wired without pulling the microwave out. Anyway..back to my install. Using a "wire snake" I was able to push the end of the "snake" up behind the galley sink working from the air return in the gap between the bed and the galley cabinet. Then sticking my head into the opening where the microwave sets while using a flashlight i was able grab the end of the "snake", pull it over the furnace and into the area under the closet. Then taping the end of my wire to the "snake" and slowly pulling it back towards the front of the trailer.

There is a small metal cover mounted on the trailer wall and floor that hides other trailer cables and plumbing. i removed that cover and ran my wire to the inverter which will be fastened to the floor between the water heater and the front bulkhead that houses the entry point for the battery cables.

For material I bought a heavy duty extension cord with a power rating for the things I intended to power....25'. As it turns out it was just enough to make the cable runs to both electrical boxes.

It was a sunny day yesterday and the GoPower 120 watt solar panel was doing a great job keeping the batteries charged. During the clean up phase and while testing the tv/video (Paw Patrol....grandkids love it) I had most of the interior trailer lights on while running a small Urech vacuum cleaner. The system worked perfectly. I kept an eye on the battery voltage meter on the interior monitor . I started with 12.9 volts. After using the power saw and etc voltage dropped to 12.7. By the time I had finished vacuuming and runing the tv/video system the GoPower panels had not only kept up with the power demand but replenished the battery voltage to 13.1.

I'm in the process of installing gas struts to hold the bed up while accessing the storage. As soon as that is finished and the clean up complete I'll post some pics of the finished project.

Hope this report proves helpful others thinking of doing the same thing.
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Old 05-19-2016, 08:04 PM   #132
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I have made mention in some of my other post on this thread about adding a small 1000 watt inverter to run Cpaps x 2, and the tv while not connected to shore power....
This is definitely inspiring and I'm anxious to see your photos. Thanks for sharing with all of us.
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Old 05-21-2016, 07:50 PM   #133
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Pics of Inverter Install on my 22FB

This is a follow up to my previous post regarding the installation of a 1000 watt inverter. That post is found here:http://www.airforums.com/forums/f295...137731-10.html

Here are some pics of the outcome:
First photo shows the placement of the inverter next to the water heater. Positive DC was taken "off the positive" side of the battery cutoff switch. Lead goes thru a 250 Amp breaker shown in upper left had corner of photo. White flat looking wire is the wiring for the remote off/on switch. The DC connection is wired to the "ground block" located behind the front buikhead in the left corner of the trailer. If you can't enlarge the photo let me explain that there are two AC plugs that are hard to see. Each goes to an electrical box in different parts of the trailer. There are also two USB ports for charging other devices, phone, etc.

Second photo illustrates the 1st of two elec boxes and the remote control button to turn the inverter off/on. This is located directly below the bed just adjacent to the access door to the under bed storage.

Third photo (lower left hand) shows the placement of the electrical outlet behind the TV. Although intended to run the TV when off of shore power this could really be used for any AC appliance so long as it doesn't exceed inverter capacity.

Forth photo illustrates the location of the back side of the electrical box that is located behind the TV. Photo shows the "back side" of this box (blue) located in the closet with the power lead headed downward. Lead runs thru the area above the water pump, behind the microwave, sink etc.

This was not an expensive addition and was not as challenging as finding the proper angle of the gas struts which I added to lift the bed.

I am satisfied with the inverter outcome. The "gas struts" are still a work in progress. Since there are no instructions for their installation it is pretty much trial and error. I chose 17" struts with a 45 lb lift for each strut or total of 90 lbs of lift. It does lift the bed...and holds it up for just a few seconds before slowly closing. Therefore, I have ordered another set of "struts" that will increase the holding power to 120 lbs which should be sufficient.
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Old 06-09-2016, 12:57 PM   #134
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As of today, the modification to the front bed (to install 2 gas struts allowing the bed to raise for easy access to the "under bed storage") is completed. Now we can easily access the storage area without having to get on our knees and stick half of our body into the storage compartment to access things. I think this will turn out to be one of the best modifications we've made to our 22' Sport.
Frank, Mike
We did the table modification and love it. We are now starting on the bed. Where can we order the Gas Struts? Type, size, model number, manufacturer. what ever you have. We checked several locations including Home Depot and auto store and they didn't have them.
Thank you! Shirley
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Old 06-09-2016, 08:46 PM   #135
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Frank, Mike
We did the table modification and love it. We are now starting on the bed. Where can we order the Gas Struts? Type, size, model number, manufacturer. what ever you have. We checked several locations including Home Depot and auto store and they didn't have them.
Thank you! Shirley
Shirley - Glad to hear you're pleased with your table modification. It does indeed make a significant improvement in the traffic area. We purchased the gas struts from Camper Clinic. But ... you can also easily purchase them from any RV dealership here in the area. What I would suggest is that you first install the piano hinge, then raise the bed to the height that you desire it to raise, then measure the distance between the two points where your gas struts will be mounted. Then take that measurement to whatever RV dealership you choose to purchase them from and ask for their recommendations on which gas strut they recommend for holding the weight of the bed.

I'm sorry that I don't have the information on the manufacturer, part number and weight rating ... I haven't mentioned on this thread ... but we sold our 22 foot Sport and the new owner took delivery of it earlier this week. Otherwise I would provide you with the information.

I do look forward to continue following this thread and seeing all the interesting and practical modifications that 22 foot Sport owners make to their Airstream. I had several more ideas to incorporate ... but I'll now watch the modifications that each of you incorporate with great interest.
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Old 06-09-2016, 09:20 PM   #136
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sck View Post
Frank, Mike
We did the table modification and love it. We are now starting on the bed. Where can we order the Gas Struts? Type, size, model number, manufacturer. what ever you have. We checked several locations including Home Depot and auto store and they didn't have them.
Thank you! Shirley
Start here at "America's Store".....aka "Amazon".
I put these into my 22FB:https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

There are several options available....These were 60lbs each for a total of 120lbs. They work ok...but I would go with a "tad" higher. You can also find the mounting hardware:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Good luck

Pat
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Old 06-10-2016, 06:24 AM   #137
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Looking forward to the "27' We made some changes" thread.
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Old 06-11-2016, 06:05 AM   #138
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Thank you. Are you going to have an airstream going forward? Your advice and ideas have really come in handy
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Old 06-15-2016, 07:45 PM   #139
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Thank you. Are you going to have an airstream going forward? Your advice and ideas have really come in handy
Thank you for the kind feedback. I plan to continue to follow it with great interest.

We indeed will continue our passion with Airstream living. Following is our introduction of Volando:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f516...ml#post1807090
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Old 07-01-2016, 02:28 PM   #140
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Hello all! I am a newbie with a 2016 22FB Bambi Sport. I am intimidated but inspired with your modifications. I am not especially handy and was planning on just "experiencing" my new home. Thank you for all your wisdom. I will look at table, toilet paper holder, & mirror first!
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