X-Chocks - Are they redundant?

[Mikebrady62]

Originally Posted by PatLee

Has anyone else tried the Fastway One-Step Wheel Chocks that mikebrady62 likes? Do you use a lock to secure them (per the on-line ad?)

I do not use a lock on mine but for extra security you certainly could. It would have to be a smaller lock like a Master #1 shank size. There a several holes that line up on mine when in place, with or without leveling curves or blocks.

[PatLee]

I watched a YouTube on Rotochoks (mentioned by a few posters here) and like the looks and ease of use. However, I cannot find them for sale anywhere. Are they still around?

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by PatLee

Has anyone else tried the Fastway One-Step Wheel Chocks that mikebrady62 likes? I took a look at them on line and they look like they would better secure the wheels in place then the Camco ones I was looking at before. Do you use a lock to secure them (per the on-line ad?)

Again, how do these work when one side is up on levelers? Pictures?

[SailorSam205]

Originally Posted by gypsydad

I see these but never have seen while on leveling blocks like leggo blocks? do you use them on leveling blocks?

As my post specified, I use 2x10 boards for leveling. No problem installing One-Steps on boards. Because of the way they work, I think they would work on blocks, especially if the top level is continuous between two wheels.

Originally Posted by Bueno

I have a friend who used light weight metal chocks on a 23' trailer. They failed at an inopportune time, letting the trailer roll downhill causing several thousand dollars in damage to the trailer. Being manufactured in China, as almost everything is, they simply crushed like an aluminum beer can. (They were steel.) If you are dead set on using only chocks I would recommend that you consider the heavy rubber type. YMMV

The One-Steps are very strong, driving over them will not cause any damage. The only way I can see an issue with these is if you try using them on an extreme slope, one which even heavy rubber chocks would not hold the trailer.

Originally Posted by PatLee

Has anyone else tried the Fastway One-Step Wheel Chocks that mikebrady62 likes? I took a look at them on line and they look like they would better secure the wheels in place then the Camco ones I was looking at before. Do you use a lock to secure them (per the on-line ad?)

I don't use a lock, but have considered using a bike cable lock to secure the steel removal loop thru a wheel. FWIW, the weight of the trailer often secures the chocks enough that I have to move the trailer forward or back a touch to pull them out. While I would hate to have the chocks disappear at a campground, the time and effort to secure them doesn't seem worth it to me. I usually have more valuable stuff around that would be easier to make off with.

[Bitterroot]

Originally Posted by PatLee

Has anyone else tried the Fastway One-Step Wheel Chocks that mikebrady62 likes? I took a look at them on line and they look like they would better secure the wheels in place then the Camco ones I was looking at before. Do you use a lock to secure them (per the on-line ad?)

I have a set of Fastway OneStep chocks, but I found they are only good for level concrete use. If there's any gravel or uneven surface, you have to spend more time adjusting them for the terrain than they're worth. If you have to use leveling blocks, they don't work at all.

I keep them in my "hangar" where I store my Airstream. They rarely go on the road with me unless I know that I'm going to be camping at a level site with a concrete pad, and even then they're cumbersome to carry; the bias of the cables makes them jut out and tangle on anything within reach.

And yes - when my Airstream is stored, I have a chain locked on the Hensley, and a pair of keyed small Master locks through the Fastway Onestep chocks. Nothing is 100% secure, but anybody wanting to steal my rig is going to have to spend some time defeating all the hindrances.

[Mikebrady62]

Originally Posted by gypsydad

Again, how do these work when one side is up on levelers? Pictures?

I tried finding a picture but no luck. Next time out (hopefully soon) I will get one for sure. As long as you can get to the bottom side of each tire (most times you can), you are able to use them. If not I resort back to an X-chock on one side.

[redthies]

Originally Posted by Bitterroot

Nothing is 100% secure, but anybody wanting to steal my rig is going to have to spend some time defeating all the hindrances.

Exactly. In my case, that is two locked gates, two security cameras, 2 dogs, and a semi-nutjob with a 12 gauge...

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by redthies

Exactly. In my case, that is two locked gates, two security cameras, 2 dogs, and a semi-nutjob with a 12 gauge...

Reminds me of the place I once used to store the Airstream. The resident manager promised to avoid hitting the Airstream if he needed to break out the buckshot. My rig was right where he could see it all the time. He liked Airstreams...

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by Mikebrady62

I do not use a lock on mine but for extra security you certainly could. It would have to be a smaller lock like a Master #1 shank size. There a several holes that line up on mine when in place, with or without leveling curves or blocks.

There is an X-Chock on Amazon that includes a Master Lock....but, my question is, why are you locking your wheel chocks anyway? Is that a problem many of us have never heard of..stolen wheel or X-chocks??

[LNBright]

Originally Posted by gypsydad

There is an X-Chock on Amazon that includes a Master Lock....but, my question is, why are you locking your wheel chocks anyway? Is that a problem many of us have never heard of..stolen wheel or X-chocks??

If you lock the x-chock into place, it would prevent the trailer from being towed away. (Not impossible, but more difficult to quickly accomplish.)

[SailorSam205]

Originally Posted by LNBright

If you lock the x-chock into place, it would prevent the trailer from being towed away. (Not impossible, but more difficult to quickly accomplish.)

I've read a couple of posts where folks started to pull out without removing the x-chocks. Stopped AFTER the chocks had popped out. As I recall there was damage to the chocks, not the trailer. That may be why the manufacturer says you need standard chocks in addition to the X-Chocks. They are designed to be stabilizers, not true chocks.

Originally Posted by Bitterroot

I have a set of Fastway OneStep chocks, but I found they are only good for level concrete use. If there's any gravel or uneven surface, you have to spend more time adjusting them for the terrain than they're worth. If you have to use leveling blocks, they don't work at all.

I keep them in my "hangar" where I store my Airstream. They rarely go on the road with me unless I know that I'm going to be camping at a level site with a concrete pad, and even then they're cumbersome to carry; the bias of the cables makes them jut out and tangle on anything within reach.

I have yet to hit a campsite where I had real trouble installing my One-Steps, grass, pavement, gravel. I suppose there could be an issue if your tires were in a serious rut or on big partially buried rocks, but why would you park in that spot?

Cumbersome to carry? Grab the plastic coated cable and they don't weigh much. A 5 year old could carry them, but probably not lock them in place. In my case the cable is easily tucked in between the wheels, zero issue.

[tjdonahoe]

Originally Posted by PatLee

Happy New Year, all! I continue to have questions.

Based on advice from AirForums, I bought a set of X-Chocks two seasons ago. I even bought a nice Craftsman case to store them in. However, I've never used them. I've talked to other Airstreamers and RV campers in various campgrounds about what they think of them and everyone thinks they're great. I read on this Forum that you all think they're great. Because why? Because they improve stability of the trailer (in addition to the trailer's stabilizers)? Because they add more support/back-up to the other chocks in use? In both cases, this seems functionally redundant to me. Before I unload them, I need to know what I'm missing.
Call me,
Searching for Answers from the Road

These are the best...the trailer is not going to move with them installed.

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by tjdonahoe

These are the best...the trailer is not going to move with them installed.

Movement can happen (S...t happens!): see my post #37 and 51 above...happened to me!

[tjdonahoe]

Originally Posted by gypsydad

Movement can happen (S...t happens!): see my post #37 and 51 above...happened to me!

I been using mine for 7 years.....you didn’t tighten them down..I never had mine ever move...even when wet...

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by tjdonahoe

I been using mine for 7 years.....you didn’t tighten them down..I never had mine ever move...even when wet...

Well, I would say "you" have been lucky....so far! .

[Bitterroot]

Originally Posted by SailorSam205

I have yet to hit a campsite where I had real trouble installing my One-Steps, grass, pavement, gravel. I suppose there could be an issue if your tires were in a serious rut or on big partially buried rocks, but why would you park in that spot?

It's not "real trouble" - just that they have to be readjusted from where they're set for concrete vs. setting in soft sand, pea-gravel, mud, etc. where they sink down and don't hold the tires firmly. Then when you get back to solid, flat concrete, you have to adjust them again. They're fussy and take too much time. I guess you can avoid all the readjusting by hauling around some sections of 2x10 lumber to provide a consistent base for them, but that's just more stuff and more weight to carry. I don't like having to always fiddle with what should be the most mundane equipment - chocks. For me and the way I camp, they're just more fuss than they're worth.

Originally Posted by SailorSam205

Cumbersome to carry? Grab the plastic coated cable and they don't weigh much. A 5 year old could carry them, but probably not lock them in place. In my case the cable is easily tucked in between the wheels, zero issue.

By "cumbersome to carry" I didn't mean they were too heavy to dead-lift. I mean that they are a bother to transport. They don't pack neatly for travel. They want to sprawl in the bed of my pickup to their 'relaxed', extended position. Grabbing them in a hurry by anything but the cables is an invitation for pinched fingers. They have angles and edges everywhere, so they catch on other equipment in my truck bed. Those sharp angled corners and edges are also why I don't pack them in the storage lockers of the Airstream as I do my rubber chocks (or even X-chocks which move and take up almost less space for the pair than a single One-Step.) I don't want the sharp corners of the One-Steps bouncing and vibrating against the interior wood or aluminum skins of the Airstream - even inside "hidden from view" compartments.

Of course the cables are easy to tuck behind the tires when they are deployed. But when you carry them in the bed of the truck the cables have a bias that makes them want to flop where THEY want to go instead of where you try to tuck them neatly. That means they manage to hook themselves around folding chairs, generator wheels, broom or axe handles, bed-mounted tie-down cleats, etc. The most annoying was when I was trying to set up in the rain at night and one of the cables had hooked itself around and under the knob on my grill, so I had to stop everything and climb into the bed of my truck in the rain to free it before I could pull the One-Step from my truck. The solution was to carry them in a plastic box which took up more real estate in the bed of my truck than I felt they deserved. So I stopped carrying them with me and relegated them to the Hangar for storage parking. There they are a perfect solution - quick to secure and release, and they hang neatly by their cables on hooks when the trailer is away.

I'm not saying One-Steps are a bad product - just more fussy "on the road" than I care for personally. Time spent adjusting them for this or that ground, or else having to carry extra lengths of 2x10 lumber to give them a perfectly level surface to consistently engage the tires properly just doesn't make them worth the bother to travel with, IMHO.

As always, YMMV.

[PatLee]

Thanks Bitterroot for the detailed description of what a hassle those wires on the One Step can be. I had been thinking along the same lines i.e. how much opportunity they would have to hook up on so much of the crap that is packed into my truck bed.

[SailorSam205]

I'll note that when I bought them, I spent about a half hour trying different setups for my one-steps to get them correct for my wheel spacing. Since then, they have NEVER been adjusted. At a campsite, I slide them in between the tires step on the bars to lock them in place and I'm done. Worst case, I need to wiggle them a bit or push a bit of gravel out of the way to get the wedges properly against the tires and very seldom, give a bit of extra bounce to lock in place.

I carry a set of 4x4 blocks that I use under my stabilizers. They travel in one of those plastic milk crates. Two One-Steps fit neatly in the top of the crate. No muss, no fuss. Setup and tear down has me carrying the crate around the trailer to have what I need at each location. Full crate weighs about 10 lbs.
In three years of use and a couple hundred nights of camping, the cables have never caused an issue.

[PatLee]

By way of closing out this thread I started, I ended up going with the yellow Camco chocks which leaves me with a set of X-Chocks and the case they're in. The X-Chocks are Model #28010, have never been used and are housed in a sturdy Craftsman VersaStak case. I'ld like to get $50 for it all. I checked current value of the X-Chocks and case on Amazon just now: $100 for a pair of these X-Chocks; $39 for the case.
The combo weighs 11 pounds so would prefer an in-person transfer. FWIW, I will be visiting my AS next Friday (weather is forecasted to be in 50's) at Holly Acres RV and Marine in Woodbridge, Virginia. That location might be easier for a rendezvous versus D.C. Photos below.
Thank you for the great advice and input.

[BigSxyWhtGuy]

I’ll take these off your hands if you still have them when we get up to your area in the fall. Although we may end up going out west.

Do you think the chocks themselves will fix in a priority mail box? $9 to ship if you can make them fit