On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 21:57:23 -0500, wrote:

... But you are not going to the Bahamas or the West Indies in your
motor home ;-)

Bull****!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za63ltkMGGE

:)

I notice they opened the video with a graphic that said "the lake".

You get that out in blue water and they will be looking for it next to
El Faro.

There was a thread going on one of the real boat boards about a guy
who modified his pontoon so he could park his camping trailer on it
and go out on the lake. I saw some early experiments and then I lost
track of the project. I seem to remember he launched the boat, then
nosed it up to the ramp and rolled the trailer on (using ramp ramps).

I don't know if he went happily on with his life or it failed.

===

If you do that kind of project without some knowledge of naval
architecture, you are asking for a whole boat load of trouble. Red
neck engineering will only get you so far.

On Fri, 4 Dec 2015 18:59:36 -0800, Califbill billnews wrote:

wrote:
On Fri, 4 Dec 2015 16:22:30 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

They still have one GM van that I've used a couple of times. Definitely
has a nicer, softer ride compared to the Fords which ride like ... well
.. trucks. They live a hard life though.

An E150 is a truck. A Chevy Van is a van box on a "C" body car
chassis. There is no reason why it shouldn't be able to ride like a
1974 Sedan De Ville. They just had to beef up the springs to get the
half ton rating.


Van does not have the long overhang from the axles in the back or front, so
will never ride as smooth as a 74 caddie.

The main difference there is just the seating position. The caddy
driver is centered between the wheels and the van driver is almost
over the front wheels. The best ride in a conversion van is in the
seats behind the driver. They called my stretch E150 (AKA Moby Dick)
the limo if you were in the back.

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 23:54:57 -0500,
wrote:

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 21:57:23 -0500, wrote:

... But you are not going to the Bahamas or the West Indies in your
motor home ;-)

Bull****!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za63ltkMGGE

:)

I notice they opened the video with a graphic that said "the lake".

You get that out in blue water and they will be looking for it next to
El Faro.

There was a thread going on one of the real boat boards about a guy
who modified his pontoon so he could park his camping trailer on it
and go out on the lake. I saw some early experiments and then I lost
track of the project. I seem to remember he launched the boat, then
nosed it up to the ramp and rolled the trailer on (using ramp ramps).

I don't know if he went happily on with his life or it failed.

===

If you do that kind of project without some knowledge of naval
architecture, you are asking for a whole boat load of trouble. Red
neck engineering will only get you so far.

I see a lot of factory boats that look pretty tippy to me. ;-)

On Sat, 05 Dec 2015 00:25:46 -0500, wrote:

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 23:54:57 -0500,
wrote:

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 21:57:23 -0500, wrote:

... But you are not going to the Bahamas or the West Indies in your
motor home ;-)

Bull****!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za63ltkMGGE

:)

I notice they opened the video with a graphic that said "the lake".

You get that out in blue water and they will be looking for it next to
El Faro.

There was a thread going on one of the real boat boards about a guy
who modified his pontoon so he could park his camping trailer on it
and go out on the lake. I saw some early experiments and then I lost
track of the project. I seem to remember he launched the boat, then
nosed it up to the ramp and rolled the trailer on (using ramp ramps).

I don't know if he went happily on with his life or it failed.

===

If you do that kind of project without some knowledge of naval
architecture, you are asking for a whole boat load of trouble. Red
neck engineering will only get you so far.

I see a lot of factory boats that look pretty tippy to me. ;-)

===

I agree but it really all depends on whether they carry their weight
down low or not. If a production boat develops a reputation for
stability problems the class action lawyers will be all over it. You
might recall the infamous flybridge cruiser that Bayliner built back
in the 80 or 90s. People would cram onto the flybridge just because
there was room up there, and everyone liked the view of course.
Unfortunately when you put the boat into a turn when loaded like that,
it would flop over in the water and dump everybody. Bayliner's first
engineering fix was a warning sign to not overload the flybridge, but
then they ended up with massive lawsuits. The old Bertram's of that
era intentionally limitied flybridge seating to 2 or 3 people for just
that reason.

On Sat, 05 Dec 2015 01:03:23 -0500,
wrote:

On Sat, 05 Dec 2015 00:25:46 -0500, wrote:

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 23:54:57 -0500,
wrote:

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 21:57:23 -0500, wrote:

... But you are not going to the Bahamas or the West Indies in your
motor home ;-)

Bull****!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za63ltkMGGE

:)

I notice they opened the video with a graphic that said "the lake".

You get that out in blue water and they will be looking for it next to
El Faro.

There was a thread going on one of the real boat boards about a guy
who modified his pontoon so he could park his camping trailer on it
and go out on the lake. I saw some early experiments and then I lost
track of the project. I seem to remember he launched the boat, then
nosed it up to the ramp and rolled the trailer on (using ramp ramps).

I don't know if he went happily on with his life or it failed.

===

If you do that kind of project without some knowledge of naval
architecture, you are asking for a whole boat load of trouble. Red
neck engineering will only get you so far.

I see a lot of factory boats that look pretty tippy to me. ;-)

===

I agree but it really all depends on whether they carry their weight
down low or not. If a production boat develops a reputation for
stability problems the class action lawyers will be all over it. You
might recall the infamous flybridge cruiser that Bayliner built back
in the 80 or 90s. People would cram onto the flybridge just because
there was room up there, and everyone liked the view of course.
Unfortunately when you put the boat into a turn when loaded like that,
it would flop over in the water and dump everybody. Bayliner's first
engineering fix was a warning sign to not overload the flybridge, but
then they ended up with massive lawsuits. The old Bertram's of that
era intentionally limitied flybridge seating to 2 or 3 people for just
that reason.


I didn't really pay much attention to the camper on the pontoon build
but I seem to remember it was a 8-9 foot beam and the camper was more
like 6. He had room to walk around it on both sides. Since the heavy
part is the frame, it may not have really been that unstable.
Pontoons are not really known for capsizing. Tracker makes one with a
full width cabin and a "ride on" roof.
On a lake, I doubt it was that bad.
I see a huge 2 story pontoon boat in big carlos pass from time to
time. I think I have a picture but it is not on my web site

On 12/4/2015 9:49 PM, wrote:
On Fri, 4 Dec 2015 16:22:30 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

They still have one GM van that I've used a couple of times. Definitely
has a nicer, softer ride compared to the Fords which ride like ... well
.. trucks. They live a hard life though.

An E150 is a truck. A Chevy Van is a van box on a "C" body car
chassis. There is no reason why it shouldn't be able to ride like a
1974 Sedan De Ville. They just had to beef up the springs to get the
half ton rating.


These are not E-150's. They are E-350's. Big difference. Same with
the pickups. A F-150 is a totally different truck than the SuperDuty
F-250 and F-350 series. Different frame, springs, brakes, transmission,
etc. The F-150 rides like a car. The F-250/F-350 series rides like a
truck.

If I ever replace the pickup I have, I'll probably go for the F-150. I
no longer need the extra capacity. But, at the low rate that I am
accumulating miles on it, I'll probably have it for a long, long time.

On Fri, 4 Dec 2015 16:22:30 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

On 12/4/2015 2:36 PM, John H. wrote:
On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 17:10:20 -0800, Califbill billnews wrote:

Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 12/3/2015 1:12 PM, Keyser Söze wrote:
On 12/3/15 1:04 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 12:38:51 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

On 12/2/2015 4:58 PM, wrote:
On Wed, 2 Dec 2015 08:09:12 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

Did you drive the Honda 90 MPH down US 75?

===

On occasion, more often 80 to 85. The car was always very solid at
that kind of speed - good tires of course, and everything in balance.

Europeans drive that fast all the time even faster in Germany. The
US, particularly the eastern states, has always been more sedate. I
see signs of change however. At one time anything over 70 would get
you a guaranteed ticket on the New York State Thruway. Nowadays a lot
of people are running 75+.


I trained my petal foot to think about safety and fuel economy. That
usually means at or under the speed limit.

Little old ladies in Kias are telling you that you are #1 if you drive
around here.


I do 70 when possible on the interstates, but no more. I-95, the last
time I drove to Florida, was crowded. I take a special delight after
some yahoo blasts past me at more than 80 and see the guy pulled over a
few miles down the road by the police. My wife's new car gets 30+ mpg at
70 mph. I like that.


My Ford F-250 gets better gas mileage at 75 mph than it does at 60-65
mph. Weird, but it has to do with the gearing and when the torque
converter locks and unlocks. If I keep the RPM's up high enough
so it can climb steep hills without the TC unlocking (or downshifting
out of overdrive), my gas mileage goes up to a whopping 15 mpg from
about 13. :-) Fortunately, I don't drive much or very far in it.
Last long distance trip was to SC, last December.

The adult day care center that I drive for has a fleet of high top,
handicapped equipped (power lift and strap-downs for wheelchairs) vans.
They are all Ford F-350 SuperDuties. Mileage is horrible ... I have
to fill mine 3 times a week sometimes ... but they are rugged. He used
to have GM and Chevy vans but gave up on them. They just didn't last,
usually having transmission failures and engine problems.




I do like my Chevy diesel. Got 20 mpg going to Williams, Az for
thanksgiving. Normal around town is 14.5

On pure interstate to and from NC, without the trailer, mine gets a tad over 22.
Around town about 15-17. With the trailer, about 12-13. Can't complain. Most of the
around town stuff is done with the motorcycle, which gets about 40, around town.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!


You guys with the GM diesels have the Allison transmission which is
probably about the best one made. The gas powered GM and Chevy vans
have a regular GM transmission. Those are the ones that the
transportation company had a lot of problems with.

They still have one GM van that I've used a couple of times. Definitely
has a nicer, softer ride compared to the Fords which ride like ... well
.. trucks. They live a hard life though.

My Silverado rides like a big Cadillac. The Allison transmission does a great job,
especially with the tow/haul mode enabled.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 21:57:23 -0500, wrote:

On Fri, 04 Dec 2015 16:42:40 -0500, John H.
wrote:

On Thu, 03 Dec 2015 20:29:23 -0500, wrote:

On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 16:56:31 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

I am not into the RV thing either but I can appreciate the reasons that
many are. The term "camper" or even "RV" is a misnomer for some of the
rigs people have. The larger, high quality ones are really rolling
homes and those who are into it enjoy traveling all over the country in
them. Certainly no more expensive (probably less) than a similar sized
boat to own, maintain and purchase fuel for and it's not restricted to
waterways only.


... But you are not going to the Bahamas or the West Indies in your
motor home ;-)

Bull****!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za63ltkMGGE

:)

I notice they opened the video with a graphic that said "the lake".

You get that out in blue water and they will be looking for it next to
El Faro.

There was a thread going on one of the real boat boards about a guy
who modified his pontoon so he could park his camping trailer on it
and go out on the lake. I saw some early experiments and then I lost
track of the project. I seem to remember he launched the boat, then
nosed it up to the ramp and rolled the trailer on (using ramp ramps).

I don't know if he went happily on with his life or it failed.

I know, I know.

:)
--

Ban idiots, not guns!

On 12/5/2015 9:24 AM, John H. wrote:
On Fri, 4 Dec 2015 16:22:30 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

On 12/4/2015 2:36 PM, John H. wrote:
On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 17:10:20 -0800, Califbill billnews wrote:

Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 12/3/2015 1:12 PM, Keyser Söze wrote:
On 12/3/15 1:04 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 12:38:51 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

On 12/2/2015 4:58 PM, wrote:
On Wed, 2 Dec 2015 08:09:12 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

Did you drive the Honda 90 MPH down US 75?

===

On occasion, more often 80 to 85. The car was always very solid at
that kind of speed - good tires of course, and everything in balance.

Europeans drive that fast all the time even faster in Germany. The
US, particularly the eastern states, has always been more sedate. I
see signs of change however. At one time anything over 70 would get
you a guaranteed ticket on the New York State Thruway. Nowadays a lot
of people are running 75+.


I trained my petal foot to think about safety and fuel economy. That
usually means at or under the speed limit.

Little old ladies in Kias are telling you that you are #1 if you drive
around here.


I do 70 when possible on the interstates, but no more. I-95, the last
time I drove to Florida, was crowded. I take a special delight after
some yahoo blasts past me at more than 80 and see the guy pulled over a
few miles down the road by the police. My wife's new car gets 30+ mpg at
70 mph. I like that.


My Ford F-250 gets better gas mileage at 75 mph than it does at 60-65
mph. Weird, but it has to do with the gearing and when the torque
converter locks and unlocks. If I keep the RPM's up high enough
so it can climb steep hills without the TC unlocking (or downshifting
out of overdrive), my gas mileage goes up to a whopping 15 mpg from
about 13. :-) Fortunately, I don't drive much or very far in it.
Last long distance trip was to SC, last December.

The adult day care center that I drive for has a fleet of high top,
handicapped equipped (power lift and strap-downs for wheelchairs) vans.
They are all Ford F-350 SuperDuties. Mileage is horrible ... I have
to fill mine 3 times a week sometimes ... but they are rugged. He used
to have GM and Chevy vans but gave up on them. They just didn't last,
usually having transmission failures and engine problems.




I do like my Chevy diesel. Got 20 mpg going to Williams, Az for
thanksgiving. Normal around town is 14.5

On pure interstate to and from NC, without the trailer, mine gets a tad over 22.
Around town about 15-17. With the trailer, about 12-13. Can't complain. Most of the
around town stuff is done with the motorcycle, which gets about 40, around town.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!


You guys with the GM diesels have the Allison transmission which is
probably about the best one made. The gas powered GM and Chevy vans
have a regular GM transmission. Those are the ones that the
transportation company had a lot of problems with.

They still have one GM van that I've used a couple of times. Definitely
has a nicer, softer ride compared to the Fords which ride like ... well
.. trucks. They live a hard life though.

My Silverado rides like a big Cadillac. The Allison transmission does a great job,
especially with the tow/haul mode enabled.

The Allison transmission is great. It was the only thing I liked about
the POS Pace Arrow motorhome I had. Ford came out with a transmission
called a "TorqueShift" that is used in the F-250, F-350 (and up)
SuperDuty series of pickups and trucks. It behaves in a very similar
fashion to the Allison in tow/haul mode. Jury is still out on
reliability although you don't hear about many problems.

Is your Silverado a 2500HD or a 3500HD model? The Ford diesel I had
(that had all kinds of engine problems) was a F-350 which is comparable
to the 3500 series produced by GM. The one I have now is a F-250 which
is comparable to the 2500 GM series. In both cases, the Fords ride a
lot "stiffer" than the GM's. I almost bought a Silverado 2500 but,
because I was so used to Fords, it felt *too* soft to my liking. But,
that was a few years ago when I was doing a lot more with trucks
(hauling and towing) than I do now.

On 12/5/2015 9:46 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 12/5/2015 9:24 AM, John H. wrote:
On Fri, 4 Dec 2015 16:22:30 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 12/4/2015 2:36 PM, John H. wrote:
On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 17:10:20 -0800, Califbill billnews wrote:

Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 12/3/2015 1:12 PM, Keyser Söze wrote:
On 12/3/15 1:04 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 3 Dec 2015 12:38:51 -0500, Justan Olphart

wrote:

On 12/2/2015 4:58 PM, wrote:
On Wed, 2 Dec 2015 08:09:12 -0500, Justan Olphart

wrote:

Did you drive the Honda 90 MPH down US 75?

===

On occasion, more often 80 to 85. The car was always very
solid at
that kind of speed - good tires of course, and everything in
balance.

Europeans drive that fast all the time even faster in
Germany. The
US, particularly the eastern states, has always been more
sedate. I
see signs of change however. At one time anything over 70
would get
you a guaranteed ticket on the New York State Thruway.
Nowadays a lot
of people are running 75+.


I trained my petal foot to think about safety and fuel economy.
That
usually means at or under the speed limit.

Little old ladies in Kias are telling you that you are #1 if you
drive
around here.


I do 70 when possible on the interstates, but no more. I-95, the
last
time I drove to Florida, was crowded. I take a special delight after
some yahoo blasts past me at more than 80 and see the guy pulled
over a
few miles down the road by the police. My wife's new car gets 30+
mpg at
70 mph. I like that.


My Ford F-250 gets better gas mileage at 75 mph than it does at
60-65
mph. Weird, but it has to do with the gearing and when the torque
converter locks and unlocks. If I keep the RPM's up high enough
so it can climb steep hills without the TC unlocking (or downshifting
out of overdrive), my gas mileage goes up to a whopping 15 mpg from
about 13. :-) Fortunately, I don't drive much or very far in it.
Last long distance trip was to SC, last December.

The adult day care center that I drive for has a fleet of high top,
handicapped equipped (power lift and strap-downs for wheelchairs)
vans.
They are all Ford F-350 SuperDuties. Mileage is horrible ... I
have
to fill mine 3 times a week sometimes ... but they are rugged. He
used
to have GM and Chevy vans but gave up on them. They just didn't
last,
usually having transmission failures and engine problems.




I do like my Chevy diesel. Got 20 mpg going to Williams, Az for
thanksgiving. Normal around town is 14.5

On pure interstate to and from NC, without the trailer, mine gets a
tad over 22.
Around town about 15-17. With the trailer, about 12-13. Can't
complain. Most of the
around town stuff is done with the motorcycle, which gets about 40,
around town.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!


You guys with the GM diesels have the Allison transmission which is
probably about the best one made. The gas powered GM and Chevy vans
have a regular GM transmission. Those are the ones that the
transportation company had a lot of problems with.

They still have one GM van that I've used a couple of times. Definitely
has a nicer, softer ride compared to the Fords which ride like ... well
.. trucks. They live a hard life though.

My Silverado rides like a big Cadillac. The Allison transmission does
a great job,
especially with the tow/haul mode enabled.

The Allison transmission is great. It was the only thing I liked about
the POS Pace Arrow motorhome I had. Ford came out with a transmission
called a "TorqueShift" that is used in the F-250, F-350 (and up)
SuperDuty series of pickups and trucks. It behaves in a very similar
fashion to the Allison in tow/haul mode. Jury is still out on
reliability although you don't hear about many problems.

Is your Silverado a 2500HD or a 3500HD model? The Ford diesel I had
(that had all kinds of engine problems) was a F-350 which is comparable
to the 3500 series produced by GM. The one I have now is a F-250 which
is comparable to the 2500 GM series. In both cases, the Fords ride a
lot "stiffer" than the GM's. I almost bought a Silverado 2500 but,
because I was so used to Fords, it felt *too* soft to my liking. But,
that was a few years ago when I was doing a lot more with trucks
(hauling and towing) than I do now.

The Ford transmission was designed by Allison. I don't know who actually
builds it.