My big fat gypsy caravan

[Deleted account DD]

do any members have any suggestions or ideas for the rest of the project?

Is that a serious question :augie:augie:naughty








only joking........good luck with it , i love seeing the older vans restored, ?youll need a truck of the same vintage to tow it i presume? they all pitch up at a show near us once a year, poshest one last time was a 1930s roller with a caravan of the appropriate age through to 1980s sprite pulled by an immaculate 2.8i Granada.

I think Id feel a bit self conscious with that external colour scheme and I just cant imagine a "dry van" Ive often wondered what the logic or history behind that is :nenau ??

Does it , or will it ,have 240v ?

 

[Deleted account DD]

looks very grand, makes my 12foot abi ( in which I am writing this whilst on a grand tour of the south) look poor and simple, but then it already looks like that surrounded as we are by huge motorhomes and and vast caravan with huge awnings (why do couples need so much space on holiday?) on this caravan club site in the New Forest. bri

Serious answer Bri, we have a twin axle with a porch awning (shopping for for a full awning at the mo) for just the two of us. When the kids used to caravan with us we were all crammed into a modest 2 or 4 berth.We switched to a middling 2 berth when they stopped coming with us then went LARGE as they say in McDonalds.

The current set up is no more hassle than a small rig but the benefits and comfort with over 19ft x 7ft internal size are absolutely superb, beyond comparison :thumb2:thumb2

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

Daved the 'dry van' thing is deeply embeded in Romany traditions and culture particulary around cultural codes of cleanliness. I can explain more by PM if you are interested.

 

[Deleted account DD]

Daved the 'dry van' thing is deeply embeded in Romany traditions and culture particulary around cultural codes of cleanliness. I can explain more by PM if you are interested.

go for it :thumb2

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

well, my project is coming along at a reasonable pace, new carpets the funrniture off being re -upholstered in nice new leather as we speak etc.

New wood burner and double skinned stainless flue, now here is a question!

Sealing the storm collar and roof plate requires heat proof silicone, and it all seems to be black or red and i really need clear, any ideas? I can get it a crazy prices but i'm looking for a good deal.

 

[solarman216]

ignore this did not read it right, Rick

 

[Paul]

Here's our friend's van.. :thumb2

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

Here's our friend's van.. :thumb2

very nice, if a little plain :augie

only kidding, i love to see old Buccaneers still being used for what they were made for.

 

[Paul]

very nice, if a little plain :augie

only kidding, i love to see old Buccaneers still being used for what they were made for.

He loves it more then is wife.. :jesterbg

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

He loves it more then is wife.. :jesterbg

i was going to say 'is she plain too?' but that would just be rude so i wont

 

[briggie]

you could have said large and accomodating , but i bet your glad you didnt :naughty

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

you could have said large and accomodating , but i bet your glad you didnt :naughty

yes very glad, it's a credit to the club how tactful we can be, don't you think?

 

[briggie]

tactfull is not a word that readily springs to mind :augie

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

as predicted by TTT (ex-rbt) i was trying the lights on this today and when i had them all on i hit the hazard warning switch and blew the fuse! it couldn't run an extra 16 indicator bulbs 12 side lights and 8 brake lights :doh

so i am searching ebay for led replacments!

It never does this on a transit!

 

[Thomas-the-Terrano2]

is it 12v or 24v on road lights, reckon the t2 could do with some extra
marker lights to complement the trailer? seriously would you use a
beacon towing towing such a beaut.

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

it's 12v, but i htink the issue is just too many watts from too many bulbs, I will have to take a few out for the time being and then replace them with LED ones 'as-and-when'. I will be doing a few more jobs on it over the next week and then I will be away in it until spetember, and i have no Dongle so no posts from me

I think the trouble with a beacon would be that no one would see it from the back. By the way i tried your mobie number today and couldn't get through i think i may have it saved wrong, i was after a bit of on the spot T2 advice. I needed to know what grade of oil and how much as i had left the manual at home. I the end it got 5 -30 semi synthetic about 6 litres. Shoking but we only drained about 3 litres out

I must top it up more often :doh

 

[Deleted account DD]

as predicted by TTT (ex-rbt) i was trying the lights on this today and when i had them all on i hit the hazard warning switch and blew the fuse! it couldn't run an extra 16 indicator bulbs 12 side lights and 8 brake lights :doh

so i am searching ebay for led replacments!

It never does this on a transit!

Instead of fitting leds to the caravan maybe prepare the Terrano better for this and similar

I would contemplate fitting one or two secondary relay(s) which take a trigger off the car indicator circuits ,even use a transit one . Put the power feed to the relay direct from the battery, then put the switched output from the relay to the tow bar electrics.

With that, the power for the trailer bulbs is effectively coming straight from the battery so youve got a well beefy "to trailer" system and no additional load on the car indicator/hazard and it could handle the problem again on any trailer you come across.

Cheap, basic and dead easy :thumb2

 

[Thomas-the-Terrano2]

interesting daved, was going to suggest similar as pre led was thinking of
adding side markers to caravan but concerned for their drain on the system.

my train of thought had been slightly different as wondered if could use the
caravans own battery via relays to run them, and also along way then provide
power to the lights when car not there, essentially parking lights as of course
trailers soon become illegal on the highway if not lit.

funny really as towsure now list various kits that make the hazards flash etc
whilst not on car but say using a motor mover, along similar lines years ago
i wondered about such gizmo to show trailer was stolen and maybe blow fuse
on stealing vehicle, a sting in tail if you like, again someone else has since
marketed this i believe.

the trolls wiring/fuse is heavier than the t2, perhaps to go with 3500kg limit?

 

[briggie]

would it be a idea to fit a extra battery , so that when not in use the alt is charging the battery up , then if extra capacity is required , you have the option :nenau

 

[briggie]

would it be a idea to fit a extra battery , so that when not in use the alt is charging the battery up , then if extra capacity is required , you have the option :nenau

the reason i suggest this is , many years ago i used to run a high power radio set and high power linear amplifier , if i used this when stationary it would flatten the battery in about 30 mins ,so me my buddy fitted a secondary battery ( we actually though about fitting 2 secondary batteries lol ), it was charged up through the cigarette lighter socket through a trickle charger .