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Old 08-02-2011, 08:59 AM   #1
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Noob question re towing w table up?

Hi

New Trillium Outback. I read that towing with table up is not recommended. Reason? Anyone tow with table up? Mods to permit it? Experiences?

We're now 6500km into our trip. It's been great!

Thank you!
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Old 08-02-2011, 09:04 AM   #2
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I've never heard that before. It is a significant load, hanging off the wall on one leg. We now have over 100,000 miles on our rigs without ever seeing a problem. Maybe something specific to the Trillium.

Norm
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Old 08-02-2011, 09:04 AM   #3
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I have my dinette table mounted on regular old cone mount things, and I take everything down for towing because I would expect the bumps and jolts and jarring would shake the upright table post in the mounts enough to shorten the useful life of it all, loosening the connection and such.
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Old 08-02-2011, 09:34 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BCPaul View Post
Hi

New Trillium Outback. I read that towing with table up is not recommended. Reason? Anyone tow with table up? Mods to permit it? Experiences?

We're now 6500km into our trip. It's been great!

Thank you!
Our Scamp has a pedestal table, and while we have traveled with it in the up position, which makes it nice for roadside stops, we usually travel with the bed made and ready for an inviting end to a long day on the road without a fuss. I have experienced no problems with either approach.
Hard braking might cause the table leg to scoot a little on the trillium or the bounce might wear the carpet in that spot. Table down might be a little more stable.
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Old 08-02-2011, 09:46 AM   #5
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I have an older '72 Trillium and have always towed with the table up and have never had a problem. The connection between the table and the wall requires the table end be elevated and drops down into the wall connection and I can't see how it would disconnect itself.
Barrie
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Old 08-03-2011, 04:50 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BCPaul View Post
Hi

New Trillium Outback. I read that towing with table up is not recommended. Reason? Anyone tow with table up? Mods to permit it? Experiences?

We're now 6500km into our trip. It's been great!

Thank you!
Hi Paul,

On our previous Boler the dinette table had to be taken down due to the bumping while travelling, otherwise it would fall down and make a mess or break things. Changing out the axle for a new one did not make any appreciable difference in the ride.
On our “new” 1980 Trillium we wanted to keep the front dinette table up pretty much all the time. It is supported by a single leg that folds up when not in use, and a bracket attached to the wall that runs the whole length of the table. The main bracket attached to the wall means you have to raise the table above its level and then insert it, which means it will usually not fall off. However, under extreme conditions, such as going on and off the BC ferries at low tide, the bump can be enough to dislodge the table.
So, I made a U-shaped metal bracket (out of part of a galvanized fence post bracket) with a hole drilled through the side and also through the bottom of the table leg. I painted the bracket “RV white” to match the trailer, then mounted it on the floor where it meets the front wall with doublesided VHB tape and a screw (the Trillium has a double wall there, so the screw did not go through to the outside). The leg is attached to that with a bolt and a wing nut, and sits at an angle so the bottom of the leg is at the wall and the top is in its original place. This has the added advantage of being out of the way when we put our feet there. I positioned the bracket so that the table would be level.
This works great, and our table has not dislodged at all, even under severe conditions.
Rick G
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Old 08-03-2011, 07:58 PM   #7
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Hi Paul,

On our previous Boler the dinette table had to be taken down due to the bumping while travelling, otherwise it would fall down and make a mess or break things. Changing out the axle for a new one did not make any appreciable difference in the ride.
On our “new” 1980 Trillium we wanted to keep the front dinette table up pretty much all the time. It is supported by a single leg that folds up when not in use, and a bracket attached to the wall that runs the whole length of the table. The main bracket attached to the wall means you have to raise the table above its level and then insert it, which means it will usually not fall off. However, under extreme conditions, such as going on and off the BC ferries at low tide, the bump can be enough to dislodge the table.
So, I made a U-shaped metal bracket (out of part of a galvanized fence post bracket) with a hole drilled through the side and also through the bottom of the table leg. I painted the bracket “RV white” to match the trailer, then mounted it on the floor where it meets the front wall with doublesided VHB tape and a screw (the Trillium has a double wall there, so the screw did not go through to the outside). The leg is attached to that with a bolt and a wing nut, and sits at an angle so the bottom of the leg is at the wall and the top is in its original place. This has the added advantage of being out of the way when we put our feet there. I positioned the bracket so that the table would be level.
This works great, and our table has not dislodged at all, even under severe conditions.
Rick G
Here are a couple of pictures of the front dinette table and leg bracket. Also, the table was cut by a previous owner to fit their larger bodies, so I attached the cut piece with hinges. This keeps the extra piece out of the way when we are using the table, and it is still attached when we want to put it down for the extra front bed.

Rick G
Attached Thumbnails
front dinette.JPG   front table2.JPG  

table leg bracket.JPG  
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Old 08-03-2011, 08:00 PM   #8
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My 2005 Trillium has a folding leg on the front end. Leaving the table up while traveling will likely result in finding the table partially down as the folding leg may slide towards the back of the trailer during travel. As I recall the leg doesn't have a strong lock to keep it vertical or a notch in the floor to capture the end. I forgot to take mine down once and found it with the leg fully down with the edge of the table resting on the edges of the bench cushions.

Rick's mod sounds like a good solution and might work on a rear mounted table.
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Old 08-04-2011, 06:10 AM   #9
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Thanks for the info. Rick's solution looks interesting. We have carpet under the table leg. Maybe we can sew something onto the carpet just to provide some extra stability? Or maybe cut a hole?

I'll need to think about it. Maybe it's fine as-is.
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Old 08-04-2011, 07:19 AM   #10
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Locking legs on trailer tables are the norm. You could buy one or turn the leg into a locking leg.

We have made two new tables for our trailer and legs are very easy to install.

Norm
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Old 08-08-2011, 12:04 PM   #11
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Well, we just towed through 6 states over hellishly rough roads with the table up and it was fine. It has a metal locking leg (I believe standard on Outbacks) which sits on carpet.

Thanks for the tips!
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