scamp 19 too much bouncing!

[Rob in Vista]

I have a 2005 scamp 19. I lifted it 4.5" and put on 14" wheels so I could tow it behind my 2012 tundra. It seemed to bounce quite a bit even when I towed it with my old Tacoma before lifting it. The door would open and cushions would be all over the back. The first owners would bungee the doors closed so we always have too. The last time we went out the refrigerator door opened even with a cotter pin drilled in from the top. All the food and my Woodford Reserve fell out and spilled all over the floor . The roads were not bumpy. Any suggestions to smooth the ride?
Thanks, Rob

[Francesca Knowles]

"Bounce" seems like the norm for these torsion-axle lightweight trailers- and now that you've lifted the center of gravity, expect it to get worse. Proper tires do matter- hoping you're not running passenger car tires, which are too soft for the job.

I've never found a real cure...battening things down and carrying NO glass is the way of trailer life around my "house".

[Perry J]

The only time I have had excessive bouncing that opened cabinets doors on a fairly smooth road was when the torsion axel needed replacing.

An 8 y o axel should have a lot of life left.

John

[papa-t]

We don't have that problem on our 2002 19' Scamp. A little maybe, but all cushions stay in place. Hmmn not sure.

[kenneth dowd]

I would call the people at scamp. They have all ways proved very helpful when I've had any questions

[ruscal]

When I made my first trip up to LA to pick up our 2003 Scamp 16 I noticed the trailer seemed like it was tugging up and down on the back of my Jeep Wrangler, which made clunking sounds due to the loose fit of the drawbar. It felt pretty harsh and was transferring jolts to the Jeep on pavement irregularities. When I got home the side dinette cushions were on the floor, but no drawers were out and no cabinets opened. I tightened the fit of the drawbar by laying down some welding beads on the bar and grinding them to fit. That stopped the clunking noises but not the harshness on bumps. The stock Akro axle was not sagged, but was harsh on bumps. A few months later I replaced the axle due to wanting larger tires for increased weight bearing capacity. I needed a shorter axle for clearance. The new Flexiride axle rode smoother with no harshness. Funny thing was that the cushions still ended up on the floor even with the much improved ride! The trailer experiences no lurching, but the cushions get tossed. I installed under table drawers on the side dinette table, and those vibrate open as well. I have to secure them with spring clamps for travel. Also the sheet metal screws Scamp used to fasten fiberglass cabinets in place unscrew during travel. It's funny how vibrations can do that while the trailer rides smooth.
Russ

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by ruscal

.......snip....... Funny thing was that the cushions still ended up on the floor even with the much improved ride! The trailer experiences no lurching, but the cushions get tossed. I installed under table drawers on the side dinette table, and those vibrate open as well. I have to secure them with spring clamps for travel. Also the sheet metal screws Scamp used to fasten fiberglass cabinets in place unscrew during travel. It's funny how vibrations can do that while the trailer rides smooth.
Russ

Perfect illustration of what I spoke about before...you made all the right improvements and the trailer still vibrates/shimmy/shakes enough to scatter its contents.

I spent a few years/bucks attempting to solve this problem, but finally resigned myself to what may just be a typical characteristic of these very lightweight trailers. They just don't weigh enough to provide the kind of solid ride that much heavier rigs do.

Fully expecting others to post that I'm all wet in this regard, you understand...

[ruscal]

Francesca,
A lot of things are probably at play causing all that ruckus. Most suspension systems are designed to hold a certain weight. If they are not loaded close to that limit the ride will be harsh. My one ton dually work truck rode horribly until I put all my tools in it. It still is way under-loaded and could stand to have a few leaf springs removed. Also a tire can carry more weight with more inflation, but more air can cause bounce. Shock absorbers can improve ride, but few of us have them. Harmonics can undo things as well. Certain vibrations can be picked up by components or items that vibrate at the same frequency and cause things to move or come apart. Luckily for us picking up a few cushions off the floor is no big deal. Maybe the screws can be superglued in place. I don't think Loctite will work on wood.
Russ

[SilverGhost]

Funny, we never had cushions scatter on our Egg and supposedly it has a 3500lb axle under a 2000lb trailer.

I wonder if the balance of the trailer over the axle is as big of an effect as static bouncing? IE: the trailer is acting like a see saw while being towed. Just a thought as the axle appears to be centered on Scamp as apposed to Casita which appears to be biased to the rear much more.

Jason

[David Tilston]

I have made many mistakes in towing. Not enough tongue weight makes the trailer ride rough. Also, since my axle is 3500 lb when it should be 2500 lb, I load up the trailer as much as possible. I also only inflate the tires to Trillium's recommended 28 psi.

I like to think it helps.

[rabbit]

A close ratio of all up weight to axle rated weight is an intriguing explanation for elimination of bounce. Our curb weight is slightly higher than the 3000lb axle rating on our '98 Burro with Henschen axle (around 3150) altho within the combined weight rating of the 14" tires and rims currently installed. We had initial problems with pitchpoling and suspension sag on the tug. Timbren "donuts" in the coils eliminated both problems. We have never had locker doors open despite the use of the cheapest roller catches available. Have had screws back off in screen door extrusions, door lock, and occasionally on switch box cover plates. Sometimes a curtain hook will jump off the rod over the rear window. We leave the sink cover in place without finding it on the floor. Our axle should be worn out according to the common view that age of axle is a clue to condition. What am I doing wrong? Maybe just my lucky charm.

jack

[bitsnbytes13]

Check if your tires are properly balanced. Unbalanced tires can cause severe vibrations at highway speeds.

My $0.02

[ruscal]

Originally Posted by rabbit

A close ratio of all up weight to axle rated weight is an intriguing explanation for elimination of bounce. Our curb weight is slightly higher than the 3000lb axle rating on our '98 Burro with Henschen axle (around 3150) altho within the combined weight rating of the 14" tires and rims currently installed. We had initial problems with pitchpoling and suspension sag on the tug. Timbren "donuts" in the coils eliminated both problems. We have never had locker doors open despite the use of the cheapest roller catches available. Have had screws back off in screen door extrusions, door lock, and occasionally on switch box cover plates. Sometimes a curtain hook will jump off the rod over the rear window. We leave the sink cover in place without finding it on the floor. Our axle should be worn out according to the common view that age of axle is a clue to condition. What am I doing wrong? Maybe just my lucky charm.

jack

Jack,
Loading the axle to max would give you the better ride you are experiencing. Older rubber dampers usually sag and get hard taking away usable travel and adding harshness. If yours are working well you can use them until things change. My old axle was about nine years old and still serviceable, but the ride was harsher causing jolts to be transfered into the tug.
The new axle manufacturer recommended sizing the axle at 125% of loaded trailer weight, which I did. I would assume that if I added 300 lbs to the trailer it would smooth out even more. My trailer is around 2800 loaded, and axle rating is 3500.
Russ

[ruscal]

Originally Posted by David Tilston

I have made many mistakes in towing. Not enough tongue weight makes the trailer ride rough. Also, since my axle is 3500 lb when it should be 2500 lb, I load up the trailer as much as possible. I also only inflate the tires to Trillium's recommended 28 psi.

I like to think it helps.

Dave,
28 PSI would give a very compliant ride. You just have to watch your weight to make sure the sidewall is not squatting too much. Under inflation could cause heat buildup due to the flexing of the side wall. It also can egg-zagerate sway.

My tires have to carry about 1400 pounds, so I can't go that low on the pressure. I run at 50-55 to eliminate the pooch, at the expense of ride quality.
Russ

[MC1]

Generally speaking torsion axles, shocks, and a fairly heavy trailer will ride the best.

In our case I have taken it one step further and installed XL passenger tires because of the cushier ride with 36lbs of air. The P rated tires also add a degree of reliability generally not consistent with trailer tires.

We have a lot of tire considering our dry weight is at 3,500lbs, not that much more than some smaller eggs.

[John McDonald]

MC1, just being nosy, what are you pulling that Airstream with in the picture?

Our loaded weight is around 2800 (dry is 2100 and gross weight rating is 4500lb) and we put about 300 on the hitch with no weight distribution mechanism. We have dual (2500lb each) axles with springs and no shocks and have four 175R13" tires at about 40 psi. We only have cushions go flying off on very bumpy roads. Maybe we are just lucky not to have the torsion system? Or just lucky to have ours set up the way it is? I don't know.

Cheers John

[MC1]

Hi John. We are towing with an 03 Infiniti G35 sedan set up by Can Am in London On.

I see you have a dual axle Taylor. You don't see those very often. Back in the 90's we talked with the folks at Taylor up on Hwy 6 about custom building us a Taylor about the same size as yours. We didn't go through with the plan but it was interesting spending time at their location and talking with the good folks there.

Our tire size is P(XL) 235X75X15

[floyd]

I have a 13D and have never had problems with interior debri, other than an occasional towel off the rack. (The fridge must be locked for transport though)
I have however experienced a phenomenon which makes my trailer look and feel like I'm towing a basketball. This happens only on certain roads which were constructed of concrete by an incompetent equipment operator.
Instead of making constant screed adjustments,they sometimes make corrections after allowing it to get out of adjustment a certain amount.
This creates a pattern which is hardly noticed by a car driver , but sets up an almost intolerable harmonic or cadence which causes the bounce effect when towing.
There is a stretch of new concrete on I-94 north and west of Baraboo WI.(worse eastbound) which is so bad that I simply won't tow on it,opting instead to take backroads to avoid it.
I always feel more comfortable on well maintained blacktop pavement, which is much kinder to my trailer and my back.

[David Tilston]

The Winnipeg bypass was constructed of concrete slabs. Erosion around the joints has caused the slabs to slump at the ends. It is not too bad in a car, but I used to hitch hike from Calgary to Toronto fairly often. I got a ride in a semi gravel truck. I think he just wanted to share his pain. I have no memories of anything outside the windows. I was on the seat about half the time. I remember trying not to bounce off the dash. I glanced over at the driver, and he was having trouble removing his cigarette from his nose.

This year we took the Savana van and Trillium 4500 around the Winnipeg bypass. The air bags on the rear suspension may have been over inflated. My wife and I, in front, hardly noticed anything, but the twin that was sitting in the middle of the rear bench was getting air, or as much as her lap belt would allow. All I could see, in the mirror, was her silhouette bouncing up and down against the rock guard on the Trillium, lit up by the tail lights of the van. She was having a ton of fun.

[Myron Ury]

I have a 2001 19 Foot Scamp and it is also lifted 4 1/2" I have a torsion axle, that was new 4 years ago. Before I replaced the axle, the camper bounced so much that I could not put my hitch bike rack on. It would bounce so much that the bike would bounce off. The axle "strap" that attaches it to the frame was tearing. That is why I changed it. I made several other observations: 1 the floor became separated from the frame. 2 tires made no difference. After all of that it still bounces, but tolerable. I am planning to talk to Scamp about changing the axle to a leaf spring. Might want to check the floor and axle straps.Good Luck
Myron