Hi I am new here.

[Homeofmyown]

Hi, I was winning bidder on eBay for a fabulous Hunter Compact II. I'm so excited, I can barely contain myself. The eBay post directed me here and I'm so happy to meet such a knowledgeable, friendly group. My dog and I have been full-timing for 18 mos. in a 28' C-Class RV with no toad. We found it rather restrictive for getting around. So we are starting over with a Jeep Grand Liberty and our new Hunter Compact II.

[Pam Garlow]

Congratulations on your new Hunter Compact!! Be sure to post some photos, we love to see pictures

Welcome to the group!

[Borden]

Welcome to FiberglassRV

[Mike Magee]

You can have some real fun with a rig like that. Are you thinking of getting "off the beaten track" sometimes with the Jeep?

[whistlestop]

Welcome to Fiberglass RV and enjoy your new Hunter Compact ll! Sounds like you found a real "jewel!

[Pineapple Man]

Congrats and enjoy ! What breed of dog do you have ?

[TomK]

Welcome to the forum Linda! Sounds like you found a rig that will work for you. That's half the battle. I think you'll find this place a valuable resource when you have a question. With your full time experience, you'll be a valuable contributor as well.

Tom

[Homeofmyown]

Thank you for the warm welcomes.
I drove to Ashland, OR today and took posession of my 1974 Hunter Compact II.safetyre all parked in a RV park, me and the dog are all snugged inside.
The truck I brought to tow my treasure home has a bumper hitch that is too high. When we tried to hook up the safety wheels on the rear bumper touched the ground. Tomorrow I will be hunting a shop that can remedie this situation. Wish me luck, if you have any suggestions LMK.

[Homeofmyown]

Pineapple, my dog is a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel, named Coco Chanel. She is 6yrs old, 7 next 4th of July. She is a beautiful tri-color.

[Bob Miller]

Bumper hitches usually don't work out well, especially with a trailer like a Hunter that has a drop axle and rides very low.
You need to get a receiver hitch installed on your TV and a drawbar with the correct amount of drop to get the trailer to a level or slightly nose down configuration. I'd suggest getting what's called a 2" receiver as it's much easier to get different drawbars for that size than for the smaller one.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Homeofmyown

The truck I brought to tow my treasure home has a bumper hitch that is too high. When we tried to hook up the safety wheels on the rear bumper touched the ground. Tomorrow I will be hunting a shop that can remedie this situation. Wish me luck, if you have any suggestions LMK.

When you refer to "bumper hitch" are you referring to a ball screwed onto the actual bumper of the vehicle? or are you referring to the actual hitch mounted to the underside of the vehicle with a hitch draw bar coming out just below the bumper?

As Bob mentioned using a bumper hitch for towing is not a great idea as it is impossible to get the trailers tongue level as it needs to be for a safe solid tow. Also some vehicle manufactures greatly down grade the towing capacity when using the bumper type hitch vs a Class II or III type hitch mounted to the under carriage.

If you are actually referring to Class II or III under carriage hitch then you need to add a drop bar to it to get the trailer sitting level or slightly down at the tongue - not up!

E-trailer has a good explanation as to how to measure the trailer and vehicle to determine how much you need to drop the hitch and as a result which drop bar to buy in order to get a nice level trailer.

Any RV shop or even Walmart will have a selection of drop bars.

[Homeofmyown]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

Bumper hitches usually don't work out well, especially with a trailer like a Hunter that has a drop axle and rides very low.
You need to get a receiver hitch installed on your TV and a drawbar with the correct amount of drop to get the trailer to a level or slightly nose down configuration. I'd suggest getting what's called a 2" receiver as it's much easier to get different drawbars for that size than for the smaller one.

Bob you are so right about the bumper hitch. I had to go to Uhaul and have a receiver type hitch with a drop put on my cousin's truck that I borrowed. I could have used sway bars, any time I exceeded 55 mph, we had a lot of movement. Thanks for the good advice.

[Bob Miller]

You probably don't need sway bars, what you need is more weight on the hitch, at least 10-12% or about 100 lbs minimum. If the propane tank and battery are missing, and there is anything stashed in the back, it will be light on the hitch. An easy (temporary) fix is to buy 2-3 35 (1 liter) bottles packs of water and put those on the floor at the front of the trailer. I had to do this when I towed mine 400+ miles from Livermore, CA to Riverside, CA when I bought it. Worked great, and then we just drank the water over the next few months.


BTW: The speed limit for towing in CA is 55 MPH anyway.....

[Homeofmyown]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

You probably don't need sway bars, what you need is more weight on the hitch, at least 10-12% or about 100 lbs minimum. If the propane tank and battery are missing, and there is anything stashed in the back, it will be light on the hitch. An easy (temporary) fix is to buy 2-3 35 (1 liter) bottles packs of water and put those on the floor at the front of the trailer. I had to do this when I towed mine 400+ miles from Livermore, CA to Riverside, CA when I bought it. Worked great, and then we just drank the water over the next few months.


BTW: The speed limit for towing in CA is 55 MPH anyway.....

I wish I would have known that, I do now. Tanks Bob

[Carol H]

I highly recommend you load up your trailer for camping and then weigh your trailer. There is a good explanation as to why and how at Understanding Trailer Weight Safety Issues. Keep in mind that when you weigh the tongue that it must be at the exact same height it is when it is attached to the tow vehicle in order to get an accurate weight. Up or down by a inches or two either way will result in a weight that is not the same as it is when attached to your vehicle. Not a big deal when weighing much larger trailers but it can be when weighing light trailers such as your own where a weight of 20lbs difference on the tongue can impact how stable the trailer tows.

Another easy way to increase your tongue weight or take it off as needed is to use a large Rubber Maid tote for carrying items such as water hoses, electrical cords, jacks, electrical adaptors etc. inside your trailer rather than in the tug. My trailer has limited storage inside it up in the front area and I have maxed it out, so if I load bikes on the back of the trailer or fill up the fresh water tanks which are at the rear that results in weight being taken off the tongue of the trailer. Even something as simple as having an empty propane tank on the trailers tongue can result in a bit to light a tongue weight. For the most stable tow my own trailer tows best at highway speeds with 12% of its weight on the tongue. Under normal towing conditions & the trailer is well balanced the Rubber Maid tote travels inside the trailer sitting over the trailers axle but when I have but water in the rear tanks or a bike on the back I need to move the tote up so it rides ahead of the axle up near the front of the trailer to transfer some weight back onto the tongue of the trailer to balance it back out.