Motor Movers
Not very Techinal
I'm moving to a new house which has a slight inclinated drive. I am
therefore considering a motor mover, Mr Shifter or other. I have a
Bailey single axle 6th berth.
Has any one had any problems or ideas on what might be best=? The only
down side of a motormover type is the extra weight you have to tow with
you, but then you can use it at sites etc.
Your help, thoughts and ideas would be great.
Thanks,
Roger Mills
The relative merits of built-in movers vs those which attach to the hitch
have been discussed here as nauseum.
The general concensus is that the hitch type movers are of little use except
on a hard horizontal surface. As soon as they encounter a slope or loose
chippings or a soft/wet grassy surface, forget it! The laws of physics are
stacked against them because only 5-7% of the caravan's weight is over the
driven wheel.
Built-in movers win hands down - but do suffer from the disadvantage that
they use up some of your payload. They're still what I would go for, though.
Make sure that you get one with a soft start. They tend to be rather jerky
otherwise, and difficult to use - particularly when manoeuvring into a
narrow space. If you are going to park the van close to a wall, a mover
which allows both sides to be engaged and disengaged from a single side is a
must.
--
Cheers,
Roger
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Mary Fisher
"Roger Mills" <watt....@googlemail.com> wrote in message
news:4aaejnF...@individual.net...
> In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
> Not very Techinal <colin....@glencore.co.uk> wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> I'm moving to a new house which has a slight inclinated drive. I am
>> therefore considering a motor mover, Mr Shifter or other. I have a
>> Bailey single axle 6th berth.
>>
>> Has any one had any problems or ideas on what might be best=? The
>> only down side of a motormover type is the extra weight you have to
>> tow with you, but then you can use it at sites etc.
>>
>> Your help, thoughts and ideas would be great.
>>
>> Thanks,
>
> The relative merits of built-in movers vs those which attach to the hitch
> have been discussed here as nauseum.
It's only ad nauseam to those of us who've been here for some time.
>
> The general concensus is that the hitch type movers are of little use
> except on a hard horizontal surface. As soon as they encounter a slope or
> loose chippings or a soft/wet grassy surface, forget it! The laws of
> physics are stacked against them because only 5-7% of the caravan's weight
> is over the driven wheel.
That's not the consensus. It only applies if the hitch wheel is at the top
of the upward slope.
We've learned always to get our 'van up the slope of our drive with the
hitch wheel on the lower part of the slope. That works well with our
man-powered HitchDrive, it also worked with our Powrwheel. It even applied
when we pushed and pulled with no other aid. But our 'van is only 12' long.
>
> Built-in movers win hands down - but do suffer from the disadvantage that
> they use up some of your payload. They're still what I would go for,
> though.
They are also VERY expensive.
>
Mary
Roger Mills
> "Roger Mills" <watt....@googlemail.com> wrote in message
> news:4aaejnF...@individual.net...
>>
>> The relative merits of built-in movers vs those which attach to the
>> hitch have been discussed here as nauseum.
>
> It's only ad nauseam to those of us who've been here for some time.
>>
OK, I'll settle for ad infinitum - seeing as it's Good Friday.
>> The general concensus is that the hitch type movers are of little use
>> except on a hard horizontal surface. As soon as they encounter a
>> slope or loose chippings or a soft/wet grassy surface, forget it!
>> The laws of physics are stacked against them because only 5-7% of
>> the caravan's weight is over the driven wheel.
>
> That's not the consensus. It only applies if the hitch wheel is at
> the top of the upward slope.
>
Well, it's certainly the majority opinion from the hundreds of posts on the
subject.
> We've learned always to get our 'van up the slope of our drive with
> the hitch wheel on the lower part of the slope. That works well with
> our man-powered HitchDrive, it also worked with our Powrwheel. It
> even applied when we pushed and pulled with no other aid. But our
> 'van is only 12' long.
>>
They probably do better when pushing rather than pulling - but the maximum
amount of grip is *still* limited by the noseweight - which is but a
fraction of the overall van weight.
>> Built-in movers win hands down - but do suffer from the disadvantage
>> that they use up some of your payload. They're still what I would go
>> for, though.
>
> They are also VERY expensive.
>>
> Mary
I suspect it's a case of "you gets what you pays for". An alternative device
at a fraction of the price doesn't represent good value if it fails to do
the job!
Mary Fisher
> In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
> Mary Fisher <mary....@zetnet.co.uk> wrote:
>
>> "Roger Mills" <watt....@googlemail.com> wrote in message
>> news:4aaejnF...@individual.net...
>>>
>>> The relative merits of built-in movers vs those which attach to the
>>> hitch have been discussed here as nauseum.
>>
>
>> It's only ad nauseam to those of us who've been here for some time.
>>>
> OK, I'll settle for ad infinitum - seeing as it's Good Friday.
>
>>> The general concensus is that the hitch type movers are of little use
>>> except on a hard horizontal surface. As soon as they encounter a
>>> slope or loose chippings or a soft/wet grassy surface, forget it!
>>> The laws of physics are stacked against them because only 5-7% of
>>> the caravan's weight is over the driven wheel.
>>
>> That's not the consensus. It only applies if the hitch wheel is at
>> the top of the upward slope.
>>
> Well, it's certainly the majority opinion from the hundreds of posts on
> the subject.
I haven't kept a record (have you?) but if you're right I suggest it's
because people haven't worked out that having the hitch wheel lower than the
rest of the 'van will make it work efficiently.
>
>> We've learned always to get our 'van up the slope of our drive with
>> the hitch wheel on the lower part of the slope. That works well with
>> our man-powered HitchDrive, it also worked with our Powrwheel. It
>> even applied when we pushed and pulled with no other aid. But our
>> 'van is only 12' long.
>>>
> They probably do better when pushing rather than pulling - but the maximum
> amount of grip is *still* limited by the noseweight - which is but a
> fraction of the overall van weight.
Gravity is a powerful force.
I only speak from actual experience, not theory.
>
>>> Built-in movers win hands down - but do suffer from the disadvantage
>>> that they use up some of your payload. They're still what I would go
>>> for, though.
>>
>> They are also VERY expensive.
>>>
>> Mary
>
> I suspect it's a case of "you gets what you pays for". An alternative
> device at a fraction of the price doesn't represent good value if it fails
> to do the job!
But alternative devices, used intelligently, can work very well.
Not very Techinal
bill lord
<colin....@glencore.co.uk> wrote:
>so what costs are we talking about?
£880 for a powrtouch fitted and similar if not more for others.
Bill Lord
I've taken a vow of poverty To annoy me send money
e-mail messages to bill hyphen lord at uku dot co dot uk
( Get rid of the spaces and use symbols for the hyphen at and dots )
GrahamW
We have the same problem as you ( slightly slooping drive with a very snug
fit between our property and next doors conifers). The "Powertouch" fixed
mover we had fitted last year has been an absolute godsend. I can easily
position the 'van precisely where I want with minimum effort.
The other upside is on wet grass, where we would normally require a 4X4 to
get off the site without destroying the pitch with wheelspin, I just park
the car on firm ground and drive the caravan to it. The "Powertouch" drive
is so slow and progressive there is no chance of the 'van's wheels spinning
and loosing grip.
I've even wondered if, when it's raining, I could sit in the 'van and drive
it to the car to hitch on. Now there's lazy for you.
Regards, Graham
NoReply
>
or try and win a powrtouch here !
http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/competitions/productindex.asp
etomd
news:5680g.20768$zf1....@newsfe5-gui.ntli.net...
If its not to late to reply (after four days of posting.)
I have a mover fitted to my van and find it an absolute must.
However the only downside that has been mentioned is cost but there is
another. Should the mover have to be used a lot before the caravan is
hitched to the car then the battery will no longer be fully charged - a big
disadvantage if driving to a site without electricity.
I choose Polesoft Lockspam to fight spam, and you?
http://www.polesoft.com/refer.html