Winnie “Hike”-ers Site

[rwaldrop]

I was told typical WD and sway hitch cannot be installed on my Hike? True?

1701DB
2021 Tundra

[rwaldrop]

Due to propane box be oversized

[dbjohnso86]

Hello! I have an Andersen WD/anti sway hitch and since the style is based on chains at least on my 171DB it mounted fine! Will get some pics and post in a few days! have only used it for 2 trips so far, one though was 350 miles at highway speeds up to 70mph and it worked great, I also like being able to back up with it still being attached!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FhIEc62mKA

[dbjohnso86]

Thanks for the reply! I ended up getting an Andersen WS/Anti Sway kit and have done 1 7 day trip so far driving about 700 miles sometimes at 70MPHand for sure noticed an improvement when using it! ..p.s yes I also did already have a brake controller as I will be doing a lot of in the Rocky Mountains driving as well as off-road and wanted to be sure all axes had braking ability!

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by dbjohnso86

sometimes at 70MPHand for sure noticed an improvement when using it!

I’m pretty sure your trailer tires have a top speed rating of 65 mph. Going over this speed heats up your tires, shortens their life and increases risk of a blowout. All things you don’t want to happen.

[Itsthex]

Hey guys,

Just wanted to stop in and say hello- My girlfriend and I just purchased a Hike H171DB and we love it! Reading through this thread has been helpful so far. I'll be sure to take a look at our sink piping to see if we can avoid a leak.

We just purchased Wednesday and hit the trails over the weekend, camping out in Calico and traversing over some rougher terrain. So far, no major issues. However, we noticed a few things and I might as well share.

Someone in the thread earlier mentioned the thermofuse at the water heater: Ours popped! We couldn't get hot water and I spent a long time trying to figure out why only to find out this little guy was the source. After looking through everything, I couldn't figure out why it would blow as everything seemed clean and without issue. Bypassing the fuse by directly plugging in got the tank heating started right away. I monitored it for any issue and found none.

It was windy, however. My guess is a draft got in and caused the flame to fluctuate inside just enough to kick some heat out and trigger the fuse. Will be replacing that soon.

Otherwise, some panels don't seem as sturdily put together as I would hope. There is a storage door underneath the dinette next to the entry door that flexes when the storage door is opened, causing it to bend from the top and the door to come down at an angle. Should be an easy fix.

Additionally, the wall paneling/cover/paper/whatever it is on the inside of the bathroom walls peeled away a little at the bottom and I can see behind it. A little odd, but I guess they didn't use enough glue?

Nothing else to note just yet!

The trailer tows great with my 2020 Tacoma TRD especially with the dealer installed Husky Center Line TS weight distribution and sway hitch. After getting to our location, it started making some noise though- I'll have to ask about that. The passenger side bar pivot point is the source, squeaking under any movement.

My question would be, has anyone had these things down some seriously rugged trails? They say the axles have "independent suspension" but it looks like a very simply setup, nothing like an actual A-arm or leaf. Wondering how it works and performs!


EDIT: OH! And to note, ours came with solar pre-installed so we used it all weekend and our batteries were full the entire time. We used the outdoor LED for at least 4-5 hours each night and turned lights on and off inside as well as the water pumps. Most of the time during the day we would have 2-3 phones charging via the USB and wireless charger as well. We couldn't run the AC, but we didn't really need it yet as it wasn't extremely hot outside. Fridge worked excellent! All on the standard single battery. We do plan to upgrade to dual 6V batteries and buy a generator so we can use the AC eventually.

[RocknRoll]

Originally Posted by creativepart

I’m pretty sure your trailer tires have a top speed rating of 65 mph. Going over this speed heats up your tires, shortens their life and increases risk of a blowout. All things you don’t want to happen.

Excellent advice no matter what rig, tires or load you're carrying.

[Marine359]

I called Husky about the noise problem, because mine was getting worse and became intolerable. The support rep told me to spray some hitch ball lubricant on the tension bar support brackets bolted to the trailer tongue, but DO NOT use any lubricant on the hitch swivels, as these provide the friction need for anti-sway. Solution worked great. Still a little noise on slow speed turns, but not much. I now carry a can of spray lube with me.

[Itsthex]

Originally Posted by Marine359

I called Husky about the noise problem, because mine was getting worse and became intolerable. The support rep told me to spray some hitch ball lubricant on the tension bar support brackets bolted to the trailer tongue, but DO NOT use any lubricant on the hitch swivels, as these provide the friction need for anti-sway. Solution worked great. Still a little noise on slow speed turns, but not much. I now carry a can of spray lube with me.

Ahh i see. After unhooking, I moved my bars around a bit and the passenger side swivel is where the noise is coming from- Not the support brackets. Wondering if it will just go away over time?

I read elsewhere that the swivel mounts sometimes tighten themselves and can cause the squeak. Maybe I'll have to call Husky as well.

[dbjohnso86]

Originally Posted by creativepart

I’m pretty sure your trailer tires have a top speed rating of 65 mph. Going over this speed heats up your tires, shortens their life and increases risk of a blowout. All things you don’t want to happen.

The Tires have a Speed Rating of 75MPH listed very clearly in 3 spots on the tires in raised lettering ! Not that I think people should go that fast and I myself was only at 70 for a short amount of time and will likely stick right around 60.

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by dbjohnso86

The Tires have a Speed Rating of 75MPH listed very clearly in 3 spots on the tires in raised lettering !

Good to know. I've not seen ST tires with a speed rating above 65 mph.
Thanks

[dbjohnso86]

Originally Posted by creativepart

Good to know. I've not seen ST tires with a speed rating above 65 mph.
Thanks

Ya I was also surprised when I went out to check after reading your message!

[Marine359]

Originally Posted by Itsthex

Ahh i see. After unhooking, I moved my bars around a bit and the passenger side swivel is where the noise is coming from- Not the support brackets. Wondering if it will just go away over time?

I read elsewhere that the swivel mounts sometimes tighten themselves and can cause the squeak. Maybe I'll have to call Husky as well.

Before applying grease to the brackets, swivels were very stiff, and I couldn’t push them in our out easily with hand or foot. After applying the lube to brackets and driving a few hundred miles, swivels became much easier to rotate by hand when coupling or uncoupling, and there was zero noise coming from swivels. My suspicion is the swivels were binding when the unlubricated brackets restricted the movement of the bars, causing that scary snap, crackle, pop. Lube your brackets and what you believe to be noise from the swivel may resolve itself.

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by dbjohnso86

Ya I was also surprised when I went out to check after reading your message!

I can see they are still load range C. That may be fine on a hike since they are lighter weight TTs. When I had problems with C Rated tires I owned Arctic Fox TTs and they are heavy built TTs. In fact, they were still using all wood wall construction then.

[Itsthex]

Originally Posted by Marine359

Before applying grease to the brackets, swivels were very stiff, and I couldn’t push them in our out easily with hand or foot. After applying the lube to brackets and driving a few hundred miles, swivels became much easier to rotate by hand when coupling or uncoupling, and there was zero noise coming from swivels. My suspicion is the swivels were binding when the unlubricated brackets restricted the movement of the bars, causing that scary snap, crackle, pop. Lube your brackets and what you believe to be noise from the swivel may resolve itself.

Thank you! I will definitely be doing this on the next trip.

[wanderingO]

Super excited to find this thread

we bought a 172bh in February and have had nothing but problems. water pump was not wired at factory so im not sure how it passed inspection. sink in kitchen leaked. Led panel is cracked so we can not tell when our levels are at the 3/4 level (waiting on replacement) now our furnace won't ignite and only blows cold air ( have an appointment to take It in). Wouldn't recommend to be honest
it's a love hate relationship we wanta love it but every trip something goes wrong.

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by wanderingO

we bought a 172bh in February and have had nothing but problems.

First, I'm so sorry about all the problems. We all hate that part of RVing.

But - and please don't take offense - how did you purchase an RV without going through EVERY system at the dealership before you signed for the purchase? Surely, in the first 15 mins of a run through someone thought to turn on the water pump and see that it wasn't working? And, when they showed you how to run the heater you felt for heat and there was none... right?

It's terrible that such an RV could make it past both Winnebago's and the Dealer's review. But that said, you also have a responsibility to check everything out - before you finalize the purchase.

This is the tough thing about buying a first time RV. You don't realize that you must do this time intensive and thorough review of every system before buying. It's something that this RV buying boom has really illuminated. For many, buying an RV is like buying a new car or truck. You naturally assume it will all work right out of the box.

Sadly, RV buying is totally different than buying a car or truck and the quality control rests with the purchaser. I'm not saying it should be that way or suggesting that it's not a major problem with the industry.

IF, and I realize it's an IF, you purchase another RV in the future you will now know exactly what to look for and how to protect yourself from issues like this.

[wanderingO]

No offense taken at all!!! It was our first Rv purchase . we got a walk though and water was not turned on because it was winterize they assured us it worked because according to the dealer there was no way to winterize it without the pump working. we did check the heat and it was heating when we purchased it along with the led screen but after out first couple outing both stopped working. thank you for you insight and this has been a definite learning opportunity.

[creativepart]

I'm glad I didn't offend - when it comes to taking a salesman's word for things I say, "trust but verify." Actually, I'm not sure about even the trust part of that.

For our last two RV purchases we made it a priority to camp for 3 to 4 days as close to the dealership as possible the day we picked up the RV. That way we can get right back over there to make them fix things ASAP.

We hear from many that they just can't take the time to do that - but in our experience it makes a positive difference in starting out with everything working.

For our current RV there was a large campground across the street (I-40) and that was super convenient. On the first day they actually sent a tech across the street and fixed some things in the campground and then the next two days we were at the dealer's door when they opened to get other things fixed.

Three months later we were going to be passing through Albuquerque (where we bought our RV) again and I called a full month ahead to get a service appointment and they said "Sorry, we are full up for the next 2-months." So, right after buying they'd get us in right away but a few months out and it's get in line.

[Luckypbk1]

We picked our 171DB up a month ago, finally got to take it out to the Texas Motor speedway over the weekend for the IndyCars. Have to say, it was really enjoyable.