BBL

I mounted a piece of square aluminum tubing (1" x 3" x 12") under the front inspired by @mountainoliver and then I added a strip on aluminum on the inside back for additional rigidity. I don't think I needed that as they welded nice aluminum angle brackets along the front and back. I will NOT be carrying a generator in this box, it is primarily for our camping needs. I just have an issue putting things that are wet or dirty in the basement so close to the sleeping area although I try to clean them as much as possible before putting them in there. BL

Looks like the same one I installed. Plenty of room and very well made. BL

@rich.dev I didn't have a factory basket so I called OTT and ordered the hardware they use to mount the baskets. It included the nice rubber strip that mounts between the basket and the fiberglass. BL

@rich.dev it is 34” across the back and 20” in the front. I will look for a link when I get home but it’s easy to find on Amazon. As I mentioned, my local guy was able to get it for much less than Amazon. Shop around. Brian

Ok, after much consideration and some mentoring from @mountainoliver I finally purchased and installed a storage box for my trailer tongue. It was not the least expensive option but I got an incredible deal on it through a local vendor (truck parts/accessories store). These have an insulated top, one hand opening feature and are very well made. Thank you for all the ideas and suggestions on this thread. Brian

Visited SV many times while in the USAF and Northrop Grumman working special projects. I like it there but I prefer Tucson (south, near Davis-Monthan AFB). Brian

Steve - we are currently on the road as well and were at a Harvest Host a few nights ago when I extended the awning for some shade. The truck was connected but no lights on. Almost as soon as the awning went out, it started retracting. I pushed stop, then out and it went out and then proceeded to come back in. At that point I extended it and then shut off the switch (there was zero wind out and we were sitting there). Will have to figure out if this is an adjustment to the sensor or something different. Best of luck! Brian

Am I the only one that noticed that I-40 does not go near Paducah? Or am I not supposed to mention things like that? 😉 BL

I learned this from having an AS! It works... BL

@Geronimo John yes, excellent point. Don’t need any random sparks going down the road. I have the long batteries so there is considerable distance between the terminals. Anything I did would be centered away from them and likely dipped in plastic. Thank you, as always, for additional details we all need to consider. Brian

Never had issues with torque on truck or trailer. DCT is a good company, never had any issues there either. cheers, Brian

We used them on the AS and still have them on our tow vehicle (F-250). Also, Discount Tire just mounted a new set of Falkens on my truck and we had an extensive conversation about the wheel balancers. No one EVER even hinted that they would not mount the tires with Centramatics in place. I had 55,000 miles on the stock tires and they couldn't believe how good they looked even though they were due to be changed. BL

Ah, ok I see what you are saying and NO, the only locks I have ever used from Southco have been "stamped", not cut. I would be much more comfortable If I could swap out my lock with a cut key lock. Looking now. Brian

I don't know of a stamped key lock from Oliver...the one you show is just like the one on my battery box and basement storage. It has the same key pictured above. Can you explain the difference in the two you described above? Regards, Brian

I had these locks on my boat and every Southco key I ever saw was exactly the same!! I have never contacted them to see if you can get something different but I think these are just meant to keep the honest people honest. The bad people don't care anyway... BL

John, That is a great idea, one I had not thought of. If you look at the Morride battery tray, there is a slot on the side, both front and back. I am thinking about having some metal bands fabricated that will "loop" into those slots and then strap across the batteries with some sort of lock between the two bands. One band from left side, one from right with a hasp in the middle somewhere. Does this even make sense? Brian

In my opinion, one other serious downfall with the iPhone setup is the only choice given is SOS. When you find yourself in a bind with no cell service you can hit the SOS button and text only with Apple. IF you have identified people to contact in case of emergency, Apple will notify and relay certain information. With inReach, I can text anyone I want to, send them my location with GPS accuracy, they can track my progress on a private weblink. All this without even hitting the SOS button. I think there is value in being able to communicate and collaborate with others in lieu of calling for help. Brian

That's probably a good approach. Apple is investing heavily into GlobalStar and, IMO, they will likely purchase that company before it is all over. Once that two year "Free" period is over, I will be very interested in what Apple charges per month to recoup their investment in the satellite company. When that happens, I would bet "most" iPhone users will not opt for the plan. Just my $0.02 worth. BL

Trust but verify...I am still going to lock down my Lithionics batteries. I will post the solution once it is final. Brian

I covered this topic quite thoroughly in my Conversation on Communications presentation at the rally. I use the Garmin 66i with in-Reach. In short, the iPhone 14 is not world-wide at this point, doesn't work very well in foliage and, it's a phone. Not nearly as rugged as a Garmin product. One example I gave was from a couple that was up at the Arctic Circle (iPhones won't work in AK) and had an iReach mini when their Sprinter van went into a degraded mode and there certainly wasn't a Mercedes dealer nearby. They text her father in Austin who looked it up on the internet, came up with a solution, texted it back. They used their toothbrush and some contact cleaner to clean out the EGR valve and were back in business. Ultimately and individual call but I prefer worldwide reliability and a rugged device. Safe travels all, Brian

All Lithionics Batteries have their own On/Off switch for changing cables or putting your trailer into storage. I still like some ideas shared here. Having an aircraft operations and maintenance background and a love for boats, battery disconnects are very familiar. Brian

I got my copy in the mail the day we left for the rally. Pete and Bosker came by our campsite to see our radio setup and chat about radios. Bosker told Pete when it was time to go, he had heard enough about radios and wanted to finish his walk. Brian

@Ollie-HausThanks Chris, it is a good hobby and I get to take it on the road with me when we go camping. Brian

@Mike and Carol Mike - did you run all three bolts through the fiberglass in the same manner as in the pic? Wasn’t sure if the “pair” of bolts in the aft section are plated together on the underside or they have their own washers and nuts. Thanks - I will be installing one of these as well. Brian

@Steve Morris Steve - not that I know of. I told the Truma rep, Dave, at the rally what I had found with respect to using the remote AND the CP Plus and he confirmed, you can only set the de-humidification mode using the remote. I have since put in a ticket with Truma to potentially add this feature to the CP Plus. Some there were surprised to learn you could not do this but they confirmed it, called me back and said they would open a ticket. As I explained to them, we go to the added expense of getting all Truma components and so we could use them from ONE panel and find that all features are not available. I also told them their remote was NOT user friendly, had a poor display and eats batteries for breakfast. They did not disagree with my statements. What I normally do, is set my a/c via the CP Plus then go to the remote, slide down the cover and hit the "Raindrop" button. You have to ensure that you see both the "Snowflake" and the "Raindrop" on the screen. You also have to be pointed directly at the A/C and watch the green light. If you have doubts that it "took" the command, there is a re-transmit button on the remote that will send the setting again (it looks like a wifi signal). Hope this helps! Cheers, Brian