Looking at Jayco camper - couple of Qs

[Vitara_JaycoSwift_Outback]

Do Jayco sell the safety poles separately in case you loose one?

[prodigyrf]

You don't need safety poles for the roof because the only way a cable breaks is because the owner is not doing their regular inspection, maintenance and servicing as per their Owners Manual. (do you lightly tension your cables after roof lockdown and why?) If you don't understand that then always take the stairs rather than the lift in hi-rise buildings and avoid black cats walking across your path. It's exactly the same deal if you crap a set of wheel bearings on the road but we'll all wear flat tyres as down to lady luck.

Now to those setup videos and some finer points from experience. The kids are squawking, irritable and hungry and you want them seated inside and mum on the job ASAP and that means teamwork. First things first and with the Jayco in the posi you want it, Mum is flicking the catches while you have the level ramp and chock out and with the ramp under the low side and winder handle in by that stage, I'm in the car backing onto the ramp while mum calls enough(watching the T bubble on the drawbar for side to side only) and places the chock while I'm out and cranking up part way and the rope on bed flies are out (you may have rollups and zip bags) and she feeds in while I pull them across. Then I'm winding up fully while she's setting up the back bed and I'm setting up the front and turning on the gas and in my case removing the trailer plug and refitting into the spare socket on the drawbar which switches on the camper battery.

She's slower than me but both know to only just hook the canvas over the top corners of the bed ends and never right over to the bottoms. Why? because that will keep the bed canvas slackest for pushing in the bed hockey sticks and note the difficulty one of our eggsperts in the video has trying to lock one in. (it doesn't help if you're a shortass anyway and the missus leaves them to me) As soon as I'm done with that it's step out and in to setup the door. Now note one eggspert takes off the plastic cover before unclipping and lowering the door. If you do that rather than leave it until the door is in place as the other rightly does you'll have a 3 part door juggle on you hands. No fix the door in place and then slip the Velcro plastic off from the inside and then immediately fit the side door flaps into their aluminium stile tracks before you put up the bed hockey sticks. Why? Because the canvas is still all loose remember and it makes rolling the door flaps in a breeze. While the missus is getting stuff out the car I've test fired the stove and then switched on the fridge (the fridge likes gas in the line remember) and then I set up the table (we travel with it down and leg on the ground or you'll find brackets and screws coming loose) and then the hockey sticks on the beds and while she's making a cuppa I'm outa there and levelling the rig and winding down the stabilisers, pushing up the tele legs fully and fitting their flap covers and pulling the bed canvas tight and velcroing it under and clipping on the elastic cords for the bed flies. 10mins max but notice mum's inside with the kettle on (or stuff out for the kids) in under 5.

We do the same team deal packing up where she's inside doing her bit while I'm outside attending to all the peripherals I can before final wind down. ie it's a simple job for me to pull the flies single handed and mum doesn't need stabiliser legs down, etc to be busy packing up inside. She can be helping around the other side and back pushing the canvas in when winding down and remember that bed canvas folding trick. There's another small detail at that stage and that's to tuck in the corners of the velcroed bed flaps behind the sliding bed rails too as they can get caught/jam up when pushing in the beds. Last thing the driver does is the walkaround checking EVERY detail before driving off and that way you won't forget your handle or leave the levelling ramp behind, etc, etc. It all becomes routine and trouble free after a few goes, particularly after you're all locked up and looking pleased with yourself and then you notice the vent hatch is wide open waiting for some road speed to rip it off. That's part of the mental checklist like the fridge locked and on 12V and doors all secured before you close the door, secure the holdback latch and pop the step in, to proceed with wind down, etc.

[prodigyrf]

A lifetime of technical trials and tribulations and I just can't help noticing when manufacturers change design details and ask myself why? Couldn't help spotting that change of door detail from my current 2003 Jayco and also my  80s one. Instead of the many years of Jayco doors where they had a vinyl flap at the bottom of the top door section, in order to secure it via the butterfly button clips to the roof and the door bottom, those new ones now have a solid metal bracket (podercoat alum like the door presumably) What the...? I reckon some young Jayco designer has lost the plot with that change and perhaps you'd like to speculate as to why I think that? It often happens when you lose mature expertise in such matters.

[Vitara_JaycoSwift_Outback]

While I agree with you that you probably don't need the roof poles but after you've experienced the lifting system fail and seen the roof come down in a hurry I would hate to have it come down on my loved ones. Better to be safe than sorry for a 30 sec job.

My swift was 3 months old when winding the roof up almost to the top a component failed and 2 of the 4 corners came down in a hurry. You can't say we hadn't been maintaining it.  Jayco introduced the poles because people have started adding air cons, solar panels, boat racks etc to the roof after incidents when they did fail with the extra weight.

[prodigyrf]

So you're saying your Finch left the factory with a faulty winding component? Which component exactly and presumably red faces at Jayco and they took care of it? If they left the slave cable nuts loose I guess it's the same as leaving your axle nut or wheel nuts loose.

So we need roof safety poles to cover owners sticking aircons, boats, etc on their rooves now? A lot like a bunch of HVAC tradeys deciding the hi-rise aircon compressor needs changing and if they get a small container forklift 'she'll be right mate' to use the 12 person rated lift to do the job. I suddenly have this vision of Jaycos needing tandem axles and wheels, brakes, etc, just in case....?

[Vitara_JaycoSwift_Outback]

So you're saying your Finch left the factory with a faulty winding component? Which component exactly and presumably red faces at Jayco and they took care of it? If they left the slave cable nuts loose I guess it's the same as leaving your axle nut or wheel nuts loose.

So we need roof safety poles to cover owners sticking aircons, boats, etc on their rooves now? A lot like a bunch of HVAC tradeys deciding the hi-rise aircon compressor needs changing and if they get a small container forklift 'she'll be right mate' to use the 12 person rated lift to do the job. I suddenly have this vision of Jaycos needing tandem axles and wheels, brakes, etc, just in case....?

Yep something wasn't fitted correctly and while it was fine for the first few trips it eventually pulled out. Sorry I can't tell you exactly what it was but I did see the photos of what had failed and it was a hard plastic part. All fixed under warranty but not by Jayco. Have found a local mob who are fantastic

[Beatle]

You don't need safety poles for the roof because the only way a cable breaks is because the owner is not doing their regular inspection, maintenance and servicing as per their Owners Manual.

Seriously?   So no need for vehicle airbags, oil pressure warning lights, emergency exits in aircraft, baby capsules, fire extinguishers, insurance policies?..................   As they say Shit Happens (or more eloquently:"The best laid schemes o' mice an' men" Robert Burns)

The cable pulleys and winder mechanism in my Jayco are screwed into almost 40 year old timber.  I don't know the history of the van.  So I'd be foolish to trust things.

It's like carrying a serviceable spare tyre.  If you do, you won't need it.  The day you leave it at home...........

What do I lose by carrying and using a couple of sticks...? compared to what I could lose if the roof collapses.  When it's windy I also sleep better knowing the poles are in place

PS:  Jayco did build a bogie-axle wind up camper.  It was a monster!

[danbo81]

Gee these threads go pear shaped real quick

[Swannie]

Great work. Do Jayco sell the safety poles separately in case you loose one?

Yep they do
Swannie

[prodigyrf]

Well I can see why you're nervous after that total QA failure by Jayco with your Finch and presumably the pre-delivery check by the Dealer didn't pick anything up? Believe it or not the Owners Manual requires it back for a first service a bit like a car at 1000km or 3months and after that it's 10000km or 12 monthly. No manufacturing is perfect but Jayco have had that very robust lift system for 35+ years now and many owners happily wind them for years never knowing what's under the hood. That was a young me my 80s one but then you're always too important and too busy for such minor details (usually dealing with all the dramas because you are until you work it out)
In the final analysis I've heard of more fatalities from shark attacks (2 in 3yrs with the latest in SA now) than killer Jayco rooves coming down on unfortunates but when you've had a close encounter I'll understand.

[briann532]

Just to add some fuel to the fire.............

 

I was with a mate - who consequently is no longer a mate, but that is another story for the campfire!
Who had a new Jayco Eagle.
He tried to wind it up while one roof clip was still done up.
Needless to say things went pear shaped and one of the springs in the wind up turret went awol.

It went 3/4 of the way up till he noticed.
One corner completely stuffed, but we managed to fix it later.
HOWEVER - the roof stayed up and did sag in the corner, but it still stayed up.

I would be extremely surprised if all 4 corners or even 2 corners let go at the same time.
You would have to be seriously unlucky.
AGAIN HOWEVER - I reckon if I bought a cemetery people would stop dying, so I use a pole to prop 2 diagonal corners of mine just to be safe..........

Food for thought.
Brian
 

[prodigyrf]

Gee these threads go pear shaped real quick

No it's more a variety of opinions that I provide and you decide and vise versa for us all. I've certainly learned a lot from others here cf my blissful ignorance with my first Jayco. In that respect I take the view Jayco and their Dealer network should get it right and not take the lazy path of 'pay our product indemnity insurance and flick em a few prop poles and that'll keep em happy and the ambulance chasers off our backs'.

No they make a very sound and robust lift system and if they get it right and then as owner I understand the maintenance/inspection routine, then why the Hell should I have to carry around and fit up their cheat props all the time? Still if others want to carry around poles or bits of wood and prop their Jayco up with them it's a free country for mine but don't expect me to Jayco. Get your critical winch system QA right in the first place.

[Vitara_JaycoSwift_Outback]

Well I can see why you're nervous after that total QA failure by Jayco with your Finch and presumably the pre-delivery check by the Dealer didn't pick anything up? Believe it or not the Owners Manual requires it back for a first service a bit like a car at 1000km or 3months and after that it's 10000km or 12 monthly. No manufacturing is perfect but Jayco have had that very robust lift system for 35+ years now and many owners happily wind them for years never knowing what's under the hood. That was a young me my 80s one but then you're always too important and too busy for such minor details (usually dealing with all the dramas because you are until you work it out)
In the final analysis I've heard of more fatalities from shark attacks (2 in 3yrs with the latest in SA now) than killer Jayco rooves coming down on unfortunates but when you've had a close encounter I'll understand.

Mate you sound a bit like a keyboard warrior. You do it your way and we'll do it ours. Neither of us will probably ever have any problems. My appologise to the OP for taking the topic of track.

[Beatle]

I would be extremely surprised if all 4 corners or even 2 corners let go at the same time.
You would have to be seriously unlucky.

Absolutely, you'd have to be unlucky.  But I haven't won Lotto yet, so does that make me unlucky?   There are failure modes where the whole roof would come down.  There is one winch and one main cable, before it splits into four cables.  The door should provide a measure of safety, if you have it installed.  I often leave the door up on the ceiling with the annex fitted.

[nab]

All good banter people, good ideas too. I think I will look at adding the safety poles, if anything to protect me from the kids accidentally winding it down on me!!!!

On another note, checked out a couple of Jaycos today, some peoples idea of "very good condition" varies a lot to mine 

[prodigyrf]

All good banter people, good ideas too. I think I will look at adding the safety poles, if anything to protect me from the kids accidentally winding it down on me!!!!

Just a tip to remove and lock your winder handle away when you've finished setup as a Jayco owner without a handle is not a happy place to be 

As Jayco owners we can all be relaxed and comfortable relying on the winch system PROVIDED it is serviced and the cabling inspected and adjusted if need be (always check the slave cable nuts for tightness) at the appropriate service intervals. Maintenance, just like lifts and cranes ropes involves checking for any fraying or broken wires in cables and replacement if noticed and my 03 Dove still sports its original cables in sound condition. A handy tip is to quickly check measure your roof height (at all 4 tele legs) while loading up before another trip, as that will warn you if something is untoward like a slave cable adjuster coming loose.

However I can see the sense in the extra aggravation of carrying and setting up Jayco's safety poles if some owners want extra insurance, or more largely for those who don't service and inspect a critical functional component of their Jayco, just like they'd ignore their brakes and wheel bearings until the inevitable happens.

[Malcolm Tugless]

Polarising poles apart batman.

We had a Finch for around 10 years. Never used safety poles, never had a roof catastrophe. Use em' if ya like, I can't see an issue with peace of mind. If I was supplied with them when we purchased the camper, I'd a probably used em', occasionally.

I'd not be to critical on Jayco supplying the safety poles. The decision to do so may more than likely be insurance based, duty of care and all. But hey, as I said whats wrong with a little piece of mind. I lock the campsite up nightly (regardless of were we're camping); kayaks, surfboards, fishing gear and other items with a penchant for "walking" all get put away or secured with various cables etc. Helps me sleep, not to mention waking to find all my toys intact and ready for action.

Great little rant on setting up the camper there Prodigyrf. We had a similar military style of bivouac activity on arrival. With a couple of variations:

I always removed the plastic cover from the door before attachment. Never had any dramas with it.

Our other variation had the levelling and leg winding completed as part of the initial setting up.
That was the one aspect of your setup that I didn't much like; you didn't level out the camper (fore and aft), and set the stabiliser legs down prior to entering and setting up the beds. In my mind thats a recipe for disaster. A bit too much weight in the back and the whole unit can go arse over apex. Sure its never happened to you, but I've seen it happen (to an old couple in a caravan). Now whilst the whole prospect of seeing a camper or caravan with its drawbar pointing to the sky and a couple of codgers flailing about inside, does have some comedic merit. The funny side of the argument would fail to seen by those in the throws of shock and panic. 

Apart from that, yeah pretty quick to set up. We could often be done in under ten minutes if the planets aligned. They are a clever little camper.

[prodigyrf]

"That was the one aspect of your setup that I didn't much like; you didn't level out the camper (fore and aft), and set the stabiliser legs down prior to entering and setting up the beds."

Yes I probably didn't explain that but generally if my rig's on fairly level ground the drawbar dips down at the front and I'll use the jockey wheel to lift it level while still attached to the car and then the stabilisers later. Having been in construction I have a good eye for level and can tell backing around where the camper is most level. If it's only an overnighter, just in the bush I won't bother with the ramp and chock but just tell the missus which side (the slightly uphill according to the T bubble) to put the pillows on when the bubble shows slightly off. Fore and aft is less critical for sleeping, although with the round sink and plughole off centre and toward the rear, you find the sink doesn't drain completely so the sponge it is. Clearly more accurate level setup is required for  a couple of nights or more, plus you use the ramp in the bush if the spot is nice but a bit too sloping to ignore. Beyond the ramp adjustment and I'm looking for a different spot.

I should add that with a bush stop I'll often stay hitched up just use a 3 point jockey wheel and back 2 stabilisers and not worry about the front 2 and say the bubble shows slightly high on the drivers side then naturally I'll wind the passenger side stabiliser down hard first, often correcting that and then tighten the driver's side one to that. These are the usual setup tricks we all learn whatever the rig.

[rocket327s]

OK... i purchased a Jayco Dove Outback 2012 model. Went to Port Lincoln in Oct/Nov 2013 & it just happened to be terrible weather, windy & rain.
The whole top of the camper was swaying so much the centre pole that holds the bed out eventually worked it's way out of the holding slot & came down on my head.. more than once. Until I eventually worked out if I wrapped insulation tape around the end & jammed it back into the slot i wore the pole about 3 times.. forget about when i went out for the night & the pole collapsed again, the canvas come down full of water (before i used the tape). Luckily we had the waterproof covering on the  innerspring mattress.
Another problem i had was the electric brake connections came adrift & I had to have them replaced/soldered.
I took it thru the Painted desert & some corrugated roads getting to Murphy's Haystacks &  the lion colony in SA......plenty of dust but not a problem.
As far as towing.............. towed like a dream behind the Navara.
Just the uncertainty in bad weather convinced me to upgrade to a poptop.

[BrettMG]

Thanks for the great replies, just what I was looking for! The missus will be happy with that. There are some awesome tips there and the links are great. The missus wonders why I am always on this site...

Just sold my soft floor camper last night, the missus was more upset than I was! Checked out a 1995 Hawk at a yard yesterday and were pretty happy with the layout. A couple more Qs:

G'day Nick

We have had a couple of Jaycos and found the best storage solution to be some plastic office drawers from Officeworks. We keep them inside at home, pack them and then carry them outside. They travel in the back of the Ranger and either stay there (if overnighting) or get thrown in the back of the  annexe for a longer stay. Kids get a drawer each wife and I get 2 each.  Won't suit everyone but works well for us!

[nab]

Thanks again guys/gals. I will hitting you up for more questions very soon!!!

Well I bought and picked up a 2005 Jayco Dove today. She has been well used and a few things need fixing but I'm not too worried about the aesthetics and most importantly the price was right!!!

Just set it up at home, only ever watched the vids posted here and the guy I bought it off showed me how to put it down. I did it myself in about 25mins from unhitching from car to laying on the mattress, including inspections at each stage! Very happy with that considering it was the first time I had actually done it.

1. Is the inbuilt charger thingo any good? Any ideas where I can find out more info about it?
2. Any links to replacement LED lamps you can recommend?
3. How do I access the pullies/cables etc to inspect/grease them?

Here she is in my driveway!



First mod was to get rid of this sticker haha!!!!!

[Vitara_JaycoSwift_Outback]

Congratulations Nab

[Malcolm Tugless]

1. Is the inbuilt charger thingo any good? Any ideas where I can find out more info about it?
2. Any links to replacement LED lamps you can recommend?
3. How do I access the pullies/cables etc to inspect/grease them?

The inbuilt charger thingo info can be found in this link: http://www.setec.com.au/jayco-customers/

LED replacement "globes" can be sourced from a decent marine supplier or electronics shop. Take the globes you want to replace with you. Different styles of pin configuration and output.

The winding mechanism is in the front corner, where the handle goes in. From memory, access is from inside under the seat. There should be a raised section in there. (others will have better info on that).

Congratulations on the purchase.

[JB]

NAB

The winding mechanism is pretty easy to get to. It is behind the front under seat storage (towards the front of the camper).  If it's like my 03 Finch, it is accessible by removing the screws that hold on plywood cover.

Cheers

JB

[rocket327s]

nab ...... i found the best place for the LED globes was :  http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/beach_lovers/m.html

beachlovers01@optusnet.com.au

i sent you a pm