Road junk - Montana Owners Club

richfaa · 03-28-2007, 08:22 AM

Ran over what looked like the cover off a A/C from a camper yesterday. It just appeared in the road as i was passing a 18 wheeler. All I could do was try to keep it in between all the wheels, camper and TV, which we did, It hit a plastic sewer hose container that we have bolted to the underbelly under the front Compartment and that I think broke it up and directed it down.Did find a rip in the underbelly but no other damage,,such is life on the road, There is a Montana dealer down the road and since there is hydraulic fluid still leaking out of the under belly from the melt down my Gorilla tape will not stick..Will see if they have some of that black gloop for repair.

bsmeaton · 03-28-2007, 08:43 AM

I HATE stuff falling on the road. Sorry you suffered damage Rich - but thank goodness it wasn't something solid - like a rock or board, or even a spare tire!

Okie Guy · 03-28-2007, 02:46 PM

Thenk goodness you and Helen are safe and damage is minimal. Road debris is one of the things I worry about most of all when on trips.
Stay Safe
Phil

bsmeaton · 03-28-2007, 02:58 PM

Just caught a rock the size of a brick with my windshield Saturday, off of some lazy trucker that didn't sweep off his flat trailer.

Love the signs that say "stay back 500 feet - not responsible for windshield damage". 500 ft isn't enough, nor is 1,500 ft, nor are any of the other lanes, nor are you safe on the other side of the jersey barrier or median!

Worst part is I loose all my state park stickers and the season hasn't even begun. I guess if you are worried about road debris, stay behind me - I catch everything in front of me!

fulltimedreamer · 03-28-2007, 04:20 PM

Brad,

Perhaps the installers can save the stickers or save the portion of the windshield with the stickers. If you have them maybe you can get replacements at a ranger station. Sorry about the windshield. I'm glad the brick didn't make it inside the passenger compartment.

fulltimedreamer · 03-28-2007, 04:23 PM

Rich,

While I was doing disaster relief in Louisiana a trucker lost a recap in front of me. It made it all the way to rear where it caught on a stabilizer and bent it beyond repair. My local RV dealer sold me a replacement at a reasonable price.

old turbo · 03-28-2007, 04:29 PM

Rich, I will be on the road this Sat.for the long haul from TX. to MI. I hate all the gators on the roads. Happy to hear the tape of all trades repaired your damage.

Ozzie · 03-28-2007, 04:39 PM

This is one of my worst fears pulling a rig down the road...you don't have a lot of maneuvering ability to avoid obstacles. The old jerk the steering wheel reaction isn't an option. Hit it and take your lumps.

I'm just glad nobody was hurt.

A couple years ago we were in a rental car in Florida and got bit by a road gator (what they call recaps in Florida). It flew up from under the car in front of us and I had nowhere to go. Smacked us on the front end. I spent a day of our vacation tracking down parts to repair it before I returned the car.

Garin1 · 03-28-2007, 04:46 PM

Man, I know what you mean Rich. I hit a alligator(tire tread remnant) just outside Phoenix. it hit the drivers side and hung on the landing gear. It bent the bottom of the LP compartment but didn't hurt the landing gear.

lwcdg · 03-28-2007, 05:49 PM

Rich glad to hear no one is hurt.

Brad I agree loosing a windshield is a real adrenalin rush. I also had to replace a windshield in the past. I just saved the stickers and taped them back on. When we were back at the specific areas I asked how do I go about getting a new sticker to replacce these? I showed the bill for the repair and they handed me new sticker (it was a few yrs ago though).

good luck and safe travels everyone.
Chuck

bsmeaton · 03-28-2007, 06:14 PM

Thanks,

I'll have to try that on the Stickers. The Nebraska sticker is designed to self destruct, but I think I can save the others.

richfaa · 03-29-2007, 03:25 AM

That big ole PVC tube sewer holder that we have bolted to the undercarriage of the camper right under the front compartment saved the day. The object came in contact with that first, The tube has a hole punched through it and it is shattered and splintered along a 2 or so foot length. The rip in the underbelly is right behind that.I am sure that impact tore the object up and prevented it hitting anything along the length of the underbelly. My Dad taught me many years ago to never take violent evasive action to prevent hitting, deer, Dog, etc. The animal usually walks away and you wind up dead or injured.Hang on, drive as stright as you can and try to keep the object between all the wheels.

SlickWillie · 03-29-2007, 03:47 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by bsmeaton

Thanks,

I'll have to try that on the Stickers. The Nebraska sticker is designed to self destruct, but I think I can save the others.

State stickers here are supposed to come apart when removed, but I have had a couple windshields replaced, and when I asked they removed the stickers without damaging them. Trick of the trade I suppose.

ARJ · 03-29-2007, 04:53 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by richfaa

That big ole PVC tube sewer holder that we have bolted to the undercarriage of the camper right under the front compartment saved the day. The object came in contact with that first, The tube has a hole punched through it and it is shattered and splintered along a 2 or so foot length. The rip in the underbelly is right behind that.I am sure that impact tore the object up and prevented it hitting anything along the length of the underbelly. My Dad taught me many years ago to never take violent evasive action to prevent hitting, deer, Dog, etc. The animal usually walks away and you wind up dead or injured.Hang on, drive as stright as you can and try to keep the object between all the wheels.

I will second what your Dad said. We hit a nice big buck last year at night. I had been going about 65 and was able to slam on the brakes and hit him head on. The car had hood damage but we were ok. The buck walked away.

bsmeaton · 03-29-2007, 05:32 AM

Rich,

I would have thought that AC cover would have just squashed and shattered. Surprised at the damage. I guess velocity has something to do with it.

Delaine and Lindy · 03-29-2007, 07:08 AM

Rich, I feel your pain we have had two windshields in Tex broken, and one in Tennessee in the last year and a half, rocks off dump trucks. Also the Gators are a serious problem for us pulling the Cambridge we only have about 6 inches of clearance under the front, we have to really be careful. Yes that is the proper way to hit a deer, both hands on the wheel and try to center the deer but never try and dodge the deer. Most often you will wreck your vehicle. GBY....

VanMan · 03-30-2007, 08:34 AM

We had baseball sized hail a few years ago and lost 5 windshields !!!

The installer applied heat with a hand propane torch from the bottom of the removed broken one (outside surface). The stickers came right off. He then used spray adhesive (I think) to stick them back on the new ones.

richfaa · 03-30-2007, 11:11 AM

Well It looked like a A/C cover, Didn't have much time to get a good look but it was fairly good sized.I note some blue and red paint marks on the sewer tube. Not really all that much damage.The sewer tube will have to be replaced and I figure Keystone will have to replace that underbelly section because it is saturated with Hydraulic fluid.I wacked a prety good size deer last winter with my School bus and had a moment of concern before impact as it was a transit style bus (flat front end) but it went under the bus..Bumpty. bump, bump,bump.

You may also like: