power touch mover

[glake]

hi all,

my parents picked up a mover for their van for £80 last week, although it is for a 1600 weight single axle, they want to use it for their twin. i rang pwrtouch and they said this would not turn the twin. However, for £80 its got to be worth a try! their van comes in below 1600 and so i recon if the van is lifted high on the jockey wheel so minimum contact and friction is given on the front axle it should work? any thoughts or ideas?

 

[Damian]

Why go against what you have been told by the maker?

There are several major differences between the models and fitting a single mover to a twin van is stupidity itself.

Why not just tear up the

 

[gary]

As i see it, it's got two chances, it either works or you waste

 

[Dustydog]

Hi Gareth

Powrtouch know what they are doing. Choosing to ignore their advice is stupid. What if the gears fail and the caravan runs out of control and kills someone?

Sell it on and save up for the right model.

Cheers

Alan

 

[glake]

hi Damian,

thanks for the reply but maybe i did not explain myself quiet enough! pwrtouch advised that the mover would have no problem with forward or back movement as it is designed to take the weight. However, a twin mover pulses when turning wheras a single does not, and this is where the problem lies! The worst outcome is a failure in the board which would not result in a fire, only mover failure. Therefore, as i said given that the mover has no issue with the weight of the caravan only the turning if i was to minimise contact for the front axle by lifting the jockey wheel it would possibly result in movement more like a single axle van. If i where to ripe up

 

[Damian]

Gareth, I know all about the Powertouch movers as I fit and service them for the company.

Having seen many movers and the problems some have. doing what you seem intent on is , again, stupid.

Most times a mover is used is to turn a van and in use the control box gets quite warm, which is why it should never be covered with anything.

Putting the overload on the electronics that would happen in a turn situation *could* cause the control unit to overheat and the motor to overheat and burn out, with the possibility of a fire into the bargain.

Having said that, if you still feel it is "worth a try" that is your decision, but you have been warned.

 

[glake]

Damian, thanks for the advice. just to clarify, i am asking for advice as i don't know the answer it's not that i am intent on fitting it i just wanted to know if it is possible and if not as Gary and alan have said i will not fit it. The reason why i am sometimes sceptical of taking manufactures advice is that it is easy for them to recommend another of their products at more expence to the consumer. This i do not feel makes me stupid as you repeatedly seem to call me, only iterested in others experiences and knowledge of something i have little knowledges about.

 

[Damian]

Gareth, firstly I was not saying that YOU are stupid, just the concept of fitting an unsuitable unit to a van with the consequent dangers.

I understand where you are coming from regarding some makers advice, but Powrtouch are not the usual, in as much as they will not try and sell you something which is not suitable and will go out of their way to be as honest and helpful as they can, which is very unusual today, and is what makes them the market leaders in movers and after sales service.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Gareth,

The manufacturers of SA caravan movers have all recognised that the solution to move a TA requires a very different and more complex solution to handle the loads, stresses and strains of the TA arrangement.

I am fully aware that jacking up the jockey wheel to relieve the contact pressure of the leading road wheels does reduce the force needed to turn a TA, but because of the suspension travel, the pressure is still quite high, and enough to defeat the power of the SA motors.

Most SA movers only are required to produce about 200Kgf Maximum for each motor. 400Kgf combined) This is sufficient to move a 1.5T caravan up a 1:4 slope.

I had to manoeuvre a TA in a test facility which was on a flat concrete floor. Despite extending the jockey wheel, the lateral force I had to impart at the tow hitch was still in excess of 200Kg to over come the scrubbing effect and turn the trailer. Now that is the force at the tow ball which was some 3.5M from the wheels. The motor mover is going to be less than 1M which means it will have to impart at least 700Kgf on one wheel. That is more than most of these mover motors are designed to produce.

Consider the potential load increases if the surface you are trying to turn on is not smooth concrete, any obstruction will radically increase the required force.

It is of course your own choice, but as others have pointed it seems fool hardy to fly in the face of advice from the people who have done the testing and know the difficulties.

 

[SimonB]

I think that the difference between the movers is the control box and the way it tells the motors to turn the van, I also think that it is possible to get the twin control box and fit it to your motors but it may cost as much as a new mover. I had an all wheel drive twin model fitted for

 

[glake]

hi all, thanks for all the advice it is obvious that the answer is NO to fitting a single mover on the twin.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I think that the difference between the movers is the control box and the way it tells the motors to turn the van, I also think that it is possible to get the twin control box and fit it to your motors but it may cost as much as a new mover. I had an all wheel drive twin model fitted for

 

[Chrisbee]

hi all, thanks for all the advice it is obvious that the answer is NO to fitting a single mover on the twin.

Hi Gareth

If you know of anyone with a single axle mover for sale I'm in the market for one!

 

[Frank_374384014]

Hi all new to the forum would just like to say, as no one else has mentioned it, if your Van is insured, I think you'll find that you are making the insurance invalid, just an observation.

Frank

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Frank,

Can you be more specific please,

Do you mean fitting any mover invalidates insurance? Or is it fitting an non recommended mover?