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Old 11-17-2013, 03:13 AM   #1
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New Denali

Picked up our 2014 287RE, woohoo1




We are true beginners and this is my first diesel as well as first 36' long trailer, so let the adventures begin. First adventure was getting it home. Drove around a bit, DW noted that it felt no different than our Tahoe towing a 16' enclosed utility trailer. This unit is around 8500 lbs. dry. The Ram 3500 seems to be a good match for it. Other than taking care around turns to not clip telephone poles or other puny cars it drives fine. On the way home we were on a 2 lane highway for a while. I was going 55 mph and passed several full size semi trailers and we felt nothing. That was one thing I had been concerned about, being tossed around by passing big-rigs. Hardest part was getting up the last 1000' to our house on a narrow road. I had already trimmed the trees I thought might potentially be in the way but I still could not make it into the driveway. Out came the pruner. Then came backing it into the spot. The trailer came with a backup camera with sound so that helped with DW standing right in the middle of where we wanted to go and give commands. There is no way I could hear her 60' back without it. It has an Andersen hitch.

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Old 11-17-2013, 02:32 PM   #2
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Congratulations on your purchases........have fun.

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Old 11-17-2013, 02:59 PM   #3
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I am very happy for you and your DW. Have very many wonderful adventures. Never heard of a communication system between the cab of the truck and the back of the trailer - sure beats hand signals and a lot of frustration. You will love that Andersen hitch. Did they place a spot weld where the brackets bolt to the trailer?
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Old 11-17-2013, 04:23 PM   #4
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FYI - DH and I use walkie talkies to help with the communications - notice the word "help".......LOL
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Old 11-17-2013, 05:45 PM   #5
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Envious

Congratulations! I am so envious. I did my walk through on Friday for my 287RE delivery. Signed the papers. The technician backed my 2005 Suburban 8.1 K2500 under my Andersen Hitch. Time to retract the slides and the slide system crapped out (said to be "not communicating with the remote switch system). Further inspection of the installation of the Andersen showed the brackets not spot welded (and already not plumb to the frame) as agreed with the salesman and a claim by the service department that they did not agree to welding, (Salesman thrown under the bus). Closing time ended the saga, and the DW and I went home without to wonder what we will do to prepare our new 287RE for the first trip instead of doing it. So here I sit until Monday waiting for the dealership to get it together. All should be good by noon tomorrow. LOVE the trailer. I hope this is not a sign of future problems. ENJOY your new Denali. Hopefully we are not far behind you.
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Old 11-17-2013, 07:14 PM   #6
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Renojack when I installed my Andersen hitch I thought I would delay welding it into place to first check to make sure everything worked great. My brackets moved a little bit since initial install but at least I know they are in the proper place. On my honey do list for the spring is to re-plumb those brackets and then tack them there.
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Old 11-18-2013, 01:08 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kayakcrazy View Post
Never heard of a communication system between the cab of the truck and the back of the trailer - sure beats hand signals and a lot of frustration.
Camera:




Display:




and it is one-way comm, mic in camera, speaker in display
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Old 11-18-2013, 01:17 AM   #8
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Originally Posted by kayakcrazy View Post
You will love that Andersen hitch. Did they place a spot weld where the brackets bolt to the trailer?
Not yet. I think the brackets moved already. I don't see how they couldn't as it is just the pressure of the bolt brackets against a giant trailer and truck. My Equalizer did the same thing on a much smaller trailer. Some type of positive stop in the near future for sure. It looks like a set-screw on top but I don't see that doing diddly either.




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Old 11-18-2013, 02:13 PM   #9
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Thanks for the picture of the communication unit. Christmas is only five weeks away and if I'm good, maybe Santa or DW will put it under the tree for me. I have two rear cameras on my tow vehicle but they don't do me much good with a trailer in between.

Andersen Hitch:
Mine didn't move that much. I think my bolts lined up better and I only had a little movement on the bottom one. I predrilled a small divot for the setscrew but like yours it still wasn’t enough. We’re only six months away from camping season again so have lots of time to get this done.

Thanks for the pictures. Best get outside and get that snow blower going again. Only two more winters to go and we’ll be shoveling our snow with a mop.
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Old 11-18-2013, 10:46 PM   #10
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Congrats on your new Denali.

I am not familiar with a Anderson hitch. What makes it different from say a Reese Equalizer hitch with friction sway control?
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Old 11-19-2013, 12:09 AM   #11
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MHBELL - Please check out this video for the answer to your question:

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Old 11-19-2013, 01:16 AM   #12
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Well one thing I notice is they installed the set-screw on the wrong end. The manual and video show it should be on the bottom and mine are on top.
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Old 11-19-2013, 11:53 PM   #13
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After reading the previous post I went out to see how my brackets were installed on my Andersen hitch - my set screws are on the bottom of the bracket. Conclusion set screw is a good temporary check for proper alignment and distance but bracket must be welded into place.
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Old 11-20-2013, 10:31 PM   #14
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I received a new set of brackets from Andersen. The newest ones have the setscrew on the top. Welds are the only way to go.
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Old 12-06-2013, 04:11 AM   #15
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Took it out for a shakedown run over Thanksgiving. Pulled fine even up and down the Lewiston grade in ID. Averaged 11MPG. Went to a full hookup place with concrete pad. Everything worked good. The furnace works really good and has a nice outlet in the bath which warms up quickly. The only thing I don't like is the 60 degree lower limit which is way too high. We ran just the fireplace a lot of the time for heat. It was around 30 degrees outside. The water could use more pressure but I don't know if that is just normal for a TT or if it is small pipes or facility pressure. It was fine, just not what I am used to at home. TV worked with cable connection to facility island. Fridge and freezer worked good, full bag of ice stayed hard. The setup went well even though I am a total newbie. Stabilizers take a while, but I like having them once deployed. Water heater got the water nice and hot, I ran it on electric. All the drawers work good except for one that sticks a bit. We like the front wardrobe, lots of room in there. Cooked a small turkey in oven. Knob does not seem to correspond on the temp inside oven. I had a thermo in there that read way lower. The burners worked just as good as a house ones. The big bed is awesome and having the little windows at the head of the bed is nice. The slides all go in and out ok, but that kitchen one is a little tweaked. When closed I now notice it looks cocked a bit. The fresh tank shows 2/3 full even with no water in it but I knew that when I picked it up. I will take my little list of issues back to dealer but overall we like the trailer a bunch.
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Old 12-06-2013, 11:11 AM   #16
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Hi elousv....glad all went well.
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Old 12-06-2013, 03:45 PM   #17
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We (DW and I) are glad to hear all went well. Very detailed report. Was your thermometer in the turkey or outside on a shelf? and how off was the dial? Did you have fun wrestling the 50 amp shore power cord? I am used to a 30 amp that curls right into a compartment. And then the 36' cord takes so much storage area. Did you like the way the Andersen hitch performed? Mine did very good for sway in high winds to and from the dealer.

I remain envious as ours went back in for the seals on the kitchen last Monday and the electronic door lock. The seals have not come in from the factory yet and with the snow the dealer offered me inside the shop storage to avoid water damage. The catch is that if the Denali is not done by today, and it is not looking promising, the trailer is there until the dealer gets back from Christmas break on Jan 2. Sorry about the seal photos I promised you. We are still looking for the first trip locally. Lots of ice and snow here though. Maybe a longer one to the south in January.

Great report.
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Old 12-07-2013, 12:46 AM   #18
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Andersen worked fine and I just left it angled like it is in the photos I posted. It did not seem to move anymore. No noise to speak of.
Oh I forgot my lock does not work right either. I don't know if they had been sitting for a long time and need new batteries or what. I changed the factory code to a basic 1-1-1-1 just to try it out and a lot of times it does not unlock it just has a bad beep. I contacted the manufacturer and he has already offered to send me a new one but I am not even sure what the problem is yet.
The oven was way off. I had a thermo in freespace to actually monitor the air. I would say 75-100 off. The spice cabinet to the left was getting warm too so I am thinking a bit of insulation might be in order.
It is pretty cold here but diddly for snow. It is 10 degrees out and 27 inside the trailer with a small ceramic heater on low on the counter and a wireless thermo near the TV area. I re-winterized after my trip and it only took 1 gallon of pink stuff to do all faucets and outdoor spigot and city water connection plus a little on my face haha.
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Old 12-07-2013, 12:59 AM   #19
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Thanks for the reply. My dealer said that there was a run of locks that are being replaced for the exact symptom you describe. Have the dealer replace it under warranty.
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