Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

by **Steve_Cox** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 8:04 pm

Gaston,

Sorry about your loss. At least the snuiser left the material plane doing what she did best. Flying low through the desert. Adios Snuiser.

by **dguff** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 9:08 pm

Wow!!! Sorry about your crash, especially shocking having seen you leave the 'glyphs that morning. Any graphic description of the wreck after the axle failed? Did it come off the ball right away or did you drag it for a while? I assume that you are ok and that the PT Cruiser survived without major damage? The snuiser was obviously well built to have the body survive as it did. Good luck on your next build.

Jerome :shock:

by **Beachbuggy** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 9:27 pm

That is just heart wrenching

by **doug hodder** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 9:27 pm

John...I was glad I got a chance to camp with you and the Snuizer several times. It was a beautiful trailer, a legendary tear, and it went way too early. Doug

by **Oasis Maker** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 10:37 pm

Heartbreaking... Yes, certainly glad you weren't hurt, but still.... that's a heartbreaking pic man. Sorry for your loss. The teardrop community mourns with you.

Scott G.

by **S. Heisley** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 10:55 pm

That is terrible and down-right scary! I hope you and your tow vehicle are okay. I hope you had insurance on the Snuiser.

Sorry for your trouble, Gaston.

by **Wig** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 11:01 pm

Sorry to hear for your loss.I hope your your not to heart broken to build another teardrop.thats got me thinking after I get mine built I'm gonna get some good insurance.

by **Dean in Eureka, CA** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 11:07 pm

I hope you are OK John... Please let us know how you're doing.

by **Bigwoods** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 11:31 pm

That's just terrible. I'm so sorry for you. I always admired your tear when it popped up on the Hall Of Fame. I'm sure the next one will be terrific too.

by **Miriam C.** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 7:21 am

Oh man! I hope you can salvage it. Too beautiful to let go! Hope everyone is alright!

by **Alfred** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 7:32 am

Wow! Sorry to hear about your loss. Man, if I ever get mine built, I can't imagine losing it after all it takes to build one. Looks like your cabin is largely intact - Any chance of remounting it on another trailer? Is it salvageable at all? Very sorry to hear of it - Hang in there!

AL in Asheville

by **Shadow Catcher** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 7:44 am

That is just a nasty!

OK now the NDT (nondestructive testing) part of my experience takes over. Looking back at the build photos it looks like a Dexter Torflex EZ lube axle? The failure seems to be associated with where the channel for grease comes out at the base of the spindle? Looking at the picture of the axle (not real clear) there appears to be the typical pattern of a stress fracture. If this is the case you may have an actionable case.

I was thinking of putting one on the next MM, now I am re thinking!

I worked in a NDT lab in Long Beach many years ago and we used to get front spindles from VW Bugs in for testing. For those of you who might remember they had the speedo cable running through a hole in the left axle. this one guy was building a Baja Bug to race in the Baja 1000. I did the magnetic particle testing and he went through seven or eight spindles before he found one that was not cracked, he then drilled and tapped it and put a bolt through it.

by **halfdome, Danny** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:20 am

John, Very sad to see your beautiful Snoozer damaged like that. How are you and Linda doing.

Danny

by **wlooper89** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:23 am

Really sorry about the trailer accident. That is just terrible!

Shadow Catcher wrote:Looking back at the build photos it looks like a Dexter Torflex EZ lube axle? The failure seems to be associated with where the channel for grease comes out at the base of the spindle? Looking at the picture of the axle (not real clear) there appears to be the typical pattern of a stress fracture.

Am wondering if the EZ lube feature weakens the spindle somewhat because of the channel. This is very unfamiliar territory for me. Little Guy put an AL-KO 2200 lb torsion axle on my trailer. The wheels and hubs have to be removed to repack the bearings and replace the seals, recommended on a 6K interval. This is doing it the old fashioned way and it surely would be nice if that job could be made easier. I am not sure how this compares with recommended maintenance on an axle with EZ lube.

Bill

by **BILLYL** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:25 am

Holy - at that was the trailer I always showed people. A beautiful trailer created by a master builder.

Happy to hear that everyone is OK. We need details.

Any plans to restore????????

GOOD LUCK

Bill

Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

PT snuiser 2004-2009 RIP

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