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ID:152501 - Brake magnets - a decade long saga

Member - Warrie (NSW) — Fri, 15 May 2026 23:35:00 GMT

As I complete another underbody grovel beneath our van, it may be of interest to consider this brake magnet saga. Bought the 1.4 tonne Goldstream Explorer ST in Feb 2016 towed by an R50 Pathfinder with Hayman Reese brake controller. 5 years old so call it 10k km travel. Put 11,000 km on it at 20% dirt before a visit to Blakeys Brakes in Mareeba returning from the Cape in Sept. $680 worth of new shoes, magnets and labour. Call this set 2. Brakes now working well. 2 years later in Kalgoorlie and 20,000km more with 5,000km dirt so 25% of travel. 4WD is now a 120 Prado with a Redarc controller. Martins trailer parts in Perth shipped in 2 brake plates complete with set 3 magnets, shoes, springs etc. $450 plus $100 labour plus my own. Off we go again east across the Nullarbor to home.
Sept 2019 and a broken wire after 14,000 km on LHS magnet is the culprit. The wire had failed where it entered the body of the magnet (see pic) so was irreparable. Limp into Brisbane and $75 for new magnet and full brakes restored. March 2021 after 27,000km and 10% dirt its a brake shoe set + labour at $400. More new magnets for set 4. Got new bearings too after 54,000km. May 2022 in Katherine, new magnets -set 5-after the last lot did 25 k km each at 20% dirt. Next is 2024 and 20,000 km later (5% dirt) after Jayco in Albury stayed open after 4pm on NYE 2024 to sell us a pair for $180. On 1-1-25 it's a 2 hour job to swap them out and continue the holiday. Set 6
And so it is May 2026 and another 24,000 km (10% dirt) of towing has been done. 6th set is kaput. LHS has a severed wire and flogged out plastic centre. RHS OK in that respect, but is open circuit so no magnetism. So off to Carasel Trailers, $180 spent and the 6th set of magnets fitted. The pix below show the sad story. I was thinking this is excessive wear with the average magnet life about 20,000km. But maybe this is actually a good distance for what and how I drive? The ratio of dirt to tar surfaces has also been considered. So, kind readers, I await your responses.

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Replies: 7 FollowUps: 8 Views: 728

ID:152498 - Water piping disintegrating!

Sundowner2 — Sat, 16 May 2026 09:56:00 GMT

G'day all....some weeks ago I discovered a leak from the hot water pipe in our Jayco Outback poptop....it was under the 'van at the rear nearside corner....it was a tiny hole in the pipe and a squirt was coming out...as it is located behind the wheel I assumed it may have been hit by a stone...we had just returned from a trip out west....today, I noticed another leak!...almost it exactly the same spot....a close inspection showed another squirt....thinking this was quite odd I cut a section from the hose and gave it a close inspection. I was horrified to see that the hose had a multitude of fine cracks!....while there appeared to be only one leak I found that if i bent the hose it simply cracked in two in my hand!
Please refer to the attached photo.
The pop-top is not new, 13 yrs old actually, and we have towed it all over Australia for 58'000 km....however the hose in question has not been exposed to the sun and its security, its connection to the underside, is good.
The hose is typical as used in many caravans these days, I assume produced by John Guest. The blue cold hose, in the same location appears unaffected.
My obvious concern regards other locations of the hose, in many places the hose travels internally in some cupboards and in behind the shower cubical...the two leaks I mention above were relatively easy to get to and repair, I may not be so lucky next time.
Despite being caravanners for many years I have never seen or even heard of this issue before...I would appreciate any comments

Paul....Lockyer Valley Queensland.
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Replies: 11 FollowUps: 11 Views: 767

ID:152497 - New look website

Member - Jim S1 — Thu, 14 May 2026 05:36:00 GMT

Website is looking very flash .

Cheers
Jim
Replies: 1 FollowUps: 3 Views: 455

ID:152488 - Birdsville Track, 1965.. Scotts

Member - Duncan2H — Sun, 10 May 2026 12:07:00 GMT

This was a thoroughly enjoyable watch, a family travelling up the Birdsville Track in 1965

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38-fXpT_6Ec

The channel itself has lots of other gems: https://www.youtube.com/@scottminifilms9609
Replies: 1 FollowUps: 0 Views: 515

ID:152479 - Design Tips For The Tray Of A Slide On Camper

Matt S20 — Sun, 10 May 2026 09:18:00 GMT

Hi Everyone,

I’m in Canada, converting an FG72EC fire truck into an overland rig. I'm getting the tray fabricated in China too, to receive an Ecocampor like slide on camper!

I’m hoping to learn from your experience!

Did you match your tray/deck width exactly to your camper’s width, or did you oversize it? Length, Width? If so, how much extra space did you leave to allow lifting lugs, corner straps, or chain anchor points? How far did you place those anchor points from the corner connections to ensure a good tie-down angle?

How did you reinforce the tray corners to handle torsional stresses from corner anchors? I’ve seen double 3mm checker plate—did you use that, or something thicker like 6mm or 12mm plate? Any tips on corner gussets or backing plates?

What kind of eyelets or tie-down brackets did you use? And what spacing did you use for the tray cross members to keep everything stable?

Did you do anything to protect the camper’s GRP undersurface from rubbing against the tray—like rubber strips or another method?

For guiding the camper into position, did you use angled steel at the front? I’m considering a 3-inch right-angle guide at the front to help position the camper. Did anyone use a similar guide at the back or middle to prevent side-to-side movement?

Any advice, examples, or specs to ensure smooth fabrication would be hugely appreciated! Thanks!

Regards,
Replies: 4 FollowUps: 0 Views: 701

ID:152467 - Cuppa's Blog - House sitting in Broome

Cuppa — Tue, 05 May 2026 04:32:00 GMT

We have been house-sitting in Broome for almost 4 months now & will soon be leaving to travel the Gibb River Road once again on our way eastward. Our latest blog post describes our experience living in a town that we love. (& getting a couple of things sorted on the OKA).

House sitting in Broome
Replies: 0 FollowUps: 0 Views: 630

ID:152466 - Another starlink question

Member - William B — Wed, 13 May 2026 08:39:00 GMT

Hello,
I've tried searching and have even tried contacting starlink.

But because I don't have a account set up I don't seem to be able to contact them.

My question is if I buy starlink mini and use it for a trip of a month or so when I return home am I able to convert the roam plan to a residential plan?

William
Replies: 7 FollowUps: 25 Views: 1446

ID:152465 - Trip/Gathering VIC - coffee club

MUZBRY- Life member(Vic) — Mon, 04 May 2026 04:50:00 GMT

Dates: 21/05/2026 to 21/05/2026
Name: VIC - coffee club
Description:
View or register for this Trip/Gathering
Replies: 0 FollowUps: 0 Views: 369

ID:152464 - Kunawarritji fuel

Member - David S65 — Wed, 06 May 2026 02:46:00 GMT

Hi ,
I have been trying to call Kunawarritji store to see if diesel fuel is available from there at the moment < but it says phone is disconnected .
Does anyone have an answer to my query?
Replies: 4 FollowUps: 5 Views: 901

ID:152459 - Silverton to Merty Merty

Peter A34 — Tue, 05 May 2026 10:09:00 GMT

Hi all, am hoping to run through from Silverton, via the corner store and through to the Strezlecki track via Merty Merty. Spoke to the corner store and they couldn't help me much regarding off road travel. Can anyone help me with current road conditions along this route as I can't trust the road conditions maps. In particular getting through from the store to Merty Merty. Can't beat local knowledge!
Replies: 3 FollowUps: 4 Views: 889