Hi. Ive recently fitted an old Reich mover to my even older bailey pageant. I followed the instructions to the letter and left a 20mm gap between the roller and the tyre. I have however just noticed that when the weight of the caravan is taken off the suspension the tyres are very close, if not touching, the rollers! What makes this worse is that there is a guard that sticks out over the roller and looks like a knife blade. Im worrying now that if the caravan starts to bounce whilst im towing could this allow the tyres to come into contact with the rollers and get shredded? I have a 3hr drive tomorrow afternoon and I'm starting to panic!
From your post it sounds like you jacked/lifted the weight of the caravan off the wheels whilst you fitted the mover
Is this correct?
If so you need to have the van sitting on its wheels as normal and then position the mover to get the 20mm gap you mention from the instructions
Also the movers should be positioned such that only their rollers should come into contact with the tread of the tyres - it sounds like they need to be mounted further out (away from the centreline of the caravan) if something else could touch the tread instead
Hope this helps
If not possibly try and post a few pictures to help us understand your problems
When I read your post carefully - you said that "When the weight of the van is taken off the tyres" - it is very close. Whilst you are driving the weight will be fully on the tyres so you should be ok. (The bounce should not make much difference to where the tyres are) There will still be a lot of weight on the wheels.
Did you mean it the other way round ? That it is too close when the weight is put back on the tyres - then follow the instructions of the last post by scooronimudge.
If you are still worried - then back them off - if the mover still works then you have no problem.
Hi Guys. Thanks for the response. When I fitted the mover the van was sat on its wheels in the driveway, so the suspension was fully loaded (apart from what bit the corner steadies were taking). It was only yesterday when I tilted the van over to drain some pipework that I noticed this issue. I`m even thinking now that if I ever had to take the full weight of the van off the suspension, to change a wheel for example, I might not get the wheel off as it could be catching against the drive roller!
I have added this photo. Its not my set-up, just a google download, but it clearly shows the roller guard that looks like a knife blade ready to shred my tyre!
it all looks wrong.. the relationship between mover and tyre is wrong.. as your wheel comes down the gap will narrow because the mover is too low relative to the tyre..
mine is up nearer the centre line of the tyre which is where i think they are supposed to be..
when your van is loaded the suspension arm should be parallel with the ground.. it then move up and down as the load varies.. as it moves up and down if the roller is at the centre line of the tyre when loaded (the normal condition) the gap between roller and tyre should get larger..
the way yours is with the mover way too low to start with the gap gets narrower as the load come off and the suspension arm comes down..
something is wrong.. the mover roller is way too low relative to the centre line of the tyre..
trog
ps.. it dosnt look like your mover is matched to your chassis.. the roller should be much higher..
Unfortunately this is the design of the mover. Its meant to hang down below the chassis. As much as I would like a new, compact, motor mover that is attached up next to the wheelarch, I am ruled by cost. This was £150 whereas a new unit would probably be nearer to £800. And I only need it to get the caravan up my driveway and around the back of the house!
I agree with Avon Eagle. When is the weight never going to be on the wheels when you are running? I have a different Reich mover - professionally fitted which the underside is only 120mm off the road under normal running conditions and has never caused us any problems. Your picture shows the main cross bar below the caravan chassis which is correct so where else can the mover fit? This determines where the mover is positioned on the axle and therefore the tyre so can't be in the wrong position.
I would say it is OK
I don't know this model of mover but If you jack the chassis up using the lifting points so the suspension is at its lowest position and the tyre at its normal pressure is clear of the roller and any fittings. then you should be fine.
It can't go anywhere else after all.
If it's not clear by a few mms I would open the gap slightly.
The fact is the centre of movement of the arm is be,ow or level with the centre of the axle so the linear movement of the wheel with articulation of the suspension is likely to be very small and away from the roller anyway.
I have a Reich mover, but it looks nothing like the one in the picture, yes the ground clearence is fairly low at about 4 inches at the lowest point, but acording to my service workshop, the distance of the rollers away from the tyres are adjustable, and are set regularly as part of your motor mover service. It is possible that one wheel needs more adjustment than the other, as was the case last time we took ours into the service yard.
Whilst l apprieciate that you may not be in a position to be able to buy a brand new mover, towing with the risk of a faulty one catching your tyres and causing a nasty accident, simply doesnt bear thinking about, at best it is falst economy considering how much such accident damage would cost you financially, at worst it could end up with you, your family or an innocent bystander suffering serious injuries or worse, it is just not worth the risk.
Julia
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give it a trial run.. if it catches the tyre it will leave marks.. if it dosnt it will be okay..
there is nothing that can be done about it other than buying another more "normal" mover..
give it a try.. it may well not catch.. its not about it not being modern its more it being a dumb stupid design or not meant to fit a modern deeper chassis.. with a chassis not so deep it would be okay..
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Topic: motor mover
And I only need it to get the caravan up my driveway and around the back of the house!
Do I leave it on and risk it? 
