roll cage

[Clyde9]

From: toddabney  (Original Message)
Sent: 11/17/2007 2:13 AM

hi there has anyone seen or built a roll cage for there class a Winnebago? i have a 1973 brave.i added some "shoulder strap seat belts" to the steel frame that goes up ,across and down the wall.(angle iron) as lap belts have lots to be desired..i thought it would be good to build a unit that could be bolted together inside the front of the rig.the seats would be bolted to the bottom of the "cage".so in a wreck you and your passenger would just break away and"live happily ever after". i am serious though.i used to work for the dept of transportation here in wash. i remember cleaning up after a motor home rolled it.there wasn't much left of it but the frame and running gear. it probably could have been driven away short of a seat.. i figure a roll cage would really help.any ideas?thanks ,todd



From: Im-still-Lefty
Sent: 11/17/2007 9:47 PM

No, never seen that. But I think it would be a good safety feature if properly built.
One problem would be the strength needed for the weight and forces it would have to hold. To do that, it would need to be some seriously beefy tubing, a lot of extra bracing, and several hoops. Cosmetically, it would probably be an eyesore, unless you did the interior in a performance motif.
I would guess that you would have to build it from .120" wall tubing in at least 2" diameter, with full gussets around every joint. Also, the frame attachments would need to be from at least 1/2" hardened steel plate about 12"X12"
To get triangular strength, it would need X-bracing running from corner to corner across  the rig at each hoop. You also would need the hoops to be spaced no more than 6' apart, with tubing joining each hoop together at the roof along each sidewall.
 
It probably would make your rig a good kids jungle gym inside. lol



From: toddabney
Sent: 11/17/2007 10:04 PM

hey lefty, "performance motif" that sounds good!!!i thought it would have to be beefy alright.and the only way to test it would be wreck it.i was just looking for a little assurance while on the road. you talked of "hoops" i can't picture that? care to explain? thanks,todd



From: Im-still-Lefty
Sent: 11/18/2007 12:06 AM

A "hoop" is the part that starts at the floor at the wall, goes up to the top, then across to the other side, then back down to the floor. All in one continuous piece.
The other parts, such as corner gussets, and top tubes all join to the hoops. The hoops are the part that physically bolt to the frame via mounting plates.



From: toddabney
Sent: 11/26/2007 1:29 AM

lefty,sorry for not getting back sooner.thanks for the explanation.i could only think of round hoops in there some where.  i just wonder if "something is better than nothing". or "ka sa ra sa ra". i did bolt shoulder belts to the steel frame that goes along the walls and celing of my 1973 brave.its better than lap belts alone. i can't help but think there would be something to help protect the driver and passenger.6 junkyard airbags placed in the right spots? there has to be something.thanks,todd



From: Im-still-Lefty
Sent: 11/26/2007 9:23 PM

While I've never rolled one, We came close to laying ours on it's side when the brakes failed going down a mountain. (I wasn't driving though.)
As for a collision, if it's a passenger car I think ours would win. Given the size and height of the frame, it should pretty much stop whatever it hits (or run slap over the top of it.).
As for a big truck head on, I have seen a picture of that. And it wasn't pretty either. The driver was killed, and there wasn't too much left of the rig either. Picture an 18 wheeler plowing into a 8' X 20' wood storage building @ 50mph and you get a rough idea.
The basic problem is that the entire rig is basically a 1/8th" plywood building, insulated with styrofoam, and with very thin aluminum siding. Even the framing (if you could call it that), is nothing more than a bunch of 2" X2" strips stapled together. Structurally, there's not a whole lot of strength built into it. Especially impact strength.
The frames on these rigs are massive, about 8-10" in height, and around 1/4" thick. Hardened steel too. That, and the ride height equal a very sturdy combination for ramming another vehicle from the front, or if something rear-ends you. Either way, it probably would do far more damage to whatever it hits, than the rig would recieve. Unless you hit something just as big, that is.
As for a full roll over, I imagine that the box would probably hold together if it just layed over on it's side, but would likely break free from the chassis if it continued over. There's not a whole lot holding them down to the frame, and after 30 years of dry rot, what's left is even worse. It probably would fall all to pieces.
A separate cage for just the front drivers and passenger compartment that consisted of a securely mounted hoop behind the front seats, and another one along the top of the windshield, would have the advantage of being part of the front floor structure that is a part of the chassis, not the coach. The floor area where the seats bolt to is made of steel, and is a part of the truck chassis. Be sure to make some plates to bolt the hoops to and attach them to the steel floor or all the way down to the frame.
I would also tie the front and rear hoop together on each side with a tube running lengthwise from front to rear at the top. You might add another to each side along the wall at a 45 deg. angle attached to the rear hoop. This would give a fairly strong structure capable of holding up at least the weight of the front end of the coach.
Better than nothing, that's for sure.
 
Here's to hoping that you never need to test it out though....



From: toddabney
Sent: 11/27/2007 2:46 AM


i say amen to that!   but as they say "its better to have it and not need it ,than to need it and not have it!".      i like your plan lefty,sounds stout enough. i think it's good to plan ahead on safety issues. although we can only change fate/Gods grace so far with our attempts...I'm just surprised that someone,somewhere hasn't rigged up something like this.a "bombproof Winnebago" (of sorts). so if you are out there, show us your work. "its the right thing to do".......thanks ,todd