Black Series HQ Tips, Tricks, and Learning.....
- Thread starter kevin_j
- Start date
BuckinghamBuilt
Active member
I have not had this issue on my HQ15. Your pic does not show much so hard to determine but when its dry out and you take some water and pour it down the wall or right over the assembly does it leak?
GlassHalfFull
New member
I haven't tried that yet as the seal around the outside of the assembly looked good. No cracks, weathering, etc. I was assuming it was coming in from the wiring holes within it or seeping behind the LED bulbs. But it is a good idea and I will try that next. I've attached a few more pictures. One where I first backed out the screw at the bottom when I noticed it dripping. The second is when I took the assembly off and you can see the water-line of where it had filled. I know that isn't really helpful, but I appreciate the tips.
BuckinghamBuilt
Active member
What about the light assembly it self though. Water could be entering at the rear where the actual lights attached. I'm also curious if you're parking the camper on a slope (nose forward). I'm not at my camper today or I'd take a look at mind but if you want some quality feedback and ideas to fix you should post on the "Black Series Caravan Owner’s North America" Facebook Group.
2manyprojects
Member
I haven't had any noticeable leakage on mine, but l just looked at the assembly and would second checking the interface between the three light bezels and the metal housing. Maybe, water is entering the assembly through one or more of those, and wicking into the housing?
GlassHalfFull
New member
Yeah, I considered that and did put more caulking inside where the three light bezel wires enter the assembly. I will try a few pour over tests the next time I'm at the trailer to see if there is an area I missed. I appreciate the note.
TravelingMike
New member
Same question but on a C-12. The grey one has 12vdc on it when I close the breaker labeled tank heat. (maybe power for optional tank heater)? The other one has no power on it not sure where it goes on the other end. Any one know what it is for? Next question; the trailer cable from the tow vehicle terminates in a box on the A-frame. The aux power from the tow vehicle is terminated to a terminal with nothing else l. There is two spare taped off wires that leave the box and head to the trailer. I would like to use them to charge the trailer battery from the tow vehicle. Does anyone know where the other end of the cable leaving the A-frame is located?
2manyprojects
Member
FWIW, the two Anderson SB-50 connectors at the tongue on "most" HQ Black Series, go gray connecting to the battery bank, and the black used to periodically charge the small battery for the emergency brake system. This is the extra pull cord you attach to the hitch when hooking your trailer to the tow vehicle. If the trailer should come detached during towing, the cord pulls the pin at the A-frame, activating a switch which energizes the electric brakes, hopefully stopping the loose trailer quickly. There is a separate small 12v battery in an enclosure that needs to be charged periodically to keep this system operational. The black connector at the tongue on my HQ19 connects to the gray (trailer battery) occasionally, and provides 12vdc power to charge.
This is located under the front bed in my HQ19; I can't speak to your C12, but would think BS does them consistently. Tracing the wiring and confirming what goes where should still be done.
On my HQ19 the gray Anderson goes directly to the battery bank, with nothing in-between. It can be used for a variety of things, both powering things at the tongue, and providing power to the battery bank. Not sure why yours runs through the "tank heater" circuit. I would caution on using this to connect solar panels or your tow vehicle without some controller to regulate power to the battery bank. I use a portable MPPT charge controller with portable solar panels, as well as an isolated DC-DC charger when towing. You should research this for your specific setup, but the short version is the vehicle power coming through the 7-pin connector is very power-limited. Using the separate gray connector to the battery with separate heavy gauge wiring from the tow vehicle electrical system allows me to put an isolated, controlled voltage to the trailer battery bank up to 25 amps while driving.
Also, most BS owners have migrated to the Facebook page, so that's a better spot to get your questions answered.
Good luck!
2manyprojects
Member
I haven't seen this, but suspect they are trying to address issues with the newer (late 2021, 2022, and beyond) HQ models. Your 2020 HQ19 and my Feb 2021 mfr'ed HQ19 are very different beasts than the newer and current production ones.
Politely said, BS opted for much less robust cabinent latches that don't have the locks like our earlier HQ's. I've seen numerous reports of them coming open or breaking while travelling on even paved roads. They also changed to a more conventional US-style "RV" door, and added a bunch of electronics into spaces our units have for storage.
We ordered our HQ19 in fall 2020, and went through a big adventure to take delivery of the same trailer we ordered by June 2021. BS started making these changes on-the-fly in production, likely due to supply chain issues, and 2021 "models" have a lot of variations. I haven't kept up with more recent ones, but they are very different than our trailers.
Politely said, BS opted for much less robust cabinent latches that don't have the locks like our earlier HQ's. I've seen numerous reports of them coming open or breaking while travelling on even paved roads. They also changed to a more conventional US-style "RV" door, and added a bunch of electronics into spaces our units have for storage.
We ordered our HQ19 in fall 2020, and went through a big adventure to take delivery of the same trailer we ordered by June 2021. BS started making these changes on-the-fly in production, likely due to supply chain issues, and 2021 "models" have a lot of variations. I haven't kept up with more recent ones, but they are very different than our trailers.
Hightechcoonass
Observer
I am looking into a MARS 13 made also by BlackSeries - any info or owners out there?
Background - I have a Tundra with a 4wheel Hawk and a Micro Minnie 21" travel trailer and my wife and I are looking to compromise on a MARS offroad camper as a replacement for both.
I emailed the factory and the guys don't have any US market up to date info (ex: US campers have the door of the passengers side for left hand drive cars).
I saw a few red flags in my mind
- One was listed on the internet for sale, but they said it was sold...we took a ride anyway to check it out.
-I found it funny that the sold sign was very weathered, so I asked how long has this been sold?- I knew something wasn't right. My local dealer here in AZ said they are having trouble getting the factory to provide the MSO on the unit so the sale is on hold.
- Also at a price of $27K the amount of steel on this thing, there is no way it is built in the USA or Australia. Its a China built unit - so quality of the build and value down the road may be an issue? Dont know so I will read the entire thread here.
Thanks!!
Background - I have a Tundra with a 4wheel Hawk and a Micro Minnie 21" travel trailer and my wife and I are looking to compromise on a MARS offroad camper as a replacement for both.
I emailed the factory and the guys don't have any US market up to date info (ex: US campers have the door of the passengers side for left hand drive cars).
I saw a few red flags in my mind
- One was listed on the internet for sale, but they said it was sold...we took a ride anyway to check it out.
-I found it funny that the sold sign was very weathered, so I asked how long has this been sold?- I knew something wasn't right. My local dealer here in AZ said they are having trouble getting the factory to provide the MSO on the unit so the sale is on hold.
- Also at a price of $27K the amount of steel on this thing, there is no way it is built in the USA or Australia. Its a China built unit - so quality of the build and value down the road may be an issue? Dont know so I will read the entire thread here.
Thanks!!
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draykas2004
New member
Well finally bought our Black Series HQ19 2022 model year. pulled home with 2023 GMC Canyon Denali, stayed overnight and was surprised how warm it stayed in trailer. Temps got down to 40 F. I already made one modification to pull home. I swaped the Poly block hitch for a Australian 50mm ball hitch to run an Anderson weight distribution and sway control setup. The trailer pulled great and averaged 9.2 MPG cutting thru the hills of the Ozarks
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Raspy
Active member
Nice. Consider adding a McHitch to really make using it easy. And you can still use a WDH if you'd like.
mvbeggs
Adventurer
draykas2004- congrats on the new purchase. You're going to love the HQ-19. They are very nice, and capable, trailers.
However, I disagree with Raspy on the McHitch idea, here's why.
I also removed the poly block from my HQ-19 shortly after purchase and replaced it with the McHitch. I won't deny hook up to the McHitch is, in my opinion, one of the easiest hitches to get hooked up. The problem I ran into was the unhitching process. I found that if you were sitting on flat and level ground, unhitching was about as easy as the hitch up process. However, if the truck and trailer were on unlevel ground, I found the hitch bound up and would not release. I fought this on multiple occasions- sometimes taking more than 20 minutes to get unhitched. :-( One of the contributing factors was that I found it extremely difficult to determine when the load was released from the McHitch's stinger during the unhitching process.
Even before I purchased my Xplore X195, I was planning to ditch my HQ-19's McHitch for something better. At the top of my list was the Cruisemaster DO-45. (to my surprise the DO-45 was standard issue on my X-195) In the last few weeks I've also seen a new hitch, at least to me, called the Hitch-Ezy, that looks promising. Here's a pretty good video that talks about the same problems I had with the McHitch and an overview of the Hitch-Ezy. Best Trailer Hitch - Hitch-Ezy - McHitch or DO35 | Why I sold my McHitch [2023] Might be worth considering.
Although I don't have a ton of experience with the DO-45, to date, I have had no issues hitching or unhitching. So far, even though the DO-45 takes slightly longer to get hitched up- overall my hitching and unhitching process is considerably shorter.
Good luck, and travel safe, with your new trailer. Let the adventures begin!!
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