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Old 06-15-2022, 07:50 AM   #21
wrvond
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Trading one problem for another is certainly not the most efficient way to go. In theory, at least, one could fill the entire width of the opening with side by side rollers and distribute the weight of the slide just as effectively as a wear bar while enjoying reduced friction. That is probably a rather expensive route to take with dubious benefit.
As an amateur astronomer I have built a few Dobsonian telescopes. In order to achieve smooth movement with just the right amount of friction, we use sheets of counter top laminate - a very thin, very durable material that is also very cost efficient. It would be pretty easy to install a sheet on the underside of the slide, install four or five rollers and be certain you've got a permanent solution.
Alternatively, if you succeed at removing the wear bar, you could create your own replacement wear bar using High Density Polyethylene (another low friction material).
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Old 06-16-2022, 04:37 AM   #22
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Just curious -- if you're going to install rollers, do you know what you're be screwing in to? That is, what material will hold the screws? Is it the plywood floor? If not, then what?

Thanks!
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Old 06-16-2022, 06:57 AM   #23
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Hyperextending the slide is not for the faint of heart or those without a lot of friends. I've not done it but watched them do mine, I spent most of my time figuring the slide was either going to fall and hit the ground or fall and crush someone. The other option to replace the wear bar is pulling the slide, again a work intensive proposition.

IMO you've encountered one of those situations that may be better letting the pros do it other than in the driveway. Replacing the wear bar won't be bad (if the floor isn't damaged) but getting to it and getting the slide back in and set up right requires finesse and expertise.

As far as installing rollers and just forgetting about repairing the wear bar I think that may be a problem. The rollers don't raise the slide much as they come in the same height as the wear bar (1/2" or 3/4" see link) so contact with the warped wear bar is possible if not probable. Rollers will abrade the darco over time as well. I thought about using them but I was concerned about longevity with the full weight of a kitchen slide on them. Those screws just screw into wood and I have no doubt they will work loose over time with that much weight and movement on them.

https://www.dyersonline.com/bal-rv-1...-assembly.html

So IMO it's time to just bite the bullet and do it right. Have the slide pulled, replace wear bar (I believe it is made of uhmw), have the bottom of the slide covered with a sheet of uhmw (I had mine done and it's great) and have it reinstalled. One could put some rollers on there for "feel good" but as I mentioned I'm afraid 4-5 years down the road they're going to be wobbly. At least with them rolling on uhmw they won't be tearing it up. Just something to think about.
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Old 06-16-2022, 07:38 AM   #24
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Originally Posted by bobnelms View Post
Just curious -- if you're going to install rollers, do you know what you're be screwing in to? That is, what material will hold the screws? Is it the plywood floor? If not, then what?

Thanks!
The mounting screws should enter the frame of the slide opening.
At this point I'm still exploring options.
My Couguar is supposed to have an aluminum superstructure but what exactly does that mean? I suspect the opening for the slide is still framed using wood. At best it would be wood encased in aluminum, but I rather doubt that's the case.
I certainly wouldn't install rollers without addressing the Darco on the bottom of the slide. I don't believe Darco, or any other fabric, is a good material to use where it is pinched between two surfaces under pressure.
I agree with Danny insofar as the possibility the rollers won't stand up to long term use. Considering they are intended to roll but have no bearings doesn't speak well for them. However, I think that using several rollers is (probably) better than a wear bar. The word "wear" is indicative of the whole premise behind that bar and my goal is to minimize wear. Only time will tell if he's right about their durability. He also mentions that there is a possibility that even with rollers your slide may still contact the damaged wear bar - something else for you to consider.
Until I come across something better than the rollers in combination with a low friction surface such as UHMW on the bottom of the slide, this seems like the best way to go in terms of preventive maintenance.

Here is a (not very good) picture of the underside of my wardrobe slide. It has a couple rollers and what looks to be Kydex in the bottom of the slide. There is absolutely no indication of wear on either surface - not so much as a rub mark or visible track in line with the roller(s).
The real question in my mind is Do wardrobe slides get this treatment because they are smaller - and therefor lighter - than say living room slides? Or do they get this treatment because they are smaller and so it doesn't cost nearly as much as a large sheet of Kydex or UHMW would cost under a living room slide.
It often seems that all the choices the manufacturers make are cost (profit) driven, but I don't think that's always the case. The trick is determining what is done with cost in mind and what is done because it will work better.
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Old 06-16-2022, 11:15 AM   #25
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Very helpful reply. Thank you.

1. Too bad those rollers are out of stock!
2. There are screw holes on the HORIZONTAL flange of the roller bracket as well as the vertical flange. But I guess you'd have to remove the slideout to be able to use the horizontal flange.

Again, thanks
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Old 06-16-2022, 11:52 AM   #26
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Very helpful reply. Thank you.

1. Too bad those rollers are out of stock!
2. There are screw holes on the HORIZONTAL flange of the roller bracket as well as the vertical flange. But I guess you'd have to remove the slideout to be able to use the horizontal flange.

Again, thanks

You can check around for those rollers if you want to pursue them. I just pulled up that website because they were showing both sizes. I believe even BAL/Norco sells them as I recall. When I was looking into solutions their engineer told me to just give her the height of the wear bar and she could procure them....but that was several years ago.

My bedroom slide is like the one in the picture wrvond posted. It only supports about a half a bed. I worry about the longevity and strength of the rollers under a heavy, long kitchen slide; particularly since they will attach to the vertical face and use 5 screws for support. When I started all this stuff on mine I talked to a company that made uhmw (I might still have that info somewhere) but the guy told me that the uhmw was made to rub across each other as they do on the wear bear. The material wouldn't wear and was self lubricating. I believe the wear bar is the same material. The downside is that the wear bar can come loose or break over time - then the slide has to come out. After the fact (after production) there isn't an iron clad solution that will never fail as far as I've been able to tell. You would really need to reconstruct the trailer to build something like that in; rollers screwed into the floor vs the face would be a good start but the roller construction itself doesn't look robust enough to last for longer periods.

At this point the bottoms of my slides are completely covered with solid uhmw riding over the wear bars. It's only been 2 years so time will tell, and the wear bars may break, but so far they work great. Put uhmw strips on the last trailer and they lasted 5 years until I traded it with zero problems.
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Old 06-16-2022, 12:03 PM   #27
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<snip>. Put uhmw strips on the last trailer and they lasted 5 years until I traded it with zero problems.
This is another thing that I don't think has been directly addressed. If the OP were to install slide skis, wouldn't they cover the depth of the slide from front to back and provide an essentially frictionless surface in constant contact with the existing wear bar?
It seems to me the problem with the existing wear bar really comes down to friction. If that is sufficiently reduced, the tendency of the bar to flip back and forth could possibly be eliminated.
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Old 06-16-2022, 02:15 PM   #28
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This is another thing that I don't think has been directly addressed. If the OP were to install slide skis, wouldn't they cover the depth of the slide from front to back and provide an essentially frictionless surface in constant contact with the existing wear bar?
It seems to me the problem with the existing wear bar really comes down to friction. If that is sufficiently reduced, the tendency of the bar to flip back and forth could possibly be eliminated.
Why Keystone uses darco I have no idea other than cost savings. When I talked to the Bal/Norco engineer she said they did not encourage the use of darco with the cable driven accuslides but here we are.

Yes, the uhmw strips would present much less friction than the darco, especially as the darco gets worn and starts to fray. The problem now is taht the wear bar is apparently coming loose which could present a problem even with the strips. A thought might be to position strips to ride over the solidly attached portions of the wear bar (I used 3 x 12" wide strips) and not over the loose portion. I use 1/8" uhmw but I've read of others using 1/4" which would possibly give some clearance between the darco and the top of the loose wear bar.
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Old 06-17-2022, 04:37 AM   #29
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wrvond, the slide skis that you are referring to are only installed on either end of the slide, right? At least, that's the only "ski" that I've seen. This is a very wide slide with a wear bar that corrupt along much of the width. Due to its length, it probably sags a bit in middle (even if it's 1/16 inch). So I doubt these skis would help too much, unless I misunderstood -- but thanks!
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Old 06-17-2022, 04:41 AM   #30
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sourdough, how did you attach the uhmw plastic to the underside of your slideout?
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Old 06-17-2022, 04:44 AM   #31
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wrvond, the slide skis that you are referring to are only installed on either end of the slide, right? At least, that's the only "ski" that I've seen. This is a very wide slide with a wear bar that corrupt along much of the width. Due to its length, it probably sags a bit in middle (even if it's 1/16 inch). So I doubt these skis would help too much, unless I misunderstood -- but thanks!
Newmar motorhomes use several slide skis on theirs. IIRC one that I worked on was a 12 foot slide and used 7 skis. I bet you could use any number that you want.
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Old 06-17-2022, 05:00 AM   #32
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Chuckster, when I google "slide out skis," the only ones I can find are those that fit on either side of the slideout. Seems that they depend on the the corner molding to hold the ski in place. If I used slides in between the sides of the slideout, what hold them in place?
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Old 06-17-2022, 05:14 AM   #33
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The ones we had at my previous employer had ends that hooked on the floor. You inserted them as soon as the floor started up the ramp.

What about theses:
https://www.duoformplastics.com/prod...?cn-reloaded=1
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Old 06-17-2022, 05:15 AM   #34
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just had an idea.... what if I replace my current wear bar with a length of 1/2 inch thick L-SHAPED (cross section) UHMW plastic. I could attach it using the vertical flange, which would screw into a metal frame. See what I mean? I could also coat the current DARCO with a 1/8 inch sheet of the same material. Hmmmm
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Old 06-17-2022, 06:26 AM   #35
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sourdough, how did you attach the uhmw plastic to the underside of your slideout?

I had mine done (last trailer) by the dealer since they had to hyperextend the slide to put the middle one on. The were attached with screws on the outside edge (3) far enough out so they would not contact the wear bar. They were also attached with screws on the inside edge that didn't cross the wear bar. I did not want screws going over the wear bar so we used adhesive on the uhmw strips and they glued to the darco. Letting the adhesive cure was about a week long process at the dealership as they ran the slide in and out several time a day to set it. It worked pretty well because the darco was tightly wrapped around the floor. The only problem was the center strip on the heavy slide (kitchen) bowed up in the middle slightly and the strip wanted to let go just a tiny bit. It was never a problem and never came entirely loose over the 5 years or so, just sagged a bit.

Something I learned on this one is that the uhmw could be heated and bent. The sheets were pushed under the slide (slightly raised). Inside there is a trim strip down both sides at the bottom of the slide. Those strips were removed, the uhmw heated and bent to conform over the interior edge and the inside trim then screwed down over it. Can't see it and so much easier than trying to either remove or hyperextend the slide. It is however time consuming.
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Old 06-17-2022, 06:32 AM   #36
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Hmmmmm... I thought it'd nearly impossible to glue anything to uhmw plastic, or even Darco. But thanks. So many good thoughts.
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Old 06-17-2022, 06:39 AM   #37
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Hmmmmm... I thought it'd nearly impossible to glue anything to uhmw plastic, or even Darco. But thanks. So many good thoughts.

I don't remember what kind of adhesive it was off the top of my head. I was dubious but the service manager said he had used it before and it worked. It was some kind of construction adhesive/sealant as I recall. The ends worked fantastic but the center sagged just a tiny bit (the amount of upward bow in the slide, maybe 1/8" or so).
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Old 06-18-2022, 07:00 AM   #38
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Semi-Final Decision

Well, after much back and forth and probing the condition of my current wear bar (which is not as twisted as I originally thought), I've purchased 6 BAL Accu-slide 1/2" rollers from United RV. I'll also purchase of UHMW plastic sheets, .0625 thick, to use as "wear plates" for the rollers. I chose .0625 because I didn't want to raise the slideout beyond "spec."

I was tempted to remove the old wear bar, but it would have been difficult (but not impossible) to remove, I would have had to drill holes into the floor of the slideout (over each of the wear bars hold-down screws). Just seemed like too much work when so many others are opting for and installing rollers.

I'll let you know how it goes.
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Old 06-18-2022, 07:04 AM   #39
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post lots of pics, good luck and I hope it works good.
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Old 06-18-2022, 08:26 AM   #40
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Well, after much back and forth and probing the condition of my current wear bar (which is not as twisted as I originally thought), I've purchased 6 BAL Accu-slide 1/2" rollers from United RV. I'll also purchase of UHMW plastic sheets, .0625 thick, to use as "wear plates" for the rollers. I chose .0625 because I didn't want to raise the slideout beyond "spec."

I was tempted to remove the old wear bar, but it would have been difficult (but not impossible) to remove, I would have had to drill holes into the floor of the slideout (over each of the wear bars hold-down screws). Just seemed like too much work when so many others are opting for and installing rollers.

I'll let you know how it goes.
I'm pretty sure that's the direction I'm going to go, too. I'm still reeling from buying this camper and paying income taxes this year.
After I install the second air conditioner, I think this mod is the next item on my list.
Really looking forward to your thoughts after you get it done.
Good luck!
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