Need some expertise

[BeagleMan]

Been looking around my Outback 260UML and seeing some cosmetic stuff that needs tending to. Example, like the second night we were here, one of the cabinet doors above TV come loose. Fair hinges but dumb screws. No problem, got better wood screws and some small anchors and all is good. What I am seeing now is the roof of my slide is a tad bit off. Has a facade in the middle and when I sat down I look up and see that the plywood is a little off in the tab it goes in. Plus, there is something on top of the facade, maybe a manual override for the slide? Dude at dealer told me but I forget exactly what.

I am seeing some "rust" looking stuff on my suspension area between my tires. Looks like barely on surface but is there a way to treat this to keep it in good shape?

If I were to get under my underbelly and scout around, what would I need to look for? Under sink? What would I need to do there? Are there ways to "toughen" the trailer up? Make it more fortified? Mods? Things you guys would notice after the trailer is a year old?

Also, DW is having a hard time getting the oven to work. I've forgotten about it but exactly what is the correct process to seeing this come on?

Be here another month , we've decided, and want to see about getting it ready for some Fall/Winter prep. And any other items you guys might know about that I have not mentioned.

Thanks!
AC

[LHaven]

Once I figured out the "facade" was inside your slide, I looked behind mine and found the slide motor and its greasy bicycle chains. If you're seeing that, you're either hella tall or something is out of whack.

[BeagleMan]

Originally Posted by LHaven

Once I figured out the "facade" was inside your slide, I looked behind mine and found the slide motor and its greasy bicycle chains. If you're seeing that, you're either hella tall or something is out of whack.

I'm 6'5" so I keep bumping my noggin on it, but I cannot see ALL the way up in there. But, is that what it is? Slide motor?

[LHaven]

I don't have your model, but I am 6'6" and had to get a hand mirror to peek in back of the slide bezel. The motor is smack in back of the central finial, up top.

[BeagleMan]

Originally Posted by LHaven

I don't have your model, but I am 6'6" and had to get a hand mirror to peek in back of the slide bezel. The motor is smack in back of the central finial, up top.

Well, DUH me! I didnt think of a mirror. Oh, DW!!! Can I borrow your....

[BeagleMan]

Hopefully I can get this right.... How can I adjust this to be flush again?



That pic is on the backside of this on the left bottom corner.

[chuckster57]

If the outer ends are even at the corners, don’t sweat the gap in the middle.

[LHaven]

The bottom edge is a "reveal," it's not meant to be flush. Note that the middle stripe is straight all the way through.

In my rig, the corresponding piece is right between the dinette bench and the recliner, so my head never goes anywhere near it. If it's over something that you normally sit in, I could see how it would be painful.

[flybouy]

I think what you're seeing is a dovetail joint. Most likely it was either routered too deep or in order to accommodate the alignment it's necessary for it to be that deep. I wouldn't be concerned about it.

Keystone doesn't take the time to finish edges, install returns on trim or surfaces that aren't noticeable at first glance. This practice irritated me when we bought our trailer so I went to Home Depot with a piece of trim in hand and matched up some stain. I removed a piece of trim that covers the top of the sliding door in the bedroom because it was small and easy to remove. I stained the unfinished trim edges, and other areas that most people don't notice but I do.

[JRTJH]

That "center section" is designed to be removeable (to access the slide mechanism and the motor for emergency extension/retraction of the slide). It's normally held in place by two or four screws that usually are covered with hole plugs or "buttons". The "gap you see" is a feature used at the factory to assure the "center section" will properly line up on all slide facia on each unit as it moves down the assembly line, and on most units, they are slightly different in length from slide to slide...

If the "visible bare wood" bothers you, why not remove the center fascia panel, turn it over and paint the unfinished wood with a matching stain/paint. At the factory, they won't take time to "hide gaps" in the woodwork... I'd suspect that if you look around your house, you'll find corner molding, baseboard and crown molding that were used to "cover the gaps in various locations...

Something to consider: In RV's, as much emphasis is placed on weight reduction/weight constraints as is placed on visual finish... That's partly the "nature of the beast" when you're building a "residence on wheels" and every ounce of coverup/finish detracts an ounce from the buyer's ability to load "important cargo" into the trailer.... You may "think that ounce isn't important" but when combined with all the other ounces, it can add up to whether a floorplan is competitive with other manufacturer's RV's or whether there just not enough cargo capacity to remain competitive....

There's a thread on the forum discussing why a "certain floorplan" was only built for one year... I'd suspect that part of the decision to discontinue that floorplan likely included concerns for cargo capacity, number of cabinet doors that needed to be installed, storage space allocations and "cost to build" those features.... If, in your trailer, they spent an extra hour custom building each center fascia to fit "perfectly" that may be the "straw that breaks the camel's back" in decising whether to continue production or redesign the floorplan....

It may seem like "this one defect" is insignificant to one buyer, but when combined with all the "special interests" of other buyers, it usually boils down to which complaints "get attention" and which ones "get ignored because the number of complaints doesn't rise to the level requiring the expense to remedy.....

[BeagleMan]

Thanks, guys. What about this surface rust I am seeing on my suspension? Any concerns? What else can I be looking for in prepping for cooler weather? DW got a great little portable heater yesterday, gives the place a better comfy level since it got down to 43* last night.

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

Thanks, guys. What about this surface rust I am seeing on my suspension? Any concerns? What else can I be looking for in prepping for cooler weather? DW got a great little portable heater yesterday, gives the place a better comfy level since it got down to 43* last night.

That's very subjective so maybe a picture or two would help.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

Thanks, guys. What about this surface rust I am seeing on my suspension? Any concerns? What else can I be looking for in prepping for cooler weather? DW got a great little portable heater yesterday, gives the place a better comfy level since it got down to 43* last night.

The owner's manual states that "surface rust" is normal for exposed metal surfaces. In reality, any rust is "of concern" but that doesn't mean it's "not normal"... On my trailer, I avoid towing on salted roads (as much as possible) and always plan to spray clean the frame/structure and after it dries, spray on a light coat of Fluid Film (oil based rust inhibitor). To date, my 2014 Cougar suspension looks very much like it did when I bought the trailer (2 weeks after it left the assembly line in Goshen).

[BeagleMan]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

The owner's manual states that "surface rust" is normal for exposed metal surfaces. In reality, any rust is "of concern" but that doesn't mean it's "not normal"... On my trailer, I avoid towing on salted roads (as much as possible) and always plan to spray clean the frame/structure and after it dries, spray on a light coat of Fluid Film (oil based rust inhibitor). To date, my 2014 Cougar suspension looks very much like it did when I bought the trailer (2 weeks after it left the assembly line in Goshen).

See? This is the kind of stuff I want to know. Where can I get that Fluid Film? Never heard of it. I used to run bass boats, for 20+ years, all kinds, from Bullets to Champions. 18' to 22'. I was very meticulous in my care, preventive or otherwise. Now, I'm in a TT and soon to be in a 5er. And I want to be the same way.

[BeagleMan]

Originally Posted by flybouy

That's very subjective so maybe a picture or two would help.

Coming. Uploading to my host site. Camp wifi is kind of iffy sometimes.
Thanks...

[JRTJH]

You can find Fluid Film at nearly any auto parts store, at Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Fluid-Film-TP...1744516&sr=8-8 or even in most "farm/fleet stores". On Amazon, you have several buying choices. The link above is for 3 cans/$31. That's about $11 a can. If you buy a single can on Amazon, it's almost $17. I buy it at Family Farm for $9 a can. I use it on both the car and truck, my boat trailer, all my utility trailers, the tractor and the Cougar. We had one of the "few rust free 2008 Escapes" in this area.

No doubt there are other "equally effective products" on the market, I stumbled upon Fluid Film when Ziebart closed their Marquette, MI location back in the early 70's and have been using it ever since.

Ironically, the winter we spent in south Texas at Surfside Beach, directly on the Gulf, we had the only trailer without "rust on the steps".

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

Coming. Uploading to my host site. Camp wifi is kind of iffy sometimes.
Thanks...

We ask that you upload any photos to the forum website using the forum software... Why?? In the past, when members upload to an off-site platform, if anything goes wrong with that website, the photos are no longer available to this site... Think "Photo Bucket" when it closed and the hundreds of photos linked from here... All of those posts were suddenly "Photo unavailable"...

The process to upload here is simple, just click on the "Paperclip in the reply header, a window will open to select your photo, then after selection, in that same window, click on the lower right "UPLOAD" button and the photo will be a "permanent part of this website's software, preventing "multiple losses of supported offsite photos"....

[BeagleMan]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

We ask that you upload any photos to the forum website using the forum software... Why?? In the past, when members upload to an off-site platform, if anything goes wrong with that website, the photos are no longer available to this site... Think "Photo Bucket" when it closed and the hundreds of photos linked from here... All of those posts were suddenly "Photo unavailable"...

The process to upload here is simple, just click on the "Paperclip in the reply header, a window will open to select your photo, then after selection, in that same window, click on the lower right "UPLOAD" button and the photo will be a "permanent part of this website's software, preventing "multiple losses of supported offsite photos"....

Right. I have had Shutterfly for years. Took me a few times to remember the properties for posting them.

Ok, here they come! LOL!

[BeagleMan]

Originally Posted by flybouy

That's very subjective so maybe a picture or two would help.

[IMG][/IMG]

[BeagleMan]

One more thing, since I have pics now. What is this yellow thing? Some kind of propane quick connect? If so, what would I need to connect that to my Blackstone? Thanks, guys...