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Old 01-15-2013, 02:36 PM   #1
jimmyv13
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Slide adjustment problem

Thanks guys!

I'm researching an issue with the slide not wanting to extend. It moves about a foot, then ratchets. I can see the slide actually moving at an angle...the back of the slide is about 2" out farther than the front as it tries to move. It looks like some say to use dry silicone spray and some do not, just clean it with soap and water. With it being about 20 degrees outside, the soap and water thing will have to wait. Still hunting...
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Old 01-15-2013, 04:12 PM   #2
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It sounds like the slide has been "racked" and the trunion bar between the back (driven) and the front (passive) extension bars needs to be synchronized. There's a procedure on the LCI customer support website. It's been listed several times here. If you can't find it with the search feature, let me know and I'll look it up again.
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:26 AM   #3
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Thanks for the help! I was able to locate the LIP sheet on the adjustment procedure. Although the adjustment seems simple enough, the instructions do not offer much explanation on where the slide should be....in, out, partway??? Since mine only moves about a foot, will I need to manually move the slide to gain access to the necessary bolts for adjustment? Of course the weather is not my friend this time of year...but since I'm not using my snowmobiles anytime soon, I figure I should tackle some repairs.
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Old 01-16-2013, 07:58 AM   #4
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You should be able to access everything under the slide with it in or out. Your RV is the "travel trailer version" of my fifth wheel. Our slides are the same (except for year). Under the slide, behind the wheel well farings is all that you'll need to access. It's all "out there in the open" for you to see.

If your slide is binding, you don't want to put it into the "bind" and then go loosening anything, you may get some unexpected movement and depending on where your arms are...... NOT GOOD !!!!!

So, with the slide in, move it out about 1 or 2", then do your "timing" of the trunion bar, you can remove it from the front slideout bar, turn that bar to move the front of the slide in an inch or so, and then reattach and see what you have accomplished. Remember, go in "baby steps" and any adjustment on one end also affects measurements on the other, so in most cases, an inch in front "in" will also mean an inch in back "out" so plan accordingly. I urge people to make adjustments in 1/4 inch or 1/2 inch increments, check their work and then adjust as needed. There's nothing worse than adjusting too much and finding out you broke something that "moved too far"

Adjusting the slide is not difficult, just take your time and learn as you go.

if you have a 1/2" ratchet set with a LONG breaker bar, it will be the handiest tool you'll have for that procedure.

As for not using snowmobiles any time soon, we lost about 20" of snow base over the week and now it's cold again (after a couple of 40 and 50F days) but no significant snow forcasted for the next week or so. Unfortunately, the ground froze and I can't do any work on building the driveway to my new pole barn, so I'm like you, looking for something to get out of the house and away from the "honey-do" list LOL
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Old 01-16-2013, 03:04 PM   #5
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Whereabouts are you?

I was able to at least look at the mechanism and studied it for a bit. Due to the lack of daylight, I took a chance with some dry graphite on the ends of the torsion bar. After a few back and forth attempts, it opens now....but with a very audible CLUNK where it used to stop. The noise is coming from the rear most assembly and makes a softer clunk as it passes the same spot on the way back in. I didn't have an extra hand to run the slide while I was under it to see what happens when it makes the noise, but maybe this weekend the boss will get out there and help me out.
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Old 01-16-2013, 04:53 PM   #6
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I'm In the northern part of the lower peninsula, Gaylord is the closest "big city" but we're so far out in the woods that we only go to town when we need to.

It sounds like you got things working at least temporarily. Just be careful under the RV when someone is actuating the slide. It's a "little DC motor" and we sometimes think it's "not that powerful" but remember, it's moving over 1,000 lbs, and it doesn't care if it's your arm in the way or a piece of mud, it will push right past it...
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Old 01-16-2013, 05:20 PM   #7
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Thanks for the heads up, I'll keep my eyes open when working around it.

A good friend of mine has a cabin on 15 acres on Lower Chub Lake...East off exit 270. We snowmobile there quite often staying E of I75 in the Lewiston-Lovells area.
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Old 01-16-2013, 05:56 PM   #8
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We also ride snowmobiles around that area. The 404 goes through Lewiston, down toward Lovells and then also the south loop goes over toward Johannesburg and toward Gaylord. It's a really nice 50+ mile snowmobile ride from Lewiston taking all the detours. The only problem is this year, there's not enough snow to keep the snirt covered. Hopefully this week we'll get some more, but the forecast is just for single digit cold temps and limited snow. Anyway, I hope you get the slide fixed, PM me if you need any encouragement.
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Old 01-17-2013, 02:02 PM   #9
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I took a vid when I got home today....let me know what you think.

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Old 01-17-2013, 02:31 PM   #10
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It almost sounds like you've got a broken or stripped gear on the extension rail... That's the inner rail with the gears on the bottom of it. That's only a guess, but you should be able to see them with a flash light if you get under the trailer. On mine, it's the rail that is closest to the back of the trailer.... The one with the motor attached.
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Old 01-19-2013, 01:10 PM   #11
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Ok, I've been messing with this thing for an hour or so and I just can not get the front and rear to move even. There are no broken teeth on the rails, nothing looks to be out of the ordinary, but it just doesn't move like I think it's supposed to. As soon as I hit the button, the rear of the slide moves out immediately and the front stays put for a second or two then starts. When it gets all the way out and starts to ratchet, the inside trim of the back of the slide is pretty much flat against the wall and the front of the slide is nowhere near the wall. The bottom of the trim is probably 3-4" away from the wall and the top is about an inch away. What the hell am I not getting???

I am following the instructions from the LIP sheet, but it's just not adjusting enough. It almost looks like the front most bar needs to be have more adjustment out. Can these things jump teeth?
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Old 01-19-2013, 06:11 PM   #12
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Yes they can jump a gear or two. Undo the trunion bar connecting the back (drive) gear to the front (follower) gear. Turn the front gear out until it looks closer to the position of the rear gear, then reconnect the trunion bar. You will probably have to do this 2 or 3 times to get it "timed correctly" then it should travel closer to equal. Once you have it travelling the same front and back, extend the slide fully and loosen the front attaching bolts and pry the slide in or out so the seals meet properly, then run it in and out and see if it follows properly. Remember, adjust in tiny increments and every inch in front means an inch in the opposite direction on the rear, so adjust about half what you think you need to. It takes several times to get it adjusted properly.

The ratcheting at full in and full out is correct. That is the clutching that protects the gears from binding and stripping. The slide should ratchet and when it does, release the switch and it should lock in position.
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Old 01-19-2013, 06:54 PM   #13
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I kept screwing with it until I got summoned in by the boss. I tried to move the slide up, down, back and forth and still could not get it to move even. I have and have always had deep creases in the carpet where the slide sits when it's all the way in and it got me wondering if maybe the slide was too low and hanging up as it went out. I messed it up so bad now that it pops BAD...the front is now about 5 or 6" behind the back. I'm going to mess this up so bad, it'll never get right. And, of course the weather is not in my favor from here on out until spring. I was able to get it back closed so I can at least take it somewhere if need be.
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Old 04-26-2013, 01:04 PM   #14
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Well, I got a chance to get back at this issue...and I found what I hope to be the problem and not the result of another. I found the rear gear pack has missing teeth on the pinion gear. It does not appear to be difficult to replace the gear pack, but locating the correct part is the issue so far.

Fun never ends...
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Old 04-26-2013, 01:51 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTJH View Post
It almost sounds like you've got a broken or stripped gear on the extension rail... That's the inner rail with the gears on the bottom of it. That's only a guess, but you should be able to see them with a flash light if you get under the trailer. On mine, it's the rail that is closest to the back of the trailer.... The one with the motor attached.

That would be my first guess too. Little else under there to make that "clunk."
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Old 07-25-2013, 08:42 AM   #16
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After three tries, I finally got the correct part from my local RV shop and got it installed. I am able to move the slide in and out, but I still have to adjust it so it opens and closes fully. When it's open, the interior trim is not flat against the wall all the way around the slide opening.
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Old 07-25-2013, 06:34 PM   #17
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Our inside trim was always a half inch or so further from the outside wall at the bottom than at the top. I think it might have something to do with how the top follows the bottom ??? That's a guess, I don't have any data to support that "guess".

As for adjusting the slide, take a mirror and flash light (the only way to see the inner tube seal by the TV) and check the seat between the slide and the side wall. The bulb seal should be in contact from top to bottom. If it is and if you don't see daylight through the bulb seal, then the slide is adjusted properly. Remember, you don't want the wood trim to match perfectly, you want the seal to be "sealed" perfectly. It's great if the trim AND the seal sit in the right place and appear "flush" but the seal is more important than the wooden trim.
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Old 03-29-2015, 05:58 AM   #18
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Believe it or not, I am still battling this problem. Didn't move the trailer in 2013. I called my local General RV location, same location I bought it from, in June of 2014 and asked if they could adjust the slide. They said no problem, should take an hour, but there are no openings for a few days. I was scheduled to leave in a week, so they "made some moves" for me to get my trailer adjusted for me. After said week, they call me the day before I am supposed to leave and say the entire slide mechanism needs replacing, it's "all bad". They said the gear breaking was the result the mechanism being bad. I said to go ahead with the repair...but they of course couldn't do it before we went on our trip. It was too close to our dates to cancel with our incurring ridiculous fees, so we took the trailer and were instructed to move the slide carefully with people to help push and pull if needed. Our trip went fine, no issues with the slide. We get it back in August to get the new mechanism installed. Part was not ordered in June and had to be ordered when we dropped the trailer off...frustrated, but whatever, quote was $600. It was getting fixed the right way and I was OK with not using it for the rest of the season. 8 weeks later, the part comes in and gets installed in less than an hour. Slide was said to be adjusted and the new quote was almost $1,000. I told them to keep it, I was not paying more than 50% more than the quote. They didn't want to do that and asked what I could pay, I said $600, the originally quoted price. The service manager grumbled a bit, but eventually gave in. I couldn't pick it up during business hours, so I made arrangements to pay ahead and they'd leave it outside the gate for me to pick up. I brought it home, put the slide out enough to get into the bathroom and winterize everything.

Fast forward to this spring. I go out to open the slide to clean it up for our spring break trip and the slide is popping EXACLY like did with original slide mechanism. I can see the slide moving at a slight angle...the front is lagging behind the rear about 2" for the length of the 16' slide. Also, when it's out, the front bottom of the round seal is barely touching the wall and the top of the seal is touching well. The rear seal of the slide touches evenly from top to bottom. Looking at the outside, the top left corner of the slide appears to be in too far and pushing on the flashing trim cracking the silicone sealing between the two side walls. It's clearly out of adjustment. The gears are OK, no missing teeth yet...I will call first thing Monday morning, but I know they will not be able to adjust the slide before we are slated to leave Thurs afternoon. They are not a big dealership and are slow to boot. I want to tackle this myself so I know it gets done. I don't trust these guys anymore.
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Old 03-29-2015, 12:07 PM   #19
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After being adjusted you should run the slid out all the way out not part way that could cause it to get out of ajustment
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Old 03-30-2015, 06:09 AM   #20
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Spent most of my Sunday working on this. The extension rails were 9cm out of alignment! This is after General RV claimed they aligned and adjusted the slide. I dropped the trunion bar and evened the rails, sprayed dry graphite on everything and it seems to be working much better. I still think the entire slide is too low and rides on the carpet too much as it moves in and out. Those are small adjustments that I can make later. I'm just glad that the dang thing moves now without banging or clunking.

Next repair on the list is water damage from the mis-aligned slide, cracking the silicone seals for the side walls as it matchboxed, and mice getting in somewhere.
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