Closing a 3326

We are new to this 2004 3326 and are having trouble when closing the back it is very hard getting it down far enough to latch on the drivers side.
Please HELP.
Had to enlist two neighbors to help.

Thanks again
Jimmy B.

[rvcycleguy]

I will assume you have checked if there is any obstructions? Is there any bedding on the mattress? Are the bathroom walls completely folded down? Outside- is the electrical harness hanging up on the torsion bar on the drivers side? On my 3124, its a little harder on the drivers side than the curb side. Maybe your curb side wall is hanging up on the lower side wall? Do you have it level from side to side. That can really make it much easier. If you have it parked at the curb, the slope for the gutter is not level with the street side? Tilting the TM and makes it hard to close.

[Bill]

CycleGuy has some good ideas. Bedding left on the bed is a perennial favorite. A first step? When you are closing the rear shell, and the front shell is still open - get someone to stand on the hitch, and look at the ceiling of the rear shell as it comes down. If there is anything in the way, it should be immediately apparent.

Yes, it could be a torsion bar problem - but that usually works the opposite way as time goes by. It becomes harder to open, not harder to close.

Bill

Thanks Bill and Cycleguy for your advice.
I did make sure I took the bathroom walls down in the correct order, and that there was nothing on the mattress. The TM was completely level.
I saw some of the previous threads regarding the stirrups, I could barley get my toe of my shoe in them.
I closed it up yesterday because of hurricane Sandy which will be at it's peak here in New Hampshire late tonight or tomorrow.
Thanks again.
Jimmy B.

[rvcycleguy]

Originally Posted by JBYRNE7844

Thanks Bill and Cycleguy for your advice.
I did make sure I took the bathroom walls down in the correct order, and that there was nothing on the mattress. The TM was completely level.
I saw some of the previous threads regarding the stirrups, I could barley get my toe of my shoe in them.
I closed it up yesterday because of hurricane Sandy which will be at it's peak here in New Hampshire late tonight or tomorrow.
Thanks again.
Jimmy B.

There was a thread here not long ago regarding a homemade extension for the stirrup. Even with my small shoe size, it does not fit either. The extension hangs down from the existing stirrup.

[Bill]

For whatever reason, it sometimes seems that closing is easier if you close the left side first and then the right - or the other way around. I have no idea why the order should matter - but this has been reported more than once.

A wider stirrup will make it a lot easier. And it is easy to make the change.

Bill

Wow. I can sure sympathize with you on this problem. Perhaps the 3326’s are just naturally more subject to a twist that makes that latch hard to catch. I don't know but there are lots of hints here about how to level your TM as a possible avoidance of problems.

I have found that just making the front/back and the side/side level on my 3326 is not enough. I do all that, first off with the squares, but then as soon as I get inside the TM, I also put my level on the refrigerator pointing diagonally from corner to corner. If one corner of the TM is slightly off, it can make a difference in whether the door shuts properly, and if the door doesn’t shut properly, then most likely there will also be a problem in closing the TM and getting the door-side latch to meet up. I then use the scissor jacks to get the perfect(?) level.

I always take a lite step ladder with me which makes it easier to step from the ladder to the stirrup and back. Look at the latch with someone standing in the stirrup and see if the shell is coming straight down into the latch but just not far enough to catch. If so, then open up the front shell and crawl over the couch, or whatever, and look again for anything on the bed, or anything stored too high, or the Bathroom walls are not folded down properly, or a flap not folded or velcro’d properly. Even a cushion left in the wrong place can make a problem. Then check outside to make sure that the corner latches are clear.

I too have found that reversing the order of which side to try to close first can make a difference. I actually have more success with closing the curb side first.

Still no help? Then, the question is if the latch still in the right position? Check the screw/bolt fasteners on the latch and the catch to see if they have slipped. There is always the possibility of adjusting the latch in order to get it to meet, but if doing that then be sure to check the seals on top of the shell to avoid leaving an opening there.

Still no help? Well, let’s see. Where did they move that factory service in Tennessee? I have yet to try the torsion bars, but then, the shells could be a little easier to lift/close, so …..

Good luck and please report any successes.

[mjlaupp]

The 3326 frame has a tendency to flex & sag. Lower the jacks and level the TM before opening and raise the jacks after you have closed it. Some times mine is easier to close if I start with the curb side but there have been times when it closed easier starting from the street side.

[ZekenSpider]

My 2010 3326 has given occasional closing latch problems. Most are solved by minor adjustments to the closing procedure (which side we latch first).

We have had some big problems though.

Recently I found one torsion bar adjustment bolt had unscrewed 1 1/2 turns.
After discovering that I marked all eight bolts with yellow paint so I could visually check for that problem. So far it has not re-occurred in the last year.

Last month, after a trip up and down the very rough CA highway 99 from LA to Sacramento and return, I found I could not latch the street side front or back shells (center latches) at all. The torsion bar bracket that also holds the latches had dropped down a full 1/2 inch. Upon investigation, I found the bracket frame attach bolts had backed out and one had stripped right out of the frame. I checked all of the other torsion bar bracket bolts and found them all loose (as much as a turn). I replaced the stripped bolt (a 3" lag bolt) with the next larger size and was able to tighten all the others.

Now I plan to check these bolts before and after each trip.

Attached are a few photos of the problem areas.