Problems Closing

Has anyone had the trailmanor go out of alignment and won't close properly? We can't seem to get the back portion to shut down without going crooked. It broke one of the draw latches on the last trip and seems to be only getting worse.

This time closing was a nightmare as I had to open it about 6 times and try to adjust it manually as I lowered it - but no luck - I got it latched but you could tell it was way off the mark.

Yes - the trailer was level when I did this

Anyone know how to bring it back into alignment without hauling it to a dealership which is about 3 hours away.

Thanks

[Bill]

I haven't heard of this, but my first question would be whether anything is in the way of the shell as it comes down. Most of us have tried to close while the electric cord was still out, or the water hose was still attached, or the step wasn't stowed, or the door wasn't properly latched, or the rear bed wasn't quite all the way in, or ... you get the idea. I've done 'em all, and any of these things will wedge the shell out of place.

If everything is retracted/stowed properly, then it is possible that one of the torsion bars is badly misadjusted. Take a look at the lift arms for the rear shell - the white rectangular tubes that swing up with the shell. Coming out of the bottom of each one is a round black steel bar that immediately bends and goes under the trailer to the far side. The far end of each of these bars is captive in a small cage, and a big bolt sticks down out of the cage. Are any of these bolts missing? Loose? Crooked? Bashed on a rock?

You didn't say, so I'll ask what year/model TM you have. Also, is this a new problem, or has it always existed? If it is new, did anything rough happen to the TM before it started? Bang on a speed bump or a rock? Back into a wall or a tree? Drop the hitch off the ball and onto the ground? Give us some more detail.

Bill

[Denny_A]

Originally Posted by beckykamp

Has anyone had the trailmanor go out of alignment and won't close properly? We can't seem to get the back portion to shut down without going crooked. It broke one of the draw latches on the last trip and seems to be only getting worse.
--------------------snip----------------
Anyone know how to bring it back into alignment without hauling it to a dealership which is about 3 hours away.
Thanks

Been there and had to do that. It is most likely either a tortion bar tension mismatch, or a lift arm height mismatch.

Question: When the shell is closing is one side settling so that it is lower than the other? I.e, is the bottom line of the shell off horizontal with the ground as it closes? - OR - Does it shut in such a way that a latch is misaligned (fore or aft) and the segments won't engage without unusual bending loads being required?

Let me assuume the latter, and you can respond yea or nay.

If the shell closes and the latch portion ON the shell comes to rest AFT of the latch segment on the lift arm, the aft lift arm needs to be SHORTENED by the amount of the mismatch. If off by 1/2" then the lift arm must be shortened by 1/2". Of course, the lift arm would need be lengthend if the latch segment on the shell rested forward of the lift arm segment.

However, the shell has 2 arms on each side. Therefore if one arm length is changed, then it's likely that both arms will need be changed by the same amount - UNLESS the problem resulted from loose bolts and slippige of one arm.

See where I'm going with this? You will first have to trouble shoot to figure out if one or both arm adjustments have gone out of whack. Since the problem sounds as if it is progressively getting worse, it SEEMS to me that one arm is slipping, in which case most likely sliding down. Lastly, adjustment of an arm can also cause a gap at the point where the white fluffy seal between th aft and forward shell meet when open.

If what I described is in the ball park, let me know - I already posted the arm length adjustment procedure more than a year ago and will dredge it up.

If the problem is more like the first possibility I mentioned, then I can help with that too. I just made some addjustments a month ago to realign shell closure back from cattywampus to horizontal.

Denny_A

Thanks Denny and Bill for the responses.

We have a 2001/ 3023

We bought it in Wisconsin and are now living in Portland, Oregon - so it came cross country with us without a problem and lots of camping trips before and after. We have only had it out twice this year and yes we did go over some bumpy terrain on the way to the coast this weekend- but probably no more than usual. However I remember it being a bit stubborn to close before we left and then the latch was broken when we got there. We had to use epoxy and a bit longer screws and it seems to be holding at the moment.

We have always had some issue with marks on where the trailer is closed together like it rubs a bit. The stripping is slightly bent and metal is showing through and needs to be retouched. But, we have never had a problem getting it to close and latch smoothly.

Everything inside the trailer is stowed properly - checked and rechecked.

Bill, I will check the area you are speaking of tomorrow as it is dark now. I have it fully opened as I didn't want to keep it closed with this problem.

Denny - it settles dramatically lower to the right (as you are standing behind it) when you go to close it. You can actually feel it pull in that direction. And then it's a bear to raise again and start all over. If I close and latch the right side - there is no way I can latch the left side.... and if I latch the left side first - I can latch the right side with alot of push - but then you can see that there is a huge space where the arm should be sitting snugly against the lowered shell.

I will await any additional information and pass this on to my husband when he gets home tommorrow. He is an engineer so I think he can understand the technical part of what you are describing. And - have a project this weekend

Thanks again
Becky

[Denny_A]

Originally Posted by beckykamp

Thanks Denny and Bill for the responses.
----snip------- We have a 2001/ 3023

Denny - it settles dramatically lower to the right (as you are standing behind it) when you go to close it. You can actually feel it pull in that direction. And then it's a bear to raise again and start all over. If I close and latch the right side - there is no way I can latch the left side.... and if I latch the left side first - I can latch the right side with alot of push - but then you can see that there is a huge space where the arm should be sitting snugly against the lowered shell.

Thanks again
Becky

Becky,

Your problem appears to be the first one to which I alluded in my prior post. Clearly, from your description, the aft, right torsion bar (on the afected shell) needs to be adjusted. That is the torsion pre-load seems to have somehow become very low.

Quick tutorial: When the trailer is in the set-up condition, the 8 torsion bars, which assist in raising of the shells, are at minimum torsion. As the shells are lowered the torsion bars twist (big windup spring) and store potential energy. When the trailer shells are raised, that torsion potential energy is converted to kinetic energy during raising of the shell.

If one torsion bar is mis-adjusted the shell will do strange things. If the adjuster mechanism is set so that too little torsion potential is stored when the shell is closed, that part of the shell will, in essence come crashing down as the shell is closed. If it's at one of the 4 corners of the camper, that corner will be very heavy descending and require lots of extra muscle to raise!

Correction method: If you were to lie under the trailer, you would see several steel rods crossing laterally under the trailer. Each one projects through the frame from the pivot point of one of the rotating lift arms. The rods then carry over toward the other side of the trailer and are anchored to the frame. Projecting from the anchor point will be a large, obvious, black bolt. So as you look under thetrailer look for the heads of black bolts projecting downward. There are 2 in front, 2 at the back and 4 near the wheels.

Locate the bolt at the rear of the trailer, but on the opposite side from the side which settles excessively. In your case, the bolt on the left (road) side of the trailer.

It will require a large wrench with a long handle (force may be quite high to move bolt). Turn the bolt so that the bolt screws into the anchor point. THe bolt will then be increasing the pre-load on the torsion bar. Only adjust when the shell is in the raised position, which equates to the minimum torsion position. Since your shell is really messed up, start with one full turn IN of the bolt head. Then lower the shell and see if there's an improvement. If there is, but not enough, raise the shell and crank it in some more, using previous result as a guide to the additional adjustment. Repeat until the shell closes properly.

Murphy's law: the whole adjustment mechanism could be damaged, in which case adjustment may not be possible. So look at other adjusters to ensure you'll know the difference between op and inop, before beginning!

If there are other unintended results during adjustment, I should be able to assist.

G'luck - Denny_A