Big slide problem

[norty1]

Yesterday we brought the big slide in about 6 in. to drain water from the slide topper. The slide started moving on one side and almost jammed we got it back out by pushing on one non moving end.
This morning I removed the access panel and found both bolts that attach the slide motor to the drive bars sheared off. I bought 2 grade 8 bolts and replaced them.
We are back in business.

[Parcany]

Glad it was a easy fix. could have been a lot worse. Good Job

[dzwiss]

I have had the same issue with both of my slides. I keep spare bolts on hand.

[TEBechtold]

Most of the new slides require that you either slide them all the way in or all the way out. When we did out walkthrough they made that very clear to us that you can no longer just slide partially out or partially in.

[jimp]

Gosh, I wish the underside of my slide looked that good. Nice work on the repairs.

[norty1]

Originally Posted by TEBechtold

Most of the new slides require that you either slide them all the way in or all the way out. When we did out walkthrough they made that very clear to us that you can no longer just slide partially out or partially in.

That is not written in stone. Jayco answer to water on the slides is to bring them in a little so water can drain off.

[TEBechtold]

Originally Posted by norty1

That is not written in stone. Jayco answer to water on the slides is to bring them in a little so water can drain off.

Actually it is. If you do not put them all the way out or all the way in they will end up out of alignment. They were very specific that you not stop the slide as it extents or retracts. This may not be the case with yours but the new slides are set up that way. The new slides actually auto align themselves every 80 or so uses.

[clutch]

I wish our street side slide would align itself.

[Seann45]

REMOVE those grade 8 bolts immediately... the bolts that were in there before are called shear bolts designed to break rather than twisting the whole assembly apart causing massive damage..

[33 RLDS]

Originally Posted by Seann45

REMOVE those grade 8 bolts immediately... the bolts that were in there before are called shear bolts designed to break rather than twisting the whole assembly apart causing massive damage..

That's what I was thinking. Sort of like the bolts on a snow blower. Or the plastic cog on a winch. A weak point to prevent total destruction..

[RedHorse1]

Originally Posted by norty1

Yesterday we brought the big slide in about 6 in. to drain water from the slide topper. The slide started moving on one side and almost jammed we got it back out by pushing on one non moving end.
This morning I removed the access panel and found both bolts that attach the slide motor to the drive bars sheared off. I bought 2 grade 8 bolts and replaced them.
We are back in business. Attachment 14647Attachment 14648

I wonder if the damage happened when you initially extended the slide or as you began retracting to drain it or if one of the bolts had broken earlier and the second gave up during the extend or retract.
Do you happen to recall the bolt size? You've got me worried.
Sean makes a good point too.
This is what I love about this forum, always something new to keep me up at night.

[norty1]

I replaced them with the same bolts as were already there, and they were grade 8. One looked like it just broke, the other had been broken a while but the bolt did not fall out.

[norty1]

The broken bolts were grade 8, 5/16 x 18x 1-1/2 in. . This is not a Schwintec slide.
Another thing I noticed was the 4 bolts holding the motor in its mount were not tight enough to compress the lock washers. That could have allowed the whole thing to flex some when changing directions. Don't know but it worked the last 3 times flawlessly.

[norty1]

Had the same problem on the other side slide. Same thing, broken grade 8 bolt on one side.
Replaced, checked tightness on all bolts.
BTW. Grade 8 hardened bolts are what is in there from factory.

[norty1]

Yesterday we had another slide that was not working properly. I knew from past experience that the bolt had sheared again and I replaced it and all was ok. While there I checked the other side of the gearbox and the bolt was loose there also.

When we get home I'm going to replace the nylon lock nuts with a standard lock washer and regular nut and see if that helps. Need to check the other slide anyhow.

[BigJohnD]

That "not stopping the slides" while moving in or out is for the schwinteks, not the through frame LCI twin rail type. Schwinteks will get out of sync if they stop before fully retracted or extended, the through frame doesn't care. Worked on plenty of them and the design has not changed in years.

[RedHorse1]

Wow Norty, I'd forgotten about your slide probs. Sorry to hear they're back but thanks for the reminder. We're heading out for a short Memorial Day trip and then again the week after. Checking the tightness of these bolts is now on my "do" list.

[ninjahbob]

Not sure about your unit but when we are concerned we lower the rear jacks a little and extend the tongue jack a little to create just enough fall to drain. !/2 to 1 inch front to back works for us.

[Fingerlakes]

Question for BigJohnD- I see where you have worked on these- our LCI slide squeals and squeaks TERRIBLY when going in or out. My dealer says nothing can be done about it- I don't believe them. None of our previous units slides did this. Is there someplace that I can get some lube on to stop this. I haven't removed the access panel underneath the unit yet but I am going to try! It is extremely loud and annoying. Please help me out here!

[SouthCo]

Great info Norty. I'm going to get some spare bolts and keep them in the camper...