Screw heads shearing off

[Griswald One]

Has anyone else experienced this??? I was in the rear storage area of my Greyhawk and found a loose screw head inside the compartment. It was clear that the head had been sheared off of the screw.

I had a look around and noticed several empty holes where the RV walls in the storage area are screwed into the floor. It appears the mystery screw head is not alone.

I don't have anything in the storage area capable of damaging the screws. I store most things in plastic bins and loose items are fairly soft such as camp chairs stored in bags. I am guessing at this point that the screws themselves are of poor quality and that the factory probably use electric screwdrivers of some sort and have over torqued them.

I am going in for some other minor warranty work next month so I will have them drill new holes and drop new screws at that time. My only concern is what might be applying enough pressure to the rear wall that it is causing the screws to shear in the first place?

[RVhiker]

Originally Posted by Griswald One

...My only concern is what might be applying enough pressure to the rear wall that it is causing the screws to shear in the first place?...

I've had several screw heads shear off, too; I think your idea that it is due to crappy screws is most likely the explanation. I'll bet that there is nothing exceptional about the rear wall. Jayco just used crappy screws and also over tightened them.

[jbayone]

I have the same issue - maybe 8-10 screw heads. Screw tops like they may be aluminum screws; who would do that? May drill and replace myself with stainless steel screws

[North of 49°]

I used to work in the fastener industry, and there could be a number of reasons why this happens: hydrogen embrittlement during the zinc electroplating process, burst heads during the heading process, heat treating not to spec, to name a few. It can affect an entire production runof screws; we used to make them at a few hundred thousand at a time, and this wasn't common, but it wasn't unheard of, either. But it is rare that it would get past the QA procedures. Screws made "offshore" aren't as good as ones made here, unfortunately, so that may be part of the problem. Whenever I encountered broken heads, I just remove what's left, replace it with known good screws, and move on.

[DMRGMC]

Probably a combination of low grade screws and over torqing by the installer. The same over torqing problem that happens on the screws for the interior door hardware and hinges. They strip the hole and fall out. On the underside of the 5th wheel front the screws fall out from vibration as we drive down the road. I have found them in the box of the truck. If the installer doesn't hit a frame member it only goes in to the cover material.

[pconroy]

Interesting info on the cause from "North of 49*".

As an amateur woodworker, my sheared-off screw problems ended when I stopped buying cheap (Chinese, I assume) screws from Home Depot and switched to McFeely's Square Drive screws.

I'm a huge fan of Robertson drive screws now, and *quality* screws.

I suspect some buyer @ Jayco went for the lowest bid from a supplier

[Griswald One]

Not really sure I am happy to hear others are reporting the same problem. Particularily since it is over several model years which tells me that it is not just a bad batch of screws but an overall bad supplier.

It is amazing to me what RV manufacturers are able to get away with when it comes to a quality issue which might eventually impact safety. In this case, left unchecked the rear wall would eventually seperate from the floor of the RV. At highway speeds the results could be incredibly damaging to both the RV and those behind it.If this problem was in the Ford components rather then the RV parts these sub-standard parts would never be allowed.

[alvinator]

Originally Posted by Griswald One

Not really sure I am happy to hear others are reporting the same problem. Particularily since it is over several model years which tells me that it is not just a bad batch of screws but an overall bad supplier.

It is amazing to me what RV manufacturers are able to get away with when it comes to a quality issue which might eventually impact safety. In this case, left unchecked the rear wall would eventually seperate from the floor of the RV. At highway speeds the results could be incredibly damaging to both the RV and those behind it.If this problem was in the Ford components rather then the RV parts these sub-standard parts would never be allowed.

You might want to file your concerns with the NHTSA. If enough complaints are received, it might generate a recall.