X213 slide issue

[Saturn V]

Went to open the slide today and it bound up about 3/4 of the way through. Took a look underneath to see that one of the rollers on the driver side totally fell out of the track and bound the slide up. The shaft holding the roller over-traveled and scored the inside of the square tubing pretty good.

It was also nice to find one of the nuts holding the assembly together totally lose and not even finger tight.

The rollers on the driver side look much narrower than the rollers on the passenger side. A $2 nylon roller is going to end up costing a lot of time and aggravation.

[wootman]

Originally Posted by Saturn V

Went to open the slide today and it bound up about 3/4 of the way through. Took a look underneath to see that one of the rollers on the driver side totally fell out of the track and bound the slide up. The shaft holding the roller over-traveled and scored the inside of the square tubing pretty good.



It was also nice to find one of the nuts holding the assembly together totally lose and not even finger tight.



The rollers on the driver side look much narrower than the rollers on the passenger side. A $2 nylon roller is going to end up costing a lot of time and aggravation.

This happened to me on my x213. At first I freaked out, but then found an easy fix. For whatever reason the wheels get squeezed together when they go back and forth until one comes off track.

I used a pry bar to get the “wheel” back onto the track and then spread the wheels as far apart and onto the tracks as possible. Measure the distance on the inside of the wheels.

Cut a piece of 1/2” pvc pipe to fit tightly inside the space between wheels. Use a dremel tool or something to cut a 1/2” or so wide notch length wise out of the pipe. It should look like a “c”. This will then snap over the wheel axle and prevent the wheels from squeezing together and coming off track.

Hasn’t happened to me since this fix and everything works perfectly. Let me know if you need some pictures and I will try to get some.

[Saturn V]

Thanks for the reply, I'm glad I'm not alone. I see what you're saying about putting a PVC section between the wheels. I think you're talking about the space around the axle, between the brackets?

The big problem I see one mine is that the wheels on the driver side appear to be narrower than the passenger side for whatever reason. I'm not sure if they used the wrong roller by mistake when assembling it. This problem leaves very little space for the roller to ride on.

I'd love to see some pictures of how you fixed yours, if it's not a problem.

Thanks again

[wootman]

Here ya go. This is with the slide all the way out. You can see where one of my wheels got chewed up when it went off track.

[Saturn V]

Excellent, thanks for the picture!

Yes, that's exactly what I thought you meant. Great idea!

By the looks of it, my roller has been chewed to the point that it barely contacts the rails! I think you caught yours just in time.

Even if I used the pipe to force it out, I don't have a lot of contact space.

Bought the trailer brand new in August of 2017. I don't think the slide has even been operated 10 times.

I was thinking the roller was the wrong size, but it looks like it's just worn down.

[franks]

is your fix still working. I have had the same problem and my rv guy is doing your fix. Also, here are some other actions you can take. Lub the inside of the rails adequately so that if the wheels have a tendency to jam this will help. Also, our system on the X213 is a lot better than the cable system they have on other bed bump outs. Also. is this does not take care of the problem have the rv guys make sure the cogs for each side are aligned properly so that you do not have any undue sticking due to one side being off by one or two cogs which puts the wheels to a slight angle to the rail. I hope this helps. Frank

[brewcrew22]

I ended up doing this fix before any issues arise. Seems like a great idea. On my one side it appears that's the nylon wheel is closer to the side of the track hope this helps keep it on track. A question I have is does your slide seem to tip down slightly while fully extended or does it sit level when your all setup at camp? Mine seems to tip down at the end about a good inch to inch and a half or so. Just curious if this is so water will shed off the roof easier or if it is off slightly. When I run my finger behind the trim I side I notice an aluminum L channel that rests up against the wall when the slide is fully extended. Anyways it's tight up to the wall at the top and away from the wall by about a quarter to a half Inch at the bottom. Any help or insight would be great.

[PFamX213]

Noticed my X213 slide is coming in a little crooked and may try and do this fix. How did you " spread the wheels as far apart and onto the tracks as possible"? Did you do it with the slide in or out and use a pry bar or something? I tried to move one wheel that is has started to move toward the middle and it didn't want to budge.

[Tunce the traveler]

Originally Posted by wootman

Here ya go. This is with the slide all the way out. You can see where one of my wheels got chewed up when it went off track.

Attachment 40144

Had to do something like on my garage door wheel so I cut the slot first on my table saw and then chopped off the length I needed.

[PFamX213]

Originally Posted by Tunce the traveler

Had to do something like on my garage door wheel so I cut the slot first on my table saw and then chopped off the length I needed.

Actually, I meant the actual vinyl wheel, it has moved toward the center. My plan was to move it back over then put the pvc piece in place. Only with the slide out i cant budge it.

Meant to add @wootman on my previous post. Not sure if you can link people on here though

[sciencenerd]

I have a 2019 x213 and have heard about this issue. I looked at the rollers in my slide, they seem fine. I noticed, however, that they are held in place by two solid looking metal brackets. If the wheels move inward, causing one of them to slip off the rail, does it mean the metal brackets get bent? It seems to me that the metal brackets would prevent the wheels from moving closer together. Does the PVC spacer tubing prevent potential bending of the brackets?

I am just asking because I may do this mod as preventative maintenance.