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Old 06-15-2015, 08:48 AM   #1
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Unhappy Is my popup camper salvageable? Broken cable, broken corner support bar.

I bought a 1994 Jayco 1208 popup camper at the beginning of last spring for ~$2,000. The guy we bought it from kind of screwed us over. When we went to look at it, it was popped up. When I went to buy it, it was in the down position. Me being a naive first time popup buyer, didn't think to have him crank it up or down to make sure it was in working order.



You guessed it. We got it home, and one of the cables is broken. The left rear corner doesn't go up. So, the solution was that I would crank it while my boyfriend pushed up the bad corner and propped it up with a 2x2. This seemed to work fine. What I didn't realize is that was putting extra strain on the other three corners.



Which brings me to my sad story from this past weekend. We went camping for the weekend, and when we tried to crank it down, the RIGHT rear corner would NOT budge. It was stuck in the up position. We tried everything. We tried to get this thing to budge or close to 2 hours in the rain. We were at a rustic campground in the middle of nowhere. Finally, out of desperation, my boyfriend took a giant log and just whacked the bar until it snapped in half, and we could get it cranked down and towed back home.



So, normally I would just trash the camper and cut my losses. But, here's the thing that is making me hesitate. I spent the majority of the spring completely renovating the camper. Here is an album I made detailing the renovation. In retrospect, I realize that the time spent renovating would have been better spent fixing the pulley system.



Should I bother trying to salvage it? We are both very handy. But if it's not worth it, it's not worth it.



I would need to replace the right rear support bar, and redo the entire pulley system. The top could probably use some TLC too. I think there is some rot in there.



This is not the first place I posted this, but someone told me to come here. So far, the consensus is that I should try to repair it. The big thing is - am I even going to be able to source that corner support bar?



Give it to me straight folks.


Thanks
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Old 06-15-2015, 10:35 AM   #2
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Warning up front: I'm a do-it-yourselfer and will often take on projects that would cost less or be less aggravating if I simply 'bought new'.


After reviewing your post and most of your album, it seems to me that you two already know how to disassemble and re-assemble your camper.


I would suggest finding a place that you can safely store all of the interior fixtures, remove and store the lid. Then tear the entire pop-up mechanism apart.


Go over every single part and sub-system. Replace the worn plastic guides, remove the tired grease and re-lubricate. Replace all of the cables. Clean the winch and it's gear box.


Most of the sliding parts of the posts are a fairly common design. If you can remove one part of the broken support bar and take it to an RV dealer (that has a good parts department) and secure that BEFORE you begin major disassembly.


I guess the availability of that piece will control whether to cut your loses or go for it.
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Old 06-15-2015, 10:57 AM   #3
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There are other sites on line that have some good information of how the lift system works Including prints and parts. I will see if I can find you some information and links and post them for you. I wouldn't give up just yet. At least look at what you need to make the repairs and the cost before you trash it


You may also check on e-bay for the corner bars and other parts for some ideas
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Old 06-15-2015, 11:03 AM   #4
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Just looked at your pics You did a nice job redoing that camper Hang tough and you will get it all finished. and then you will know that you won't have problems with the lift system. Look at where you crank handle goes in and see what kind of access you have to get to the lift mechanism. You will need to have the top lifted and supported to change the corner post.
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Old 06-15-2015, 11:15 AM   #5
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First check with rvworkshop.com


See my next post and click on the links


You may also want to contact Jayco custome service with model and ser number to see if they can provide you with any prints on the system.
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Old 06-15-2015, 11:26 AM   #6
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L&W Lift Post Jayco 3 Stage 1968 - 1994








L&W Lift Post Jayco 4 Stage
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Old 06-15-2015, 11:46 AM   #7
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You will be able to fix your popup. I know plenty of other have had the same problem as you. I can't tell you how to do it, but I can point you in the right direction. I hope it is okay to post this, but go to a forum called popupportal. The people over there are very knowledgeable regarding popup trailer of all kinds. Great community. I was part of it when I had one and still visit to see what is going on. Best of luck.
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Old 06-15-2015, 12:12 PM   #8
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Thumbs up

Thanks everyone! The overwhelming consensus over three forums is to fix it. I wanted to make sure I wasn't going to make a decision based on my attachment to it and all the work we put in. I have gotten some great links to find the parts, and resources for doing the work. Much MUCH appreciated
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Old 06-15-2015, 01:00 PM   #9
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Interesting. I went through a very similar situation with my first pop-up. We bought it in '92, it was a '72 Jayco. Same issue, one corner had to be held up with a board. Turned out that the two front corners were rotted causing the lift system to fail. I ended up doing what was described above. Removing the roof, removing the front dinette, rebuilding the floor corners, replaced one lift rod and realigned the entire thing. We used it for one year and sold it for more than we paid for it.

BTW, the camper we bought to replace it was a '93 1208. Looking at your photos brings back a lot of fond memories!

Have fun!
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Old 06-15-2015, 01:28 PM   #10
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very thing can be fixed no WAY would i trash this camper take it to a dealer have them look at it
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Old 06-15-2015, 02:24 PM   #11
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It should be fixable. It might cost a bit more now that your boyfriend busted the upright, and it will have to be replaced too, and that will be the hardest part. If you have a good place to open it up and work on it for a week or so, would be best. You can buy safety supports, do not recall the true name of them, but they are like a “C” channel device, that slip over the lifting arms. Normally you buy two of these and put them in opposite corners so if a cable breaks the roof stays up, and you can use it for lifting and lower the roof when a cable breaks. We had two of them in our old, very old Starcraft PU. We had broke many cables over the years, and replaced them.

I would contact Jayco with your vin number, and ask for the drawings of the lift mechanism and parts list. I would review it, look over your unit, determine what you need and if you think you can do the work yourself. Then I would contact your locate RV repair facility and ask for a quote to do the work. I also bet if you do a YouTube search you will find a video or two on repairing the lift mechanism.

Best of luck
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