New Pop-Up Owner Questions

[evitoss]

Hey everyone,

My wife and I just recently purchased a 1996 Jayco 1006 pop-up and are excited about traveling with our "new to us" pop up. We set it up for the first time today in the backyard and I noticed a few things that I didn't quite notice when we bought it. I'm hoping the group can help me with these questions as we don't know much about them.

1) We cranked up the top, and it seemed "ok". It wasn't smooth, but it did crank fine for a camper that is 20 years old IMO. However, when we cranked it up to the max (front guide cable was taught), and I tried to put the door down, it seemed that the door didn't push flush against the wall. Looking at it, it looks like the back right part of the top didn't crank quite as high as the rest of the top. My question is, Is this a problem with the pulley system not functioning correctly? If so, would it hurt for me to push up on the ceiling in order to get the door to fit correctly?

2) when we cranked the top back down, the top stopped about 1-2 inches from bottoming out. I had to physically push down (sometimes with my body weight) to get the top all the way down (It did latch correctly when I did this). Is this normal, or is there something wrong with the way the top is operating? Would it be an issue if we continued using it this way?

Thanks ahead of time to anyone who can help answer these questions. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[oldmanAZ]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on the 'new to you' popup.

There are popup owners on this site that may be able to help you, Hopefully one will be along before too long.

[Heady]

Regarding #1 - Was the camper leveled side to side and back to front? We used to have a lot of door fitting problems if we were not level.

Regarding #2 - IMO this is most likely normal. Make sure you tuck the canvas in as far as possible when closing it. On ours the canvas would bunch up in the corners requiring us to "compress it" with our body weight before the top would latch.

[A2Z_Adventures]

Mind you.. this is my opinion for a camper we had for about year.

1)
At first I babied our new to us 2003 popup, but then came to the realization that it was a mechanical tent and if something I did broke it, then it needed to be "upgraded". I would often have to "finagle", "convince" and plain ole man handle some stuff into place. That being said, the cables inside the lift track may be off balance slightly so take a look into them before getting too aggressive on it. I probably would have both pushed on it and inspected the lift system.

2)
The cold may be a factor in letting it the roof settle when lowering it. In hot weather or under full sun it was easier to close.

Often when we packed up, I would let it settle while accomplishing other tasks before buttoning it up using the weight of the top to help compress things a bit. At first it seemed abnormal to pack it like overstuffed luggage, but then we got used to it and the camper was no worse for the wear.

You will develop a good tucking technique that makes the space a bit smaller when you close it up. In the end, probably normal

[bankr63]

Welcome to JOF!

Our lid always closed properly unless there was something in the way. We generally stopped about 6-4 inches from closed and then rearranged all of the tenting well away from the edges. Extra care at the 4 corners to ensure that the fabric doesn't get pinched by the bed rails or the lid.

Do you have anything on top of the mattress? Ours had a little extra space there, but if you put too much on top, that would certainly make closing incomplete.

BTW, a quick tip once the lid is latched, rotate the crank back up until you feel some resistance. (a couple of ratchets). This ensures that the cables have a little tension so they don't vibrate out of a pulley or other fitting.

[TWP723]

#1 - May be a normal thing but I'd get it checked out. Was the cable taunt in that corner?


#2 - This is normal. On my old Coleman, we would have to press down to get it to latch due to the bulk of material gathered underneath the roof.

[evitoss]

Wow, thanks for the warm welcome, and all the great responses.

It is likely that the pop up was not level, but I suspect the problem will be there even when it is level, as there is a small tear where the door is hitting the fabric. It must have been doing that for a while.

I'll have to take a look at the lifting system. Could one pole go bad (not lift as high) as the others, or do they generally all go bad? Sounds like I should not just try to lift it myself then? Can I ruin it if I do that?

The cable was indeed taught in the corner, so I know it couldn't be lifted any higher.

Glad to know that the top issue isn't really a big problem. I can check that one off the list. I haven't heard about the cranking it a few clicks after it's latched down. I'll do that for sure going forward.

[KCSA75]

As others have mentioned the door issue could be related to the camper not being level, however, I noticed the same problem after we had our '96 Eagle 12 for a while. I took it to the dealer for repair. It turns out one of the pulleys had pulled loose from the floor. Had to replace a section of the floor. Now everything is fine.

When we lower the roof, there is usually a 1-2 inch gap. I just push it down and fasten the latch. I found if I fold the canvas over the bunks instead of just shoving it in, it's a lot easier to get it closed up.

If you enjoy your NTU Pup half as much and the wife and I have enjoyed ours over the last couple year, you're going to have a heck of a good time.

[Desert RVers]

Welcome to the forum and congrats on the NTU pop up. As the others have written, we too would have to push down on the roof to latch it closed. We would stop about 6-8 inches from being closed and do more folding of the canvas then crank it the rest of the way. Being level definitely helped. Happy camping!

[bansai]

I had the same issues with my old Coleman pop-up. I would have to walk around each corner and give it a gentle push upwards to get the entire thing raised, then crank on the handle some more, then repeat. Mine was nearly 40 years old so we really couldn't complain.

The pully system was starting to go out. We sold it for a couple hundred bucks. (only paid 5 dollars for it)

[bankr63]

As KCSA indicates, it could be a problem with the one specific cable being off a pulley or the pulley itself being positioned poorly/pulled loose. These can be difficult to check as they are usually well hidden by cabinetry. But with a little exploration you can get access. Note that there is generally a block near the main winch that splits the cable into four separate cables. This probably has 4 turnbuckle attachments that can be used to realign the cables if one has stretched a bit. Won't really help if there is a mechanical problem though.

[DocBrown]

Another possibility on a pop-up that old you could have rotted flooring in one corner and the lift point is pulling up from the floor. I had it happen on a '73 pop-up I had to do a lot of work on.

[JSCinci2005]

I just picked up my new jayco sport 12ud and the top is raised with an electric winch but the only way I can get it to work is when I'm plugged into shore power. It has to be able to be opened under 12v power right?