Broken LPI Kitchen slide on 2017 Big Horn

[Macflys]

We purchase our 2017 Big Horn 3575 the end of August 2016 from Lazy Daze RV in Sacramento, CA. During our PDI we asked about the noisy kitchen slide. We were told that it was normal. Called LPI and asked them about the sticking and clunking of the slide mechanism and they told me it was the seals and to dust them with talc.

Turns out this was not normal. The slide gears that keep the front and rear of the long kitchen slide were miss timed (not coming in and out together). When the single hydraulic ram pushed the slide in/out and is one tooth off the slide binds as the end away from the ram is either slightly ahead or behind the ram end of the slide. This causes the slide to jerk and catch as it is operated.

In our case it final bound to the point it broke off 2 teeth in the forward gear (closest to the ram). We were been able to push the rear of the slide manually past the missing teeth, but this is very inconvenient.

We are in the process of getting the OK for the warrantee repair from Heartland so we can have it fixed by the local Camping World in Tucson. This is where we are until the repairs can be made. What an inconvenience to us full timers.

The reason for this post is to tell folks to watch for signs of mis-timed slides and to get it checked before you are stuck in some far away location. We understand this is not a common problem. In our case we blame the dealer for not correct this and many other problems before delivery.

 

[danemayer]

Hi Macflys,

It's possible the drive gear jumped a tooth due to an alignment problem at the gears, rather than due to improper assembly the way you've described it. There have been 2 or 3 similar failures posted here over the past year. So you're correct that it's not a common problem. But if the root cause is not identified correctly, it could happen again.

If I recall correctly, on one rig, shims were required to get the gears to engage fully. On another, they were not aligned fully front-to-rear. You should discuss this with the technician and look at the parts with him before leaving the dealership.

 

[LBR]

Our new CY is also out of time....the ram side is always leading going out or coming in with the off-ram end playing catchup all the time. I shudder when it snaps and pops. This summer it will be into the dealership for repair.

 

[Toy1Ton]

doesent the factory check this before they ship it?

 

[danemayer]

Here's a picture of a Bighorn slide mechanism before the slide out room has been installed. The alignment is done early in the process before the mechanism is attached to the slide out room. If the room is misaligned, I think it's probably from something in this mechanism causing it to jump a cog after the initial build. For example, if the gear is not fully engaging the rack, it could jump out of alignment, or wear/break a tooth.

 

[Toy1Ton]

wouldent this show up in running the slides in and out a few times be for shipping?

 

[danemayer]

wouldent this show up in running the slides in and out a few times be for shipping?

From the 2 or 3 we've heard about here, apparently not.

 

[Macflys]

I think that these things happen, but this type of things should be corrected at the dealer pre-delivery. The dealer moved this rig several times from the lot to the service area, etc. They should have recognized the problem and fixed it prior to delivery. It turns out that we found several of these problems prior to delivery. Turns out they had to manually crank the bedroom slide because they had scavenged a part and never bothered to order a replacement. This and other things they should have found caused us a month waiting to get our rig. I really think this is a dealer problem and not a Heartland problem. Dan is correct this could have happened after it left the factory.

Here is what our modified gear looks like. When this happens I assure you everyone in the campground hears it.