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Slide room major fail...

Yahoo Message Number: 109655
First significant "House" problem with this new-to-us Coach.
We have a large living area slide, forward driver side, that's an electric "power Gear" unit. Others are all HWH Hydraulic. Yesterday when trying to retract it, the drive motor sheared its mounts. The slide started to retract - lifted slightly and moved in a couple inches - then bang, mounts sheared and of course all stop.
Following the emergency retract instructions, I cranked it back in and fixed a wrench on the actuating bar to hold it in, since the motor isn't available to act as a brake. So I'm good to go on the road.
We're currently in Key West, where there isn't much in the way of RV service. I've made an appointment at Fountain RV near Tampa to have it fixed when we go up there for the CCI Rally next month. But I'm curious if any members have had this break, and might know what caused it. The drive must have jammed, but I'd have expected a fuse to blow before the motor mounts broke. The rack and pinion slide drives are dry and rusty looking, despite my having sprayed them with WD-40 a time or two. Don't know how else I'd lube them, since they're pretty hard to get to.
Appreciate your thoughts...

Don Hutchins

'08 Allure 470, 40' tag, Cat C-9 w/Cat tranny
Don Hutchins
'08 Allure 470 #31613
40' w/tag, Cat C-9 & Cat tranny

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109659
That you were able to retract it manually leaves me wondering what blocked the slide motion enough to tear the mechanism off the mounts and still work manually. Kevin Waite is very good suggestion.

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109663
This is a CC production problem. Some kid put 1/2 in bolts when it needed 1 in or more. mine sheared the tips off. Got correct length bolts installed old system motor back still working.

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109666
Your slide must be the same as mine. When I got my coach I checked the 4 bolts that hold the gear box in place and they were not tight so I remove them one at a time cleaned them and applied blue loctite on the threads and got a few shear pins from Kevin Waite.
I keep the track inside clean, vacuum out when we vacuum the rug then apply a Silicone dry lubricant to the slide area to keep thing moving free.
Floyd 2006 Inspire 51744

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109667
Never have checked those screws but will now. I have had to change an inline fuse when slide wouldn't work. Fuse came from a hardware store as auto parts stores did not carry it. Also learned to change shear pins until getting the correct ones.

Kevin is an asset much appreciated.

Michael

2006 inpire 51748

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109673
Thanks for the responses, Gents.

I've looked again at my broken gearbox legs and sure enough, they sheared at the top of the internal mounting bolts, which clearly would have strengthened the mount IF they had been long enough to extend through the legs, which they were NOT. So I now understand the cause.
A new gearbox assembly mounted with proper length bolts should solve it, I'd think. BUT: I'm intrigued by the comments on "shear pins". I don't see any shear pins in this assembly - unless you're referring to the bolts that hold the motor drive shafts to the square drive shafts? I have a tractor mounted cultivator that uses threaded bolts as shear pins, so I guess that may be the case here, but these are pretty heavy bolts, and I'm having a hard time imagining that they would shear before other parts (like the motor mounts!) gave up first.
So: can you point me to the shear pins? Haven't ever attached a photo to a message on this forum, but will give it a try and see what happens... Appreciate all the advice.

Don Hutchins

'08 Allure 470 #31613, 40' tag, Cat C-9, Cat tranny
Don Hutchins
'08 Allure 470 #31613
40' w/tag, Cat C-9 & Cat tranny

Re: Slide room major fail... [1 Attachment]

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109679
Don,

when I look at the picture you posted it appears (to me) that the bolt broke just as it entered the part as it enters the motor housing. Is that correct? Would stronger bolts eliminate this? It does not appear that the housing would allow a longer bolt to be installed.

I think that I along with others will be checking these motors mounting very soon.
Thanks for the picture.

Dave


07 Country Coach Allure 430 #31495 12 Jeep GC Toad

Mountains of So Cal and
Henderson, Nev
Dave & Jodi
2007 CC Allure 40’ Tag #31495
2012 Jeep GC
Big Bear Lake, Ca & Henderson, Nev

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109681
Don

I bet 1 or 2 of the bolts unscrewed and fell out and the box just turned. I went out and looked at mine and they left out all the rug around the gear box that makes it nice. On the PS side I had to cut out part of the wall to get to the bolts but I could see on the gear box side it had been moving so the only way to get to the bolts was to do some cutting of the plywood wall and got about 1 to 2 turns on all 4 bolts.
Floyd 2006 Inspire 51744

Re: Slide room major fail... [1 Attachment]

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109684
If they are threated all the way you probably have the wrong bolts. Having been through this as a slow learner, get the right bolts from Kevin. All our slide issues ended when we used the right bolts.

Re: Slide room major fail... [1 Attachment]

Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109691
Dave,

The bolt didn't break. The gearbox mounting "legs" that the bolts screw into sheared off at the top of the bolts. Not surprising, because it's either aluminum or pot metal, and wouldn't have much shear strength without the bolt thru it's length. I'm guessing there should be a 1" bolt in these holes, but the bolts used at the factory appear to be only about ½" long. If you look at the first reply to my initial message, that was the problem in that case, and longer bolts were used to re-assemble the unit. Apparently that's the solution. But I need a new gearbox.
Not going to find a solution here in Key West, so I'm going to have it replaced at Fountain RV in a couple weeks. Meanwhile, we've got a narrow living area. No big deal.
Thanks again to all of you for the helpful comments.
Don
Don Hutchins
'08 Allure 470 #31613
40' w/tag, Cat C-9 & Cat tranny

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109692
Whatever the diameter of the bolt is take that times 1.5 and that is how much depth of threads needs to be threaded in the threaded hole for maximum strength.

Ie, 1/2 dia bolt = 3/4 inch of thread depth.

Mikee

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109693
The motors are not that hard to replace. Get the model number off the side and you can find replacements on eBay. Get prepared they are not cheap about 5-6 hundred if I remember. Had to buy one that was running slow. Mine keep blowing fuses until I modified the control panel.
Mike

2006 Inspire

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #12 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109694
I Have been reading the post for the slide motor and gearbox and was going to dig into my coach and inspect them. After reading the owners guide to find out where they are located, I noticed a "note" that the Allure 470 Crane Prairie has two motors on the living room slide and to contact CC as to how to manually retract this model. Has anyone with a Crane Prairie experienced and problems with their unit? Thanks in advance!

Dennis Loving 2009 Allure 470 Crane Prairie 31700

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #13 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109695
Don,

Thanks for the info. With your explanation and the picture I understand what I was looking at on the picture.

Was it you or someone else that said that getting to the bolt head to tighten or changing the bolts to a longer one. there is no access to this area without cutting a hole in the plywood? Thanks

Dave

Dave & Jodi
2007 CC Allure 40’ Tag #31495
2012 Jeep GC
Big Bear Lake, Ca & Henderson, Nev

Re: Slide room major fail... [1 Attachment]

Reply #14 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109696
just use some washers to reestablish proper clearance then use correct bolt size . mine is still working great after 2 years.

2007 allure

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #15 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109706
Those are the shear pins holding the square tube onto the shaft. They should break before anything else. In my experience, the shear pin is threaded only on the ends and center of the shear pin is not threaded. It's my understanding that this avoids wobble which causes breaking too early.

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #16 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109707
It always good to carry at least six of these shear bolts & nuts as spares. I do always have these "OEM" parts IN STOCK if anyone with a Power Gear System is in need.

Kevin Waite

541-953-6162 (Cell)
kvn.wt.7629@...

Re: Slide room major fail...

Reply #17 –
Yahoo Message Number: 109759
Shear Bolts

On Monday, January 30, 2017 8:07 PM, "Kevin Waite angel7629@... [Country-Coach-Owners]"  wrote:

It always good to carry at least six of these shear bolts & nuts as spares. I do always have these "OEM" parts IN STOCK if anyone with a Power Gear System is in need.

Kevin Waite

541-953-6162 (Cell)
kvn.wt.7629@...