Slide Out Sluggish

[Russ Mann]

Want to see how widespread this problem with the DS Bedroom slide is on the 2006 Monterey 40'.
We re-carpeted the coach this last week and when removing the bed found a few problems that were causing the bed slide to be very slow when either extending or retracting.

The underside of the storage compartment under the bed has 2 sets of 2 rollers designed to keep the bed storage box elevated above the carpet ( the bedroom floor is carpeted under the bed) and assist the movement of the side in and out. Each of these rollers has 2 brass rollers that make contact with the underside of the plywood which forms the storage box. This is not too intelligent in my opinion having plywood roll over brass rollers. In my case the rollers chewed up the plywood to a depth of 3/8". The fix was to fasten 1/8" steel straps to the bottom of the plywood and relocate the rollers to a place where the plywood was not torn up. Some may say we had too much weight in the storage box but I don't agree. Brass to wood is a bad design IMO.

When having everything in the bedroom removed I noticed that the rear most slide roller was at an angle (not parallel to the underside of the slide) and that the rubber covering had migrated off the right hand edge of the roller. It looks like the bearing on the right side of the roller is destroyed. I will replace the roller as soon as it arrives. BCS has the roller only and both REV and VerulinksRV have the complete assembly. Roller cost is around $26.00 (w/rubber sleeve) and the assembly 08410759 is $83.48 or $75.13.

I wanted to inform anyone that if your slide is sluggish to check this out before it jams in the plywood and your slide won't move.

 

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Russ,
Are you sure the rollers aren't supporting the slide itself? If so, metal or dylrin is needed for the rollers to ride on or the problem will re-occur. (I'm having trouble picturing a system where the rollers are just supporting the drawers). See http://beaveramb.org/acadp_listings/slide-sag-remedy/ for added info.
Steve

[Russ Mann]

Steve,
There are 2 completely different sets of rollers. The rubber coated ones as shown in photo 2 and 3 support some of the weight of the slide. These are the ones in the article you referenced and are not digging into the underside of the slide itself. The fix referenced in the article is an excellent one but that is not the problem I experienced.

The rollers that are under the bed storage box are the ones I wanted to make BAC members aware of. There are 2 of them, they are brass and the plywood rides directly on them. They take some of the weight of the bed and the items we store in the compartment under the bed. The rollers dug into the bottom side of the plywood adding friction to the slide movement instead of helping it.

Thanks for the article link, I'll save it in case I have that problem.

[Russ Mann]

You can't see these rollers unless you remove the bed. They are only about 3/4" tall and sink into the carpet when screwed down. You should have an even gap of about 1/2" between the bottom of the bed storage compartment and the carpet. If the gap is uneven or non-existent then the roller(s) are digging into the bottom of the plywood. If you can get a mirror and flashlight to peer into the gap (slide extended) and see saw dust or wood slivers then you know you have a problem.

[Roy Warren Co-Admin]

Russ and Steve,
It is these types of rollers that Roy Mueller came up with a solution once the hard rubber had become distorted or torn.  He took heavy duty 1 1/4" PVC pipe and pressed it onto the rollers.  This formed a much better roller than the original and I have used them on my front passenger slide.  If you can access the rollers, they come out of the bracket like a toilet paper bar, into the roller and can then be removed from the bracket.  We had to use heavy duty long (about 2 feet) screwdriver like pry bars and it takes some leverage to move the piston into the roller.  This is a much cheaper fix than new rollers.
Roy