Unpleasant Trip: Need advice on some fixes.

[Roadtrek Adventuous RS1]

Originally Posted by GreatDane

Wow I didn't know they still made Bestine! Went through it by the gallons back in my pre-computer technical illustration days.

Trust me.... my wife knows what she's talking about.
Go to an art supply store or online.

It works EXTREMELY well, you don't need very much of this stuff. Just make sure you use in a well ventilated area and don't inhale the fumes. It's strong stuff.

[RED]

Try lots of vegetable oil fro, your kitchen.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by tydb

An out of balance tire should cause a shimmy all the time, not intermittently.

. . .

It depends on how bad it is out of balance.
Sometimes a bad tire will only vibrate at certain harmonics (speed).

[Mfm]

Originally Posted by Rok

So, the first piece of advice I need help with is:

What causes the front end of a Sprinter Van to shimmy? My wrist actually hurts from the steering wheel shaking.

It didn't shimmy all the time, but almost half the time. Roads that leaned to the right tended to cause it more. High winds tended to cause it more. And certain speeds tended to cause it more.

We had the front end aligned to correct the problem when the van was nearly new. That helped, but didn't entirely correct the problem. Then we found out that one of the original tires was "separating" and wearing badly (amazingly, the tire shop that did the alignment didn't notice the tire). We then had the front two tires replaced. This helped some, too, but the problem still persisted.

In this last trip, the problem was very pronounced in places.

Is this common? It appears that it was with the van from day one, and it continues to this day.

Any suggestions on the next steps to take?

Thanks in advance for any replies.

Hi ROK- I have a 2014 Sprinter van Agile and could only tell you that the shimmy is not normal.....sorry not to be of more help. Ours has had lots of issues, but never that.

[Mfm]

ROK...great photo!
Good luck with all the fixes.

[Roadtrek Adventuous RS1]

Originally Posted by Mfm

Hi ROK- I have a 2014 Sprinter van Agile and could only tell you that the shimmy is not normal.....sorry not to be of more help. Ours has had lots of issues, but never that.

Call these guys.... it's just a phone conversation... you might be glad you did.

https://www.hendersonslineup.com/

Super Steer history...

https://www.hendersonslineup.com/history

[booster]

Out of balance tires/wheels can manifest itself in a lot of ways, depending on how it is out of balance and the rest of the suspension.


What I don't normally hear out of balance described as is "shimmy", though, which would be the front wheels actually turning slightly each way very quickly and feeding that motion back into the steering wheel where you would feel it. Out of balance would normally be more of a bouncing or vibration type motion. It will usually be quite speed dependent with it often not even noticeable at many speeds and quite noticeable at others.


Vehicles with loose front end parts that also don't have enough toe in on the front wheels are particularly susceptible to shimmy, as are vehicles that have a tire with cord separation or shift.


If you have more than a couple of tries at wheel balancing and the problem doesn't go away, it very likely is not a wheel balancing issue, unless you have water in the tires. You will also be able to move the wheels around the vehicle without the problem going away or changing.



The poster who mentioned spin balancing on the vehicle is on the right track for most of these problem balancing issues, but it does not actually fix the problem in most cases. When spun and balanced on the vehicle, the balancing also included the brake drums and rotors, which I have found to very often be the culprit of hard to find vibrations, especially if they are at a fairly high speed. The drums and rotors are supposed to be balanced, but they don't do a very good job on most of them at the manufacturers, and AFAIK no mechanics every check them or balance them. Over the years I have fixed at least a dozen mystery vibration problems by balancing the rotors and drums on my old Snap-on static balancer. When I got my 1996 Buick Roadmaster wagon about 5 years ago it had a small but noticeable bounce going around 68-72mph. I balanced the tires a couple of times and moved the around to no avail. I then checked the front rotors and found on that was way out of balance. Drilled 3 balancing holes in it, essentially opposite of where the factory holes were and the bounce went away.



The problem with the spin on the vehicle balancing is that you have mated the wheel and rotor forever, so you can't rotate the tires unless you rebalance. Back in the day that was big money maker at the local garage. You also have to mark the lug nut position so the wheel goes on the same again if it is ever removed.

[Chrisbe28]

Hi, I had a similar issue on the van I bought- someone had duct taped all of the doors and vents and there was a awful looking residue that did not come off with Goo Gone, unfortunately. What DID work was this stuff called Awesome from the Dollar Store. Probably toxic as heck, but it worked with some effort.
Good luck

[Rok]

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

Does it matter what kind of fans you get? Those Caframo's are pretty pricey. I've seen 12V fans on Amazon and Walmart for $5-$25. No articulation at that price, but durability is my main concern.

Ours is a really cheap little thing, but it does the trick. The back is even open so I frequently have the fan hit my fingers when I reach to adjust it. Thankfully, the fan part is plastic and isn't very strong, so it doesn't hurt me or cut too much.

.....Rocky

[Rok]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

We have the rear sofa bed and the Maxxair fan located above. With crack-opened rear doors the fan on low cooling air is often sufficient to keep us comfortable.

To keep open and locked the door we use this Hein’s device - https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sprinter-NC....c100012.m1985

George, that is a neat add on piece. We have screened windows in the sleeping compartment so we wouldn't need that, but it looks neat.

Our favorite item that we found as an after market add on is the following:

https://www.sprinterstore.com/produc...indow-inserts/

They are great for when you store the rig, and sometimes for camping, and even though they say to NOT drive the vehicle when these are inserted, I do it anyway.

.....Rocky

[Rok]

Originally Posted by markopolo

Some tips from solo travelers might be really helpful in this topic. Rok was solo on this trip. I tend to push it the few times I've traveled solo. I drive too long and start looking for a place to stay too late. As the day progresses when traveling with my wife, we'll know approximately when we'll want to stop driving and she'll look for places on the route ahead and make phone calls if necessary. I get the easy part, just keep driving.

Maybe a bit more planning ahead is required when traveling solo ............. ? ?

Great point, Marco! That is exactly how it happened. I waited too long many days and had to take a "beggars can't be choosers" option--once that was a Walmart parking lot in 85 degree heat--it cooled down to that at 1:00 a.m.

.......Rocky

[Rok]

Originally Posted by ThroatwarblerMangrov

I have used De-Solv-It for sticky tape residue. I haven't found anything that removes old dried-up duct tape goo.

I found something called Duck Brand (with the same logo as Duck Tape brand duct tape) adhesive remover. The first listed thing it says on the label on the list of what it will remove is "duct tape". I'll let you know how well it works when I test it.

So far I've tested 70% Isopropyl Alcohol, which is so-so. 91% Isopropyl Alcohol which works a lot better, but still so-so. Goo-Gone, which is so-so unless you leave it soak for a while, then it works almost O.K. Then Goof-Off which really does the trick but smells to high heaven and is probably dangerous to the lungs plus it might damage paint, but it didn't seem to damage the paint on the Sprinter Van.

In the bull-pen for testing are White Gas aka "Naphtha" (I got Coleman Brand "Camping Stove Fuel"), 3-M brand adhesive remover--the standard stuff, not the super-duper stuff that will dissolve epoxy, and the Duck brand adhesive remover as mentioned earlier. I also got some more Goof-Off since so far it seems to work best.

At one point on the trip I was at a camping ground in Butte, MT and stepped on some gravel in the 90 degree heat where someone had spit their gum. So I got gum with gravel on my shoes. I used the alcohol to clean that mess up when I got home. (I put the shoes in a plastic bag.) The 91% stuff worked a LOT better than the 70% for that purpose.

.........Rocky

[Rok]

So, I have a few more questions for the experts out there, especially my fellow Great Wester's out there. I'm having trouble sourcing some of the parts I need:

(1) For the Skylight I think this is the one I need, but I'm not sure. I'm about 90% sure. Our "local" Camping World is 67 miles away, which is currently a 2 hour and 7 minute drive each way (according to Google). So, I really want to get my choice right, even though they say that if I buy it through their online store, I can return it to that brick and mortar store if it doesn't fit.

Here is what i think it is: https://www.campingworld.com/rv-skylight-sl1422w-white

I think Avanti and Davydd both replaced theirs, and maybe others have as well. If any of you happen to have the source for your replacement, I sure would appreciate any help you could provide. The one linked is supposed to be polycarbonate, which is supposedly stronger than the original. I hope so since my original one had several cracks in it, PLUS it leaked around the edges to boot.

(2) I also had one of the door-step mats come off in the wind. And the other is coming off due to a truck stop diesel nozzle not shutting off properly. The second one is right below the fueling hole and had come off before from a similar spill, so we pulled it off cleaned it up and replaced it, so I expect others have lost theirs as well. The other mat is torn and no longer serviceable.

I think this is the item I need:

"Corrugated Wide Rib" Rubber Runner Mats

Again, if any other Great Westers have had the same problem and have sourced this material before I would greatly appreciate any tips.

(3) The bathroom door also broke. It is connected by a latch at top, and by a magnet at the base. The magnet was screwed into a small piece of HDPE, but during the trip the magnet stripped out, causing the bathroom door to put extra stress on the upper latch and then to fly open. I then tied it with a piece of rubber.

Anyone else had this problem? If so, how did you solve it. I found a cutting board made out of similar material to the HDPE but it is really tough to cut (I still have some research to do on this), and the magnets look like the holder was screwed into the little piece of HDPE that was in turn screwed into the base of the fiberglass bathroom enclosure, then the magnet was super-glued into the holder. So, I might need to source the magnet holder and magnet, and that will be difficult. Again, any advice would be welcome.

I know that for all of these things, I can probably do something different from what was originally done, but I kind of want to try to repair it as was originally.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

.................Rocky

[avanti]

Originally Posted by Rok

So, I have a few more questions for the experts out there, especially my fellow Great Wester's out there. I'm having trouble sourcing some of the parts I need:

(1) For the Skylight I think this is the one I need, but I'm not sure. I'm about 90% sure. Our "local" Camping World is 67 miles away, which is currently a 2 hour and 7 minute drive each way (according to Google). So, I really want to get my choice right, even though they say that if I buy it through their online store, I can return it to that brick and mortar store if it doesn't fit.

Here is what i think it is: https://www.campingworld.com/rv-skylight-sl1422w-white

I think Avanti and Davydd both replaced theirs, and maybe others have as well. If any of you happen to have the source for your replacement, I sure would appreciate any help you could provide. The one linked is supposed to be polycarbonate, which is supposedly stronger than the original. I hope so since my original one had several cracks in it, PLUS it leaked around the edges to boot.

I actually haven't replaced mine yet. It is in pretty good shape and I was able to reset it pretty well. I am going to do so eventually, though. I was looking at this place:

RV Skylights, Square, Rectangular & Round.

The size isn't super critical, as long as it isn't too small. I think the above place will cut the flange to your specification--you just pick the bubble size. IIRC, DavyDD got his replacement gratis from Great West during a visit.

Don't forget to buy some Eternabond. You want both double-sided and single-sided tape.

(2) I also had one of the door-step mats come off in the wind. And the other is coming off due to a truck stop diesel nozzle not shutting off properly. The second one is right below the fueling hole and had come off before from a similar spill, so we pulled it off cleaned it up and replaced it, so I expect others have lost theirs as well. The other mat is torn and no longer serviceable.

I think this is the item I need:

"Corrugated Wide Rib" Rubber Runner Mats

Again, if any other Great Westers have had the same problem and have sourced this material before I would greatly appreciate any tips.

That happened on my old Airstream Interstate. I am pretty sure i found that stuff at Home Depot.

(3) The bathroom door also broke. It is connected by a latch at top, and by a magnet at the base. The magnet was screwed into a small piece of HDPE, but during the trip the magnet stripped out, causing the bathroom door to put extra stress on the upper latch and then to fly open. I then tied it with a piece of rubber.

Anyone else had this problem? If so, how did you solve it. I found a cutting board made out of similar material to the HDPE but it is really tough to cut (I still have some research to do on this), and the magnets look like the holder was screwed into the little piece of HDPE that was in turn screwed into the base of the fiberglass bathroom enclosure, then the magnet was super-glued into the holder. So, I might need to source the magnet holder and magnet, and that will be difficult.

I think we are going to need pictures to help you with that one. The bathroom doors evolved over the years.

[Chuck711]

My Rialta has 1 inch sheet foam Insulation on all the walls.

Does very good with Heat and cold.

I replaced Skylight that Leaked........... UV deterioration

Put the Skylight on top and had a 1/4 inch twist. Built that up with eternalbond

Then caulked , screwed down and over the Flange put Eternal Bond tape.

Leak solved

[Nic7320]

I've used kerosene to remove residue from duct tape, and was surprised how gentle it was on the paint. In a hurry, I had used duct tape to attach a "Wide Load" sign, and pretty much wrote off the paint job since it was an amateur job done in a driveway and was never wet-sanded nor did it have any clear-coat. But the kerosene didn't attack the paint at all, it looked like it may have actually nourished the paint. Fair warning; YMMV, new paints and clear-coats may be a lot different now. So with anything, try it in a door jamb first just to be safe.