Antenna crank falls off

[lkennerly]

The metal rod for the antenna crank doesn’t have a flat spot for the set screw to tighten against. We currently are using vise grips. Any suggestions?

[Montana Man]

A C clamp might work but vise grips are probably better. Or you could bend the rod 90 degrees to create its own handle.

Or, file a small flat spot on the rod for the set screw. It wouldn't take much.

[BB_TX]

You could use a drill to make a shallow depression in the shaft for the set screw. But you might have to file a small flat spot first to get the drill bit to stay in place.

[rohrmann]

Might just need to get some new parts and make it work as it was designed. http://www.winegard.com/sensar/sensar-parts

[timdenchanter]

We’re still dragging our 2007 Montana 3475RLS around the country. We were preparing to leave our campsite in Texas recently. The slides were all retracted when a neighbor reminded me that my TV antenna was still raised. I went inside, crawled across the bed and started turning the crank in the ceiling to lower the antenna when the crank fell off along with the spring and rotator disc. I got an Allen wrench and put the whole thing back together. The rotator disc somehow got misaligned so when I cranked the antenna down, it landed on top of the air conditioner fairing on the roof. After three more unsuccessful attempts to get it right, I decided to climb up on the roof and manually align the antenna for storage.

With that done, I began to climb down the ladder on the back of the trailer but missed the second rung. My foot went through the big rear window shattering the glass and ripping the day/night shade. I went inside to survey the damage and clean up the mess. While picking up glass shards, I gashed my hand on a piece of the broken window. It bled profusely and made a new spot on the carpet. I retrieved a can of spray-on carpet cleaner and thoroughly doused the blood stains. I sat there on the floor waiting for the strong chemical to take effect and got pretty high on the fumes. I stumbled out the door, fell down the steps but broke the fall with my face on the asphalt.

On wobbly legs, I moved to the truck and backed up to hitch up but the hitch failed to engage. I pulled forward a bit and backed up harder with the same result as before. I pulled forward again and got out of the truck to see what was going on. After opening the hitch jaws, I once more backed up and got the hitch under the king pin. I realized I had not connected the umbilical cord to the truck so I hopped out and took care of that detail then slammed the tailgate shut. I tried to drive forward but the trailer did not move. I got out and raised the landing gear then got back in the truck. When I pulled forward, the trailer fell off the hitch and landed on the bed rails and crushed the tailgate. I lowered the landing gear and finally got the king pin secured to the hitch.

After raising the landing gear again, I pulled forward a bit before noticing a scraping noise. It was a struggle but I was finally able to straighten the rear stabilizers enough to crank them up into traveling position. Then I got back in the truck and pulled out. I jerked the 50-amp power cord out of the pedestal with very little damage to the cord. I rolled it up and tossed it in the basement and pulled out again. The neighbors were pointing, waving and laughing so I went back and pushed the entry steps up into traveling position before once again heading for the park exit as the neighbors continued to roll on the ground laughing.

My question is this: Is there a better way to secure the crank to the antenna raising/lowering system?

[lkennerly]

Originally Posted by timdenchanter

We’re still dragging our 2007 Montana 3475RLS around the country. We were preparing to leave our campsite in Texas recently. The slides were all retracted when a neighbor reminded me that my TV antenna was still raised. I went inside, crawled across the bed and started turning the crank in the ceiling to lower the antenna when the crank fell off along with the spring and rotator disc. I got an Allen wrench and put the whole thing back together. The rotator disc somehow got misaligned so when I cranked the antenna down, it landed on top of the air conditioner fairing on the roof. After three more unsuccessful attempts to get it right, I decided to climb up on the roof and manually align the antenna for storage.

With that done, I began to climb down the ladder on the back of the trailer but missed the second rung. My foot went through the big rear window shattering the glass and ripping the day/night shade. I went inside to survey the damage and clean up the mess. While picking up glass shards, I gashed my hand on a piece of the broken window. It bled profusely and made a new spot on the carpet. I retrieved a can of spray-on carpet cleaner and thoroughly doused the blood stains. I sat there on the floor waiting for the strong chemical to take effect and got pretty high on the fumes. I stumbled out the door, fell down the steps but broke the fall with my face on the asphalt.

On wobbly legs, I moved to the truck and backed up to hitch up but the hitch failed to engage. I pulled forward a bit and backed up harder with the same result as before. I pulled forward again and got out of the truck to see what was going on. After opening the hitch jaws, I once more backed up and got the hitch under the king pin. I realized I had not connected the umbilical cord to the truck so I hopped out and took care of that detail then slammed the tailgate shut. I tried to drive forward but the trailer did not move. I got out and raised the landing gear then got back in the truck. When I pulled forward, the trailer fell off the hitch and landed on the bed rails and crushed the tailgate. I lowered the landing gear and finally got the king pin secured to the hitch.

After raising the landing gear again, I pulled forward a bit before noticing a scraping noise. It was a struggle but I was finally able to straighten the rear stabilizers enough to crank them up into traveling position. Then I got back in the truck and pulled out. I jerked the 50-amp power cord out of the pedestal with very little damage to the cord. I rolled it up and tossed it in the basement and pulled out again. The neighbors were pointing, waving and laughing so I went back and pushed the entry steps up into traveling position before once again heading for the park exit as the neighbors continued to roll on the ground laughing.

My question is this: Is there a better way to secure the crank to the antenna raising/lowering system?

Hey, you need to sell that story!

[jeffba]

The video would have gone viral

[Montana Man]

Mine fell off too so I called Keystone about it. They said no problem even though it was two years out of warranty. They dispatched one of their mobile repair strike teams and one hour later, problem solved.

Now I understand how their repair was effective and will last a good long time. But the DW just can't get used to the look of vice grips being in place of the previous handle.