Warning concerning 3400RL

[richfaa]

Old GI.take a look at that list and see if there are things on there that the dealer can address on the PDI...Like shower drain replacement, Check for bolt heads under carpeting, etc.. There will be plenty left over for you to do.. We are still having fun cleaning up after the old world crafstmen.

Rich& Helen N.Ridgeville,Ohio.

F-350SD, Lariat, V-10,4:30 Diff, tow command Long bed, Crew Cab Dually, 06 3400RL
Mor-Ryde Pin Box

[indy roadrunner]

I can see it now, Ozz and Rich have their trailer's stripped down to the frame rebuilding it from the ground up all the time cussing the "old world craftsmen." I'm sorry guys, I appreciate your attention to detail. Since I am not going to be using mine as a full time unit some of these things just don't seem that important. A lot of this stuff you guys are finding are not jumping out at me on my unit - however I will say this, I have not dropped the under belly to look up in there.

Phill & Gladys
Sometimes me sits and thinks - sometimes me just sits.
06 GMC 2500HD Duramax 4x4
06 Montana 3400RL
Bichon - CEO

[Ozz]

Phill,
Don't drop it, it is a Royal pain to get it back up there, Sue and I spent 3 hard hours replacing ours, I added some things, and the holes didn't line up, I hated to drill new holes, so I used the old ones, I added some of the same foil insulation, as well as stuck some Fiberglass batts on the outside of the frame, where there is NO insulation.
These builders built a great RV, but there were some things they really should have done better.
I'm about done, we need to head for Colorado!
Take care, Ozz

'07 3400RL 2nd RTU
2 Golf Cart batteries 3,000 watt inverter, automatic transfer switch
Honda 2000 Generator, Maytag's with 220 Dryer
Stationary domed Sat. dish, LCD 12 Volt Amp gauge, LCD Tank Monitor
3 added 120 volt outlets, On Board Air; 12 Volt Viair 450C compressor
2006 Ford PSD 4x4 Off Road Lariat, Hadley Air Horns, Truck inverter with 110 volts: laptop, Color Backup camera, Firestone air bags,Husky air ride roller hitch, Awning lock

[Parrothead]

Phil I have to agree with you. While I admire what Rich and Ozz have done, I believe in the saying, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". Our unit is now 2 years old and we have yet to have some of the problems discussed on the forum. After 2 hard years of use our button on the microwave broke about 3 weeks ago and we have not received the replacement part yet. I have to call again in the morning. We were lucky to get the horrible remote thermostat replaced early on, we replace the DVD not even thinking about having Keystone do anything. We really have not had many problems. We love our 3400 and plan on full timing in it.
Happy trails......................

Sue and Ed Rowe
Hemet California

2005 3400RL

2006 GMC 3500 Dually, D/A, Crew Cab, Long Bed

[richfaa]

If we used this camper like we used the previous campers I don't think we would be doing all this preventative stuff . I am trying, like Ozz,and by the way I am not even in then same class as Ozz, to prevent problems from occurring. I know the value of preventative maintenance I lived by it for 37 years in your good old FAA. You can by taking preventative action greatly reduce or eliminate problems from occurring. If it isn't broke don't fix it works in general but We have always looked at problems from the worst case basis.If it can break what will the results be and what can we do to prevent it from breaking.. Worst case problem solving may have saved 49 lives in that commuter aircraft incident. Could a Aircraft get on the wrong runway, if it did what would most likely happen and what can we do to prevent that from happening... You can bet that there is a team doing that exercise right now..been there ,,done that.. We are correcting known issues..replacing the oven latch..before it breaks...Dressing up loose wiring before it shorts out. replacing valve stems before they cause a flat. Replacing the shower drain before it leaks. All this and we have not yet had a single major problem with our 4 month old 3400 and I think that the probabilities that we will have gone down..just my opinion...means nothing..

Rich& Helen N.Ridgeville,Ohio.

F-350SD, Lariat, V-10,4:30 Diff, tow command Long bed, Crew Cab Dually, 06 3400RL
Mor-Ryde Pin Box

[boat391]

one more thing to look at guy's I posted this before but in a different thread take a look at you tv antenna mine was laying down on the roof with the thin tin ends rubbing on my roof I cut some plastic hose and glued it to the ends so it wouldn't rub a hole in the roof also the base that the tin pieces go into was laying on the roof too I can only imagine what is is doing to the roof at hwy speeds so i made a rubber pad and glued it to it too I found it buy mistake was just up washing the roof off and found this project so please if you have a moment take a look it better than finding it out the hard way

tim ford

[Ozz]

Rich,
Well put. I am just a fix it and make it better freak. Sue and I built, wired, plumbed and finished our house, and I have been adding 'stuff' to it ever since, the next owner will have no clue as to what all the gadgets and wires go to and do. People who aren't handy are really better off, saves a ton of money.
I really enjoy the work, our first Two TT's were also rebuilt, first used 22' one, actually needed it. The second, a new '04 Keystone Sprinter didn't, but I tore it apart anyway and put it back together with my Mod's.
It isn't for everyone.
Tim, I will check the antenna out, thanks for the heads up. That makes sense about the sharp edges rubbing.
Another item on my list...........
Ozz

'07 3400RL 2nd RTU
2 Golf Cart batteries 3,000 watt inverter, automatic transfer switch
Honda 2000 Generator, Maytag's with 220 Dryer
Stationary domed Sat. dish, LCD 12 Volt Amp gauge, LCD Tank Monitor
3 added 120 volt outlets, On Board Air; 12 Volt Viair 450C compressor
2006 Ford PSD 4x4 Off Road Lariat, Hadley Air Horns, Truck inverter with 110 volts: laptop, Color Backup camera, Firestone air bags,Husky air ride roller hitch, Awning lock

[richfaa]

Will also check the roof antenna thing..Just will take a few mins and a simple fix..if needed. Oh and for the record we did not drop our entire underbelly. Started to when we were running the Rv cam cable but it was to much of a job. We did pay particular attention to wires in the underbelly at the factory after there was a fire on the forum because of improper insulation and noted they had insulated them where they went through the frame. We dropped a portion of one side and looked around in there with a flashlight and it looked pretty good although some "stuff" did fall out.

Rich& Helen N.Ridgeville,Ohio.

F-350SD, Lariat, V-10,4:30 Diff, tow command Long bed, Crew Cab Dually, 06 3400RL
Mor-Ryde Pin Box

[yvonnenid]

Rich and Ozz,
Keep up the great work! We have learned so much about our coach from you guys! Not only that, but it is good to know someone is ready to alert us about another of the "old world craftsmen'" boo boos!


06 3670 Montana, MorRyde suspension, King Dome Satelite, 5500 onan propane generator
05 dodge 4x4 turbo diesel, six speed

[richfaa]

Also took a look at the antenna issue reported by boat391..All is well with mine but i can see what boat391 is talking about.His was perhaps a defect in manufacturer/assembly..Does not hurt to look. By the way..On the bike rack issue..Drove two bikes around for 500 miles on the ladder , well tied down and although I do not like the arrangement the ladder suffered no ill effects..well tied down is the secret word..

Rich& Helen N.Ridgeville,Ohio.

F-350SD, Lariat, V-10,4:30 Diff, tow command Long bed, Crew Cab Dually, 06 3400RL
Mor-Ryde Pin Box

[richfaa]

Rats...another thing to check for..We were in the process of wireing in a video switch to make this "system" work like it should.. we aborted the attempt because of fustration in attempting to figure out this wiring nightmare..We did however find the following.The connector on the RG-6 cable in the entertainment center of the 3400 came off in my hand..upon inspection we noted that the connector was not properly installed.It is hard to explain on the forum but it was a grounding issue (and this is my field) I thought well it is just this one connector so I pulled the other side off ....same thing..that is two out of two..I pulled another one 3 out of three.My confidence level just went to zero in the connector connections in the video system. Don't know who provides the cables a vendor of a skilled keystone craftsman but they have no idea of what they are doing. You would just have to look at the instructions on how to install a RG-_6 or RG-59 Connector on a cable and know that these are not installed properly.It could result in a poor quality picture on sat or a poor quality picture on the lower TV channels..2,3,4.. (I have those problems) I now have to check out every connector which means I have to replace every connector..just spent 38.46 in connectors to do so...another little thing. Oh the RG-6 cable is the lowest quality Rg-6 you can possibly aquire..I would consider replacing all of it that you can .. Isn't this fun...

Rich& Helen N.Ridgeville,Ohio.

F-350SD, Lariat, V-10,4:30 Diff, tow command Long bed, Crew Cab Dually, 06 3400RL
Mor-Ryde Pin Box