What broke on your last trip?

[Camp CA]

Extended service plan?............have a 6-year $0 deductible plan for my Montana and used it once for a black tank valve / cable replacement. Luckly, that was the only repair in 18 years on 3 Keystone fifth wheel trailers.

[prndl]

Pulled out of Needles Ca onto I40 and just after crossing the state line we hit some serious whop-de-doos, felt like the trailer and truck lifted off the ground. A little ways down the road and I noticed the generator cover was lifting in the truck bed so we pulled over. We were on a tilt to the passenger side and my wife said "that seems like a lot of water coming out of the bottom of the trailer belly"
I looked and it had a blue tint to it. Only had about 8 gallons in the tank during traveling but I guess it was time.
#1 Black tank split
Got to next camp and noticed a funny smell, I thought oh no, the black tank is really gone and we are going to pollute the campground. Traced the smell the next day, strong in the garage but really strong at night on the right side of the bed when the slide is out. Checked in the Drivers side propane cabinet and it was strong there. Opened the battery bay and checked the batteries. Yup, two of the 6V batteries had gone dry. Continued on with the remaining bank of two 6V on to Colorado.
#2 Dry Batteries need replacing
Was sitting outside enjoying the evening and glanced at the trailer and the wheels. I noticed a piece of string or something from the road on one of the spokes of the rear wheel. Closer inspection showed that the wheel had actually cracked one of the spokes and it was all the way to the other side. Called GoodSam and they came to our camp within 1/2 hour and had the wheel changed for the spare.
#3 Broken Wheel Rim

Now home trying to get all the parts ordered and the repairs started.

[Lee-CI]

Been taking the MHC out two out of every 6 weeks since we purchased last December. Having read through this and other forums, we've counted our blessings on the lack of issues we've had. Well as the title stated, it's been a good run.


Returning home today from an extremely nice COE 70 miles south of us, we wound up in a convoy of six oilfield semi trucks and one dually pulling a small trailer. Three of the semis had turned onto the two lane highway in front of us and the dually and last three big rigs fell in behind us. Really nice highway and we all settled in at about 58 to 60 mph - just where I like to run so all was good to me. The last podunk little rural town we passed through before our turn off on our county road, the TST TPMS alarmed out, yet all four trailer tires were reading 123 psi. DW asked me why the TPMS was alarming and my only thought was that 3 of the 4 tires had edged up to 125º and I told her that i believed that I had programmed the high temperature alarm too low. At that point I really didn't think much of it as we only had another 3 miles to our turn-off onto our county road. About this time I also noticed the dually that was following me in our little convoy was nowhere in view. Well a mile before our turnoff the other dually came flying up at about Mach 2 blowing his horn. He pulled up along side us as we were getting ready to make our turn and he said he had one of our trailer tires! Uh - that can't be right, but we pulled over to the side of the road to find that yes indeed, we were pulling a three legged dog! 6 of the 8 lug studs had snapped off either flush or somewhat up inside the face of the drum hub. The other driver had kindly stopped and picked up our tire / wheel for us and helped load it into the bed of our truck.


Since I check all the lugs with a torque wrench on all tires prior to each leg of a trip - even short trips - this one baffles me. Something to keep in mind though, evidently if a TST 507 has total loss of signal - as in our case total loss of a tire / wheel, it will evidently continue reading out the last known pressure prior to the wheel departing the coach! Moral of this story? Well if your TPMS sounds an alarm, don't merely acknowledge the alarm just because you convince yourself that everything is hunky dorie and within parameters. Heed the alarm and PULL OVER and check everything out even if you are merely 3 or 4 miles from home.

[Foldbak]

Originally Posted by Lee-CI

Been taking the MHC out two out of every 6 weeks since we purchased last December. Having read through this and other forums, we've counted our blessings on the lack of issues we've had. Well as the title stated, it's been a good run.


Returning home today from an extremely nice COE 70 miles south of us, we wound up in a convoy of six oilfield semi trucks and one dually pulling a small trailer. Three of the semis had turned onto the two lane highway in front of us and the dually and last three big rigs fell in behind us. Really nice highway and we all settled in at about 58 to 60 mph - just where I like to run so all was good to me. The last podunk little rural town we passed through before our turn off on our county road, the TST TPMS alarmed out, yet all four trailer tires were reading 123 psi. DW asked me why the TPMS was alarming and my only thought was that 3 of the 4 tires had edged up to 125º and I told her that i believed that I had programmed the high temperature alarm too low. At that point I really didn't think much of it as we only had another 3 miles to our turn-off onto our county road. About this time I also noticed the dually that was following me in our little convoy was nowhere in view. Well a mile before our turnoff the other dually came flying up at about Mach 2 blowing his horn. He pulled up along side us as we were getting ready to make our turn and he said he had one of our trailer tires! Uh - that can't be right, but we pulled over to the side of the road to find that yes indeed, we were pulling a three legged dog! 6 of the 8 lug studs had snapped of either flush or somewhat up inside the face of the drum hub. The other driver had kindly stopped and picked up our tire / wheel for us and helped load it into the bed of our truck.


Since I check all the lugs with a torque wrench on all tires prior to each leg of a trip - even short trips - this one baffles me. Something to keep in mind though, evidently if a TST 507 has total loss of signal - as in our case total loss of a tire / wheel, it will evidently continue reading out the last known pressure prior to the wheel departing the coach! Moral of this story? Well if your TPMS sounds an alarm, don't merely acknowledge the alarm just because you convince yourself that everything is hunky dorie and within parameters. Heed the alarm and PULL OVER and check everything out even if you are merely 3 or 4 miles from home.

WTH? That scares the crap out of me. What caused it? Lugs don't just snap off....

[RMcNeal]

That is scary. You'd think heat must be a factor, but 125 degrees is near to nothing for these wheels and tires.
You're very lucky your remaining tire on that side held the load!

[Lee-CI]

Originally Posted by Foldbak

WTH? That scares the crap out of me. What caused it? Lugs don't just snap off....

Indeed! Wish someone would have gotten a photo of the expression on my face when I walked back to the right rear axle.I'll share a more straight on photo of the hub if anyone wants to see better, but it's raining right now. I swear it looks like the nuts were over-torqued onto the studs though. I've always checked mine at 120 ft lbs with a calibrated torque wrench. Evidently it has scared the crap out of Keystone as well though. Second hand info as I had to jump on the tractor and start mowing as soon as we got the MHC unloaded from the trip. DW was on a mission to turn it in as a claim. Me - I had just planned on taking the hub off and use a 3 lb hammer and large drift punch to knock out the old studs, then go to O'Riliey's for replacements to be seated back in place with a hammer. Not a difficult job. With that said, I'm of half a mind to replace ALL the studs on the other three hubs as well. Imagine if one of the wheels on the DS had broken loose instead on our two lane roads.... That thought REALLY scares the crap out of me. I'll update on how things go.

[bshgto]

Originally Posted by Lee-CI

Indeed! Wish someone would have gotten a photo of the expression on my face when I walked back to the right rear axle.I'll share a more straight on photo of the hub if anyone wants to see better, but it's raining right now. I swear it looks like the nuts were over-torqued onto the studs though. I've always checked mine at 120 ft lbs with a calibrated torque wrench. Evidently it has scared the crap out of Keystone as well though. Second hand info as I had to jump on the tractor and start mowing as soon as we got the MHC unloaded from the trip. DW was on a mission to turn it in as a claim. Me - I had just planned on taking the hub off and use a 3 lb hammer and large drift punch to knock out the old studs, then go to O'Riliey's for replacements to be seated back in place with a hammer. Not a difficult job. With that said, I'm of half a mind to replace ALL the studs on the other three hubs as well. Imagine if one of the wheels on the DS had broken loose instead on our two lane roads.... That thought REALLY scares the crap out of me. I'll update on how things go.

After this post I don`t know if I should but my water pump died last trip

[Foldbak]

Originally Posted by bshgto

After this post I don`t know if I should but my water pump died last trip

Lol and no you shouldn't. But I really want more info on Lee's lugs. Keep us looped in please. #$% I'm leaving tomorrow night, I'm checking my nuts the old fashion way. Without a torque wrench

[DougVelting]

Man what a question this season...
I used to think to myself "what are these guys doin to their rigs" when i would hear the horror stories with the myriad of repairs that needed doing.
Then we drove from the east coast to Yellowstone...
We broke a leaf spring, a black tank support strut, lost a tire, popped an air bag, blew a radiator hose, and had 2 slide cables snap.
Talk about bein ready to give up. By the time we got to Yellowstone i didnt even care about seeing bison and old faithful, i just wanted a glass of bourbon and a nap lol

[smkn454 Mike]

We lost a leaf out of a spring pack. These were replaced last year and the dealer didn't replace the u-bolts with new ones & they came loose. Broke the center bolt & let everything get loose. So much for our "trusted" local dealer.

[Wheelhouse]

Well, we were at the top of the sky road in Yellowstone and the alternator light came on.
We made it back to town and found a auto parts store that had one in stock. Got it replaced and kept my fingers crossed and held my breath on the way home.

[Camp CA]

Maybe off topic.............but what torque wrench do you use to tighten wheel lugs? I was considering a eTORK Click-Style with 1/2" Drive 50-250 ft/lbs 20.5 inch long. Is the 1/2" drive large enough and 20.5" length long enough?

[Carl n Susan]

Originally Posted by Camp CA

Maybe off topic.............but what torque wrench do you use to tighten wheel lugs? I was considering a eTORK Click-Style with 1/2" Drive 50-250 ft/lbs 20.5 inch long. Is the 1/2" drive large enough and 20.5" length long enough?

Definitely off topic but since you asked. I use the Harbor Freight 1/2" drive, 18" long, 150 Ft. Lbs., Torque Wrench. It is accurate enough for this purpose and has a life time warranty. On sale this weekend for $14.99. It has been more than adequate for years.
https://www.harborfreight.com/12-in-...Balance&plcc=N

[Lee-CI]

Well evidently Keystone is standing behind the repair for our broken wheel studs and ancillary damage. To be honest, they so far appear to be bending over backwards to make things right. We bought our MHC at RV Ranch Tyler in Tyler, TX. Keystone has already contacted them to facilitate the repairs, as they are an area Montana service center. As it is a two hour trip to Tyler from our place, the shop manager is getting with his GM to make a decision to send someone here to make the repairs or to load the 331RL onto a flatbed for transport of the entire unit to Tyler. Seems to me like making a mountain out of a mole hill, but evidently the service center has concerns with something being wrong with the axle. I already drove out the old wheel studs and have them in a bin for documentation purposes. To me the crown in the axle appears to be perfect, all brake components were in great shape, as were the wheel bearings.

I've convinced myself that when the wheel were originally mounted, they were way over torqued. Either that or the RV hauler that delivered the unit to Tyler over torqued them. Suffice it to say I've already ordered 24 new studs for the remaining three hubs.

In answer to an earlier question, since i have to do some serious wrench turning on farm equipment from time to time, I use a Harbor Freight ICON1/2 in. 50-250 ft. lb. Professional Torque Wrench since it comes with factory proof of calibration.


Anyways - I'll update as matters progress. Safe travels everyone.

[mlh]

I have a Icon torque wrench like above. It is a great tool and from the independent test I have seen it’s as good as a Snap on. Probably a little over kill for his lug nuts. A cheap one from Harbor Freight will do just fine. Buy one if you don’t like it take it back no questions ask. HF is a great company to work with.
Lynwood

[Foldbak]

I had two things break last weekend. Thing 1 was I lost power to several outlets. I discovered the 20amp GFI breaker was tripped. When I reset it the outlets are still dead. Thing 2 is a real crappy problem. it's 100 plus outside and both AC's are running. The black tank has pods and water in it. The trailer smells....I removed the stair vents and taped them closed. No change in smell. Flushed the tank for 3 hours, added water and a pod. No more smell. I flush the tank every time we go out. It seems to me that the only way order is going to escape is when flushing, draining or from the roof vent. I hate to have to do it but I think I'm going to have to force the issue and have them cut her open and do some major surgery. Something just doesn't smell right.

[Loui]

On our way to the National Rally in Goshen, just finished a 5000 mile trip to Newfoundland and back. The bedroom slide went out 6 inches and stopped. By luck we are at Shipshewana RV park and Service for 2 nights and luck would have it they had a replacement schwinteck motor in stock.
It seems every trip lately something goes wrong but reading through this post I have been more fortunate than some others.

[Turd Furgeson]

had a the nut come off the screw on the handle of the range top glass. found the nut on the floor and the screw in the stove tops pan. lucky or what?

now we did have a half gallon of chili in a plastic container decide to loose its lid somewhere around eagle river...was ugly for sure when i opened the door the first time.

[jimcol]

Originally Posted by Turd Furgeson

now we did have a half gallon of chili in a plastic container decide to loose its lid somewhere around eagle river...was ugly for sure when i opened the door the first time.

That is when it would be handy to travel with a dog! Just open the door and let him in.

[team bradfield]

Originally Posted by Turd Furgeson

had a the nut come off the screw on the handle of the range top glass. found the nut on the floor and the screw in the stove tops pan. lucky or what?

now we did have a half gallon of chili in a plastic container decide to loose its lid somewhere around eagle river...was ugly for sure when i opened the door the first time.

sending prayers for the chili