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Post by dillonz on May 15, 2017 12:15:40 GMT -5
I have a 2007 KZ Sportsman 32' 5th wheel. I have owned it 2 years. I purchase it used, and from all intensive purposes it appeared to be in very good condition and well cared for. Last year I had a blow out on a perfectly good "looking" tire and during replacement of the tire learned all the tires were "Old" over 5 years so I replaced them all. After replacing the broken stud last year I noted the bearings were Chinese and this spring opted to replace all the bearings & races with Timkin. During this process I discovered cracks in the main frame beams above the spring attachments. Needless to say after searching the net it appears I have a frame mfg by Lippert and its a pretty well known fact there is a problem with their frames. Being a Mechanic by trade & a welder I have a plan in my mind as how to repair this but am wondering if there has been any recall, extension of warantee or any relief for this problem.. does anyone offer a kit with the proper thickness doublers precut? ETC... Shaking my head right now wondering how I missed this when I crawled all one this unit before I bought it.. & BTW I have never hauled anything in the toybox as of yet but was going to load my motorcycle soon.. not now.
Please direct me to repairs that have worked or links.
Thanks
Mike
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Post by jetzen on May 15, 2017 12:41:29 GMT -5
dillonz,
You are correct in assuming that the frames are made by Lippert. No there are no recalls that I know of and the only "common" problem I know of with Lippert frames on 5th wheels are inadequate/insufficient welds in the nose section of the frame causing "frame flex" resulting in inside walls to shift and break free and fiberglass exterior walls to crack by the bedroom slides.
Also you have had it for 2 years it is possible the frame cracks were not there when you purchased the trailer.
there is someone on this site that has had problems similar to what you are describing. they posted detailed photos on what they did to repair their frame. Possibly he/she will chime in. |
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Post by lynnmor on May 15, 2017 20:47:18 GMT -5
Lippert makes a patch that is welded over the cracks. I'm traveling for another week and don't have the information at hand, perhaps with enough searching you might find it.
There are several different causes of the cracks. It sounds like yours is caused by flexing above the spring mounts. Another problem is the cross members tend to punch thru the vertical portion of the I-beam as it tilts on curves. Both problems can be improved by installing side to side trusses such as the X-factor units from MorRyde. I made my own and you might have the ability to do it as well.
Lippert makes the majority of RV frames and the manufactures want the cheapest thing possible. I have welded my frame in four places, reinforced it in several ways and replaced absolutely everything below the frame. These things are not ready for prime time as shipped and I now look at trailers as a heap of parts with much assembly and improvement required.
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Post by Edd505 on May 16, 2017 12:44:22 GMT -5
dillonz,
You are correct in assuming that the frames are made by Lippert. No there are no recalls that I know of and the only "common" problem I know of with Lippert frames on 5th wheels are inadequate/insufficient welds in the nose section of the frame causing "frame flex" resulting in inside walls to shift and break free and fiberglass exterior walls to crack by the bedroom slides.
Any idea of how thick the wall is? I bought better mattress and had to move the headboard up, found it glued and stapled to the wall. I'll have to screw it back in place and don't want to reach the exterior wall. The "buttons" are more or less decoration holding the vinyl to the wood sub frame. |
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Post by jetzen on May 17, 2017 7:52:47 GMT -5
Edd505,
The wall board is about 1/16" thick and I would assume that the exterior fiberglass is about 1/4". The aluminum framing is either 2x2 or 2x3 depending on where it is used. the best I can tell you is to open a baggage door and measure the thickness, I think you will find 2 3/4" overall, but being that we are working on a slide wall it could be different.
Now here is an FYI. On the outside wall under the bedroom slide you will find a splice in the exterior fiberglass. This is a stress relief to keep the fiberglass from cracking because this is the point where the frame "flexes" the most. |
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Post by dillonz on May 17, 2017 10:37:13 GMT -5
Just doing some preventative MX on my 2007 KZ Sportsman...... New wheel bearings & seals::  |
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Post by dillonz on May 17, 2017 10:43:59 GMT -5
Then I noticed this >>>>>   AT ALL FOUR SPRING ATTACH SHACKLE POINTS... Sinking feeling sets in...  |
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Post by dillonz on May 17, 2017 10:50:44 GMT -5
Quick check of the internet, and I discover its a pretty "Common" problem with this frame manufacture.. what the hell?? Having a few years of fabrication experience I can see the design flaws that lead to these cracks... asking myself WHY?? oh WHY??? Anyway after reviewing several other repair posts & pictures & finding a crack above the pivot link I decided on a full length doubler that ties into the upper floor support angles...
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Post by dillonz on May 17, 2017 10:58:32 GMT -5
Removing cheezy support angles & frame clean up....    cleaned & welded cracks... |
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Post by dillonz on May 17, 2017 11:05:24 GMT -5
I had not haul anything in the Toy-Box as of yet but had installed a boot for my bike last year.. kinda glad I found these.. BEFORE I put anything heavy in it! Looked at a patch/doubler based on some photos I saw... but decided to go with a full length doubler & new spring reinforcement angles...    ot this fitted & tacked in but it got to late to finish.. |
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Post by lynnmor on May 17, 2017 18:16:18 GMT -5
Add the side to side trusses across the spring hangers that I mentioned earlier. I hope this link works so you can see some of the things that I did to make a trailer useable. s1270.photobucket.com/user/lynnmor/library/ |
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Post by myredracer on May 19, 2017 18:10:03 GMT -5
Lynnmor has pretty much summed up why these develop fatigue cracks where they do, and what you can do. One major factor IMO is that every time you turn a tight corner, including backing into a site, is that each axle has a different turning radius and one set of tires gets literally dragged across the pavement, putting tremendous lateral force on the frame above the spring hangers. Over time and enough miles, these cracks are almost predictable. Perhaps plug welds along the fish plate to the frame might have helped? The crossmember Lynnmor mentions are small dimension like 2x2 (maybe more on that taller frame) and it may help to add gussets. I would re-install the gussets but run them closer towards the top of the beams or have also seen a plate perpendicular to the beams, same width as the flanges, running from the top to bottom flanges and welded all around. We've seen serious frame issues in the past and know what Lippert's frames are like. Next time you make a tight turn and can stop and get out, take a look at the wheels and you'll be shocked at how much the camber changes from a static position as you can see in this photo of a previous trailer we owned. I once temporarily attached a camcorder to the underside of the frame and couldn't believe how much the spring hangers flopped left/right every time I made a turn as if they were made from plastic. There needs to be some industry regs. for frames from SAE , ANSI or whoever.  Gil, Deb and Dougal the Springer Spaniel 2014 KZ Spree 262RKS 2009 F250 |
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Post by lynnmor on May 30, 2017 10:59:56 GMT -5
Found the information from Lippert. sorry for the delay. link |
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Post by jetzen on May 31, 2017 7:16:14 GMT -5
Found the information from Lippert. sorry for the delay. linklynnmor'
your link doesn't seem to work
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Post by lynnmor on May 31, 2017 7:31:25 GMT -5
Found the information from Lippert. sorry for the delay. linklynnmor'
your link doesn't seem to work
It works for me, perhaps you don't have support for a .pdf file. Would someone else give it a try and report back? |
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Post by jetzen on May 31, 2017 8:55:39 GMT -5
lynnmor,
must have been on my end works fine now, when I tried it before the computer kept coming up with 404error can't display page |
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