The Craftsman drill isn't strong enough to lift

[Johnna]

Well, we got the genie and we went out and bought the Craftsman drill that many of you seemed to like. Boy was I stoked!  Unfortunately, it wasn't strong enough to lift our top. We've got a 5 year old new-to-us Palomino 4127 (roof about 12 feet with the bunks closed) with an air conditioner. The drill will lower the roof, but not move it up. Any suggestions? The drill will be going back this weekend. Obviously, we don't have enough torque (drill supposedly has 410 ft/lbs). This is our first camper and we haven't taken it out yet. I know we can do without the drill, but I have some issues and that drill will keep me from being dependent on anyone else if I want to go off on my own.  Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[Recumbentman]

are you referring to the 19.2v drill with a 1/2 chuck  :confused:
make sure you are using the low torque setting  

[Johnna]

are you referring to the 19.2v drill with a 1/2 chuck  :confused:
make sure you are using the low torque setting  

Hi, thanks for answereing. Yes, I'm referring to the 19.2v. My husband did this while I was at work. He said he tried without any luck, and he said he did try the low setting and right on up when that didn't work to no avail. I can't understand why it doesn't work. Surely our roof is no heavier than anyone elses?

[treephiz]

did you have your lift system checked?  It might be that your lift system is in need of a good lubing.

[wavery]

That's the one that we used. It lifted our 12' rood with A/C with ease. The battery just went weak during a single lift and sometimes I had to use 2 batteries.

You may want to lube youR lift system. If that drill wont lift your roof, your roof is either a lot heavier than ours or maybe your crank ratio is less. It took 70 turns to lift our roof. If it only take 35 cranks to lift your roof (assuming it's close in weight) your roof would take double the torque to turn.

This baby should do the trick but it's 110V.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=97622

[jbalash]

You said he tried the "low setting and right on up to no avail" Was he adjusting the clutch or the torque setting?

Jim

[whitestar505]

Johnna,
 
    I been here and done this... You will need to get a drill that has at least 495 inch pounds. Try to get one that has steel gears and not plastic gears.
Yes, they are out there, but not cheap. Most that fit this spec are 18 volts or more. Good luck!
 
 

Well, we got the genie and we went out and bought the Craftsman drill that many of you seemed to like. Boy was I stoked! Unfortunately, it wasn't strong enough to lift our top. We've got a 5 year old new-to-us Palomino 4127 (roof about 12 feet with the bunks closed) with an air conditioner. The drill will lower the roof, but not move it up. Any suggestions? The drill will be going back this weekend. Obviously, we don't have enough torque (drill supposedly has 410 ft/lbs). This is our first camper and we haven't taken it out yet. I know we can do without the drill, but I have some issues and that drill will keep me from being dependent on anyone else if I want to go off on my own. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Thanks!

[Johnna]

Thanks for all the help, everyone. I can't say how helpful everyone has been and it's great to have that kind of support as a newbie.
I guess we are going for a higher torque drill. My husband said he did try the torque setting, not the clutch. He called the dealer yesterday and the dealer said we'd never that that roof lifted with a drill...and it's not that I don't believe the dealer but...well, I think it merits another try with a higher torque drill.
Looking at all the replies, and putting the info together, it does take us 34 turns to get the roof up, so the reply saying it would take more torque makes more sense. However, I can't see the torque for the drill I got sent a link to, so we'll swap the Craftsman for one double the torque and $50 more at Sears.
Another option is to have a factory winch installed that would be battery powered (dealer) and that will cost us about $400 including labor. Alot of money I hate to spend but really kind of necessary in my case, but I want to explore all options first. If anyone has any feedback about that, please bring it on! The dealer says if the winch were to fail (or the battery that will run it) it can be cranked down, but it would take a long time. It seems like I saw something online that allowed you to crank their winch down with a drill if you needed to. I'll research more before taking the plunge but definelty would love to hear from all of you on it.
Thank you again!

[He Ruide]

He called the dealer yesterday and the dealer said we'd never that that roof lifted with a drill...and it's not that I don't believe the dealer but...well, I think it merits another try with a higher torque drill.

My lift mechanism is different that yours but I have an Evolution 3 with a 12 foot roof with an AC and my DeWalt XRP (DC 920 KA) has no problems lifting my roof. As others have said, I do recommend that you lube your lift system.

Now, I hate to think that the dealer is saying you can't use a drill because he wants to sell you an electic winch. Many of us like using a multi-purpose drill because of all the DIY projects at home.  Plus in addition to the roof we can use it to lower/raise stablizers, tongue jack and a BAL leveler if you have one.  Of course if you memtion this to your dealer, he will tell you that he can get you electric stablizers and a tongue jack  

Ruide

[Johnna]

My lift mechanism is different that yours but I have an Evolution 3 with a 12 foot roof with an AC and my DeWalt XRP (DC 920 KA) has no problems lifting my roof. As others have said, I do recommend that you lube your lift system.

Now, I hate to think that the dealer is saying you can't use a drill because he wants to sell you an electic winch. Many of us like using a multi-purpose drill because of all the DIY projects at home.  Plus in addition to the roof we can use it to lower/raise stablizers, tongue jack and a BAL leveler if you have one.  Of course if you memtion this to your dealer, he will tell you that he can get you electric stablizers and a tongue jack  

Ruide

HAHA, I believe you're right and that's why I'm paying attention to what everyone here is saying before forking over that money. We'll try another drill or two. When we crank by hand it doesn't sound like it's straining or anything, it's kind of hard but's got that air conditioner up top...um, how does one lube their system? I'll probably research how on the internet, so if you're too busy to answer, don't worry about it. Maybe just tell me what the "don'ts" are so we don't mess anything up. :-)  The dealer isn't such a fan of the winch, which makes me feel a little better, but...I think less can go wrong with a drill than a winch, so I'd prefer to go that route. And it's sooo much cheaper.

[He Ruide]

Johnna,

I believe you have a Goshen Lift system.  I found the following maintenance procedures at this site.

MAINTENANCE: There are two grease fittings located on the main assembly tube: one is located on the bottom side, toward the hitch end of the vehicle, and the second is located on the top side toward the rear of the vehicle. At the beginning of each season use a grease gun and add grease to each end of the tube until grease appears around the cable (approximately 6-oz). There are four small tubes coming from the ends of the main assembly tube to each corner of the vehicle that encloses the lifting springs. Use a needle grease gun adapter and add a small amount of grease in the hole at the end that curves up to meet the bottom of the square telescoping tube assembly.

Some diagrams and photgraphs can be found at the Goshen site.

If this information still is not enogh, hopefully there are some Palomino owners that can talk you through the process.

Ruide

[Johnna]

HAHA, I believe you're right and that's why I'm paying attention to what everyone here is saying before forking over that money. We'll try another drill or two. When we crank by hand it doesn't sound like it's straining or anything, it's kind of hard but's got that air conditioner up top...um, how does one lube their system? I'll probably research how on the internet, so if you're too busy to answer, don't worry about it. Maybe just tell me what the "don'ts" are so we don't mess anything up. :-)  The dealer isn't such a fan of the winch, which makes me feel a little better, but...I think less can go wrong with a drill than a winch, so I'd prefer to go that route. And it's sooo much cheaper.

Oh, BTW, I found the manual...it gives the info on how/where/what to use to lube, so we'll do that tomorrow.

[Johnna]

Johnna,

I believe you have a Goshen Lift system.  I found the following maintenance procedures at this site.

MAINTENANCE: There are two grease fittings located on the main assembly tube: one is located on the bottom side, toward the hitch end of the vehicle, and the second is located on the top side toward the rear of the vehicle. At the beginning of each season use a grease gun and add grease to each end of the tube until grease appears around the cable (approximately 6-oz). There are four small tubes coming from the ends of the main assembly tube to each corner of the vehicle that encloses the lifting springs. Use a needle grease gun adapter and add a small amount of grease in the hole at the end that curves up to meet the bottom of the square telescoping tube assembly.

Some diagrams and photgraphs can be found at the Goshen site.

If this information still is not enogh, hopefully there are some Palomino owners that can talk you through the process.

Ruide

Wow, this is GREAT. Found the manual which explained it but yours is way better! Thank you!

[wavery]

Johnna,

If it takes 34 turns to get your roof all the way up, I doubt that you will find a drill motor that will do the job. That thing must be one bugger to crank up.

My 12' roof with AC went up in 70 turns. I just can't imagine how it would take any less than twice the torque to take your roof up in half the revolutions unless your roof lift is 1/2 the total distance or half the weight of my Coleman Tacoma roof was..

It is going to take a certain amount of energy to lift that roof a certain distance. If you are using 1/2 the revs to take the same weight, the same distance, it will take twice the torque (assuming both mechanisms are working with the same amount of resistance). There is just no getting away from that. It's a matter of physics.

I believe that the Craftsman 19.2V drill puts out 450"# of torque. It would take a drill with 900"# of torque to do the job that you want and I have never found a drill under a 110v, 1" HD 2-speed drill that will have that kind of torque.

[Johnna]

Johnna,

If it takes 34 turns to get your roof all the way up, I doubt that you will find a drill motor that will do the job. That thing must be one bugger to crank up.

My 12' roof with AC went up in 70 turns. I just can't imagine how it would take any less than twice the torque to take your roof up in half the revolutions unless your roof lift is 1/2 the total distance or half the weight of my Coleman Tacoma roof was..

It is going to take a certain amount of energy to lift that roof a certain distance. If you are using 1/2 the revs to take the same weight, the same distance, it will take twice the torque (assuming both mechanisms are working with the same amount of resistance). There is just no getting away from that. It's a matter of physics.

I believe that the Craftsman 19.2V drill puts out 450"# of torque. It would take a drill with 900"# of torque to do the job that you want and I have never found a drill under a 110v, 1" HD 2-speed drill that will have that kind of torque.

I can't imagine our sweet little pup is that much of a pig LOL. We did get some advice to lube the lift system (will do today) and try again. If the lubing doesn't help, I think I read something somewhere about replacing the gears. If the gears were bad to start with, I would think even if we got an electric winch, it would put undue strain on that. We bought this pivately (it's only 5 years old) but when we first started looking, we found a dealer that I think is trustworthy and nearly bought a used camper from him, but we liked this one better (layout and space). Thanks for taking the time to help me with this. We don't know any better, we think all roofs act like ours, so it really helps to get the kind of input we are getting here.