Roof Question

[hoppy]

I gave my daughter and son-in-law my old 1978 Palimino last season.

   One corner of the roof was not extending as high as the other three corners after cranking when I gave it to them.

    They decided that during the winter months, they would send into the dealer for a cable adjustment.

      Big mistake..... after they had the popup for three weeks, they gave my SIL a call, saying it needed a complete new roof and cable system..... to the tune of $ 2,000.00.

       Well, they got the unit out of there... real fast.

     When they got it home, they tried to crank up the roof...... no go.... the dealer snapped the cable.


      I was wondering if anyone out there remembers the name of the mauufacturer or camping supply that sell the four mechanical arms (manual) extension bars that lifts the roof from the outside?

    Any help would be appreciated.

    Thanks,

     Hoppy

[B-flat]

Ouch!  That was a mistake sending to a dealer to repair.  I don't remember the company that sells the extension arms but I do remember about someone replacing their cable themselves by buying the same type cable at the hardware store.  He just cut some pipe to hold the roof up at the length between where it rests on the bottom while popped up to fit between there and the roof.  Here's what I just found from the NC Pop Up Camper website:

"One of the worst things to happen to you when you first start to set up at your campsite is to have a cable to snap while lifting the roof. You start to raise your roof and when the roof reaches about the half way mark you hear a loud pop or snap and one of the corners drops down. This can be a huge problem. Don't let this foul up your camping outing !! I have made an emergency support pole out of 3/4 inch electrical conduit and installed rubber feet on each end. The length can be different from one camper to the other. I recommend you make the pole a little short. When the roof is fully extended, back off two turns on the crank and measure from the roof to the camper shell. This pole will now help you to recable later. This pole stays on the camper at all times. Granted if this happens you will may need help to insert the pole between the roof and the body of the camper. You also may need help to lower the roof when you brake camp. But I have found that campers are the greatest people around and campers will help campers."

Follow this link to find out how to install a new cable.  The coleman assembly link might give you some additional ideas on how it works, too:

http://members.tripod.com/nccamper/id27.htm

Hope this helps!

[hoppy]

Thanks B-Flat,

   You are sooooo right about the dealer. I should have known better when the service tech. told me over the phone that Palomino's didn't even have a cable lift roof system until 1992.

    It wasn't until I explained to him that I owned the unit for the last 12 years prior giving it to the kids, that I cranked it up over 150 times over that period. Even told him that I did the maintanence on the cables over the years.

    Guess he didn't realize that the Palomino Co. had a rather extensive fire back in 1992, so his service manuals only went back that far.

    Now on to the real problem... I considered propping up the roof to make the cable repair, but unlike the Coleman system that is under the floor, and the lift arms are three sided which exposes the arm cables, the Palomino main cable is located in behind the walls, and the lift arms  are four sided.

    After considering all these obsticles, I decided the external extensions would be the most practicle way to go.


   Thanks for the imput.... greatly appreciated.

    Hoppy

[Jeffrey]

According to the ad in the PUT Mag.
Canvas Replacements has the parts for the spring lift system.
Not sure if you could switch from a cable lift system to a spring system though? But they would probably know.

[hoppy]

Thanks Jeff...... I'll give them a try.

[B-flat]

Hmmmmmmm, now you have me trying to remember who it was that replaced their lift cables in a Palomino.  It was someone who had been on the board a long time back.  It was her father, that did the work.  It might have been Horsecamper.  Does that ring a bell? Maybe a search of the archives will reveal how the wall was taken apart and the cables replaced.  I must have had the same 3 sided type cables on my 88 Starcraft that I recently sold.  It was open on the "inside" of the camper but 3 sides closed on the outside by the metal.  If canvas replacements doesn't have what you need, then maybe there's someone on this board who has gone through the process on a Palomino.

[mike4947]

I have no idea if these folks made the lifts systems for Palimino but it couldn't hurt to give them a try. http://www.goshenstamping.com/ If nothing else maybe they could but you on the right track.

[Gone-Camping]

If you want to buy four outside lift arms for $300 then click below...
http://www.rvworkshop.com/index-new.html
 
I once replaced the cables on a mid 70's Starcraft, and also had to replace one of the pulleys on a different occassion. Not sure how different they could possibly be, but I doubt there is that much difference. They all work in a similar fashion. I had one cable break, and found EXACT FIT replacedment cable at the local Coleman dealer for $12, I suspect any Palomino dealer would have what you need. If the roof doesn't move at all, it sounds like the dealer disconnected the wiffle tree (thats where the one main cable ties in with the four corner cables underneath the trailer).
 
Telescoping lifter arms usually work in three's, and use two seperate cables (not counting the main cranking cable).
 
First cable runs from the wiffle tree to each corner and up to the top of the "fixed" (or lowest) lifter, around a pulley, and back down to the bottom of the second (or middle lifter). So when the cable is pulled, it'll pull the middle lifter up from the bottom.
 
Another cable is attached to the top of the bottom lifter, goes up over a pully at the top of the middle lifter, and goes down and attaches at the bottom of the top (or inside lifter). As the middle lifter rises, the second cable pulls the inside lifter as the middle one goes up.
 
Repeat the process in all four corners. Actually, once you lift the roof by hand (using as many as four people), you can prop the top up with poles or 2x4's. Be very careful going inside, make sure those 2x4's are good and secure!!! Go into each corner and there should be access covers for lifter. I'll bet only one of them is messed up, which means you'll have 3 good working examples to see how it's suppose to work!
 
Good luck!

[brainpause]

I can't believe Cliff actually found those lifter arms online! Wow! Great job, Cliff!

That is the same kind of lift that our camper has. Although I would prefer a crank-type jobby like most people have, this lifter arm system isn't so bad. Its only downfall is that your roof is either UP or DOWN...no in-betweens. Our camper is JUUUUUUUUUUUUUst short enough that we can raise it inside the garage.

Should you decide to do this type of lift system (and I can't see why not, unless you have severe back problems), I have a couple of suggestions:

1. The front latches should probably have a "lip" on them to hold the roof in place when only the rear of the roof is up. That way, the roof won't slide forward. If you need a picture, email me. I may try and get a picture and add to this post, just to show what I'm talking about.

2. Put two handles on the front side of the roof (the narrow edge), and two handles on the rear of the roof. This should save some finger pinching.

HTH.

Larry

[hoppy]

Gone Camping,

    This is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for the link. I sent it over to my SIL to scope it out. For $ 300.00, this will keep the ol' Palomino out of the junk yard.

    It would be a shame to scrap the unit, with all the renovations that I put into it over the years. It really is like brand new inside, plus it has just about every option anyone could ask for. (AC, Furnace,  2.5 Refer, Carefree awning,  amplified omni directional TV antenna, stove , sink, etc.) I also replaced all the canvas and interior fabric back in 1996.

    As I mentioned in my previous posts, I'm pretty much of a hands on type of guy and can repair many things....... but with all the main cableing in behind the walls, there would be a lot of cabnetry and internal walls that would have to be removed to repair the existing cable system.

    The spring loaded arms look like that I could have them installed in a couple of hours....... No fuss, No muss, No bother.

    Thank you, and everyone eles that responded to my plea for help.

    Keep your kindling dry,

     Hoppy

[hoppy]

I would like to thank everyone who helped me through the situation with the roof system.

    I contacted Canvas Replacements Co., once I knew just what the dealer destroyed during the "cable adjustment". We were able to repair the ol' Palomino to better than new condition for $ 30.00.

    The dealer wanted to charge $ 600.00 for the spring lift system, or $ 1,200.00 for a new roof and cable lift system. All this being said while he was pushing new 2004 Palomino booklets into their hands.

    Once my SIL and I were able to lift up the roof by hand and support with 2 X 4 's (probably weighed around 300 lbs) we were able to see that the dealer snapped the main draw cable. Please keep in mind that the dealer charged them $ 70.00 to break the PU in the first place.

    To install the new main cable and make the four corner lift adjustments, took a little over 2 hours.

    My daughter was so happy to see the roof standing up on it's own, she decided right then an there..... camping trip...... two weeks from now.

     So with the help from you all, we were able to save the 78' palomino from the junk yard. Maybe even get another 25 years out of her.

    Thank you all again for the help.

   Special thanks go out to Gone Camping, Brainpause, Mike 4947, B-flat, and Jeffery who directed me to Canvas Replacements. The gang at CR were great working with.

     Hoppy

[brainpause]

Sounds like a great story! Wow! $30.00!!!

See you at the cg!

Larry

[Gone-Camping]

Yep, that's only 10% of the spring arms!!! Can't beat that with a stick!!!

[B-flat]

Send the bill to the dealership that broke it in the first place and gave you bad info.  ;>)   Even better, send a letter to the BBB letting them know about that dealership trying to rip you off.  $2,000, yeah, right. :Z

[B-flat]

Send a bill to the dealership that broke it in the first place.   Even better than that, send a letter to the dealership and to the BBB about the bad advice you were given, the poor service and the fact that they tried to rip you off.  :Z