Did a little bit of off-road today and I have developed a serious banging where the top of the wedge is slamming against the bottom half. The mattress must have packed out some so there is no tension on the pins when it is closed.
Anyone have any ideas for stopping this? I am thinking of adding some rubber strips where the two halves meet at the pins, or just throwing a towel or something to take up space.
Don’t know if you sleep with additional padding, but maybe throw a thin memory foam pad up there…
How did you discover it? Was it super loud?
Peace.
That’s a good thought. It is super loud. Like surprise you with all the windows up. Sounds like the entire camper is coming apart.
I just did a test and if I stick 3 layers thick of cardboard inside the tent on the back edge it makes it tight enough to stop banging constantly. Can’t imagine what it would do on a washboard. Maybe I just have to try to fold the tent into more of a wad then trying to get it flat? Haven’t had this issue till today so something has changed.
My tent has become easier to pack. Maybe this is happening with your tent as well. Maybe the stiffness of the tent was masking this. I’d email GFC to see if they’ve seen this before. Ask them about causes and potential remedies.
Peace.
If you talk with GFC, please post what their response is. What you’re having shouldnt be going on.
I just developed this issue with mine today too! Thought my camper was loosening up on the rails before figuring out that it was the side extrusion rattling on drivers side towards the front. Pretty significant rattle over any slight bumps. I can see padding the inside i.e., with sleeping bags and such. But, only as a temporary.
Are you guys having this with a V1 or V2?
Mine is a V1. #815 .
Also a V1 # 524…
GFC got back to me today and said they have an idea how to fix and will let me know Monday. Will let everyone know what they say for a fix.
Did you guys upgrade to embassy hinge and possibly when they took out frame bolts, something happened?
Mine came from the factory with the embassy hinges.
we had one of those come out, and it seems to have happened to a few people, i thought about getting a spare from gfc as its a bit of a bummer zip tying it closed for a few days on the road (it doesnt close great)
I have V1 and I checked mine for this and if the Tent is packed away properly it bangs pretty slightly about a 2mm movement. I was sealing my tailgate at the time and trimmed down two small extra pieces of the foam gasket and adhered them to the flat silver portion by the closure pins on both sides. That has taken up the slack for now and given it a cushion. Easy fix but a bummer they didn’t machine them to tighter tolerances.
Just talked with GFC and they agree it is an issue with the mattress compacting some over time and there being a little more space with such tight tolerances. Sounds like a little rubber padding on the extrusion to cushion the banging, and then just taking up some volume with something like a 1/2 memory foam topper cut to fit into the mattress covers is the ticket. I camped 4 nights in mine this week and did some wheeling, and with the cardboard inside it was silent, so just need a little more volume. I’ll definitely post anything I do to this thread.
I would think it would be carried by the hinge and pins at the ends, not the mattress. A few months ago, I had a screw head break off where the latch in the back meets the extrusion and I see now that it’s rubbing the powder coat off where the top and bottom extrusions touch. When the screw broke, they said they would be in my area mid-May. i assume that’s not the case, as I have not heard anything back.
In my case the latching pins can move up and down, as I can close the tent without putting any pressure down on the top. So the slop comes from the extra space the latch pin has in its hole. Do you have any pics of your issue? Be great to see to keep an eye out for.
If you don’t want to wait on a GFC PIT tour I bet you would have good luck with a bolt extractor.
