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Topic: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork (Read 419 times) previous topic - next topic
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Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Hi - I am a new member here but have owned a LD 27' Mid-bath for 16 years.

It's in need of restoration and I've got a ton of questions... so I am starting this thread and I *promise* to use the Search function as much as possible.

Is there any information on the appropriate adhesive to use to re-attach the plastic trim at the front of the coach? See photo below for the problem. You can see from the screws at the bottom that this problem is "progressing..."

Thanks for the info!

Re: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Reply #1 –

I have posted many articles on end cap repair and sealing and don't want to repeat myself again.
Search 'cap repair' and 'seam sealing', using my user name, lw5315 and Larame SRT ( a member who postings were mixed with mine during the transition to the new site) .
The LD Companion also has useful information on this.
The Lazy Daze Companion
A few photos.
Window and seam sealing | Flickr
I use 3M 520 Fast Cure polyurethane, along with stainless steel sheet metal screws, to secure the end caps.

Larry
Larry
2003 23.5' Front Lounge, since new.  Previously 1983 22' Front Lounge.
Tow vehicles  2020 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, 2001 Jeep Cherokee
Photo Collection: Lazy Daze
Re: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Reply #2 –
I have posted my results based on Larry and others' kind advice here and on the LD Companion. A search by my name and end caps should turn my small contributions up.

Good luck with this one, I hope you don't have to replace those pieces. Looks like the 3M tape is still on the aluminum but separated from the ABS end cap.

This will be a bear to clean up. One tip, if you can get a grip on the tape and pull it lengthwise, to stretch it out, it may separate from the surface. This is how the 3M tape works. You may find a YouTube video to show it better.
Paul
'92 Mid Bath
Re: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Reply #3 –
Thanks very much... as with most things, unless you know what it's actually called (e.g. "end cap"), Search can often turn up no results.

Also good to learn about the Lazy Daze Companion... I've never seen this site turn up in searches before. While I'm reading your end cap advice, I'll share some of my professional knowledge. Your site would be much more likely to rank higher in a search if your meta description were more... descriptive.  :D

<meta content='This is a collection of articles on maintaining and enjoying a Lazy Daze motor home.' property='og:description'/>

<meta content='Lazy Daze RV motorhome maintenance, service and repair technical articles.' property='og:description'/>

Ian
Re: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Reply #4 –
I'm pretty finicky, and could have done the work myself (thanks to Larry and the rest for the how-tos!), but elected to have the pros do it. I'm fairly sure that I could not have pulled the old caps back into position and have them stay put.

I bought replacement end caps for our 1997/8 MB from the Mothership and had a high-quality local auto body shop install them. They examined the caps and found they don't necessarily fit closely to the structure all along their length. This can create stresses in the Very High Bond tape that eventually cause the tape to separate from the structure. The shop figured out how to reduce this stress as much as possible while still having the caps end up in the correct position.

In addition to the tape which comes with the caps, the shop used the Mothership-recommended Loctite S40 polyurethane "adhesive" and about twice as many stainless steel screws as used by the factory. They finished by giving the new caps a great matching paint job.

Mark H
Former owner, 31-foot gas Class A
Former owner, 1997-8 mid-bath
Re: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Reply #5 –
Quote from: l1v3fr33ord13  - 
I'm pretty finicky, and could have done the work myself (thanks to Larry and the rest for the how-tos!), but elected to have the pros do it. I'm fairly sure that I could not have pulled the old caps back into position and have them stay put.

It looks like I will be doing the same thing. I've managed to put a huge, ugly temporary bandaid over the problem shown in the first post of this thread, and have uncovered at least one new issue.

Since my front left end cap was so badly warped and I am not able to replace with a new one, even with twice the screws and a good clear adhesive, the cap would not lay flat. Since this is temporary, I elected not to remove the VHB tape because my plan is to take the coach to the Mother Ship and get it fixed properly while having a few other restorative upgrades done.

The new problem I found is a leaking left rear end cap. Water ingress had rotted the wood in at least one rear panel. I discovered this when the screw holding the curtain string in the interior pulled right out of the wall. Man, this was not good news... in fact it's a pretty major disappointment, given my reasons for buying a brand new Lazy Daze in the first place.

Referring to my owners manual, the only discussion about end caps is applying touch-up paint should I find the cracks at the edges of the end caps to be objectionable. Nothing about leaks, danger of rotting wood... ugh!

Even more disappointing is the fact that it has to have been obvious for several years that there are problems with the assembly tape LD used, but there was no contact from the factory that I should do an inspection.

This whole thing has caught me by surprise and I'm a little miffed with myself for not finding this forum sooner. I hope this repair work doesn't cost too much because it's not like there are any other options for repairing my coach.

Ian


Re: Restoring a Mid-bath -- Adhesive for bodywork
Reply #6 –
Ian, not sure how old yours is, has it always had the 5 year inspection and re sealing they recommend?

Mine is 25 years old and never resealed so I was not terribly surprised that previous owners had not dealt with the leaking end cap. I did a rebuild of the rear end. The issue of new end caps not making a good for with old coach work seems consistent. I laid in as much 3M 5200 as possible and clamped the end caps well, then left it for several weeks.

But on a newer unit properly cared for unit, I too would be miffed.
Paul
'92 Mid Bath