Disappointed in craftmanship of 2014 3051s

[USNMM1VETERAN]

Just returned from a week long maiden voyage in my 3051S and am disappointed in some aspects of the craftmanship. First the big drawer under the bathroom sink the screws pulled out of the hinge. This is the one that has laundry bag attached but I unhooked it even before using because I thought it was a pain. So there was no added weight on door just normal opening and closing. Also we lost the screws out of the hinges on one of the closet doors. Then one of the handles pulled off of a kitchen drawer, what a pain! I understand that when attaching hinges to particle board you are limited to screw size, but come on it can't be so cost prohibitive to use a larger screw with some bite to it. Then when I retracted the stabilized it was really loud and rough, I looked under and the right rear stabilized seemed to be wet like a fluid leaked out. I guess they are hydraulic actuated and I think I lost a seal. That is not Forest River problem, it is a Bigfoot problem. Also I can not lock the rv with the door lock, only the tiny deadbolt, because it won't line up. I've seen others post about the door lock problem and I would hope that Forest River would read these and maybe make a change. I guess I am disappointed because I thought First River was different than the other companies and really made a quality product. I am not saying it is junk, I am sure the parts are no different then Winnebago or Coachman or other brands, I was thinking maybe they put some extra effort into the product. I can't believe that putting in some heavy duty hinges and larger screws is more expensive than paying a warranty claim. I mean spending an extra $75 for a quality hinge and screw makes the bottom line so high that the company can not make a profit or put the price of the rv so high no one would buy them? I know this sounds bad but I DO REALLY LOVE MY 3051S and think it will give me years of enjoyment I hope so because we are going fulltime as soon as our house sells, hopefully this month and I really hope that these little problems are not a sign of larger problems down the line, because I LOVE MY 3051S and it would crush me if it turns out to be a lemon. Also I want to make some Mods to the unit like removing the jack knife sofa and dinette and putting in 2 recliners. If anyone has removed the dinette on a 3051S I would love to hear how you removed it and what is under the dinette, ie is there carpet or just plywood.

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[bclemens]

As always we hate to hear anything that doesn't work according to plan. I will make a few clarifications...please don't take these as excuses, simply trying to shed a little light on "the other side".
1. None of the hinge screws should be going into particle board. The drawers faces are all solid wood with a plywood drawer frame behind them. The hamper door in the bathroom gets screwed into a lumber core style. This means it is a solid wood core with a veneer front and back. Again, no particle board. These guys are all using air powered screw guns. They are driving large screws and small screws and it is a fine line between snug and stripped. I wish they were all hand tightened...I agree, though, that large hamper door could probably use some larger hinge screws.

2. Door locks. We are using new Tri-mark locks. I don't think this is the issue maybe you read about earlier. The goal is to get a really tight seal on the door, otherwise we get air noise. So you have to make sure the door is all the way closed before engaging the lock. It may latch...but you really need to push on it to make sure it is fully seated. If that ends up not being the case, that is really a minor adjustment and one that the dealer should have done after the unit was driven there. We allow for door and drawer adjustments. In the end, you are transporting a house and a small amount of settling is bound to occur. That is why we rely on a good dealer PDI.

3. Under the jack knife sofa will be a carpeted slide floor. It is aluminum framed with a plywood surface (under the carpet). If you remove the front kick plate of the sofa you will see what is in there. The floor is not really deep enough for regular recliners. I do have a prototype coming down the line now with "notched recliners" (they are notched for the slide floor so your feet sit on the main floor). I will post on here once we see the results.

I appreciate the feedback and want to personally thank you for putting your faith in Forest River.

[USNMM1VETERAN]

And to you Mr. Clemens Thank you. Like I said I am in love with the unit and it's always the little things that come up. You are right we are pulling a house that vibrates moves and shakes so things will come out. It when I open the hamper drawer and it falls off and I look and see the hinge off and 2 tiny maybe 3/8 th inch woods crews laying on floor and I say, 'really they put the drawer on with these???. BUT they are the screws that come with that size hinge so that's what gets put on. Like you said maybe they will look at a larger hinge that comes with larger srews. I am not going to put a warranty claim in for it, what I am going to do is buy one size up screw dip it liquid nail and install. By increasing one size I do not reuse same hole and dipping it in liquid nail will ensure it will not come out again. Will do same for closet drawer and will keep a handful of screws around will the liquid nail if any others come loose.
I also agree that when putting in screws that small with power tools it is really hard to not over tighten and slightly strip the wood which will cause the screw to back out in the future.
Also I am disabled with bad back and to get relief and good sleep I need to be in an incline, at home adjustable bed and lift chair. I was hoping some angle pillows would be good in the bed but I just need a little more so what we have been doing is dragging in my adjustable camping lounger and setting up between sofa and dinette. This works great but is a real pain because it takes up all the space. That's is when last week sitting in unit we thought if we removed both the dinette and sofa and put a recliner on both sides then I could have one for rest and she would be able to sit in other and watch TV or relax. We could add side tables. And since only the 2 of us we don't need dinette and it would give move space and make it look bigger. Questions
1 I see carpet under sofa but what about under dinette since this is on the slider side?
2 I am guessing to contact my dealer about the stabilizer issue not Bigfoot manufacturing.


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[bclemens]

1. I'll have to check on that. I think that is carpeted as well...if you open one of the big drawers you can see in there.
2. your call there. Bigfoot can direct you to any dealer. Or your dealer will work it through them.

This is the recliner that we're working on. Not quite there yet.

[USNMM1VETERAN]

Wow looks nice that would be perfect for me. Hope they come out soon.

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[Frank & Eve]

Brian when is this dual recliner going to be available and where? It looks great !

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[Fozzy]

Me to. My sunseeker jack knife sofa is the most uncomfortable thing I have ever sat on.

[motodude79]

My 3071 is my second rv. My first was a coachmen. I was so impressed with the quality of the 3071 forest river over the coachmen. We had so many problems and the coachmen was a 2013. Just little things that didn't work and had to go back to the shop many times. I was expecting the same with forest river but we have not had any warranty problems. Sorry to hear about your issues. Maybe you got a bad build.

[rivraton]

Originally Posted by Fozzy

Me to. My sunseeker jack knife sofa is the most uncomfortable thing I have ever sat on.

You outa try sleeping on one..

[ourflat]

I want a recliner for my 2013 3051s. Put me on your list

[wana65stang]

I too was disappointed with 2014 3051s after picking up from so called dealer PDI. My right rear lever was empty of hyd. fluid and making sound, dealer said they were electric not hyd. cylinders, until I made him crawl under unit with me and I pointed out loose feed line and hyd. tank empty. My laundry bag drawer was a pain also, when bag is full you can't remove it because drawer will not open enough. I took slider hinge off and made my own drawer stop with 1/8" aircraft cable.I had lots of loose hinge screws and rattles, one of the biggest ones was the window blinds banging against window frame,some self sticking felt fixed that.Another is the rod for the top bunk curtain it rattles in the metal brackets that hold it to the roof , some self sticking bumpers ( like the ones on cabinet doors to stop from banging) stuck between rod and roof fixed this. Now its back at the dealer for stress cracking in the fiberglass where it curvers up to the roof at the left rear corner just above the left rear clearance light. I would hope the manufactor listens to these complaints and makes changes to the units .

[bclemens]

We're here almost every day.

Just a word of caution on "stress fractures". It's like self diagnosing medical issues. I'd be happy to give my 2 cents if you post a picture...but in most cases it is not a stress fracture but some part or caulk that shrinks creating a gap in the paint. A paint line gap can look like a crack but there is nothing structurally wrong.

[ourflat]

"Just a word of caution on "stress fractures". It's like self diagnosing medical issues. I'd be happy to give my 2 cents if you post a picture...but in most cases it is not a stress fracture but some part or caulk that shrinks creating a gap in the paint. A paint line gap can look like a crack but there is nothing structurally wrong."

Yep, that was me

[wana65stang]

It was the dealer who called it stress cracking, it isn't just one crack but about ten to fifteen just as the back wall curves up to the roof, some people may call it spider cracking . I took pictures but it doesn't really show up well. Thanks for you reply though.

[grumpy0374]

I replaced my jacknife sofa in my Lexington. Have pic's posted in the Lexington sub-forum, under Replaced Jacknife Sofa. Verrrrry comfortable.
An old carpender's trick if you have a small wood screw that stripped out. Depending on size of hole, use a toothpick or a small diamiter dowel, 1/16 or 1/8, and glue a small piece of it (carpenter's glue) in the hole, trim it flush, and screw away. It gives "fresh" wood for the screw to bite into. Works especially good on particle board. No need to use a larger screw, especially if the hindge or drawer handle uses a countersunk type screw.
grumpy

[bclemens]

Originally Posted by jfrauts

It was the dealer who called it stress cracking, it isn't just one crack but about ten to fifteen just as the back wall curves up to the roof, some people may call it spider cracking . I took pictures but it doesn't really show up well. Thanks for you reply though.

Yes, that'll be a paint flaw. I've only seen it on one other unit and in that case I believe it was lack of a flex additive in the paint.

[USNMM1VETERAN]

Yea grumpy, a toothpick does do the trick very well, also I have used steel wool on larger diameter screws. With the constant twisting and stress of the cabinets going down the road I thought of adding a drop of liquid nail to the screw, with a toothpick , and on the hinge.
Another problem I forgot to list was the Black water level sensor. At the end of the trip before going to dump station my wife was reading levels and said Black water was 2/3rds. I thought NO WAY, but maybe when dealer winterized he left some water in it. Anyways when I emptied tanks wife said Black water still reading 2/3 level. When I emptied tanks I emptied gray shut valve then emptied Black and I definitely heard it emptying. So i told her to hold toilet down and run some water and emptied again and sensor level did not change. Has anyone else had this problem and any easy possible fix besides going to dealer and have him pull it. Heading on another trip on the 20th and would rather take it in after second 'Shake Down' cruise ( never get the Navy out of me) incase anything else fails.

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[bclemens]

Probably gunk on the probes. Use black tank flush to clean the tank.

[grumpy0374]

Bad monitor readings are a common problem. First, the stuff that comes with most rigs isn't the most accurate. Most will use it to "guage" what's in there. You may have some debris on the wall of the tank where the sending probe is, and that will give uou a false reading. Or it could just be a bad probe. Some have had good luck filling the tank 1/2 full and adding a couple of bags of ice cubes just before hitting the road, the ice cubes mayby hitting and dislodging whatever is in the tank. You may want to get an aftermarket black water tank sprayer, either the kind that you stick down the loo or a permenant type that you hook a hose up too.
I'm sure others will chime in.
grumpy

[bclemens]

pretty good video here...
Horst Miracle Probes for Wastewater Tanks in Recreational Vehicles RVs