Lippert Frame Failures

24tucson wrote:
I have a 37 ft 2005 Keystone Copper Canyon Sprinter. The part of the trailer frame that the pin box bolts to is breaking away from the rest of the trailer frame. The frame is manufactured by Lippert. We noticed a buckle in the floor of the end cap wardrobe closet after returning home from a trip. In looking for the source of the problem, I shined a light up into the area where the pin box is attached to the frame and saw that 4 welds, each about 4 inches long, were broken. Obviously a very serious problem. I searched the forum for similar incidences of this occurring. I was hoping to find some information on what other 5er owners did to address the problem.

What I found, much to my dismay, is bickering among posters about the possible cause, bumpy highways, etc, etc. The real cause is poor design, engineering and/or workmanship.

This is a major safety hazard! In searching various forums, I found bits and pieces of information but it's difficult to pull all the info together. I believe this problem may be larger than meets the eye. How many people shine a light up into the pin box area (if you can even get at it) and inspect the welds?

Anybody got any suggestions?

Lippert frames in that time frame were noted for problems. There are usually 3 issues, IMO; 1) Lippert's horrendous build quality. Nice-looking welds that had little to no penetration, just plain lousy welds and welds too short. 2) Mfrs not bothering to check the frames as they come in and correcting, or rejecting, poorly built frames. 3) Lippert building to a deficient spec by the mfr, then building it badly. From my reading here the past few years, repairs have run from a few hundred to a couple thousand, depending on how bad the breaks were and how much damage had been done.

Lyle