Does stuff ever stop breaking?? This time it's the sofa.

[myredracer]

Just a couple of weeks ago, 3 of the plastic banding straps underneath the foam cushions snapped. Pffft. We take very good care of things and both of us are under 200 lbs and never plop onto the sofa. Has a Lippert label on the back.

The banding is the same stuff that is used on packaging and various containers. I went to the local shipping depot that I've used a lot and they gave me banding and plastic buckles, no charge.

The way the sofa is built, you can't get fingers in to install the new banding so I stapled the new and old ends together to pull it through. Didn't take long to install 3 new pieces of the banding so fortunately wasn't a big deal. Now it feels much better to sit in.

Thinking about this sofa failure, it kinda doesn't surprise me because it has - wait for it - a Lippert frame! :B

To add insult to injury, we have a new double recliner on order to replace the sofa and it will be ready in less than 2 weeks. Why the heck did the banding have to break just a few weeks before retiring it after over 3 years of use? It's almost like it's saying scr*w you, you can't get rid of me and I will haunt you to the ends of the earth... :R

[rockhillmanor]

Does stuff ever stop breaking?? This time it's the sofa

Nope and I think it is because they plan on us only using them on an occasional weekend. They just are not built for consistent daily use. Especially when we snowbird or full time in them.

When my sofa/bed wouldn't go back up straight in the closed position I called RV Mobile repair.

He shows up with a pick up truck instead of his mobile repair van, full of 2x4's etc.?? I said all I want you to do is just repair it not rebuild my entire RV!

His answer: I see thousands of these RV couches and when I open up yours you will see why I have the 2x4's and what I am going to do.

Within minutes He stripped down my entire couch frame and all and took it all outside.

When he opened it all up I gotta admit I was shocked all what was holding it together and how it was attached to the MH, or actually not holding it together. I have never seen such shoddy workman ship, how it was attached to the MH, and with what, and the use of the thinnest cheap particle wood construction I've every seen.

He made a complete new frame using the 2x4's and real braces and using the correct screws for the couch. Brought it back in and reinstalled the whole couch and attached it properly.

That couch now works better than it ever did when it was brand new! The back is now in an upright position that is inches straighter and sits higher than when new. And I can open and close it with one finger.

[Ralph_Cramden]

Tyler0215 wrote:
Lippert doesn't have anything to do with what broke. They only made the frame not the supports,padding, or covering. Poorly made furniture is what broke.

Lippert makes or provides multiple types of sofas, chairs, and recliners.

One thing for sure with anything associated with Lippert. It's as cheaply made as possible.

[Lynnmor]

When my Lippert sofa failed in three weeks, I found the word "rework" marked on the rewelded and redrilled frame. Yes, Lippert is producing more components than most people realize.

[Bill_Satellite]

As a direct answer to the topic posted in your header.....Does stuff ever stop breaking??.... The unequivocal answer is no.

[down_home]

............

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Good going "Mr Lee". Screwum. Fix and improve. Avoid the recycle syndrome. Recycling costs LOTS of subsized money. Look at your tax bill. Wait and in ten years you will see three eyed four legged Chinese children.

[azrving]

I haven't been in any rv factories but it wouldn't surprise me that it's piece work concept. The guy who doesn't crank stuff out fast enough is the bad guy. It doesn't mean that people should be able to do little and be protected. What happens is the guy who half arses it becomes the hero and is held up as the good example. As long as the product is flowing and the warr claims are reasonable all is well. The consumer is the one who finds and suffers with broken welds and couches and drawers and on and on.

[Chum_lee]

"Does stuff ever stop breaking?" (in an RV)

NO! When things break in my RV I try to repair them in a way that IMO they should have been made in the first place. Usually they never break again. But sometimes certain products are junk on day one with few options for improvement. Then all I do is laugh and replace/fix it one more time.

RV manufacturers are all in competition with each other. If all one company made were coaches finished with solid teak, granite, ceramic tile, wool carpet, triple glazing, gold fixtures, and power everything, they would be overweight on delivery, overpriced, and out of business in no time.

If you want your RV the way you want it, you can have it. You'll just have to design and build it yourself. No one will ever pay you what it's worth so enjoy it while it lasts.

Chum lee

[azrving]

drsteve wrote:

Oasisbob wrote:
Cheap plastic ****. Why? Because we keep buying it. I have replaces my shore power access door three times in 16 years. I would gladly pay a tad more for quality. That's the RV industry for you

The bean counters are in charge, and their mandate is to make the product less expensive to produce. They do that by pressuring suppliers to cut prices, and by pushing the manufacturing operation to do more with less. So the quality of components goes down, and assembly is rushed, with predictable results.

Nash, Lance, Airstream, and a few others have resisted the race to the bottom, and how many of those do you see in parks compared to Forest River and Keystone products?

They sure turn the screws on the labor side of it. When I was working the winners were the ones who would falsify the maintenance logs. Those of us who fought it were demonized and targeted. Those of us who would be given a repair job that the idiots couldn't fix were criticized for taking too long when we were the ones who were actually competent enough to figure out the tough problems. The tough problems are not quick to fix.

The management was outsourced to places like Aramark who started out as candy machine vendors at the canteen areas of the factory. We had foremen who were smoking dope out back with some of the mechanics. If you were kissing hind titty and falsifying and short cutting you could be in Vegas banging ****** while on the clock. One of our foremen was so goofed up we would see him outside talking to himself and jumping up and down while hitting himself in the head with his clipboard. One of our guys who washed equipment would sit out in the parking lot and smoke dope and drink grey goose and Heinekin. He came in from lunch one time and and saw our foreman hitting himself and asked him if he wanted him to knock his ass out. No BS. It's a sell out of the country from top to bottom.

[drsteve]

Oasisbob wrote:
Cheap plastic ****. Why? Because we keep buying it. I have replaces my shore power access door three times in 16 years. I would gladly pay a tad more for quality. That's the RV industry for you

The bean counters are in charge, and their mandate is to make the product less expensive to produce. They do that by pressuring suppliers to cut prices, and by pushing the manufacturing operation to do more with less. So the quality of components goes down, and assembly is rushed, with predictable results.

Nash, Lance, Airstream, and a few others have resisted the race to the bottom, and how many of those do you see in parks compared to Forest River and Keystone products?

[azrving]

No. I used 14 ga steel to patch up the path where my slide rollers run and had been eating through the plastic membrane and into the osb. I now went under it to tidy up some cables and notice an 6" area next to a steel cross member where the membrane was tearing. It felt like wood so I cut it open a little more and discovered that part of the 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" floor framing boards was lower than the beam and pushing down enough to wear through the membrane. They missed the beam by an 1 1/2" which is the dimension of the lumber. Oh well they knew it was inch and a half something or other. The boards were cut short so just stick it in there. No one will know.

I'm just glad I didn't pay $40,000 or $50,000 for this type of junk. I love this old girl at $10,000. 3 years of use at 7 months per year so it's already paid for itself. RV's are a heck of a quirky thing but they work!!

[Tyler0215]

Lippert doesn't have anything to do with what broke. They only made the frame not the supports,padding, or covering. Poorly made furniture is what broke.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

That's the prevailing Sheeple Acceptance Level

Just

Get

By

Then send it to the land fill.

Look at the psychology of modern life. A lot of it is not random coincidence. People who are directed to stay glued to The Big Picture of The Economy, and National Safety, cannot rob their leisure time to pursue smaller objectives.

I wish my viewpoint was that of a paranoid. But it isn't. It is troubling to say the least.

"I cannot, I will not deal with this!" should be adopted as The National Mantra.

[Oasisbob]

Cheap plastic ****. Why? Because we keep buying it. I have replaces my shore power access door three times in 16 years. I would gladly pay a tad more for quality. That's the RV industry for you