Arctic Fox front roof seam construction

[brholt]

Previously I had notices the fiberglass (after climbing up on the roof I'm wondering if it is some kind of plastic?) piece that forms the cab over and comes up to meet the rubber roof is a bit "wavey" on the top at the seam, like this (look to the left side of the picture):



Since it was like that since new I hadn't thought anything of it. Today, while trying to get rid of the evidence of my attempt to reduce the bug population of WA, ID, and MT, I noticed for the first time that the piece right in front of the seam could be "pushed down" on and would flex:



At first I had a moment of panic that I had some delamination but the seals are good, they have been checked regularity over its short life and it seams you can flex it over the entire roof seam except the corners. This leads me to believe it is designed to be "free floating." I was wondering if anybody know how Northwood constructs that part of the camper and joins the "cap" to the roof?

[anutami]

Here is Northwoods response

"Nolan, I can see that your problem is caused by excessive heat that has distorted the glass, in short it has got to "HOT" under the cover that you are using, you might want to check with the folks that made the cover but this is not covered under the Northwood Warranty and is really just cosmetic at this time and really should not change much, but i would get ride of the cover for the summer and maybe use it when the weather changes.Thanks Matt"

[Super_Dave]

The cap is clearly mechanically fastened to the roof frame as evidenced by the dicor on the screw heads. The dimple areas you are all pointing out are where the filon was asked to bend in a very sharp manner. Not like possible if it was backed with anything very rigid. That's why the Eagle Cap fiberglass caps have been the Cadillac in cap construction. I would compare this with the equivalent of putting weight on the hood of your truck.

[joeshmoe]

I certainly wouldn't want to put ANY weight, really, no more than two or three fingers worth of pressure on that entire section. When I installed the roof vent, I made sure not to get near that seam or forward of it. Other than that, for anyone not sure about getting up on their rubber roof, it felt very solid. I'm not exactly a lightweight.

On a related note, If you're going to be up there for any length of time doing work (wink, wink, Nolan), I would bring a nice thick moving blanket to lay/sit/stand yourself and your tools on. That EPDM is rather thin.

[joeshmoe]

A little. Kinda hard to tell. Towards the middle it definitely feels stiffer. As I move closer to the moulding toward outside edge is where it seems more vulnerable.

[brholt]

joeshmoe wrote:
Mine seems pretty straight. But it is flimsy up there. Wouldn't take much to puncture or indent it.

Is yours attached to the substrate up there or when you push on it will it indent?

[joeshmoe]

Mine seems pretty straight. But it is flimsy up there. Wouldn't take much to puncture or indent it.

[joeshmoe]

Yeah, but there are plenty of things that CAN be seen and foreseen during the inspection process, but they pass anyway.

[Super_Dave]

joeshmoe, when the quality inspector is looking at contact paper on the walls and cardboard underlayment, there isn't a lot they can do. Campers seem to be put together with a lot of adhesives. Heat and adhesives don't seem to be a good mix. I know that adhesives have taken a big hit with States outlawing a lot of the chemicals that make them work well to meet EPA guidelines. I've developed a lot of air bubbles on my ceiling carpet because the heat has allow it to come apart. On 100 degree days, it is probably 140 - 150+ degrees inside my camper.

[joeshmoe]

Very poor construction at best and so revealing and so far from 4 season claimed or real quality type acceptable design/construction!

[anutami]

RICKIM wrote:
Is it the image or does that look like it has been hit by something? The molding looks like it has a slight bend in it and the ProFlex has been compromised.
Might be just the angle or a reflection?
Either way that would be unacceptable to me.
You should definitely have it looked at.

Good Luck, and happy camping.

Rick

Its just the picture and the reflection. Here are some of the other defects. Thanks for all the feedback and posting this thread. I guess I'm a pretty mellow easy-going guy but this is crazy and getting me upset. Will be contacting apache camping center and see what they say. It's beginning to look like I got another lemon!!!!!

[RICKIM]

Is it the image or does that look like it has been hit by something? The molding looks like it has a slight bend in it and the ProFlex has been compromised.
Might be just the angle or a reflection?
Either way that would be unacceptable to me.
You should definitely have it looked at.

Good Luck, and happy camping.

Rick

[travelnutz]

And just how long do you think it wll be before the "dent" water holding area caulk/seal joint will be compromised in a regional where there's repeated freezing a thawing expansion and flexing which is constantly occurring? That pic shows a very major unacceptable manufacturing defect and also that there's a lack of of any backing support under the exterior skin and tells/reveals something about the actual RV's construction that's hidden and you can't see from the outside or inside. Very poor construction at best and so revealing and so far from 4 season claimed or real quality type acceptable design/construction! How can anyone be so gullible as to accept such shoddy manufacturing when paying such high cost for the purchase??? Mind boggling!!!

Hey, it's the frontal area of an RV that has wind driven water and debris coming at it when driving. Also gets the age/aging deterioration caused by the Sun's rays. Just when driving at 65 mph into a 20 mph headwind = an 85 mph wind ramming water and road debris etc (10 mph higher than hurricane force) hitting/driving water into the front area and seams of the TC and yes, the defect and all seams areas. It's a defect that you don't simply fix after the TC is built nor should you ever have to. I/we'd NEVER accept this type of cheesy design/construction or any wavy/delam/unsightliness in any RV we'd purchased/accepted new or even NEVER in a used RV as we'd run, not walk away!

[MORSNOW]

anutami wrote:
Noticed the same with my WC. It is wavey on the entire top piece.

The most noticable is on the corners. No wonder other manufactures have gone to a 1 piece molded fiberglass or the like. Very alarming and cheap looking.

Dang, I would have thought that your replacement camper would have been a Northwood mfg showpiece after what happened to your last one. I dug my ladder out and went up to take a look at my Wolf Creek. I don't see any dents or ripples where the roof meets the front edge on mine. But I will be keeping an eye on it now.

[joeshmoe]

But they don't. "Deal with it" is how I think they feel about it. They roll the dice on sending subpar work out the door and then deal with whatever complaints or warranty work come back. I guarantee they know that a large portion of their customer base are DIY's. Who wants to go to the trouble of handing over their camper to a dealer that may or may not get to it in a timely manner, or whether it will even get fixed properly. Not me.