slide bottom wear/tear

[powerboatr]

My 6 slides are HEAVY.
four of them are on rollers, with big ones inside and the small hard ones outside for the slide to move on as it is retracted or extended.
my kitchen one which is the heaviest started showing signs of grooves and wear gouges from the slide sitting on the small diameter rollers, so a few months ago i put a set of alum plates in teh slide for the slide to rest on when retracted. they have worked fantastic, soooo
i ordered some alum 7075 t6 which is a very hard temper alum but only adds about 3 lbs to the total project
cut the strips 6" wide by an 1" longer than the slide bottom and placed the metal between the roller and the floor of the slide, this was it rests on teh metal both retracted and extended.
i still need to paint em black, but that has to wait for warmer weather.
this picture is of the passenger side rear slide.

[deadeye916]

I like it! One question...how did you get the aluminum under the slide out? Did it require lifting the slide out so you could get the aluminum under the forward roller? I have a super slide and was considering something along the same line...

[powerboatr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by deadeye916 I like it! One question...how did you get the aluminum under the slide out? Did it require lifting the slide out so you could get the aluminum under the forward roller? I have a super slide and was considering something along the same line...

YUP i placed a 2x10 and flat wide piece of 4x6 and lifted it slightly with a 3 ton bottle jack. only had to lift one edge about 1/8 "
and the slides are built strong, the middle one slid in real easy with very little lifting.
I got concerned about the wear the bottoms were getting while driving down the roads.
the rollers were digging into the floor material, this will last long long time
the 7075 is very tough and lite, thin sheet steel would cave or work, this alum is heat treated and will crack before it bends to much

i placed the edge near the rollers far enough in so the rollers are not sitting on the edge, it leaves about 1" of support .
still need to paint and apply seal coat #2

[KC1BUD]

I wouldn't paint them, since during operation of the slides, I would think they would crack the paint and cause it to peel.

[John H...]

Maybe you have some old cans of zinc chromate laying around from the old days. Hard to get any more. John H...

[powerboatr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by John H... Maybe you have some old cans of zinc chromate laying around from the old days. Hard to get any more. John H...

oh yes from the olden days, i never knew how bad that stuff was when i was much younger , it was like having a can of wd40, so indispensable.
aircraft spruce keeps me in business, its like having your own personal flam locker
we are supposed to have a few days of Sunshine so i should be able to finish the kitchen slide and get some flat black on em.

[John H...]

Yeah, I get e-mails weekly from Aircraft Spruce. I just thought the chromate if you have some would stick on better and not wear off as quickly as flat black. Also could use alodine to just protect the alumium. John H...

[powerboatr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by John H... Yeah, I get e-mails weekly from Aircraft Spruce. I just thought the chromate if you have some would stick on better and not wear off as quickly as flat black. Also could use alodine to just protect the alumium. John H...

ok QA i will go back and treat it to prevent corrosion
it is clad, so now since the jig is up i must go prime and paint it before the next inspection is due, or preflight

finished the kitchen slide this afternoon, if it stays sunny i might get it tp&p this week

[John H...]

Not sure what you mean by Sunny. I'm in western PA. and now we look at 4" of snow as a dusting. Won't see sun for a while. If it does come out it will probably be blocked by all the snow piles.

[powerboatr]

we had snow last week
this week its just wet ground and wind with some sun
rain expected for friday

[John H...]

I start the MH and run the generator faithfully every 3 to 4 weeks. Did it yesterday after having to shovel a path through about 3 feet of snow to to get to the door. Will be glad to see spring come. Our stupid groundhog saw his shadow. John H...

[Mandys Man]

Quote:

Originally Posted by deadeye916 I like it! One question...how did you get the aluminum under the slide out? Did it require lifting the slide out so you could get the aluminum under the forward roller? I have a super slide and was considering something along the same line...

Deadeye,
You might want to take a look at the bottom of the bedroom and kitchen slides.
Just like Powerbotr, mine are beginning to show indents where they ride when pulled in.
I was going to use 1/8" stainless and do the same thing he has done. Only to heck with the paint thing.