Another Steps problem on Tuscany

[peliaspastia]

I have a 2007 Damon Tuscany 4074 that has abt. 4,000 miles on it. A couple of weeks ago, when preparing to leave for a new campground, the steps refused to retract. I checked for the usual problems, wiring, fuse, etc and everything was OK. When I closed the door to engage the magnet switch I could hear the motor humming and then feel it heating up. After checking for any obstructions I decide that the problem had to be either in the motor itself or in the gear assembly.
I spent the next 3 hours on my back removing the assembly and taking it apart.
The assemble consists of the motor with a shaft that turns a gear that is about 3 1/2" in diameter. That gear in turn has a smaller gear attached to the gear shaft outside the gear housing. This smaller gear drives a fan shaped blade that pushes the steps in and out. The entire assembly is attached to the floor above the steps with three bolts that screw into the floor above the steps. The motor housing is attached to the gear housing with 4 small screws. I removed the motor housing and pulled the motor shaft back away from the big gear and then placed a vice grip on the small gear and tried to rotate the the big gear. It moved ever so slightly. After closer inspection I observed that the shaft of the large gear emerges through a hole in the cover plate and appeared to be rusted to the hole. After applying a liberal amount of WD40 to the shaft and hole I was able to gradually free up the shaft and get the gear to rotate. After putting it back together and before attaching it to the MH I plugged it in and it work perfectly rotating forward and backward rapidly. Now 4 hours into this project I re-attached it to the floor above the steps, plugged it in, and turn on the switch, opened and closed the door. The motor and gears worked perfectly-----------except one thing!! When I opened the door the steps went in and when I closed the door the steps went out. ☹
Well!! It was getting late, and we had to be getting down the road to our next stop, so I took the assembly off, bagged all the parts, tied up the steps, and headed down the road.
I know what I did wrong in re-assembling the motor but I do have one problem. I thought I had collected all the parts but now I may have a problem. The motor assembly was, as I mentioned before, attached to the area above the steps with 3 bolts. These bolts have spacer rings that go on either side of the gear assembly. My problem is that when I opened my bag of parts there were only 4 spacers. Is 4 all that is required or does it need six?? I thought I was very careful about collecting all the parts so I'm not sure. If someone has access to a diagram of the assembly or is willing to look under the steps (easy to see when the steps are out) I would very thankful.
BTW -I wonder if this represents a flaw in the design? That gear end is exposed to any water that runs off the back of the steps and can collect there.
I should also mention that there wasn't an over abundance of grease in the gear assembly. Any one else have problems with the gear assembly?

[powerboatr]

WOW
is your step a FRIGATE brand model? if so call em and get the specs on the parts
if it operates backwards, could you have placed the power connections in reverse?

if it warms up her i will g out and look at mine

[powerboatr]

i found my booklet on the scs frigette step
1-800-275-7524 is their service number

the wiring i have in the book is a bit perplexing but i will try to get it clear
from the module there is a four pin connector
and a separate green that goes to chassis ground

the door magnetic switch is BROWN wire
red is lead for motor , 10 ga. 25 amp fuse
yellow is power source that is HOT only with the ignition on, 6 amp fuse 16 ga.
white is power switch 16 ga. ( power switch is the one at the panel inside the passenger door on the panel)
http://www.scsfrigette.com/hvac-syst...l-vehicles.php
the website is vague, and has no step entries but does a bunch of other coooool stuff
hope it helps

[buckeyeduffer]

We had the same problem in the snow in Kansas at Thanksgiving. The cause of my problem was one of the three 1/4 in. gear mounting bolts breaking off and allowing the assembly to sag and jam up. I had to drill out the snapped bolt then just add a longer bolt with lock washers and double nuts on top of the assembly. I lost two of the spacers (in the snow) and could not locate any at Auto-Zone etc, so I ended up substituting a couple of over sized nuts of the same height dimension for the spacers. It works fine after I got it assembled so that it did not work backwards like the problem you experienced. Reversing was just a matter of repositioning the quarter fly gear on the motor drive gear but holding the assembly while doing that was a bear.

As for the 5/8 in. assembly pivot bolt. Had to purchase a large allen wrench to fit and remove it but found the hex on the bolt rounded out (apparently during initial assembly) and I had to drive my new wrench into the bolt in order to remove and reinstall it. The bolt was rusted in to the mounting plate as you describe, and before reassembly I coated everthing with silicon spray to try to lubricate as much as possible, and have made it a point to spray the gear assembly every few weeks since. I would like to grease the gear assembly but do not want any possible excess grease dropping down on the steps. The silicon seems not to collect too much dust and dirt, but dries out faily quickly.

This assembly is poorly engineered in my estimation, and the gear sssembly should be encased to protect it from the corrosive environment. If I get another failure I intend to look into a better engineered system. I am also considering a metal deflector to keep road spray and dirt off he assembly and act as a grease catcher so that I can proberly lubricate the gear assumbly. I think some lite aluminimum sheeting would work just fine and be easy to fabricate.

Good luck on your repair.

PS: You might want to check the chassis ground connection for the step actuator motor as mine was so loose I do not know how it maintained contact.

[powerboatr]

i will double the call to protect the gears,
it is in need of spray and road gunk protection.
mine pops and makes funny noises, even after a good greasing

[peliaspastia]

Thanks all for the great replies. Once I get this working again I think a shield would be a great idea. When I get back home I might even consider installing a screw in zerk fitting, providing there is space in the assembly for it.
As for the the motor reversing I am certain that the wires did not get changed since they are embedded in the gear housing and were unaffected when I slid the motor housing back. I think that it has to do with the position of the gears when the assembly is re-installed.
The whole project is now at a standstill. We are in Victoria, Tx and it has been raining for the past two days and the forecast if for two more days of the same.
I'm not sure of the brand. Where do you find that info?

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by peliaspastia

Thanks all for the great replies. Once I get this working again I think a shield would be a great idea. When I get back home I might even consider installing a screw in zerk fitting, providing there is space in the assembly for it.
As for the the motor reversing I am certain that the wires did not get changed since they are embedded in the gear housing and were unaffected when I slid the motor housing back. I think that it has to do with the position of the gears when the assembly is re-installed.
The whole project is now at a standstill. We are in Victoria, Tx and it has been raining for the past two days and the forecast if for two more days of the same.
I'm not sure of the brand. Where do you find that info?

the brand i got off my documentation in the BIG blue packet from damon
it was dated 2001 ?????

[powerboatr]

Electric Double Step - Item - Camping World
i found these at camping world, says its fits most models
they are made by stromberg carlson
http://www.strombergcarlson.com/stor...ctric+RV+Steps
their website has em a bit better priced

by reading their documents online it appears they also have replacement parts that LOOK exactly like what i have now????? there manual shows the steps to be a LCI product which 100% what i have vice the firgette model in my booklet

http://www.strombergcarlson.com/pdf/...epElectric.pdf
link to a better copy of the book

[peliaspastia]

Thanks.
Without going out in the soaking rain those docs. look exactly like what I have. I will report back when/if it ever quits raining.

[buckeyeduffer]

This is the exact assembly that is on my coach. Thanks PB.

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by buckeyeduffer

This is the exact assembly that is on my coach. Thanks PB.

beer is on you