We Did It! (I hope) - Hi-Lo camper travel trailer forum

bshetts · 05-17-2015, 07:50 PM

Last week my buddy and I replaced the bulb seal on my 19TL. Quite a learning experience. Some mistakes were made but we managed to get it replaced and the two halves back together and hydraulics functioning. We blocked the front end using 4x4s with 2x4s attached at the top and used a lift truck with a pallet on the forks to support/lift the back end of the top half. Replaced all 6 guide blocks as well. Took around 16 hours total because we had to re-separate the halves as we tore the seal in 3 spots on the guide rails the first time we ran it down. After re-separating the halves and replacing the seal where it had torn we took great care to be sure it did not catch on the guide rails on the way down and adjusted the cables to make sure the seal doesn't go above the tops of the guide rails when raised. Live and learn!

Garry · 05-18-2015, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bshetts

Last week my buddy and I replaced the bulb seal on my 19TL. Quite a learning experience. Some mistakes were made but we managed to get it replaced and the two halves back together and hydraulics functioning. We blocked the front end using 4x4s with 2x4s attached at the top and used a lift truck with a pallet on the forks to support/lift the back end of the top half. Replaced all 6 guide blocks as well. Took around 16 hours total because we had to re-separate the halves as we tore the seal in 3 spots on the guide rails the first time we ran it down. After re-separating the halves and replacing the seal where it had torn we took great care to be sure it did not catch on the guide rails on the way down and adjusted the cables to make sure the seal doesn't go above the tops of the guide rails when raised. Live and learn!

Can't get a clear picture of what you did with the front end, but it sounds like a clever way to separate the top and bottom.

sam · 05-18-2015, 09:18 PM

Just think of all the fun you had and the $ you saved. We had to redo a small part of our seal replacement as we didn't use heavy enough metal. The metal curled up and fell out. It is fixed properly now.

bshetts · 05-19-2015, 02:18 PM

Maybe these will help!

bshetts · 05-19-2015, 02:31 PM

We did a few things differently then the Sam Shields instructions indicated. There was plenty of slack in the wiring so we didn't cut wires. We detached the lift cables underneath the trailer instead of from the top half. We used galvanized steel flashing and a pneumatic stapler to install the new seal. We also used shorter 2x4s and went across the corners instead across the entire trailer to separate the halves. This made it easier to remove the old seal and install the new one. We didn't have to work around/reach across the 2x4s to install the seal on the front and back walls. All in all, I learned a lot about my trailer!

Garry · 05-19-2015, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bshetts

We did a few things differently then the Sam Shields instructions indicated. There was plenty of slack in the wiring so we didn't cut wires. We detached the lift cables underneath the trailer instead of from the top half. We used galvanized steel flashing and a pneumatic stapler to install the new seal. We also used shorter 2x4s and went across the corners instead across the entire trailer to separate the halves. This made it easier to remove the old seal and install the new one. We didn't have to work around/reach across the 2x4s to install the seal on the front and back walls. All in all, I learned a lot about my trailer!

Thanks for the photos, got a clear picture now.

Treeclimber · 05-19-2015, 03:32 PM

Lucky to have a forklift in your toolbox!

Tree

Terry1221 · 03-04-2016, 10:23 AM

I going to try this next weekend. Great pictures.

hilltool · 03-04-2016, 12:21 PM

Impressive- thanks.

Rick