Window coming loose-screws are stripped--RE-POST

RollinWithShirley

I think this category might be more appropriate for my posting......

One of my windows is coming loose at the top and it seems that the screws are stripped.  My thought is to try larger screws.  Any other advice or considerations welcome!   These screws are good to add to maintenance check as they are not usually visible.

MuttonChops

RollinWithShirley said:
. . . windows is coming loose at the top and it seems that the screws are stripped.
. . . thought is to try larger screws. 

I would suggest a larger Diameter Screw instead of a Longer Screw as "larger screw" is not clear.
Around the window cut-out the sidewall has a thin metal foil to help screws "get a grip" since the rest of the wall is just foam board.

That said, if several screws are 'stripped' you might consider using a bolt with a fender washer on the inside (cabin side) of the wall.

For reference:

Let us know what you decide to do.

Binghi

I keep a selection of larger size Robertson square head screws. When one of the trailer’s screws strips out, I replace it with the next larger diameter and usually a greater length. A recent replacement involved the top bathroom door hinge.

bergger

@Binghi that's a good idea.  We've only had one screw come loose on a ceiling panel above the bed but I tightened it and it's held fast ever since.  However I think I will add some of those larger size screws to my kit. 

manyman297

Whatever you do, remember you’ll need to reapply a strip of butyl tape between the hinge bracket and sidewall of the trailer. Remove the existing butyl tape.without this you’ll quickly have a leak into the sandwich layer of Azdel, foam, fiberglass and luan. 

RollinWithShirley

thanks for the advice......great as always.   I hope my hardware store has the Robertson screws.  i will get back to it after Labor day!

techietab

Binghi said:

When one of the trailer’s screws strips out, I replace it with the next larger diameter and usually a greater length. A recent replacement involved the top bathroom door hinge.

Where have you experienced issues with this? The community could probably benefit from a list of areas to keep an eye on.

Binghi

Had to upsize one of the top screws holding the outside handrail at the door. I know I did one more inside the trailer but can’t remember where. I periodically test and tighten screws; that’s when I discover the stripped ones. There haven’t been that many.

manyman297

techietab said:

Binghi said:

When one of the trailer’s screws strips out, I replace it with the next larger diameter and usually a greater length. A recent replacement involved the top bathroom door hinge.

Where have you experienced issues with this? The community could probably benefit from a list of areas to keep an eye on.

We had/have a ton of overdriven screws throughout the interior of our 400. I had to do the toothpick and glue method on a lot of them. They just got overzealous with the impact drill and it’s easy to overdrive screws using one. Haven’t yet run into overdriven screws on the exterior yet aside from the self tapping ones that hold the coroplast belly liner up. Most of the heads were popping off so I replaced them all.

RollinWithShirley

My local hardware store doesn't have much in the way of Robertson square head screws. Can I just use Phillip's head?   If not, where am I likely to find Robertson square heads?

Denny16

You can use Phillips type screws, the sheet metal type.  The main difference is the square drive on the Robertson’s are easier to drive.  Just be careful not to,let the Phillips driver slip out.  I would hand drive the screws, once they are started in.
Cheers

Binghi

I bought mine online from McMaster-Carr Supply. mcmaster.com. But a Phillips head fastener works fine. Just used a couple of them to replace stripped Robertson head screws in the Froli bed spring system.

MuttonChops

= - = History,  Ramblings  . . . .  Square Drive Screw = - =

Several decades ago I was introduced to the square drive, Robinson Head, style screw.  They were used 100% on a Canadian built 1960's commercial fishing boat hull based 'trawler/tug' I purchased as recreational vessel in the 1990's.  That boat builder kept his workers employed during low demand cycles by building very basic recreational boat cabins on their rugged commercial hulls. {as much as I enjoy adventuring with a 320S . . . my heart still misses that freind of 23+ boating seasons.}

At some point I heard/read an urban legend that Dodge created the Phillips Head screw due to royalty disputes with Roberson.   Which according to several different history articles is not what really happened.

In short:
= = Roberson invented the Square Drive in 1907/08.
= = Henry Ford used it 100% on the Model-T assembly line.
= = Ford wanted to modify and control the screw production, Roberson said no.
= = Ford and others continued to use the Square Drive but were not happy.
= = In the 1930's an Engineer (Thompson) and a Businessman (Phillips) created the Phillip Head drive.
= = in 1936 General Motors used the Phillips screw in the 1936 Cadillac.
= = The Phillips Head became the standard because Phillips allowed users to modify the design.

+ + While the Roberson is a better screw drive when compared with slotted and Phillips-head
        screwdrivers as the Robertson worked faster and with less cam-out. However, cam-out was good
        for automakers increasingly relying on automation, as it meant screws wouldn’t be overtightened.

A history article:
   https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/car-accessories/a33490602/phillips-head-screwdriver-history/

I for one really like the Roberson Drive style screws, even when getting paint/etc
out-of-the-slot is a pain.

Denny16

When we got our house, which was built in the early 1950s, and remodel a few times.  Sometime in the 1980s, someone had installed an an aluminum frame window, and didn’t event screw it in, just held in place with the trim mounding on the inside and outside, no flashing, no caulking, and it leaked water every winter.  I ended up replacing it with a new window, properly flashed and caulked.  Haven has a leak since.
 Cheers