Frame cracks where tongue bolts to frame

Verna · March 2018

Scott, I do not have any knowledge to agree or disagree with your question. As we all know, the 2015 model year was very innovative and produced numerous new items in the T@B 320, evidently including a new frame design.

jrslad · March 2018

So I spoke with Warranty and Parts/Service folks at Nucamp yesterday and was informed that a frame rail replacement is offered by Norco. Parts only are offered no labor. If the work is done at the Sugarcreek facility then the labor "MIGHT" be covered (no guarantee). The work takes one to two days depending on individual trailer condition issues. For me a trip from Wisconsin and three or four days in a hotel plus unknown labor charges is a bit more than an inconvenience.
I asked if there are alternate suggestions and I was told to contact the frame manufacturer to see if they would be able to do anything more convenient. I also asked Nucamp about their opinion of having a local welder repair the cracks and reinforce the frame. They indicated that that was probably the most convenient option and probably just as (if not more) effective and safe. There was no offer of covering travel costs (if I returned to Sugarcreek) or reimbursement for repair costs if I chose the welding option. Seems to me that as problem trailers become more numerous, offers of compensation and reimbursement become less freely offered. I plan to followup with a call to the frame manufacturer but I doubt that they will be able to fix the problem any easier. Local welding shop seems to be the best option.

Normfun · March 2018

Thanks for posting this. I have an appt. with a welder in a couple of weeks. Good luck all!

Dalehelman · March 2018

@Normfun I am also planning on having a welding shop take a look. Please let us know what your shop advises. IMHO if I don’t see cracks developing around the other three bolts welding will sufficiently arrest the issue. NuCamp has agreed to replace the cracked rail at the factory when I am there for Ucamp in July. If welding the cracks is an alternative solution. I think I would rather not have the trailer go through the disassembly and reassembly process.

Normfun · March 2018

I agree with you Dale. That’s got to be a big job. I’ll let you know what the results are.

ScottG · March 2018

Those with frame issues please do followup when you pursue of get a resolution. I'm adding that information to the record as well.

Bgkirk · March 2018

I just saw this thread last night after I had spent the afternoon installing the outback axle on our 2015 CS-S. We have a 2015 model year (frame is 10/14 and trailer is 11/14 with 12000 miles) and we DO NOT have any indication of this stress crack. However, I wanted to share the importance of a bolt in this area of the trailer. On the back side of each front stabilizer jack is a bolt/nut. This bolt/nut combination (along with many others under the trailer) holds the body to the frame. I share this because we found this nut missing on our trailer in 2014 and the frame had cracked significantly at the angled bend just aft of the connection stress cracks identified in this thread. Pleasant Valley/NuCamp took great care in fixing our situation and we could not be happier.

This causal factor in our case may have no relevance in the stress cracks described here, but it may be something you add to your intermittent inspection.

jason330i · March 2018

Finally got around to checking our 2017 Tab. No cracks.

Luckyj · March 2018

Wonder how this would be treated in the automotive world. Stress fractures on 3 year hold cars on quite a good number of vehicule/trailer.

Dalehelman · March 2018

Norco told me that the 3 remaining mounting points were more than adequate to secure the tongue to the frame from a safety standpoint. I still want some sort of a fix or repair. At this time I feel NuCamp and Norco do as well.

jrslad · March 2018

I spoke with Ryan Immel of Norco yesterday. He wants to get his hands on one of the effected trailers to get a first hand look. I volunteered to drive my trailer from Wisconsin to Elkhart, In sometime in the next few weeks. He promises a fix or replacement. Once he sets a date, I'll provide updates.

Joe · March 2018

Here is the latest from Marvin Raber, Director of Warranty and Repair.

Are the cracks a safety issue? (not necessarily a safety issue but I would recommend getting it fixed.)
What is the cause frame cracks? (the steal that was used was too hard causing it to become brittle when they formed the dimples where the rivets are.)
Is there anything nüCamp can do to remedy the issue with my trailer? (Norco(the chassis supplier) will supply new chassis parts to replace the cracked pieces.)
Can the cracks be welded? (yes the cracks can be welded.)

And from another email:

The fix we recommend is to replace the broken pieces (which are supplied by Norco) and are 1 gauge thicker the what is on your trailer currently.

If you bring your trailer to our repair shop to have it repaired we will partner with you on the labor if you take it somewhere else it will be a case by case thing.

And as for welding the crack.. can it be do? Yes would it fix the issue? Yes … is it the best option ? probably not.

Since Marvin said he "will partner with me" on the labor, I'm now waiting to hear how much Nucamp will charge me to fix the problem. In addition to me paying for some part of the labor, this option would mean a 2700 mile round trip from Austin.

My concern with welding is that it may fix the existing cracks, but if the steel is defective (i.e., "too brittle" is the term Marvin used) there may be problems in the future at other frame locations. So, welding is not an option for me.

The last option is taking it to a trailer repair facility and getting the replacement parts from Norco or Nucamp. I'm thinking through that option as well.

ScottG · March 2018

Thanks, Joe. Keep us posted on any local fixes you decide to pursue. Even if mine develops cracks it's highly unlikely I'll be hauling it to the midwest for nuCamp or Norco to work on.

Photomom · March 2018

If they’ve determined the root cause (brittle steel) perhaps they can narrow down which frames and therefore which trailers are affected.

jrslad · March 2018

I have an appointment on April 17th in Elkhart, In. Ryan Immel is the Norco contact. He thinks the repairs will take only a few hours. I'll report on my experience after my repair. No indication that there will be charges. Again ,I will let you all know .

Luckyj · March 2018

The previous time I heard about brittle steel, I was on the Titanic. Was it a safety isue, I think so, but I'm not sure. Might have to get my nose back into my history books!

ChanW · March 2018

@Luckyj, methinks your memory is waterlogged...

T@Balong · March 2018

I have an appointment at the factory to have this repair done as well as a few other mods while I'm there.

ericnliz · March 2018

@T@Balong, Keep us posted as to your fix. I know there will be folks interested in how this is handled. Thanks!
Check mine yesterday...no cracks.

Verna · April 2018

@Normfun, that is great news! Thanks for the update.

Dalehelman · April 2018

Do to the importance on this topic can we please stick to things relevant to this issue.

Photomom · April 2018

We brought our T@B home from winter storage today and I had a look. I did not see any cracking on either the driver or passenger side. It’s a 2016 T@B S Max and the manufacture date is March 2016.

I believe this is the end of the model year because we got all the new 2017 features. Perhaps if the build date for the trailers with the issue could be identified it might be helpful in determining the cause.

ScottG · April 2018

I have chassis/frame build dates for five of the nine affected T@B's. They currently range from 05/10/14 to 03/17/15.

dsatwork · April 2018

@ScottG nice work, thanks for following this with @Dalehelman and the others that will go unmentioned....but much appreciated.

Dalehelman · April 2018

Its good to see we are not finding additional trailers with this issue. Maybe they are still in storage.

ChanW · April 2018

@Dalehelman, I'm still waiting for that snow pile to disappear around our Tab! A couple more days, I 'spect, and then mud...

ChanW · April 2018

Update: messed around in the mud.

No cracks visible around those fasteners. But I confess, our's fasteners look quite different from yours @Dalehelman. Ours has the surge brakes, so was possibly a different manufacturer too.

Ours is an 'early 2014' purchased in September? 2013...

I'll update this posting with the frame mfg info if I can find it.

dinzzy · April 2018

2016 CSS Max built 11/20/15... no cracks either side.

ScottG · April 2018

ChanW said:

Update: messed around in the mud.

No cracks visible around those fasteners. But I confess, our's fasteners look quite different from yours @Dalehelman. Ours has the surge brakes, so was possibly a different manufacturer too.

Ours is an 'early 2014' purchased in September? 2013...

I'll update this posting with the frame mfg info if I can find it.

@ChanW, if you look back a page in this thread you will see Verna's comments regarding older T@Bs. It sounds like major changes were made to the frame around the time the 2015s were introduced.

Lucky for you, as it probably means the current issue does not apply in your case!

Sharon_is_SAM · April 2018

@Fiddlerjoebob, check your frame for cracks.

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Frame cracks where tongue bolts to frame

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