james presley
Ohio
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Joined: 04/03/2002
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The pulldown strap (the kind that pulls down the awning on the small motorhome windows and keeps the awning pulled down)has rotted and I need to repace the strap. I bought a new strap but can not get the hard plastic end tip into the channel because the end tip is larger than the channel which goes without saying. However, I am looking for a trick to get it into the channel without removing the end caps from the awning tube. The window awning is a 1995 Carefree Spirit. Any tricks? I tried boiling water to make the plastic softer so I could force it in to no avail.
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trnfla
Tampa
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you are trying to side it in thru the slot on one end. right?
Have a great time camping,
Terry
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MI Director
Michigan
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I used a drill at an angle at one end to make a slot just big enough to slide the plastic anchor into the channel.
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RRyall
SW PA
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Joined: 08/14/2007
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A trick I had seen before was to pick a spot in the rail about 1/3 of the way in from one end or the other, and drill a 1/4" hole into the groove. This will enable you to insert the plastic keeper into the groove, and then just slide it down to the center of the rail. You can do this and then not remove the end cap. On mine the end was open enough to get the plastic keeper in from the end. If you do a search you may find this tip with some pictures. I had seen this tip here, of course.
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j-d
Sunny Florida USA
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On ours it seemed only the last few inches, exposed to the sun when the awning was not in use, had the rot. We made a new end from boat cover material and sewed to the end of the good part of the original strap.
God Bless, jd
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james presley
Ohio
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Thank You very much for the reply about drilling a slanted 1/4 inch slot near the end of the channel. It worked perfectly.........
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ron.dittmer
Near Chicago
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Joined: 02/26/2007
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Glad to hear you got resolution.
I was going to suggest you do what our RV has......
In our RV, the awning strap has no plastic loop at the end. It has 3 or 4 sewn loops which allows for different awning height adjustments. There is enough spring tension to retain the awning if not down all the way.
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Elsinore 4 stroker
Lake Elsinore
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Joined: 12/20/2007
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for future needs, find a local rv salvage yard and get one from him. We have a great salavage yard in Fontana and I've found stuff that was impossible else where.
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