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General Discussion / NORCOLD INC N7XFL Polar N7X Series 2-Way AC/LP RV Refrigerator with Fan

« on: February 13, 2025, 10:02:12 pm »

Well...  Our old Norcold N621L had an issue.

'n' on the display. Power down and back up, ran for a while then... 'n' and wouldn't do anything. 

Found the service bulletin to reset the circuit board, and went to figure out what it was. Using the diagnostics built into it, I found the thermistor on the fridge coils would read fine down to ~45 degrees, then suddenly revert to 73*.  And we have to leave in a day for the next fest.

Tried all over our area, nobody with parts that old. Found it on Amazon for $8, but 2 day delivery.

Found that 50* on the coil triggered the 'watchdog' routine that eventually ends up with the dreaded 'n' on the display. If the coil doesn't get over 50*, it never worries.

ok!  Took resistance readings from the broken thermistor, and got a couple numbers off youtube vids.  Did some back of the napkin math, and figured out that about 22K of resistance from the sender should be ~45* reading. Cannibalized two 11K resistors from an old PC board, put them in series instead of the thermistor, and checked using the onboard diagnostics.

46* reading.    Left the temp setting on 5, put digital thermomter sensors in both the fridge and freezer, and went to the fest.

Worked GREAT! Kept 34* in the fridge, -1 in the freezer. Whole week.

But Mrs V was leery. A new fridge was in the works. Found that the NORCOLD  N7XFL was a direct replacement for the size,and was bigger!  Joy!
(  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BZQMJ25J )

And I had an 'off grid' friend that needed an ammonia fridge. Win win.

Local camping world wanted $2450 delivered.  Amazon was about a THOUSAND less. 

So... in it came.  Used the tractor to bring it in from the road, first time seeing an Amazon trailer truck delivering to a house. 

Unboxed, Installed.

WHAT A PIECE OF JUNK!!


In the camper for two days, no food. Testing.  Running, -4 freezer, 34 fridge. YES. We leave in 3 days, Mrs V can start packing it.

BUT.....

Water dripping off the freezer ceiling?!?!?! 1/4" plus frost on the back?!?  (See picture 'Adobe Express' below)

Did I perhaps leave the door slightly ajar? The gasket misaligned?

Nope. The absolute WORST build quality I have seen.   

NO MORE smooth plastic seal seating area. Now its Steel. Probably powder coated, wait for rust in a year MAX. And the 45* butt joint... its an overlap. (Picture KIMG1581 below)

The bottom center piece was so misaligned, the left was a hairline crack. The right side was about 3/16. A wide open groove. (Picture KIMG1579 below)

Fridge was even worse on the groove. (Pic -1583)

The left hand side tight. So before foaming, this took a hit, and misaligned. Then was never fixed, or QC'd. 

Now... the old 6.3 cubic foot N621 (see pic in the next post, I put too many here)  Look at that 20 year old SMOOTH PLASTIC RUST FREE SURFACE!   

The new one is .7 CF bigger. ooOOOOooooh. Same shelves, same glass, same door shelf inserts. I dont know WHERE the extra room is.

But WOW is it doomed to fail. And the most sorrowful thing... MADE WITH PRIDE IN THE USA.       I can only assume it was a DEI hire, and their PRIDE wasn't in their work, but their gender.  (Thanks to CC for that gem.  )

I am going to give it a try for a week, and when we get home process it for a return. And fix the old one, do some restoration on the aged pieces, and reinstall. Probably for another 20 years.

I just have to find/make door panel inserts to get rid of the '70s wood look.

More detail on the install to come later on my 2350 thread. But for now...

DONT BUY THE POS NORCOLD INC N7XFL Polar N7X Series.  What crap.





(and now I have to go resize pictures for the ANTIQUE attachment rules here... 240kb?!? My old phone takes 1.5mB pics..    and it appears that preview doesnt show the pics. Sigh. Hope they show up)

2

General Discussion / Oil Gauge or idiot gauge??

« on: October 09, 2022, 10:48:07 am »

Recently had the oil pressure gauge drop to '0' while driving.    A 'DING' from the dash, the info center said 'Check Gauges' and a small red light lit up below the fuel gauge that said 'Check Gages'. Yes, they were spelled different. 


Stopped, checked things, rolled the window down and CAREFULLY drove home with ears wide open. Sending unit problem was the diagnosis.

Finally went and got a replacement sender unit. KInda small for a gauge output... in my opinion. 

Just to verify the wiring and gauge itself was OK, I 'shorted' the wire off the sending unit to the block. I was alone, so I took a video to review the test results. Its 15 seconds, check it out.

https://youtu.be/gKG1tlaPjJo

I was a little puzzled.... normally grounding the wire would put the gauge full scale.  This did not. You can see the jump to ~2/3 scale when wire was grounded.  Wire off, and the gauge drops to 0, 'ding' from dash, and red light comes on.

The oil gauge has ALWAYS read at that spot. Does now again.

That gauge is NOT what I thought it was. It will never show me 7/8 scale, 1/4 scale or any other reading but 0 and 2/3.  Its an idiots gauge. Works like an idiot light, but with more 'bells and whistles'.     

How idiotic.  It fooled me, however. I had been pleased that Ford gave me both a temperature gauge AND an oil pressure gauge.  Nope. They saved a few bucks and gave us an idiot gauge. Not that big a deal, I think I am 20% irritated that its not a 'real' gauge, and 75% irritated it fooled me this long.    (5% thinking to myself  'You spent HOW much time to post this?!?    )

Thought this was of passing interest. Not sure if this applies to the 2008 and later chassis, mine is a 2006.

3

General Discussion / High Capacity 225/75R16 tires

« on: July 22, 2021, 05:19:44 pm »

Got my new tires today! 

Looking around on the Discount Tire site, I was shopping for the same tires Rod D got.

https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/michelin-agilis-crossclimate

Click on the Load Index/speed rating tab and select '121R'

This got me the Euro commercial version! With the coolest tread! Specs at bottom....if the picture attaches right...



Looks REALLY tough without the wheel covers... but they are going to be installing new valve stems for me, which they FORGOT to do.  After I asked twice. So I will put the valve extentions and wheel covers on AFTER that.

They put them to 70PSI, they ride really nicely. Took them up to ~85MPH on i95, and then took some rougher secondary roads.
They do have a bit more road noise, but not loud at all. Riding with the radio off you can hear them.  Thats OK.      LOVE the extra weight handling and look.  I fear not hydroplaning!   

I am a sucker for cool tread... check out the rear tires on my trike - DOT legal racing/rain tires. 




***************************************************************************************************

The spare was replaced with one of the 2015 takeoff tires. The ORIGINAL spare tire below.... Never been on the ground, sticker still on it (!) Spare dated 29th week of 2005. My chassis is dated 09/2005, and the tires were made July 18-24 2005.

Dry rot anyone? 






Specs from Tire rack below between the 115/112R and the 121/120R

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General Discussion / Transfer Switch diagnosis and replacement 2006 model 2350

« on: May 04, 2021, 07:51:03 pm »

Thats the good thing about the forum...I get to experience problems through helping others, and in turn prepare myself for the inevitable day that I have my own.

I said that on another thread about power... and now I got a problem!

This is for the OLDER campers...so it might not match 2007 and later. PLEASE be advised. 

 

Camper has been on shore power for several days. No issues.

Went to go empty the waste tanks and fill the propane and gasoline.

While dumping and rinsing (and rinsing...and rinsing...) I run the generator and use the AC.

Generator started right up.....THOUGHT  I heard the click... no power.    Shut down, tested again... no power. 

Went home, and started to diagnose. Plugged into shore power, all is well. Turn off the AC, start the generator, and click!  No power.    Well then!

Recalled people saying the transfer switch is behind the drivers seat in the B pillar. YES!  There is a junction box there.



But NO!  Just wires.    No switch.   So the wires are likely straight from the generator. 

I started the generator, and quickly lost shore power. Even heard the 'click back by the fridge...   The transfer switch is back there.   

While I had the junction box open, I tested the voltage. Generator off, nothing. Generator running...127 Volt!   

So.... I know the generator is making power, I measured it AND the transfer switch is 'seeing' it.  Just not getting to the main breaker..

I have the Parallax 7300 series power center.  This '1970's brown' beauty.



Dont bother looking up the installation instructions, it does NOT include the transfer switch. 

Remove the (4) torx head screws from the bottom of the outer cover. Take it and the lid off. Then you can remove (4) square drive screws, and pull the unit out.

Then the secret is revealed. I pulled the cover off already, and staged it for a good picture. 



Thats the item there.

With the generator running, AC OFF!! I applied a percussive diagnostic indicating pulse with a suitable tool. (Hit it with the screwdriver handle  )

YEAH!!!  We got power. Switched back and forth between generator power and shore power, no more problems. FOR NOW... but repairs are top priority.  Diagnostics complete. 

I found the original replacement - an ATS-301

https://www.amazon.com/Parallax-ATS-301-Automatic-Transfer/dp/B00ODIMVSE/ref=asc_df_B00ODIMVSE/


BUT... we are leaving thursday for a festival. Need it sooner than they can get it here. And a few local calls indicates its a 'vintage' piece that needs to be ordered. So....

For $50 less, I got this one coming tomorrow -

https://www.amazon.com/Surge-Guard-41300-Automatic-Transfer/dp/B073PD854Q/



Little rewiring, and make a shelf for it and DONE.  I will even leave enough slack in the wire to do an 'in the field' bypass should we need the generator power, and the transfer switch fails again.

Put it all back together again for now, as Mrs V is loading the camper and HATES exposed wires. 

HOPEFULLY part comes earlier tomorrow, and install goes easy. Stay tuned!

5

General Discussion / Power Window Fix 2006 E350

« on: March 19, 2021, 06:33:23 pm »

Had a mishap with the passenger side window.

I was not watching closely, but I had a friend riding with, and he tried to 'help' the window down.  Not sure why he did that, but next thing I knew he was holding it up from disappearing into the door! 

Window regulator replacement is todays project.     This is intended to be an overview, and does not contain detailed procedures. This is NOT a difficult job for a beginner, but if in doubt, PLEASE dont go ripping things apart. 

**************************************************************

Welcome to my passenger door. We will be referring to this during disassembly.



First, remove the inside door cover, and peel back the vapor barrier to get things looking like the picture above. My vapor barrier was a pain, it wanted to rip. You WILL be reusing this, so go slow.

Now see the zip tie holding the regulator and door handle cables together? Remove it and put it aside. If you have to cut it, GET ANOTHER. It is not optional.

The factory rivets have a steel mandrel in the middle. This has to be punched out with a small (~3/16) punch and 10-12oz hammer. (Bigger is NOT better here)  There are (7) rivets total, two are not shown above. These are the ones we start with.

*************************************************************************************



This is a view of one of the window rivets. I lowered the window until they were lined up with the access holes. (The mandrel is out already, so you will see a 'post' in the middle of yours)

The biggest risk when driving the mandrel out is window breakage. I put the handle of my wire brush between the bracket and door to stabilize it. The mandrel came out with 3-4 sharp raps.

***************************************************************



After getting the mandrel out, use a 1/4" drill and drill out the aluminum body. Congrats, this is the hardest part of the task.     (This same procedure is used to remove all 7 rivets, though the others do not need the support behind them when hammering)

*************************************************************.


After removing the 7 rivets, two upper channel nuts and the power connector, tilt the assembly so it looks like this. Remove it with care, up and to the right. Careful!  NO tugging or yanking, things can snag on the way out.

***************************************************************



ANY mechanic worth their name does NOT leave trash in the door. 



Just because you or the customer cant see it, does not make it acceptable practice. A magnet collects the mandrels, needlenose pliers and fingers can do the rest.
It can make noise, collect dirt, clog drains, even lead to bi-metallic corrosion causing rust in the door. Its not just me being a neat freak. You should take the debris out, then vacuum the area. 

****************************************************************


POST MORTEM



The motor, drive gear, housing...EVERYTHING looked fine. The cables? You can see the bottom one has a knot in the end. I strongly suspect that my friend put downward pressure on the window, and this caused slack in the cable. Then it came off the guide, wrapping itself into a knot as the motor rotated.   IF this was a rare part, I bet one could reassemble things and make it work. But new isnt that dear ($90) so in it goes.

******************************************************

REASSEMBLY



The replacement hardware kit contains new nuts and rivets. I dont use them. I prefer using nylon locking nuts and bolts.  Check to see if your rivet gun even takes 1/4 rivets, my handheld ones did not. My air riveter did, but wouldnt fit in the door access holes.

And I dont care for the smaller washer and head size on the replacement nuts, I will use the original. The bag of parts will go in the spare parts bin.

**************************************************************************



Reassemble your door, leave all fasteners loose at first. I removed the speaker (red star) to allow access to the motor mount bolts.

Now look at the YELLOW STAR on the zip tie. MAKE SURE this zip tie is installed, and the door cable lays on TOP of the window cable. This ensures the cable guides do not catch on the window assembly was it goes down, BREAKING YOUR NEW REGULATOR.    There is a VERY good reason for that zip tie. Respect it.  If your cables are crossed differently at this point, STOP and correct it.

Tighten the two window bolt assemblies (not shown) then snug up the nuts on top. You will see that there is adjustment side to side for them. Center the nuts and tighten. Then go and tighten the others.

Plug in the power connector, and test the window. If it binds going up, loosen the top nuts when the window is up and tighten them again. I spray dry teflon lube in the channels to lubricate the glass. Dont use 'oily' lubes, they attract dirt.

********************************************************



Use foil tape or a good substitute to secure the vapor barrier to the door.

See the yellow/red star?  Make a copy of your receipt, the original will fade. Fold it up and put it in a zip lock. Tape that to the door.

This assembly is lifetime guarantee. Having the paperwork there will REALLY help in using that warrantee should I (or the next mechanic) have to do this again.


Now reassemble the door, test all functions, and celebrate a job well done. 

6

General Discussion / What NOT to do when flat towing a 2021 Jeep Wrangler

« on: March 17, 2021, 02:11:39 pm »

Source - https://jalopnik.com/jeep-wrangler-engine-explodes-after-owner-tows-vehicle-1846493328

WARNING!  PROFANITY in the video.

Video of the mechanical disaster that once was a dual overhead cam, 3.6-liter, naturally aspirated V6, made it to TikTok and YouTube. Prepare your souls for destruction:

https://youtu.be/P2d3NXp4lDk

As you can see in the clip, the crankshaft is broken, the block and pan are in pieces, there’s no flywheel or clutch kit to be found, the catalytic converter is destroyed, the bell housing is toast, the manual transmission input shaft has been sheared, and — though it’s hard to tell — I’m fairly sure the passenger’s side upper control arm was bent by the flying debris. It’s just a huge mess.

This is a screenshot from the video, you can see what is left of the bellhousing, MISSING flywheel, clutch, rear 2 cylinders and crank... 

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General Discussion / How Old is a New Battery?

« on: December 23, 2020, 11:51:11 am »

Well, with all the COVID-19   problems, Trojan is experiencing a shortage of batteries.  My supplier has a REALLY good contact at the factory, and got a few pallets of FRESH 12V golf cart batteries.

They now date-mark Trojans with ink on the battery case, ending YEARS of stamping them into the battery post. People were grinding off the stamped numbers, and re-stamping them for warranty fraud.

The brand new batteries were marked   B1   .   February of 2021 MGG date... 

Turns out it is NORMAL for batteries to take 90 days from factory to sale.  Buying 'fresh' batteries, you are getting 3 months old.  These were shipped hours after being made, and were pre-sold before the shop received them.   Strange days... I was lucky to get 4.

SO...  when buying batteries, know that the date on them may be 90+  days AFTER they were made. So if they are 'only' 3 months old by date, they may actually be 6 months old. LONG time to be sitting on a shelf self discharging.

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General Discussion / 2006 2350 has different setup than my 2006 2350

« on: April 29, 2020, 08:01:45 am »

For sale on FB, and its the same color as ours. BUT... the drivers side has a different setup.

Mine has the battery door in a similar place, but there is an extra door above the wheelwell, the shower is moved, looks like the potable water fill is on this side... is this mis-identified as a 2350? No other pics, sorry. I figured Detective Ron D will probably answer with ease. 

9

General Discussion / Sprayer near commode

« on: November 12, 2019, 01:39:35 pm »

Mrs V and I were looking through pics of other PC's... and noticed a sprayer, similar to a sink sprayer, next to the commode.



Whats it for? Bidet was a guess, or maybe to help flush solids........ Thanks!   

10

General Discussion / Silverliner's ""Help ! How can I add photos to post. ."" part 2

« on: July 25, 2019, 01:27:09 pm »

Not sure why that thread is locked...

There is a way to upload pictures here also.

When you are composing a post or reply, Look below the 'box' you type in. There is a " Attachments and other options " in blue, click on it.

You will see 'Attach:'  with 'Choose File' below. Click on 'choose file', and browse to the location that has the picture.

LIMITS:  maximum individual size 240KB  for any one pic. I use 'Bome's Image Resizer' to shrink pics to the size limit.

10 pics maximum, OR  1280 KB combined.  If you try to choose too big a picture, it will give you a notice.

Hope this helps!

11

General Discussion / "Peace be the Journey" damage pictures and repair thread.

« on: April 22, 2019, 09:57:33 am »

WHOA!   I had not seen this level of damage yet on a PC.









If this was built like most of them with 2x2 pine.....it would be a basket case.

Here you go Sarah!   Keep us posted as you go, you now have your own thread. 


Feel free to contaqct me on FB, here or email for any more assistance.

12

General Discussion / 2006 model 2350 Restoration and Modification

« on: February 22, 2019, 12:25:31 pm »

MO Projects... 

The paint on the exterior mirror bases was flaking off the aluminum due to corrosion. Being that they look like they were taken off a 1978 Winnebago, I was eager to update the looks. The factory tow mirrors look so much better, and extend out far enough to see around the coach with ease.

Got new ones, factory copies. No heaters, but do have power adjusting. They are the extendable towing style. Like these -
http://www.topgearautosport.com/part/A12246JP221/Ford_E350_2003-2007_Power_Towing_Mirrors.html

Anyone else do this? Wiring advice welcome. Never done power mirrors.

My first step (after checking back here when I get home...) will be multimeter on wires, and work the switch. Hope not to let any magic smoke out when doing testing...

My Cruiser is gonna look like a cruiser now,  not a hopeful elephant.. 

13

General Discussion / Window/Maxx® Rain Guards

« on: February 06, 2019, 12:09:22 pm »

Met a couple with a 2009 2350 on a sprinter chassis monday. They were here in town from Nova Scotia, and we sighted them at the Publix as we drove by. NO mistaking that spare tire on the back.    They had a window treatment I had never seen for the sliders - Window Maxx guards. I LOVE the look, and no clunky awning on the top. Anyone have any experience with these?

$53 here  - http://superdealsrvparts.com/window-maxx-window-vent%2C22-0368%2C31-1984%2C Might be better deals elsewhere. Though a commenter on Amazon (where they are UNAVAILABLE..) stated they were no longer made as of 2017..    Hope they are misinformed.

Called the link above after typing above -    Evidently NO LONGER AVAILABLE. 

 Anyone else have a similar product?  This is SO nice!

14

General Discussion / Replacing the 60-1650 door latch on a 2006 2350 with BAUER Products 013-531

« on: October 31, 2018, 07:22:04 pm »

PIC 1 - Our coach door latch, the venerable Trimark 60-1650 was due for replacement. Nether lock cylinder worked, and the deadbolt one was buggered beyond repair.

Mrs V chose the Bauer 013-531.

https://www.amazon.com/AP-Products-013-531-Electric-Motor/dp/B00JXU0CFQ

Nice piece. Very solid, when I picked up the box, I thought there were multiple things inside. Nope. Padding and a heavy door latch.     UPS!

PIC 2 + 3  - Removed the three torx screws holding the inner cover on. (I tried to drill the rivets out on a previous repair attempt to get at the cylinders.)

PIC 4 - Then the two torx screws on the door edge, between the pins. This will let you take the outside part of the original latch off. It was a tight fit on mine, took a little effort to pry it out.

PIC 5+6 - All parts removed, hole in the door cleaned. The white plate is a DOOR PART not a latch part. It will be reused.

PIC 7 - Put the two phillips screws supplied with the kit through the door plate and thread them into the new latch outer piece. I was not real happy with the fit on the outside, but figured that the inner plate would snug it up.

The replacement strikeplate looked identical to the old one, so I left the old one on. Worked fine so far...

PIC 8 - OW!  OWWWW!    Test slam of the door had the plunger digging into the edge of the strikeplate..  OK... maybe the new smooth one is worth the effort.. OW... 


Ok... installed the new strikeplate. The kit came with (2)  #4 phillips screws with a blue locktite on the threads. Mine used the same 1/4-20 thread, but were nuts and bolts. I did re-use them. The doorframe does not allow for much adjustment, so its pretty close when you start.

I was not happy with the fit on the outside. Little too much gap  Next episode.

15

General Discussion / On Demand Water Heater Install

« on: September 17, 2018, 12:15:44 pm »

Another adventure begins.... an on demand water heater.


Well, we were hoping to upgrade our water heater from an Atwood 6 gal to an 'On Demand'. We had a ''Marey' brand OD heater that worked like a charm camping, and wanted that same convenience on board the coach. No waiting for hot water, and endless. The Marey runs on 2 D cell batteries, a pressured water source and LP. 3 years old, and going strong! A deal for $125.  https://www.amazon.com/Marey-Portable-Propane-Tankless-Heater/dp/B005DROEZC




Now we have gotten a Replacement for the coach...and are about $700+ into it. Got the 'special' door kit that covers the outside.
https://www.amazon.com/Girard-2GWHAM-Demand-Tankless-Heater/dp/B019BWN8E2


Reading the instructions... and found this gem hidden:

'For FLUSH MOUNT door Atwood heaters, the cover does not fit, and the old door corners are left revealed. Additional fabrication work will be required to trim it, and customer should be advised of additional cost.'     and you guessed it... our 2007 2350 has the flush mount heater. 

Anyone else go down this road? Either installing an On Demand, or making the door kit work. I did a site search for 'On Demand', but this returned results that had the word 'on' in them... or words having the letters 'O' and 'N' together...