The slide out on my 2017 3100 had started acting hincky about going out sometimes. Usually if I just brought it in a little and then finished going out, it would work. Then the day came when it didn't want to go out right at all. Big U-turn in the travels to go to Elkhart to have this and the rest of the list taken care of. The issue, it turned out, was the slide topper. The explanation was that the topper had started to bow which was creating the issue for the slide coming out. I am bringing this up here since it sounds like this is not just an issue for me though I have not noticed it on the forum. I also do not know (and didn't think to ask) if the change to the Swintech slide out in 2017 had required a change to the topper. It seems to be limited to the 3100 model and occurs there because of how big this slide out is and therefore how long the topper is with only supports on each end.
The fix was to add an additional piece in the middle. This mounts on the slide below the topper and supports the middle as well as holding the retracted topper out from the side slightly. The support has is own roller that will spin as the topper material unfurls.
To my mind the solution (like many things) has good and bad parts. Of course the obvious good is that the slide out works again and the support arm should prevent further bowing. On the other hand, it means the metal cover for the topper can not come down all the way and wrap around the material. The top of the roll will remain protected but part of the material will be exposed. It also means that the material will rub on this roller every time it goes in and out. I am guessing that over time this will cause the material to wear out faster at that location, but of course I have no clue what time frame that might be and may not be enough to make it noticeable. The other question for me is what it will do over time to have created a kind of air channel when driving. Because the metal cover can not close down it leaves a noticeable channel for air to run under the metal and above the material as you drive down the road.
So my PSA is multipurpose. Those of you with the 3100, know that this bowing and the subsequent drag on the slide out operation is a possibility. Know that there is a "fix" but that the fix has other considerations. . Hopefully this is another area that will be getting some design attention to see if there is a better way to handle the topper on the 3100 model. I am happy they had an option they could use to fix this. I don't know if others of you have had this particular fix applied. It is another area that it would seem I am not the only one who would have been (or will be) faced with the issue.
