Hey Dave, how are the RV Buddy inserts working out? I'm trying to decide between doing a solid sheet of Lexan and having Monty trim it for me in KY or just ordering from RV buddy. The solid sheet would be cheaper at $150 each. However, I like that the RV buddy would be 3 separate pieces so I could use it in a partial configuration and also would be easier to remove and store. Decisions, decisions. I want to do one or the other soon though as I want them done for or at Mammoth.

 

They are working out good, now. The panels arrived well packed, and exact to the measurements I provided in about 2 weeks time. The only issue was how to install them and easily remove them them as needed. The design point is that they fit inside the screen door frame on the side opposite that the screen is flush with(could be inside or outside, mine are installed on the inside). The lexan panels have a vinyl cladding around each pane that make them fit snugly in the recessed area, and are supposed to be flush with the door. His shipped method to secure the panels are a standard pointer style lock that you drill the door frame and screw them in, and then turn them to hold the panels in place or remove. The issue, and seems to becoming more of a problem according to him when I called him, is that screen doors are becoming thicker(deeper) than they used to be, so when the panels were installed, they are not flush with the door frame, but go deeper, so the simple pointer locks would not work. I spoke with Kyle at RV Door Buddy, and he sent me some different locks, and they would have worked, but were not black, and would have been permanent, i.e. require screwdriver to install/deinstall. That was unacceptable to me. What I found on my door is that there is an entire second channel in the openings that took a standard rubber window glazing strip. Stopped by the local hardware that does window repair and picked up 20' of this, and all is good! All they had was gray, I'll probably order black to match at some point . Install/removal take minutes, no screw holes, store the panels in closet. I do enjoy having the door open on cool days. The other unexpected benefit is that they drown out outside noise, which keeps my dog from getting too excited every time someone walks by...especially when my wife is still sleeping in the morning.

I'll try to snap some photos and upload if interested. Monty's install looks simpler, and just as clean. You could still have him do it, but cut the entire thing into 3 pieces anyway. Gives you options then too. One panel, or all. For me, I didn't want the velcro remaining on the door frame when not using the panels. When its "just the right temp outside", not scorching hot, or cold, I prefer the screens only. In Georgia, the panel probably stays on year around to contain the A/C.

 

Good info all Dave. I think I'm going to get the panels locally and have Monty trim them. Trying to fit the inside of my screens is too challenging without them have my doors there to work on. In other words, doing it through the internet leaves too many variables. My inside openings have all kinds of differences side to side / top and bottom and screw heads here and there sticking out. Then the twist lock difference for different depths. Slapping a sheet on the outside suddenly seems easy... I really appreciate your research though!

 

Haven't updated this thread lately. It was a decent summer of camping, in all probably over 120 nights in various places, all but 4 weeks of it required me commuting to work, or working remotely. With that said, I still have issues with the bedroom slide leaking. I just dropped the Bird off at the motherland for another year-end visit in Elkhart this morning for a complete work over. Thankfully FR is still interested in making things right. This time the said the Nose cap will get pulled, the bedroom slide removed, and rebuilt and resealed. That effort will require that the Bird go back to the paint shop as well. The re-paint better not be botched up is all I can say. They are also taking a list of "other items" to be repaired while it is in there. While the situation is maddening, they are taking care of me. I've effectively had 4-year free bumper to bumper warranty....Not sure when it will be ready, I told them I want it done right, and that they need to hit a home run on this try and to go to their most extreme fix first, instead of just getting by. I only reminded them that we are in "snow country", and that I wont be towing with snow or salty roads. So, if its not done by then she will have to stay down there until conditions improve. My storage lot doesn't get plowed either, so there cannot be a ton of standing snow either.

 

Good luck Dave. Hope they make it right.

Snow should be on the way too - we are getting our first big snow of the year in Alaska, the lower 48 usually isn't too far behind. And we are late for the first snow dump too.

 

Aren't you just full of good news.....

 

Hope you get back the way you want it buddy!

 

Thanks Monty. I'm sure it will all work out.

 

With RV sales down they shouldn’t be in too much of a rush which will hopefully bring you quality work.

I live in the next town over from Elkhart. Where in Elkhart is FR?

 

The Warranty Service is at 55135 C.R 1. Looks to be across the street from where they make FR Class C Motorhomes? Not exactly sure where the Plant is that makes Cardinals. The parking area for Warranty was full to overfull. My appt for this date was made back in early September. so they appear to be about 2 months out in scheduling.

 

I'm surprised that they are doing warranty service off site Dave. I wonder if that is the norm for FR brands or do they usually keep a bay open at the plant for warranty work like I've experienced at XLR? Anyways, good luck with the repair. Just plan on an annual refresh and you won't be disappointed...

 

Rodney, off-site might be a stretch. Its on the FR campus, just a separate building, not within the plant itself. It's a large building, probably 20 Bay's along with a fairly large warehouse to manage "parts". And yea, as long as they want to keep doing an annual refresh on their dime, I'll be ecstatic! However, it is a pita to get it there, especially this time of year when it's unknown when the snow will be here to stay. I told my contact there that I won't tow on snowy or salt drenched roads. I hope they have it done in a month and we should be good. For the work they are going to do, it will have to go back to the paint shop, and that adds a couple weeks.

 

I wish I would have been on this forum earlier and got in on the start of this thread. First, my outfit. 2016 F350 dually crew cab 4x4 power stroke. Fifth wheel is a Cedar Creek 37 ft, 2014. My brother has a 2016 Cardinal...beautiful camper, absolutely loaded with faults. My Cedar Creek on the other hand has been practically fault free. Last year my brother and I both attended the Forest River international rally at Elkhart fairgrounds along with the other 800 Forest River campers. If you aren't familiar with this week long rally, among other activities, most of the fifty forest river companies in the area scale back on production so they can provide tech teams to the fairgrounds to fix problems all week. Last year they were fixing up to two major issues per unit on units up to four years old. Often, the techs would fix 5-10 items if they had time. This was done at no cost for parts or labor to the owners. There were very few techs running around the cedar creek area but my brother was parked in the Cardinal area and the techs were swarming this area all week like fire ants on a kicked hill. There was a guy from jersey parked next to me in a Cardinal that was only a year or so old. He had so many problems with his unit that they were just going to take it back to the factory when camping season was over and practically redo the entire thing....starting with replacing most of the roof. I listened to him bitch about his cardinal all week, it had so many things wrong with it that I would have been tempted to park it under a lightening bolt.
I used to pull a fifth wheel with a short bed F250 and had a Pullrite Superglide sliding hitch in the bed. Man, did I ever get sick of that thing pretty quick. Every time you straitened up after turning a corner it would slide back forward hard, slamming into place. Hated it. Made sure I got a long bed in my next truck and love the ease of use of my Curt 20k hitch.
I'm not going back through all the hundreds of posts in this thread but I hope you have good luck with your unit....but I haven't seen a cardinal yet that wasn't beset with a myriad of issues....they sure are pretty though!

 

So, you are coming here to do what exactly? Lament my obviously poor decision making? Tell me how much better your CC is? If that's the case, then take your comments elsewhere. First off, all makes of RV's are suffering from what I would call "quality control issues" due to current demand from higher sales. They simply cannot build them fast enough. I happen to be extremely (read OCD) picky when it comes to having things right. Things that bother me, may not even be noticed by the next guy. Yes, I've had my fair share of nit-picky issues, many of which I have fixed myself. Should the list have been that long on a rig that MSRP's at $120K, heck no. But here is the thing I learned, the dealer I purchased from is a great dealer, and was honest with me after the fact that they just weren't equipped to be able to service higher end rigs at the location I bought from. The owners have two dealerships, the one that I bought from and a much larger store, but about 100 miles away from me. That's where they sell the big rigs. They haven't told me why, but since selling me my rig, the remaining Cardinals and Cedar Creek's they had on their lot went back to the larger location.

Here is the big take-away, and why I will continue to buy Forest River product. Forest River has done me right to make the situation right, as well as the others you mentioned at FROG getting free service. Not only are they continuing to address the items that came up within the 1-year warranty, both times it has gone back to the factory, they have asked me for the laundry list of items I want them to look at. Each time, they have gone through my unit stem to stern and addressed everything I brought up, and more. Further, as a show of good-will they have installed additional options at no cost to me. My contact there has repeatedly told me that in the future, if I have any problems, just to contact him directly and he will take care of me.

 

Agree on all fronts and my experience is the same Dave. Any experience with any brand in regards to quality control is anecdotal. The only thing that is different is how they treat you after the sale. That said, every brand under the Forest River umbrella is independently operated and some have zero customer support after the sale while others will bend over backward for you. We happen to own two of the lines that are in the latter column. It is the same with Thor brands. Try dealing with Keystone vs. Heartland. Both are under the Thor umbrella but have completely different business models in regards to support after the sale.