I have another old Carefree awning that is still in good shape except for the spring assemblies. The shafts are corroded, the nylon sleeves are worn through, and the caps are shot. I have did find some replacement caps, but have had no success finding other NOS, or replacement parts to repair them with. I'm not sure that I could get them apart without destroying them anyway.
That being said, I'm taking the restoration hat off and slipping on the Mad Inventor's Cap to retrofit new spring cans into the old Carefree awning. The new springs set for this modification came from an AE donor awning.
To begin with:
The primary difference between new and old is the stationary shaft diameter on the old set is relatively small in comparison with the new set.
The other difference is on the finger ends that fit inside the roll tube. The new set uses a tri-finger configuration that is slightly larger in diameter than the straight finger setup on the old set.
Over the next few weeks I will try to document the conversion from old to new spring sets.
Regards,
Kevin
__________________ Experience isn't always the best way to learn...You usually get the lesson first...And the instruction afterwards...
Make sure that you end up with the same number of thumbs after the swap as before. Those springs are dangerous.
Oh yes they are. I've seen the damage to personnel and property thay are capable of. I have plenty of experience working with awning and roll up door torsion springs, and a healthy dose of respect for them. They can be very very dangerous.
This conversion is different than the previous one so I'm working as I go. I work in engineering and metals so I stop if I don't get the numbers and anticipated results.
Thanks for the reminder.
Kevin
__________________ Experience isn't always the best way to learn...You usually get the lesson first...And the instruction afterwards...
The photos on the forum home page has a 75TW with the exact same awning as mine. From the photos it looks like the arms hook at about the 8:00 position somehow into the arms
Here's a shot of the cross arm-bottom as it is folded inside the outer curved arm where it latches, then the metal top bracket and then the top of the roller/corner. I thought the hook on the brace would latch at the top but it doesn't reach.
Wow...I forgot about this thread. Been too busy camping and such.
I wanted to keep the old curved arms, so replacing the fabric was an easy decision. Spring repair is a different matter, as I have not been able to locate”off-the-shelf” replacements. If your springs are in good shape you should be able to re-use them. The plastic end caps can be replaced but fitting the new ones over the shaft collar can a bit of a challenge. Replacement end caps are available at www.odmrv.com. I picked up a couple several weeks ago.
If your springs are broken then you may be forced to improvise unless you stumble on some old springs that are still serviceable.
I’ve also modified and old set using modern A&E spring sets from a salvaged awning. It wasn’t very difficult, but it did involve some machine shop work. The big difference is in the spring shaft. Most modern spring sets use an aluminum pipe shaft which is larger in diameter than the original Carefree's which used a solid shaft configuration. I did not document the first set, which I should have. I have another set that I plan to modify and I ordered the parts a couple of months ago, but we’ve been busy camping and traveling on the weekends so everything has been sitting on the part shelf in the garage.
Regards,
Kevin
__________________ Experience isn't always the best way to learn...You usually get the lesson first...And the instruction afterwards...
The springs still work kindof and aren't broken just old and help somewhat but mostly I roll it up by hand on a ladder. Can the spring but be rolled up another turn of 2 to give it more rolling power? My other problem is the hooks on the arms that lock the awning in place are broken so theres not a way to keep it from flapping up in the wind, short of tying it down to the ground with string and a rock
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