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MTB Basecamp · 06-30-2019, 05:42 PM

After our second trip with the Basecamp X, I noticed missing Acorn Nuts on the rock guards; this has since again happened on our last trip. I have been replacing the Acorn Nuts with Nylock's 1/4-20 nuts, I have also removed the remaining Acorn Nuts and installed thread locker to them.
I began watching the rock guards from my mirrors and noticed a harmonic vibration in them; the resonance is the result of the design and build of the guards. The perimeter moulding of the guard is split to allow one piece installation on the sheet metal. The split allows the vibration and actually encourages it as it deflects the wind while traveling.
I contacted the factory and spoke to one of the engineers, not the Basecamp engineer, he never called me back. We spoke to our dealer and replacing it is not a problem; the problem is it will continue to do it until a fix is installed. I suggested an angle be riveted to the back of the guard, to stiffen the area and eliminate the vibration. I guess we will see what I can get the dealer to do, as they have told me, if I do it, the warranty will be voided.
The first photo is a close up of the lower aft hole on the drivers side guard. Stainless steel is brittle, but should not see this type of fatigue in its application. The second photo shows the split perimeter moulding on the guard itself.

A W Warn · 06-30-2019, 06:00 PM

Something is creating a vibration. Tire balance?

ps:

I've owned several airstreams with rock guards mounted the same way. None have cracked like that shown in your photo.

turk123 · 06-30-2019, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by A W Warn

Something is creating a vibration. Tire balance?

ps:

I've owned several airstreams with rock guards mounted the same way. None have cracked like that shown in your photo.

I agree. Tire balance may be an issue here. That seems like a violent shake to get those results.

I would take it to your local tire store and have them check the balance of the wheels and tires. This cannot be a typical case or others would have chimed in here long ago.

MTB Basecamp · 07-01-2019, 04:48 PM

Tire balancing would be a good place to start; but the tires have nothing to do with the damage. The Basecamp X is new for 2019, so unlike all other Airstreams, rock guards are new this year to the X model; so there are not that many out there yet. The Basecamp's front aerodynamic design is nothing like other Airstreams, leaving nothing to base a comparison on.
It is my understanding, in speaking with Airstream, the rock guards were not specifically designed for the Basecamp X; they are simply a modification of the old design. The fit and finish appears to be an after thought, starting with the mounting system. A U channel with legs, drilled to accept a 1/4"-20, the bolt is captured with a nut, with the nut allowed to rub against the stainless, the stainless is then captured with an Acorn. A rubber grommet or bumper could minimize the metal to metal contact, while reducing vibration.
Nothing with less than 1000 miles should require disassembly and reassembly by the owner. After modeling it and running finite element analysis, the vibration is easy to see; the vibration gets worse as the fasteners are loosened. The split at the rear of the moulding, lies directly in the wind stream, allowing the vibration to increase its frequency.
In the model I added a 10" long 3/4"X3/4"X1/8" angle at the split, this eliminated the bad vibration; at the same time looking like a small grab handle. Hopefully Airstream will do more than just replace the rock guard.

ROBERT CROSS · 07-02-2019, 06:44 AM

Ahhh...thats the trailing edge of the guard.🤔
Does the leading edge have a larger gap?

I agree wind buffeting at speed is most likely the cause.
Closing & equalizing the gaps should do the trick.

Bob
🇺🇸

hotfoot88 · 04-12-2020, 12:10 PM

I have 2002 25 safari, having trouble with street side rock guard, notice much more vibration on this side, so happens my exhaust is on this side, 2014 F-150 ECO Boost max tow, would the exhaust possibly create vibration?

corvettes · 04-20-2020, 12:00 PM

We just bought our new 2019 basecamp X as well last year, and have yet to take it on a trip, Waiting for the coronavirus lock down to end and plan to drive up to the UP of Michigan to try it out. I would just keep having them send you new guards until warranty is up, and after that time put your fix in place. Keep in touch and will look at your fix, as am an engineer in the auto industry in Detroit, and would be curious to look at your analysis. Maybe a large Nylon washer behind the shield would also work to eliminate the vibration.

Basecamp19 · 07-14-2020, 10:46 AM

I had the vibration problem also on our 2019 Basecamp X -- visible in the rear view mirror -- my first clue was that on the first stop after driving at highway speed after taking delivery, one of the shields was dished in. With that warning I acted quickly enough to prevent damage -- my temporary solution was to wedge some tough closed-cell foam packing material between the middle of the shields and the trailer exterior, secured with some tape -- this seems to have worked fine. Not very elegant, I admit.

I suspect that the extent of the problem is highly dependent on the shape of the rear end of the tow vehicle.

corvettes · 08-26-2021, 06:25 AM

Per the rock guard vibration issue, just had airstream repair them a second time. This time the brackets on the guards failed due to fatigue. The factory said they put on thicker brackets to prevent it. Intersting though, one guard had a dent in it from doing its job, on our 4k mile vacation trip out west to Colorado, while the other side was prestine. Guess which side had the fracture in the brackets, the pristine side, which is due to the guard buffeting from the air pressure against it, and the side the dent in it did not have the issue as the dent prevented the vibration and eliminated the resonate vibration in the system. I've gotten tired of airstream trying to fix it, a all they do is replace parts instead of the solvign the issue. I've engineered a system that places a 6 inch wide piece of 20 gauge stainless sheet inside of the shield and over the length of the shield, attaching at the OE rivet points, and plan to bead role a couple of beads in the 20 gauge stainless, and attaching with 2 part structural urethane. This appears to stiffent he system up and prevents any vibration of the shield when going 75-80 mph on the highway with my F150. I can provide additional details and plans to anyone having a similar issue, as all it takes is a rivet tool and a caulk gun...kind regards..

corvettes · 08-26-2021, 06:30 AM

Hi, The issue is not the exhaust with your F150, but with not enough support for the shield allowing the air pressure to indent the shield at speed, as I have the same tow vehicle.. I will post pictures of my fix here shortly....
Kind Regards,

dznf0g · 08-26-2021, 06:46 AM

Vibration or wind buffeting? Quick easy test. Start taping off the gap between the guard and the skin behind it with wide painters tape. I would start with just the leading edge. Drive and see if the buffeting changes. Continue the taping on remaining sides and observe. If it stops, you have a diagnosis as to cause. If it doesn't change, then explore balance vibrations.

If it is wind buffeting, your idea of a stiffener isn't a bad one. The trick would be location of the aluminum angle.

Basecamp19 · 08-26-2021, 01:53 PM

To the person who said that lots of Airstreams have the same rock guards-- the basecamp geometry is unique and many Basecamp 16X owners have reported this issue.

There may be variation depending on the aerodynamics of the back of the tow vehicle in relation to the front of the basecamp, but the problem is not unusual in Basecamps.

I found that just taping 1" styrofoam to the body behind the rock guards eliminated the motion and saved the mounting system from any further problems.

Ephraim · 08-26-2021, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MTB Basecamp

After our second trip with the Basecamp X, I noticed missing Acorn Nuts on the rock guards; this has since again happened on our last trip. I have been replacing the Acorn Nuts with Nylock's 1/4-20 nuts, I have also removed the remaining Acorn Nuts and installed thread locker to them.
I began watching the rock guards from my mirrors and noticed a harmonic vibration in them; the resonance is the result of the design and build of the guards. The perimeter moulding of the guard is split to allow one piece installation on the sheet metal. The split allows the vibration and actually encourages it as it deflects the wind while traveling.
I contacted the factory and spoke to one of the engineers, not the Basecamp engineer, he never called me back. We spoke to our dealer and replacing it is not a problem; the problem is it will continue to do it until a fix is installed. I suggested an angle be riveted to the back of the guard, to stiffen the area and eliminate the vibration. I guess we will see what I can get the dealer to do, as they have told me, if I do it, the warranty will be voided.
The first photo is a close up of the lower aft hole on the drivers side guard. Stainless steel is brittle, but should not see this type of fatigue in its application. The second photo shows the split perimeter moulding on the guard itself.

Airstream likes to quote the "You will void the warranty" statement a lot, but that is actually illegal according to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. They have to prove that whatever modification you made actually caused the failure in order to void the warranty.

I dealt with them about two years ago on my ZipDee Relax controller board. They tried to claim that my RO water system had leaked on the controller and destroyed it. However, it was the fact that they had mounted it directly underneath the sink trap which leaked that actually broke it. Most of the time, you being knowledgeable in the subject will get them to acquiesce to the reality. It's much cheaper to just accept your fix and honor the warranty than to fight it out in court. Do what you need to to to protect your property if you understand what you are doing.

Rolind · 08-26-2021, 04:41 PM

We have had the same issue with vibrating rock guards at highway speeds. I purchased some rolls of 1”x1” foam insulation tape and attached to the body of the trailer under the rock guards. This was and easy and inexpensive fix.

corvettes · 08-27-2021, 05:15 AM

Per the rock guard vibration issue, I have heard of the styrofoam fix, but have to wonder if dirt gets in there one would start to rub the finish off of the aluminum body, or if excessive force would dent the shell?? Just food for thought. Per my additon of a band against the back side of the shield doubling the thickness across teh center also resolved the issue....looks like many ways to skin a cat

corvettes · 08-27-2021, 05:43 AM

As to voiding the warranty issue with AS, not too worried as to rock guards, as they are incapable of fixing the issue. They should listen to their customers more, as I can tell they give customers voices any merit. If they ran a CAE simulation on the rock guards they would easily see what the issue is. Must say overall, we're enjoying the trailer and rest of the systems have worked flawlessly

corvettes · 09-19-2021, 04:00 PM

Looking at trading in my Basecamp 16X for a 20X basecamp, and have noticed the rock guards are much stiffer and will not resonate, of Can from the air pressure. Think they stiffened them up and incrased the metal thickness.

AKmtnpilot · 09-19-2021, 04:08 PM

vortex generators.

pjshier · 09-19-2021, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKmtnpilot

vortex generators.

Bonus: decreases the stall speed!

Pizzaman276 · 09-20-2021, 05:16 AM

Hello all! I have a 2020 Basecamp 20X and have just over a thousand miles of towing under our belt. Our TV is a 2017 Toyota Tundra. I haven’t seen any vibration or ill effects by wind or air pressure. The rock guards are pretty robust. I wonder if you could have them replace yours with a set of new ones made for the 2020 series. I do check the tire pressure often and try to even out the weight inside the trailer?
Not to change the subject but my biggest concern is the 1/4 turn locking nuts that hold them in place. I fear they will vibrate open or that I didn’t get them locked down all the way. Anyone have them fly open? Has anyone replaced them with something more secure?