Front bed not sealing

Our new/old 2001 3023 is in great shape for its age, but there is one thing that we can't quite figure out.

The front bed and the front shell has almost a 1 inch gap between them when it is opened and latched securely. The rubber cushion on the shell side (kind of a roll of rubber) looks like it might fill the gap if it is pushed down - but it won't stay down!

There's no flap to seal on the front end, so we just don't know what to do with it other than stuffing something in it after it's set up.

Any ideas?

1" seems kind of big though!

Mine fits snuggly, except in the front corners.

I had a problem where the rear bed was low on the curb side. I added several washers to raise the corner up. The height of each corner of each bunk is adjustable with spacers. Are you sure the bed is properly level, which can cause a gap?

Photos would help.

[commodor47]

Originally Posted by merryann

The front bed and the front shell has almost a 1 inch gap between them when it is opened and latched securely. The rubber cushion on the shell side (kind of a roll of rubber) looks like it might fill the gap if it is pushed down - but it won't stay down!

I've seen some owners stuff swim noodles along the 3 outer edges of the bed (pushed up from the outside). That may have caused the cushion on the shell side to remain elevated? Another possible cause could be a change in how far the shell opens. It may be opening a little further than it did when new. That may be due to wear in lift arm pockets?

Maybe the simplest fix is to insert swim noodles from the inside of the bed. In time the cushion may sit back down.

[B_and_D]

I just went out and measured the gap between my front shell wall and the front bed. It's 2 inches (we leave the TM set up open all year). This is not counting the bag seals. Between the bag seal on the bed, and the bag seal on the front shell, there is no gap. On mine, the bag seal on the front shell is puffier than the one on the bed.

Perhaps you need new bag seals. Over time the stuffing can degrade and cause the seals to not be as puffy as they should be. I believe that the factory can send you new bag seals. Mine appear to be stapled on from underneath.

If you measure the gap between the hard part of the shell and the bed, how big is it?