Elkmont Queen Mattress

You said installation was 'easy as pie'. We received ours w/ no mounting hardware of any kind. Does 'easy as pie' mean you somehow used the existing mounting hardware from the old ones?

How did you get the mattress for $340? Website President's Club price is $419.99 w/free shipping. Would it be cheaper to drive and pick it up--90 minutes away. Cost of gas could offset saving.

[Bill]

Just a note. There was a word of caution in (I think) the RVTravel newsletter not long ago about replacing those gas struts with bigger ones. I believe it said that the structure of the bed (or the frame???) might not be strong enough to accept the point load of heavier struts, and in some instances had broken. I don't recall that it had a solution, but perhaps adding a third strut, supported at some distance from the others, might be a good approach, rather than beefing up the existing ones.

I don't have an Elkmont, I don't have a liftable bed, and I have no experience with air struts other than the ones that support the tailgate in my car. So take this thought with a large dose of salts. Actually, you might consider looking up the last few issues of the newsletter, to see if you can spot the article. If I find it, I'll post a link here.

Bill

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by Bill

Just a note. There was a word of caution in (I think) the RVTravel newsletter not long ago about replacing those gas struts with bigger ones. I believe it said that the structure of the bed (or the frame???) might not be strong enough to accept the point load of heavier struts, and in some instances had broken. I don't recall that it had a solution, but perhaps adding a third strut, supported at some distance from the others, might be a good approach, rather than beefing up the existing ones.

I don't have an Elkmont, I don't have a liftable bed, and I have no experience with air struts other than the ones that support the tailgate in my car. So take this thought with a large dose of salts. Actually, you might consider looking up the last few issues of the newsletter, to see if you can spot the article. If I find it, I'll post a link here.

Bill

That makes sense. I would imagine that those things just screw into particle board. If they do, the screws may rip out chunks of the particle board.

To prevent that (if that's the issue) you may want to consider gluing and screwing a 1'x1' piece of 1/4" or 3/8" plywood into the particle board with several screws. Then mount the struts onto the plywood. Plywood holds screws much better than particle board.

The other option may be to drill all the way through the particle board and use machine screws and nuts.

Originally Posted by Shandysplace

You said installation was 'easy as pie'. We received ours w/ no mounting hardware of any kind. Does 'easy as pie' mean you somehow used the existing mounting hardware from the old ones?

Yes. The cylinders use cup-and-ball mounts with the balls mounted on the bed frame. There are spring clips around the cups on the cylinders, which you just stick a screwdriver underneath just enough to release the cups. The cylinders I ordered use the same size cups and just snap onto the existing balls. Installation took just a few minutes with the biggest part of the job being removing and replacing the mattress.

I can't speak for long term usage and whether the bigger springs will cause problems. I have lifted the bed about a dozen times now without issues.

2/25/11: Edited to add that I have found out that some other Elkmonts use a different gas cylinder than mine does. Check your cylinders for a part #, do a web search, and find replacement cylinders with the same compressed and extended lengths, but an appropriately higher force rating.

Originally Posted by Shandysplace

How did you get the mattress for $340? Website President's Club price is $419.99 w/free shipping. Would it be cheaper to drive and pick it up--90 minutes away. Cost of gas could offset saving.

I bought it in early November on sale at Camping World. With my President's Club discount, the price was $339 without the 9% us Californians get to donate to the state...

Understand the installation process. Guess the price went up on the mattress.

[Bill]

There was a word of caution in (I think) the RVTravel newsletter not long ago about replacing those gas struts with bigger ones....If I find it, I'll post a link here.

Found the link.

http://www.rvtechtips.com/?p=276

Bill

One member has successfully replaced the struts on the Elkmont with ones with enough capacity to keep the bed elevated with a heavier more comfortable mattress. Nearly everyone we've read about on the Forum has had to replace the original TM mattress or placed a topper on the original one for adequate comfort.

It appears these lifts exactly match the original except for capacity. We hope to have the same result as Bigbit.

We'll be careful while installing these replacement lifts and appreciate this info.

[Wavery]

If the strut mounts attach to the bed frame and the bed frame is aluminum tubing (like in the photo) there certainly shouldn't be an issue.