# Delam And Diamond Plate



## Yianni (Aug 30, 2006)

I took the Outback to the dealer for some minor cosmetic waranty work. While I was there, I asked a tech if they had any delam issues. he said he was the one doing the front cap replacements and that he had done 20 of them in the last 2 months. When I asked him if they diamond plated or replaced the whole cap, he said the dealership will not do diamond plate because the delam will migrate upwards. If you plate the bottom, you may be back for future repairs possibly after warranty is up.
Just wanted to pass along his comments for those having problems and having to decide what to do. I have a 2006 23rs and so far all looks good.

Lou


----------



## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Good post Lou. As nice as diamond plate can be on the front of a trailer, if you are using to 'repair' a delam issue, you are only treating the symptom, not curing the problem. The tech was absolutely right.

Happy Trails,
Doug


----------



## spacey (Nov 12, 2006)

But, is diamond plating a good preventative measure? I am trying to decide to diamond plate to save from rock chips from the old truck.

What is the best method to attach a diamond shield? I have seen some TT with this mod, but I am not sure how the diamond plate is added and if there are issues with possible damage between the diamond shield and the laminate.


----------



## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

WOW!! 20 in the last 2 months
Thanks for the info Lou I'm sure it will help others

Don


----------



## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

I can accept the reason the tech said they would not recommend diamond plate but the problem is not really progressive once any leaking that started the problem is stopped.

Now as far as the 20 in the last 2 months comment it is most likely a little white lie (or worse). Everyone here know Keystone has not been that easy to convince that the front cap needs replacement so say that this dealer in PRIME camping months did actually replace 20 front caps in the last 2 month. Let try to break that down.

What percentage of units have an issue? Lets say 30% just to give it a number.

What percentage of these complain to Keystone? Again we will say 75% since not everyone see this issue the same way.

What percentage of these will Keystone approve for repair? Based on polls on this site, maybe only 20%.

Do the above numbers sound within reason? Now lets see how many units this dealer would have to sell to have 10 units a month come in during prime camping weather for a front cap replacement.

10 units a month at a 20% repair approval rate = 50 trailers
50 units a month at a 75% complaint rate = 67 trailers
67 units a month at a 30% delam issue rate = 223 trailers

So this dealer would have to sell 223 trailers a month to have a chance to have 10 units a month come in to have the front caps replaced. I am sorry if this is a ramble and I know the numbers are just WAG's (but not that far removed from reality) but it just touches a nerve when you hear things that just are not going to happen.


----------



## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

Great breakdown Andy. I just assumed that one of the 20 was an Outback and the other 19 were SOB's that he also sold









John


----------



## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

tdvffjohn said:


> But, is diamond plating a good preventative measure? I am trying to decide to diamond plate to save from rock chips from the old truck.


Spacey,

The diamond plate could provide good preventative protection in the way you are asking. I had considered doing the same - for the same reason - myself, but I have to say after two seasons of pulling my Outback, I have yet to find even one rock chip on the front of the unit. I may have been lucky, and I don't drive on a lot of gravel roads with the Outback, but I don't think that needs to be a concern. Now, as far as how cool it looks...









Happy Trails,
Doug


----------



## campmg (Dec 24, 2005)

What if the delam is caused by improper glue adhesion and not from water damage. Would repairing the lower section with diamond plate cause the the poor glue to migrate to the top?


----------



## NJMikeC (Mar 29, 2006)

Andy,

That was an excellent way to break down the problem but it minimizes what is a very serious one. I sure doubt that dealer fixed 20 but go to a lot that has 10 Outbacks and I swear you will find if not one but 2 or even 3 . From the reports I have seen it can happen from a leak or no leak at all. One more thing look at the Delam survey and I think the percentage numbers of those trailers bought during '06 is alarming.

I remain a bit concerned for all of us as Keystone may have changed the manufacturing processes, ( they likely did) when they bought these from Liteway. In short the Outback product isn't old enough to have withstood the test of time. I'm hope I'm wrong , but we must remain vigilant and prepared to act as a group if in a year or 2 this problem becomes even worse.

Thanks to Yianni for the good post and I happen to believe that the Serv Tech has his head screwed on straight. Stick with him! Diamond plate is nice but it covered the problem didn't fix it.

Mike C


----------



## mandy1 (Mar 26, 2006)

20 replacements in two months?
Maybe,
I am not familiar with the area the dealer is located in or how much business they do, but in a big market
with dealers few and far between for a specific manufacturer or brand it could be possible.
Other things to take into consideration - - The tech did not say specifically if they were all Outbacks, he did not mention what model year they were (could be 2 or three year old trailers) and he did not say that this particular dealer is the one that sold them all. Also, the tech said that the dealer would not do the diamond plate, not Keystone.

Just my take on the comments.


----------



## N7OQ (Jun 10, 2006)

Good post Lou, I can tell you that my trailer that is at the dealer at this moment getting a new front cap would not have been a Candidate for a diamond Deck mod. When I bought my 23RS in June I had only one bubble next to the outside light. Well after using the trailer all summer I had bubbles all over the cap top to bottom most were small but getting bigger all the time.

Had I had the diamond deck put on I would have had to do it all over again. After the front is replaced I would then love to have the diamond put on.

My dealer said they have changed a bunch of them this year and I saw one in the progress of being changed while I was dropping my trailer off. My trailer got worse and we did not have one driop of rain the whole time.


----------

