We recently bought a 2003 Pathfinder which is in generally good nick. This weekend being dry I put it up on the drive to check it out properly and get the hang of packing / unpacking and see how the water / gas / electric systems worked.
Erecting the camper was pretty straight forward, but I had a slight problem that the canvas seemed 'tight' in one corner when pulling it down around the bed end corner and trying to velcro it. This also resulted in an inability to completely zip the canvas door shut. Is it possible that the canvas is simply out of position on the frame? Any tips for sorting it out?
Also I noticed 2 tiny pin holes in the roof. I didn't see them when the previous owner demoed the camper :( I think they're actually due to the fact that a TV antenna had been stored on top of the canvas between the beds when the camper was folded. The holes are really tiny but I'm obviously worried about water getting in when we're pitched. Any suggestions on an easy fix? It seems pretty silly to have to remove the canvas and send it away due to the small size of the holes.
With regards to the small pin holes in the roof, you should be able to do a repair using something like ThisI know it says nylon repair kit, but we used it from the inside of the canvas to repair a similar hole, and never had any problem with leaking, and I think we secured it using This
Pitching whilst the canvas is wet may solve the problem with the door,the canvas can shrink. Other more drastic options like putting extra holes for the adjuster buttons and repositioning the canvas where it fixes to the bed come next. Good luck,and stretch it gently! I used a piece of tenacious tape (should be one each side) on the small hole in my roof,almost invisible and removable when you get round to a proper repair. It's been on 3 years now,no problems. If they are pinholes,they may very well close up on their own next time the canvas gets wet.
Hi, we have a 2003 pathfinder too and have all the above you have mentioned. With regards to the pin holes , don't worry when it rains the gaps will swell and seal. We have pin holes in our awning too but have never had a leak despite hard rain. Take some tape with you though just in case as it is always good to have some repair stuff with you.
With regards to the corner we too struggle to pull the canvas over and the stitching is a little undone there too due to this. (Below the cross seam though so ok) Best way to get the canvas over is before you pull out the poles of course just using brute force!!
The zip thing is a common issue for many of us too. Try errecting the camper with the zip shut as this helps with the alinement of the canvas, thus the zip closes sometimes!!!. Sometimes we forget to do this and just end up covering the gap with a tea towel as we can't be bothered sorting but if you do need to then lower the poles and pull the canvas over a bit more on the door side, fasten down the underneath velcro bits and then put the poles back up, all with the door shut. (You need a person inside as well as outside)
We have a Pullman ... but very similar ...
Always leave the door zipped when folding or putting up ...
Always velcro up all round before extending the poles fully ... that seems to sort it for us.
Hope I'm not mentioning the 'bl**ding obvious'!!
Yes same here always open and close with door shut. We did it first couple of time with it open and like you struggled to get it closed once up!
As above will make a difference if canvas is wet or dry when you do it aswell as it really does stretch and shrink as part of it natural process. We found we could extend our pole fully once canvas was up for a day or too in hotter dry weather
Thanks for all the useful advice. I'll buy some tape and take it along on our first outing and see how we do. I'll remember to put it up with the zips closed too. I did wonder about wet vs dry canvas since it's a natural material. I wonder if the new models with the synthetic canvas suffer from the same issues.
Oh well, roll on Easter hols, can't wait to get out and about this year!