Hi all revered truck experts!
Back a few weeks ago from a nearly two month trip from Sacramento to Montana and back. We made an ill-advised excursion onto the Bonneville Salt Flats (Craig Breedlove!) when it was a bit wet. Realized pretty quickly that it was a bad idea as salt was getting everywhere! Went directly to a car wash and several tokens later got most of it off but even days later there was still hunks of it falling off under the truck.
Anyway, back home I got underneath the F-150 to verify that there were no hidden salt deposits and discovered that at 3 of the 4 tie down locations there was some visible cracking at the tie down bolts/plates. Seems to me to be pretty concerning to say the least? FWIW, I'm pretty diligent about keeping the turnbuckles tightened; i.e., every few days when we are doing significant off pavement, washboard, or big wind highway days.
We've been running this rig (2013 4WD F-150 with a 2016 Hawk) for about 100k miles. What is the forum's opinion on the severity of the cracking illustrated on the attached photos? Is this amount of damage something that needs immediate attention or is it, just like my aging body, something that merely needs to be monitored for now. I would imagine that any reasonable solution would involve a welder and possibly removal of the camper from the truck. $$$$$
Thanks for your thoughts,,,,
Cheers!
Dave (daverave)
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Edited by daverave, 06 November 2023 - 09:26 PM.
