autolock band experience

KennyG

I just finished replacing both the gaskets and my original bands with the new autolock system on Humpty big. There were a few incidents reported here of the possibility of the dome slipping off if the upper band was not properly tightened. The autolock kit now come with a tube of silicon sealant included to be used to better secure the new bands to the hood and shell. As I was removing the old bands I started to wonder why an "adhesive" would now be necessary since the original bands have held up all this time (4 years) without one. The new bands are even wider than the old and would seem to get a better grip on the hood and shell.[p]The problem, I believe, is the included hardware. The kit comes with a pair of 1/4 X 2.25" course thread phillips head screws to secure the bands together along with washers and nuts. I found that even when tightened to the point of damaging the phillips head screwdriver slots, the bands could not stand up to repeated opening and closing cycles. I replaced the screws with the equivalent length, size and thread in hex head bolts (the same used with the original manual locking bands). This enabled me to use a socket wrench and REALLY crank them tight. I don't see the need for the silicon sealant right now but will let the forum know if my theory turns out to be a bad one.[p]K~G

Tim M

KennyG,[p]My auto-lock band came with hex bolts(last year). I agree, since there is just one bolt of top and one for bottom, it seems you need the torque and a phillips wouldn't come close to enough. Wonder if it was a mistake in packaging. [p]Tim

Spin

KennyG,[p]I upgraded to the autolock hinge a little over a year ago and did replace the phillips head bolts as you did at that time. I just couldn't tighten them enough to be comfortable with the grip. My kit had no sealant and none was used on the installation.[p]I have had no problems with the hinge since installation.[p]Spin

ChefRD

KennyG,
I'll bet that you are correct in your observations. All companies are looking for cost reductions and I would guess that the company just substituted the phillips head screws because they are cheaper, but now realizes that you can't tighten them up enough. I got the self locking bands over a year ago and they also came with hex head bolts. I tightened them up until they bent and I have had no problems whatsover with the dome separting from the bottom and I don't expect it will. My original bands were torqued down until they were bent (from the factory) and they never came loose, so thats why I torqued these down until I saw they were bending.
So far, so good
have a great one,
ChefRD.[p]