Manually operate a Slide Out

[mswinson]

Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum and I'm sure someone knows what I'm looking for. :)

I have a 2006 Amerilite that I recently purchased from an individual. I'm familiar with RV's and motorhomes, but not ones with slide outs. I know there is a way to manually operate the slide should a power failure occur, but I don't have a tool to do so. This particular model has the queen bed that slides out of the rear of the coach and there is a small access hole in the center of the siding just above the rear bumper. I know this is where the slide can be manually driven in/out, I just don't know what kind of tool to use, where to obtain one, or even what it looks like if I wanted to make one.

The factory said that there is a shaft on the motor that is accessed through this hole, and the shaft has a cross-pin on it, so I'm sure there is some sort of socket that has slots in it that will turn this shaft, but it needs to be fairly small as the hole is only about 1/4" to 1/2" in diameter.

Any assistance is appreciated. The manual just states that the slide can be manually operated - it doesn't give any specifics on how to do it.

[Marvin]

When you say the shaft has a crosspin it makes me wonder if the crank for the jacks would work, they also have a crosspin and to save money they may use the same tool for both. Just my thought and it wouldn't cost anything to try.

[mswinson]

I was told by GS that a short extenstion, ratchet & 1/2" socket (I think 1/2") is all that is needed to manually operate the slide.I tried it out a week or so ago b-4 leaving on our first trip and it did work.