Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Sence i'm about ready to start putting my HF frame together I was wondering what to use for leveling jacks? When I make my floor I thought it would be my next step. Shoud I buy fancy crank down or ratchet style or just plain old jack stands? What do ya'll use?

the Psychohillbilly

We talked about that before... here
http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=1915

My favorite is still this one...


Mike...

Mike thanks for the link to the previous discution. It helped alot. Still wonderin though. I all ready have jack stands to hold the frame up while i"m working on it and when i'm done I could put them under the back and jack up the tounge. What do you think?


the Psychohillbilly

Hey, Psycho!! Sorry, had to do it. The jackstands will work okay but they will sink into the ground, depending on the type you have. Also, there is some slop in them and the higher you extend them the more they will sway back and forth. I thought about jackstands too, but the single feet that most have for jacks are easier to level. If you have some mushy ground, just throw a scrap piece of wood under each one. Good luck on your build.

Psychohillbilly wrote:Mike thanks for the link to the previous discution. It helped alot. Still wonderin though. I all ready have jack stands to hold the frame up while i"m working on it and when i'm done I could put them under the back and jack up the tounge. What do you think?


the Psychohillbilly

As I always tell Steve, sure it'll work, but procedurely, you're making it way too difficult on yourself...

Picture this... you pull into a campsite, take out your drillmotor, level the trailer, and you are done!

Mike...

P.S. If you can't picture it, check out this movie...
http://www.mikenchell.com/BajaBenroy/quick_setup.mov
You might want to download this to your desktop before you play it with quicktime!!!

Mike now thats Way to cool!!! Sometimes I think to hard.

You sold me thanks.

the Psychohillbilly

I thought you might see it my way...

Mike...

I see it this way:

- Mike's welded-on types have the big advantage that when you get home, they are attached to the underside of the trailer, not sitting on the ground at the campsite.....

- Mike's type have the big disadvantage that when you try to drive off with them still up, they get bent/broken and don't work no more, whereas the jackstands just tip over with a bit of a clunk (which should remind you to go back and pick them up....)

Andrew

Leveling jacks - on a teardrop? If you're using a gas fridge you need to worry about being perfectly level, but I haven't camped in a place yet that needed them for general comfort. I do have a pair of Atwood stabilizing jacks in the rear, but that's all they do - stabilize the trailer so you don't "rock & roll" while turning over in your sleep.

Joseph

Here are my stabilizing jacks. Flip down with a 12" or so bar for leverage.

Not sure who makes them though... anybody know?

campadk wrote:Not sure who makes them though... anybody know?

They look like my Atwoods.

Joseph

I'm using the Atwood jacks on 'Diner2. I welded a plate to the frame so that I can bolt them up, and remove/replace as required.

I like the scissor jack idea I saw on the other post, weld two to the back, but...

Since my axle is mounted under the springs, do those extend enough to still raise it?

i made mine with scissor jacks, got 2 jacks
(still in plastic bag ) for a dodge mini van
from pull your parts for $8.00 for both
mounted then upside down welded to a plate and
when i lower them i took a 4x4 and stuck a 1/2 inch stud in it then
when i lower it set the stud in the little hole
and you have more lifting with less cranking
just an idea..