Jacking Up Trailer with Harbor Freight Bandlands Off Road Jack - is it possible?

[huntindog]

Just doing anything on the side of a busy road ought to scare any safety inspector....

I have done it and it did.

 

[RV Tailors]

OP here. We used to have a Forest River before we got the 2500RL and I am still getting a weekly summary of 8 or so of their posts in my email. Quite amazingly, this week they had a question about jacking, and the same back and forth about where to jack went on there, all without a solid resolution. Kind of like here.


What I learned from y'all -

Better to put jack under the U-bolt pads, not the equalizer, but some put the jack there.
Bottle jack tends to be most popular, but I saw YouTubes both ways
Don't do anything stupid
Some suggested putting jack on the axel tube as close as possible to the U-bolts (Disc Tire, although I think I remember they had both tires off the ground at the same time)
Jim had a pic of the HF red Pittsburg 3 ton that he uses. I got those darn 2" rocks and the small wheels would be a problem. Cement would be expensive.
Newer 2 stage bottle jacks might be easier for me to pump. The 3 ton bottle I have is really old.

So, thank you all for your comments and suggestions. Keep them coming. I am going out now to check if that Badland jack will have enough clearance to work. If not, back to HF for refund and a new bottle jack. I put a 2 x 6 under it and it takes a lot of messing around leveling the jack before I start pumping. Happy jacking and camping.

 

[RV Tailors]

Ok, I looked at Jayco and several other manufacturer threads and someone linked the Dexter service manual and it said this:



This was in posted all over the Dexter PDF service manual regarding brake work, tires, spring issues, etc.

Dexter says jack only on the frame, nowhere else.

I think none of the threads above mentioned frame jacking. And the other threads almost got violent defending their own personal way of jacking. Glad everyone here is civilized.

Any thoughts on framing lifts? Need tall jack stands and capable jack. All this when maybe all I want to do is spin the tires for occasional hub greasing.

And, hitch up the truck and trailer for stability. A minor annoyance but probably necessary.

 

[Wileykid]

I will repeat what a lot of other people have said. I use a bottle jack under the u-bolts on mine. I have tried the floor jack, and find it more of a pain in the a** to use. Not only getting it where it needs to be, but the bar usually has limited movement being under the trailer, unlike a bottle jack. Plus, just pick up the bottle jack and go, no dragging the floor jack around.

 

[RV Tailors]

Thank you Wileykid, that's what I will do. And majority opinion, on the other brand posts too. I have did it that way in 25 years of RVing. Upgrade bottle jack today.

 

[kb0zke]

In 2011 we had a brand-new Heartland mpg travel trailer (similar to the rPod). We attended Heartland's big convention where the question of where to jack came up. The Lippert guy (maker of the frame) said to jack on the axle. The Dexter guy (maker of the axle) said to jack on the frame.

Every airplane I've been around has had a clearly marked jack point. Our trucks have instructions as to where to jack. Why can't our trailers have that, too? Would it be so hard for Grand Design to specify a jack point and either mark it on the trailer or put it in the manual? Better yet, do both. So it adds a dollar to the cost of the trailer. That would be money well spent in my opinion.

 

[Hoopy Frood]

Ok, I looked at Jayco and several other manufacturer threads and someone linked the Dexter service manual and it said this:

View attachment 49878

This was in posted all over the Dexter PDF service manual regarding brake work, tires, spring issues, etc.

Dexter says jack only on the frame, nowhere else.

I think none of the threads above mentioned frame jacking. And the other threads almost got violent defending their own personal way of jacking. Glad everyone here is civilized.

Any thoughts on framing lifts? Need tall jack stands and capable jack. All this when maybe all I want to do is spin the tires for occasional hub greasing.

And, hitch up the truck and trailer for stability. A minor annoyance but probably necessary.

I think no one, or almost no one, mentions jacking on the frame because it's a royal PIA if you do it correctly: you'd need multiple jacks, and/or jack stands, since you don't want to try and lift the trailer by a single point on the frame. All those placards, and warnings are just CYA's by the company so they have an out when people jack in the center of the axle, and say "You didn't say I couldn't do that". Jack under the U-bolts and you'll be fine. I have yet to ever hear of someone who damaged an axle by jacking a wheel up at the U-bolts. Of course if you have the 6-point leveling legs, you can use those. Easiest way.

 

[Hoopy Frood]

In 2011 we had a brand-new Heartland mpg travel trailer (similar to the rPod). We attended Heartland's big convention where the question of where to jack came up. The Lippert guy (maker of the frame) said to jack on the axle. The Dexter guy (maker of the axle) said to jack on the frame.

Every airplane I've been around has had a clearly marked jack point. Our trucks have instructions as to where to jack. Why can't our trailers have that, too? Would it be so hard for Grand Design to specify a jack point and either mark it on the trailer or put it in the manual? Better yet, do both. So it adds a dollar to the cost of the trailer. That would be money well spent in my opinion.

Easier to deny it, and post those CYA than to depend on people using their heads for more than a hatrack.

 

[RV Tailors]

All well said. Thanks

 

[Sleeping Rainbows]

I think no one, or almost no one, mentions jacking on the frame because it's a royal PIA if you do it correctly: you'd need multiple jacks, and/or jack stands, since you don't want to try and lift the trailer by a single point on the frame. All those placards, and warnings are just CYA's by the company so they have an out when people jack in the center of the axle, and say "You didn't say I couldn't do that". Jack under the U-bolts and you'll be fine. I have yet to ever hear of someone who damaged an axle by jacking a wheel up at the U-bolts. Of course if you have the 6-point leveling legs, you can use those. Easiest way.

Grand Design conveniently attached 4 electric jacks to the Lippert frame for me.
Lifts all 4 wheels off the ground at a touch of a button.

 

[bflooks]

I have used the Badlands jack in question on my 2800BH without issue. It's actually why I bought it. Def need the extension, but I lift directly in front of the, and behind, the wheels and insert jack stands for maintenance. This makes the jack usable for everything that requires additional hands/movement (like bushing replacement). I only work on one side at a time, so ~2 tons at most, with the other wheels and tongue on the ground.

YMMV, but for me, it works great if you remember safety. The Badlands line is actually one of the HFs better offerings. It's very well made and they followed the recipe from the Predator inverter generator offering. Plenty of online content to help you come to your own conclusions.

 

[gfl123]

my only thought is make sure you have clearance if the tire is flat when testing.. might be good in the driveway with full tires.

that said i have a couple stubby bottle jacks i had to buy when i lost air in 2 tires while parked. had to do 2 at a time and get new tires.

 

[RV Tailors]

Hey BF - thanks for this reply. I wasn't thinking about putting the jack with this range of lift on the frame at all. Duh! You put the Badland before and after the spring mounts on the frame.

I was going to try to roll it under the trailer on 2" rocks to catch the axle. Then try to pump it up with limited height under the trailer. And still try to get a 2x10 under it. Not going to happen.

Do you put the jack on the chloroplast?

John

 

[kb0zke]

"my only thought is make sure you have clearance if the tire is flat when testing.. might be good in the driveway with full tires." Boy, does that bring back memories!

Many years ago we did a family vacation from MO to the east coast. Five people in an old five-place Explorer, so no extra room. I had a bottle jack just in case. Sure enough, lost a tire on the Interstate at 0200. My son and I jumped out and started to work. We had the hobcap off, lugnuts loosened, and spare tire out, ready to go. Bottle jack wouldn't fit under the car. Called roadside assistance. A deputy showed up shortly after I called and said the truck would be there shortly - they were just finishing up something behind us. When the truck arrived the driver said he normally wouldn't change the tire there on the highway, but with all of the flashing lights and the time, he thought it could be done. Within five minutes we were back on the road.

Lesson learned: check jack height for clearance with a FLAT tire.