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Old 04-29-2016, 10:22 AM   #1
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5th Wheel Front Jack Setup

Been camping for many years, but this is first 5th wheel. Took rig for the first trip last weekend and thought i had everything figured out. I put wood blocks under the front jacks, dropped them down, pinned them and raised until i could get my truck out. The problem was when i went to hook back up; the jacks would not raise high enough to release the wood blocks. I tried raising the airbags on my truck and that did not help. We were set up on hard gravel so the front end did not sink. The only thing i could figure out was that the extra weight due to my gray and black tanks being over half full was enough to keep the pressure on the blocks. Needless to say, after an hour of scraping gravel, beating on the blocks with a hammer, chopping the blocks away with a hatchet and draining some of the grey water on the ground (i know, illegal), i was able to get one block removed and ended up driving off the other one (luckily with no damage to the jack). In the future, should i not drop the front jacks down so far so i have room to adjust up and down?
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Old 04-29-2016, 10:43 AM   #2
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I have had two fifth wheels I lower the legs part way put the pins in, then run the motor down the remaining way till they are on the ground/ blocks, then lift. That gives you room to lift and lower the front for leveling as well.

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Old 04-29-2016, 10:53 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Oaklevel View Post
I have had two fifth wheels I lower the legs part way put the pins in, then run the motor down the remaining way till they are on the ground/ blocks, then lift. That gives you room to lift and lower the front for leveling as well.

X2 leave some wiggle room for soft soil
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Old 04-29-2016, 10:54 AM   #4
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I do as Oaklevel said. Run the landing gear down a ways and then lower the extension tubes onto blocks or the pad (depending on the pad, I'll sit them right on it) and then lower the landing gear to clear the hitch and drive from under it. That way you can lower the front a little if you need to and it also gives you a little room to raise the gear higher if needed.
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Old 04-29-2016, 11:01 AM   #5
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Agreed. I always adjust the legs to leave the feet about 3 inches above the ground or blocks, and then use the power to lower them onto the ground and lift off the hitch.
That way there's plenty of adjustment both ways. Can lift plenty above the hitch height if needed; and there's always plenty of clearance off the ground when hitching back up, after fully retracting with power, before sliding the leg extensions back up and pinning
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Old 04-29-2016, 11:01 AM   #6
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Thanks all!! It appears i am on the same page for thinking that way. Guess it just did not cross my mind since i was on a hard surface. Live and learn i guess
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Old 04-29-2016, 11:01 AM   #7
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I have had 3 5th wheels now the current one has hydro front landing gear, so it is another beast. But I always would place a plank under the front landing gear and then lower the landing tube all the way to the ground and then lift and pin the gear in the first hole up from that. By the time you lower to the ground again and then lift the 5th wheel off of the truck you have plenty of wiggle room. With this method I never had any problem with not being able to lift the 5th wheel high enough to get the board out.
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Old 04-29-2016, 11:07 AM   #8
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I simply don't ever run the electric part of my front jacks to the clear up position.
I always leave them down an inch or so.
Leaves plenty of room to get blocks out in a jam and are retracted plenty high enough they don't ever come close to scraping.
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Old 04-29-2016, 11:35 AM   #9
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When that happens I use my bottle jack to lift frame until I can pull block. Then I can pull pin and store the leg for travel.
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Old 04-29-2016, 01:51 PM   #10
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Another tip I wish I had known about on my first couple of trips is to not lower the rear stabilizers until the trailer is level. If you lower the rear stabilizers first, you'll be asking the front jacks to lift the entire weight of the trailer, which they aren't designed to do. Cost me a new motor and a lot of aggravation.
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Old 04-29-2016, 02:30 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by FFRich View Post
Been camping for many years, but this is first 5th wheel. Took rig for the first trip last weekend and thought i had everything figured out. I put wood blocks under the front jacks, dropped them down, pinned them and raised until i could get my truck out. The problem was when i went to hook back up; the jacks would not raise high enough to release the wood blocks. I tried raising the airbags on my truck and that did not help. We were set up on hard gravel so the front end did not sink. The only thing i could figure out was that the extra weight due to my gray and black tanks being over half full was enough to keep the pressure on the blocks. Needless to say, after an hour of scraping gravel, beating on the blocks with a hammer, chopping the blocks away with a hatchet and draining some of the grey water on the ground (i know, illegal), i was able to get one block removed and ended up driving off the other one (luckily with no damage to the jack). In the future, should i not drop the front jacks down so far so i have room to adjust up and down?
I love it when a plan comes together.
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Old 05-10-2016, 08:50 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by FFRich View Post
Been camping for many years, but this is first 5th wheel. The problem was when i went to hook back up; the jacks would not raise high enough to release the wood blocks. I tried raising the airbags on my truck and that did not help.
Did you try to manually crank the landing gear up?
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