Jacking and tire replacement

Am getting a 5th wheel, 2012 PT Crusader, this week and will be doing a few repairs and maintenance adjustments. Tires are suspect. While they are not that old, their brand and origin leaves a lot to be desired. 3 are 235-80-16 Soltera. 1 is a Noble 235-85-16. Date codes on Soltera mid 2015 and Noble mid 2016. Age and tread not an issue, quality is. Unknown Chinese ****. I say unknown because on a couple of forums I have asked is anyone has info on these brands with no responses except the generic, "china bombs" etc. That I know I want specific info. Iv'e also googled them with little info except they are for sale.

That said I am planning to replace with GY Endurance of the 80 aspect ratio, LRE. I am going with ST so please avoid the ST vs LT discussion. Sam's has them for good price and I plan to haul them in to install.

Jacking:??? have a 20T bottle jack, 4 automotive type jack stands, and a lot of wood blocks, 2x6, 6x6, etc. Been a while since I jacked a trailer up so I'm asking about best and safest method. I would like to take all 4 tires on one trip since the Sam's isn't next door. I suppose that raising one side, lowering securely on blocks, removing wheels, and repeat on the other side. Other than chocking the tires opposite the first set being removed, don't know any other precautions. Will be on a level concrete pad.

What is the best jacking point and then best supporting location? Frame next to axle, under spring shackles, ??? Remember that where it's jacked can't be used for supporting because only one bottle jack capable of lifting. Any precautions on the front landing gear?

Only other issue is the trailer has no spare so I'm planning an appropriate 16" white steel wheel and use the best of the existing Soltera tires for a spare. This 5th wheel will not be making long trips but I want good and safe rubber on it. Thanks for the assistance.

Adding; While the wheels are off, I'll inspect and repack the bearings, inspect brakes and generally clean everything up. My previous PDI found a broken wire to the left rear brake right where it goes into the back of the hub. That will be repaired also. Couldn't really tell when I was on the creeper under it how the wire goes in. Single white wire. Any other recommended inspections or adjustments while I'm down there?

30 Replies

bpounds
Nomad
Feb 02, 2018
Pull the trailer to Sam's. Have lunch. Come back and admire your new tires.
laknox
Nomad
Feb 02, 2018
JIMNLIN wrote:
wicks..
sounds like a good plan.
I would add... jack the trailer first and then remove the wheels last. That way if the trailer slips of a jacks the wheels will be there.

Myself I use stacks of RR ties cut to 30"-32" lengths. Each stack is turned at different angles. Eliminates the block from rolling in case of gusty winds like we have here in the plains.

Personally, I much prefer to have the tire shop simply put a floor jack under the 2 spring perches on one side, jack it up, swap the tires, then do the other side. :B The only time I jack mine up is to lube the hubs once a year. Any other work is done by my "trailer guy". :B I did too much of this cr@p over the years, so I'll gladly have someone else do the dirty work.

Lyle
JIMNLIN
Explorer III
Feb 02, 2018
wicks..
sounds like a good plan.
I would add... jack the trailer first and then remove the wheels last. That way if the trailer slips of a jacks the wheels will be there.

Myself I use stacks of RR ties cut to 30"-32" lengths. Each stack is turned at different angles. Eliminates the block from rolling in case of gusty winds like we have here in the plains.
F-TROUP
Explorer
Feb 02, 2018
When I replaced the brakes on my 34' 5er I placed the bottle jack as close to the tire and the jack stand next to it. Not a problem, the further you get away from the tire the more of a chance you have of tweaking the axle.
laknox
Nomad
Feb 02, 2018
Roger10378 wrote:
When I want all 4 tires off the ground I lower the front as far as I can and place 2 jack stands under the frame a few feet behind the rear axle with enough blocking to get them as high as possible. I then us 2, 6 ton bottle jacks under the frame in front of the axles to raise the trailer. I keep the landing gear lightly loaded as I raise the front and even use it to support the trailer as I reset the jacks when they run out of travel. Once I reach the desired height I place jack stands under the front of the frame. This has let me do anything I needed to do the the suspension or tires. 6 ton bottle jacks take up rather little storage space and can be found at Harbor Freight or similar places rather cheap.

The low-pro 6t jack I got from HF wouldn't lift a single axle the one time I tried to use it on my FW, so ended up using the screw jack from my truck. That worked just fine. Went down and got a low-pro 12t jack from HF and it works great. The 6t =does= work, just won't lift more'n about 3t. Yeah, I should've taken it back, but it was cheap enough that I kept it.

Lyle
laknox
Nomad
Feb 02, 2018
Not going to get into the jacking discussion, just recommend that you get 5 new GY tires and 2 new rims. Use the best of the old tires as a secondary spare.

Lyle
Roger10378
Explorer II
Feb 02, 2018
When I want all 4 tires off the ground I lower the front as far as I can and place 2 jack stands under the frame a few feet behind the rear axle with enough blocking to get them as high as possible. I then us 2, 6 ton bottle jacks under the frame in front of the axles to raise the trailer. I keep the landing gear lightly loaded as I raise the front and even use it to support the trailer as I reset the jacks when they run out of travel. Once I reach the desired height I place jack stands under the front of the frame. This has let me do anything I needed to do the the suspension or tires. 6 ton bottle jacks take up rather little storage space and can be found at Harbor Freight or similar places rather cheap.
Lwiddis
Explorer II
Feb 02, 2018
I like my home built wood ramp. Easy, fast, safe..one wheel at a time. No need to find a “jacking point.”
Terryallan
Explorer II
Feb 02, 2018
Make sure of the weight cap on the jack stands. then raise both side and use the jack stands to hold it up. When i do it. I also lower the stabilizers just in case.
George3037
Explorer
Feb 02, 2018
I changed all 4 tires (actually 5 incl. spare) on my TT a few months ago. I jacked up one side using an automotive type 3T floor jack lifting at the equalizer between the wheels which got both tires off the ground then put jack stands under the frame in front and back of each tire. I only did one side at a time but could have used the same procedure to do both sides. I did one side at a time because I mounted and balanced the tires myself.

I had recently bought the used TT and tires were in great shape but were 7 years old and starting to show sidewall cracking. I did buy an extra rim so have 2 spares using one of the original tires.

On all electric brake trailers I see 2 wires going into the backing plate. They usually feed them through the axle. One wire comes from the brake wiring, the other goes to ground. Since you'll have the drums off that's the best time to test them. You'll have to figure out whether your white wire comes from the trailer brake line or is the one going to ground. with a test light or a volt meter connect one lead to the white wire and other to ground then pulling the safety brake pin should apply 12V to the wire.

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Jacking and tire replacement

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