Down to a decision, give your vote on electric tongue jacks

luvmydogs wrote:
So which is more apt to hit the tailgate, one straight up or on the side?

While there may be some tongue jacks on the market that will allow rotating the head only partially I'd want one that allows rotating the head a full 180 degrees. Here's a pic of my UltraFab 3002 mounted normally on our TrailCruiser hybrid and as you can see the head is offset to the front of the jack. As soon as I mounted it I realized the forward mounted head would prevent my Silverado's tailgate from lowering fully but after a quick examination I discovered I could remove the four main head bolts and rotate the head a full 180 degrees so it would instead be sitting aft of the tongue jack shaft, as shown in this pic. When we sold the hybrid I kept the UltraFab and mounted it on our much heavier KZ Spree 240BH-LX, again with the head facing aft as shown in this pic. This proved particularly advantageous when I later began towing that same trailer with a Chevy Avalanche which has a much higher cargo box and therefore a much higher tailgate than the Silvy. I can't say whether it's even possible to rotate the head (whether partially or fully) on the two tongue jacks you're considering because I've not owned either but doing so with the UltraFab is particularly easy. In this CW ad you can zoom in and see the four main head nuts ... simply undo the nuts, remove the bolts, rotate the head 180 degrees, put the bolts back in, tighten the nuts, and you're done. Doesn't take but a couple of minutes. :B Apparently for some this isn't a concern but having personally had this problem of tailgate interference but being able to easily solve it by rotating the tongue jack head my thinking is if you can have this advantage then why not? ... if you don't use it, nothing lost, but if you do ever run into this situation you'll have a ready solution to the problem.

So which is more apt to hit the tailgate, one straight up or on the side?

luvmydogs wrote:
Well thanks for the tip. When I pull this model up other places it doesnt look identical. Not sure why that would be unless it was a knock off of some type. Not sure how they could sell it as Barker, but now I'm leary. I think the other one will win.

Call Barker and they can help you determine if the jack was made by Barker.

Dick

luvmydogs wrote:
One last question. I've read alot of people have trouble with these electric jacks getting in the way of the lift gate. So am I better off with one that is straight up or one that is off to the side, or, does it not matter?

I have the Husky Brute 4500. With an F250, the tail gate does not hit it When using a WDH. Without the WDH hitch, it hits it.

But I can count on half of one hand how many times I needed to open the tail gate before unhooking. I don't keep anything I need to unhook back there. If I did, I'd just reach over the tail gate I suppose.

I'd get the jack I wanted without consideration for the tail gate.

luvmydogs wrote:
One last question. I've read alot of people have trouble with these electric jacks getting in the way of the lift gate. So am I better off with one that is straight up or one that is off to the side, or, does it not matter?

IMO fla-gypsy summed it up best - "Quite frankly as long as it raises and lowers the trailer without effort it is a good jack. Just pick one." I'd only add (as I already did earlier in this thread ;) ) that having the option to rotate head can be a real advantage in some cases. If it turns out you don't need to, no loss, but if you do now (or could in the future) own a TV on which the tailgate may not fully lower because the TJ head is in the way you'll be really glad you bought one with a head that can be rotated. The LCI tongue jack that came with my Freedom Express does not rotate and it's a real PITA to not be able to fully lower my Avalanche's tailgate.

One last question. I've read alot of people have trouble with these electric jacks getting in the way of the lift gate. So am I better off with one that is straight up or one that is off to the side, or, does it not matter?

Always recommended a Barker 24" 3500 will not hit tailgate can insert backup crank and clear 30lb propane tanks able to level steep inclines without blocking tongue...

shakyjay wrote:

coolbreeze01 wrote:
I don't see that model at Barker's site: http://www.barkermfg.com/hi_power_jacks.html

Careful it isn't a clone at that price.

Looks like the one in picture at bottom center of page. Looks to be an older discontinued model. Still is a good price though.

I think you're correct. Better eye than mine :S

you might want to look at atwood. i just replaced one on my 1990 hr tlr. it was still working and was the original one. still worked but was noisay and iwas afraid it was going out. it eas the hd 3500. the new one wAS exactly like the original. a plus is it has the manual acesss on the front of the jack and can be acessed easily. good luck.