hbrady wrote:
Someone else here posted this so I can't take credit but this is the method I use and it works very well.
HEREare the jacks I purchased.
Jacks Method: The whole "SECRET" here is in the where and how you put and set these 4 jack stands. You might have to do a little experimenting based on the specifics of your trailer and it's living layout and who uses it. The first secret is to get the support much closer to the suspension points and I have found based on our 31'+ TT that about 4 to 6 ft in front and to the rear of each axle is a good target area. The second just as important step is in how you set these jack stands up. This is where that electric tongue jack is a life saver. You need to start with the trailer about 1" down by the tongue and put the rear jack stand in and "SNUG THEM UP" hand tight. Then you raise the tongue of the trailer about 2" "TONGUE HIGH" and put in the front jack stands and again "SNUG THEM UP" hand tight. Then you lower the tongue till all weight is off and then raise it again to just get a good pressure on it. Some will caution about "tweaking" the frame when putting pressure on these jack stands, but IMO that just is not an issue since we are only now talking about most support being across a span of between 8 and 12 ft and to the close to 30' if trying to support the entire span of the trailer on the existing stabilizer jacks. Also, you're not "LIFTING" the wheels off the ground you just need to get a real good upward force on the frame at those points. I actually measured the force when I dialed in my new system with my Sherline tongue scale and had around 400lbs of force on each jackstand. Now if once you find the best new locations for these jackstands you can remove and discard the old front jacks and depending on how well the overall stability is from movement in the rear of the trailer you might be able to also remove those rear stab jacks or if needed deploy them to just take out the "FRAME FLEX" component from that 10' or so span between your new rear jack stands and the actual rear of the trailer. As a consideration you might even store the removed jacks and put them back on when you get rid of the trailer so the next clueless owner won't feel he's not getting what is generally installed on trailers now days.
Your quote is from me and is still what I use and have been for almost 10 years now and while I didn't go into that aspect here, but only hinted at it the method you described DOES WORK VERY WELL and has been used by several other owners with EXCELLENT RESULTS.
Larry
