What do you think of your HappiJacs?

My happiJacs are 10 years old, but the motors may be 5 or six.
I did pull them apart 2 years ago to clean and re-lube as describe on this forum.
The outside are quite pitted and the inner tubes are rusting. I did refinish them last year, but the gravel roads are hard on them.
I have had no real issues with them.

Mine are about 9 years old and gave worked flawlessly the entire time. There are a couple of small rust spots where rocks chipped the paint and I didn't touch it up, but that would be expected.

We've had trouble with ours from the beginning. We removed them and returned them for servicing (under warranty) at our expense for $180 in shipping. They worked a bit better but still have issues with a loud ratcheting noise. The clutch continuously slips.

DH takes them apart and lubes them annually but they are not all they're purported to be. We too, are considering upgrading to Reico-Titan, if it's possible.

The HJs are so loud and grinding it's embarrassing.

No problems with mine so far, they came on the camper we bought in early 2011. But they have had a very sheltered life as the camper is stored inside when we are not camping in it.
I did have the outside of the jacks recoated in white Rino Liner before they were installed to prevent rock chips and rust. They still look like new.

Glacier D wrote:

jefe 4x4 wrote:
You wouldn't be living very near the ocean, would you? I saw a 2008 Jeep TJ, used as a lifeguard jeep on the beach for sale, for almost nothing. There was no part on it that wasn't corroded beyond use. To me, your plight seems like environmental issues more than anything else. There are anti-corrosion paints and coatings that address those issues.
My 17 year old Happy Jacks are holding up well. A little corrosion on a couple of the inner tubes, the base, but the mechanical parts are O.K. One little deviation: mine are mechanical screw jacks with pinion action screws. Pulling the upper plastic cap cover, I keep lubbing them with a corrosion resistant white lithium grease used in boat trailer axles. So far, so good. When i lived in Long Beach, within a block of the bay, the salt air just ate my old Chevy 2 door.
jefe

Don't live near the ocean, but they do salt the roads in the mountain passes. I understand what your saying, but the motors are sealed and the motherboard is inside the camper so they are not exposed to corrosion. The jacks just don't hold up, period. I have friends with campers up there that use Atwoods and Rieco Titans and they are not experiencing any of these problems.

The motors are not sealed. I just tore one of mine apart because the motor seized from water intrusion creating rust. When I put it back together I silicone every possible area that water could enter, mainly where the two wires enter. Now time to do the other three.

Just to add. I have Rieco Titans. These are also not without their problems although I have been very pleased with them overall. Now over 5yrs old I have had a few problems.

1.5 yrs old - one jack motor died. Replaced free even though it was out of warranty thx Rieco.
3yrs old. - ribbon cable inside Remote control came loose causing one jack to deploy by itself as soon as I turned jack on/off switch on. Diagnosed and fixed myself.
5yrs old - another jack motor died. Replaced for $400

I would not trade my electric jacks for anything though!!

jefe 4x4 wrote:
You wouldn't be living very near the ocean, would you? I saw a 2008 Jeep TJ, used as a lifeguard jeep on the beach for sale, for almost nothing. There was no part on it that wasn't corroded beyond use. To me, your plight seems like environmental issues more than anything else. There are anti-corrosion paints and coatings that address those issues.
My 17 year old Happy Jacks are holding up well. A little corrosion on a couple of the inner tubes, the base, but the mechanical parts are O.K. One little deviation: mine are mechanical screw jacks with pinion action screws. Pulling the upper plastic cap cover, I keep lubbing them with a corrosion resistant white lithium grease used in boat trailer axles. So far, so good. When i lived in Long Beach, within a block of the bay, the salt air just ate my old Chevy 2 door.
jefe

Don't live near the ocean, but they do salt the roads in the mountain passes. I understand what your saying, but the motors are sealed and the motherboard is inside the camper so they are not exposed to corrosion. The jacks just don't hold up, period. I have friends with campers up there that use Atwoods and Rieco Titans and they are not experiencing any of these problems.

One other note - One thing I did to prevent rust and make lube'ing easier on my former CrappiJacs -
(Disclaimer--if you don't like my idea don't blast me too horribly bad, it worked for me.)
I drilled an 1/8" hole right in the eyeball of the CrappiJac sticker on each jack, then regularly doused it with WD40. That helped A LOT. I would squirt until I saw it come out the bottom of the leg. They would run much smoother and quieter after that.
Then covered the hole with one of those tin-roof type screws with the built-in little gasket on 'em to seal the hole.

You wouldn't be living very near the ocean, would you? I saw a 2008 Jeep TJ, used as a lifeguard jeep on the beach for sale, for almost nothing. There was no part on it that wasn't corroded beyond use. To me, your plight seems like environmental issues more than anything else. There are anti-corrosion paints and coatings that address those issues.
My 17 year old Happy Jacks are holding up well. A little corrosion on a couple of the inner tubes, the base, but the mechanical parts are O.K. One little deviation: mine are mechanical screw jacks with pinion action screws. Pulling the upper plastic cap cover, I keep lubbing them with a corrosion resistant white lithium grease used in boat trailer axles. So far, so good. When i lived in Long Beach, within a block of the bay, the salt air just ate my old Chevy 2 door.
jefe

I have had 2 TC's with CrappiJac's. Hated them on both... One older AF, and my current Eagle Cap. My EC is a little heavier than yours, but I was forced to replace the jacks on a 2012 camper. The CrappiJacs just couldn't take the weight. I went with Rieco-Titans. They have been awesome..

I did a complete swap out to Rieco Titans, and did a write up here--
My Rieco-Titan / CrappiJac swap out

I bought the kit from Dyers, they had the best price, and thier service after the sale has been excellent - had a minor problem with one motor, and no questions asked was sent another one.
Dyer's link to Rieco Titans