Will we need a bigger truck jack?

We always carry a bottle jack and a fews blocks of wood also.

I dont trust anything the manufacturer supplies for jacks, I once was jacking up a new Chev van we had, the whole thing fell down, crash, the factory jack just crumbled under the vans unladen weight.

Fully loaded these camper combinations are really heavy for those little trash jacks they supply...

This, on an 01 F250, is our 'key'. Our factory jack is a small screw bottle. It works but when load is on it it quite hard to turn-other than that while cranking, until it makes contact, whole jack will flop over instead of the knob rotating-its a pain.

The 'lock & key', similar to what used for wheel locks

The lil piece on left with the female 'star' is captured in the hole of tire hoist. The piece in the center is the 'key' with matching male 'star', though internal. Key generally is in a plastic bag that lives in glove box. Piece on right is end of jack rod/handle, the hook end slips into end of key (or factory jack knob). Factory jack is behind seat, factory jack handles, tire iron/jack crank -are on a bracket in engine compartment.

brholt wrote:
I was under the impression the jack supplied with the truck could lift the truck at it's rated GVWR. Is that not true? (I understand the concern if your truck and camper are over the GVWR but if they are under?)

Me too. A camper is easy to deal with, but does the maker expect you to unload a bed of gravel to change a tire?

Checked the jack Ford supplied with the truck. It is a 4 ton hydraulic jack. It seems like that should be sufficient.

I have changed a tire twice using the supplied simple screw jack. 7800 pound truck with a 5000 pound TC in the bed. A bottle jack might be a bit better but then I don't need the extra weight. The hard part is getting the spare down on my truck wit the TC on board. I made a tool.

I just pray I never have to find out. What is this KEY some of you refer to?

Reality Check, how many bumpers have you gone through so far. ;)

acudr wrote:
Question! Could somebody please explain how to use the bottle jack? I got one not really knowing how to use it. We go off road a lot and I am concerned about sometimes uneven surfaces, etc... When I started playing with the jack, I learned they do not go up very high. Only double it's closed hight. This does not seem tall enough to lift my truck. What am I missing?

And.. Thanks for the Stanley bar info. I have had one for years, carry it with me and would never have thought to use it that way. Great info Thx.

Two things; first, lift on the axle, not the frame (often your shock mount is welded lower than the axle, another good choice). You only need the tire off the ground a fraction. So the actually lifting the jack has to do (distance wise) is minimal. Like previously stated, most bottle jacks have an Acme screw extension. Between that and perhaps a block of wood, you should be fine. Blocks are always a good idea; for spreading the weight (dunnage) of the jacks on soft ground, or for leveling (two pieces set as a 'T' can provide a level jacking spot on a slanted road).

I carry a bumper jack from my '64 Fairlane..still looks great. I just punched a small hole in the bumper of my 550. I put the jack onto a vertical 4x4 about 14" off the ground, have the wife keep her foot on the brake and pray... Maybe not, but makes a better story.

Either blocks under it to get to lifting height, or many though have a center post that is threaded for more height.

Question! Could somebody please explain how to use the bottle jack? I got one not really knowing how to use it. We go off road a lot and I am concerned about sometimes uneven surfaces, etc... When I started playing with the jack, I learned they do not go up very high. Only double it's closed hight. This does not seem tall enough to lift my truck. What am I missing?

And.. Thanks for the Stanley bar info. I have had one for years, carry it with me and would never have thought to use it that way. Great info Thx.