Centre stabilizing jacks

INSTALLATION

The jacks come with self-threading mounting screws (and a socket and drill adapter). The shank diameter of the screws is a shade over 11/32" so I will drill the mounting holes in that size.




I didn't do anything as fancy as finding the exact centre of the trailer; I wanted the jacks a little forward of the rear wheels so I centred the jacks on the midpoint between the wheels and the steps.




With the curb side jack in place, I marked the drilling locations with a hammer and transfer punch.






Drilling the holes was an adventure. I learned a lot about drilling into steel; some from others, some from experience:

- Drilling slow is the way to go, with just enough RPM to keep the bit turning
- High speed drilling:
- results in a painful shower of red-hot and needle-sharp twists of metal
- tends to break drill bits
- allows the steel to heat and cool, hardening it and dulling drill bits
- Dull drill bits are dangerous and time-wasting
- Sharp drill bits will eat through steel quickly even at low RPMs
- I have a lot to learn about sharpening drill bits
- Drilling upwards into a trailer frame while lying on your side is uncomfortable
- WD-40 makes a passable cutting fluid for drilling a trailer frame
- I still have a lot to learn about drilling into steel


I spread the drilling over the span of several days. Eventually the job was complete and I secured the jacks to the frame with the screws and thread lock.



A quick driveway test with all six stabilizers down reveals that most of the wiggle is gone. I think we can remove the remainder by chocking the wheels on both sides and tightening the centre jacks a little more.

Nice work. I've been thinking of doing the same. After going with one device similar to x chicks between one pair of wheels, it has helped greatly to reduce the wiggle

Did the same thing about three years ago on mine. Poor mans level up system is what I call it! May not be perfect, but does help, especially when the washer is running.

I could see where this would take the bounce from the trailer springs out.

That has been on my list to do all summer but we haven't been home long enough to get it done.

Thanks for the comments, folks. A fellow camper pointed out that the less the jacks are deployed the more stable they are, longer arms being more prone to wiggle... I'm going to pick up a couple of lengths 2 x 6 and make a pile of pads for stacking (much cheaper than the lego blocks).

JD and Beastlet wrote:
Thanks for the comments, folks. A fellow camper pointed out that the less the jacks are deployed the more stable they are, longer arms being more prone to wiggle... I'm going to pick up a couple of lengths 2 x 6 and make a pile of pads for stacking (much cheaper than the lego blocks).

Treated 4x6's work well.

JD, something to consider, if making them from wood, I've seen many who have made a box out of 2 inch stock then stick a handle on them. I use bot some wood and plastic blocks. I like the plastic as they are lighter to move and camping on the wet side of Oregon a lot, they don't take on water. I will put down a piece of wood first when on an unsaved surface.. Good luck!

I took some measurements and did some calculations, arriving at a modular set that could be made for each jack from 2 x 6 lumber: Blocks of 4, 3, 2 and 1 pads each. Since 2 x 6s are actually 1-1/2" x 5-1/2", square pads would be 5-1/2" x 5-1/2" x 1-1/2" and 60 of them would be needed. That's 4 8' lengths of 2 x 6, CAD 4.89 each.

I set up a 5-1/2" stop block on my mitre saw and got to work. Total yield from the four planks: 68 pads.




Cabinetmaker's glue was used to join the blocks together; each was rotated 90º from the one below it to cross the grain. Blocks were stacked on blocks to provide clamping pressure. Just eyeball carpentry - nothing fancy.






The six sets fit perfectly in the Rubbermaid bin I was hoping to use for storage.




As you can imagine, pads cut with a mitre saw might have a splinter or two looking for a host hand. So I brought my router table outside, fitted with a slightly retracted 3/8" roundover bit.




Test pad looks good...




... so I did them all.




With the spreading wheel chocks installed and the highest possible set of blocks under each jack, it seemed to be firmer... but it's hard to test with one, so when Dawn comes home we'll have the official word.




If these aren't good enough, no worries - the pads become firewood and we consider other options. Like STEADYfast. :)

Well done and GREAT writeup. And your comments on drilling into steel on your back are SO true. LOL