Failed/Jammed Fwd Jacks

[BillandCarole]

Hi Everyone
Our fwd jacks will not move, either electrically, or manually with the the manual handle. Its a Venture MFG Co gear box with no model number that I can find.
When I push the extend button,I just get a clanking, grinding sound. I suspect a stripped gear. The emergency handle just turns about 1/2 turn and stops, in either clock or counter clockwise motion.
The rig is a 2K8 Komfort 241 FS.
Suggestions?
Regards
Bill and Carole

[WE_CAMP2]

For safety I usually leave mine down a couple of inches, that way no undue pressure is put on anything internal, and they are still plenty high so they won't contact anything.

[greende]

I have often thought off putting a limit switch on mine so it cannot be retracted too far. Mine has a mark on it that I can see ( a ghost line from manufacturing) so I only retract it that far. If I decide to do the limit switch, I'll post a how-to.

[Allworth]

A couple of strips of masking tape and a spray can of bright red paint.

[Veebyes]

Simple fix for overstressing on fully retracting is to take a permanent marker felt pen & put a line across the inner leg so that when it reaches the outer leg it is just short of all the way in. Stop on the line.

Same with full extension.

[Homey_B]

BillandCarole wrote:
I have learned a lot about this landing gear:

3. ...if it happens away from home (I was dammed lucky that it did) it can be really hard to get fixed.
Regards
Bill

My wife and I had the left LG refuse to move on me this past September, when out on a trip to Maine. We were "stuck" with it in the UP position, so we couldn't unhitch. A friend much wiser than myself helped to remove the unit - he brought a BFH to the situation. Disassembly found that, due to over-retraction, we had smeared the solid sheer pin like a stick of butter.

Where we got lucky was that there's an RV place not far away from where we were. They sold me the two pins (one for each side), so I was able to drive out and replace the first and save the spare for the other side if needed.

The luck in our case was being with a friend who understood how the system worked, and was able to explain what might have gone wrong, so it could be fixed.

[just_me]

You can also bend the tubes by doing a pull test (raise the trailer landing gear a little) so it is possible that this started your problem. Make sure you don't have heavy pressure on the landing gear pads when you do this. This is what happened to me. I don't have to do a pull test with my set up, but dumb me, I did it any way. expensive way to learn how to repair the landing gear.

[BillandCarole]

I have learned a lot about this landing gear:

1. Most are made by Lippert Venture Mfg makes many of the gear boxes.
2. You damage them by retracting them all the way to the "stops". This is because there aren't any. Going too far just bends the shim washer, eventually jamming the gear. I think I did this.
3. Its expensive, and if it happens away from home (I was dammed lucky that it did) it can be really hard to get fixed.
4. I would still be looking for the parts had it not been for the guys here on RV net. Support for RV's is getting thin here in the SF Bay Area.
Regards
Bill

[Veebyes]

There you go. You have spent some time on it but you have learned something. Hate to think what the labour bill at a repair shop would be. Salvage what is still good from the original. Always good to have spares.

[BillandCarole]

Hi Everyone
I have ordered a new gear tube assembly. I am having it air shipped from Ohio to Vacaville. It was a little more than $250 all total.

The old leg assembly is a "story".
1st, my favorite RV dealer here in Vacaville (Nelsons) closed shop leaving only CW. ugh. (after 40 years they're retiring, selling the land (2 million plus) and taking off.

I took the leg over (they never called me back after leaving a message - no surprise) to CW and asked them what to do. The repair guys said it was jammed (gee, no kidding) but that they couldn't unjam it and to order a new one at parts. So I went to parts who had little idea of what to do or what to order. A nice enough, clueless guy. The suggestion that it was a Lippert leg didn't help at all. I mentioned Venture but the guy ignored the comment so I left, leg in arms. SAD...
I ordered the new on yesterday. I'll keep you posted.
regards
Bill

[b_pilot]

I had a problem with the driver side jack on my 5th wheel. Rather long story, so I want go into it. RV repair guy tried to rebuild my but it still didn't work. Venture told me that sometimes the rod at the bottom of the jack can get bent just enough to jam the works. Bought a new jack from Venture for that side and all is well.

[Veebyes]

Update bill?

[john_bet]

Veebyes wrote:
Sorry, can't help much more. John&bet pretty much explained it. I can't even go look at mine. My trailer is in MD & I am in Bermuda. I should have taken some pics, I know, but at the time I was in no mood for photographs.

Its still fresh with me as I just had my rt. one apart this past May for busted pin under the driven gear. Not sure how it happened, but I suspect the DW over retracted it the year before. Life goes on.

[Veebyes]

Sorry, can't help much more. John&bet pretty much explained it. I can't even go look at mine. My trailer is in MD & I am in Bermuda. I should have taken some pics, I know, but at the time I was in no mood for photographs.

[john_bet]

BillandCarole wrote:
Thanks "Veebyes"

"do recall something about beating the you know what out of it before discovering a circlip that has to be removed & the spring pin through the bevel gear."

I have removed one "C" clip. It released the gear box (reduction gear) which separated from the gear tubes. I now have an inner and outer tube with the bevel gear/screw inside. The schematic shows the pin I think you are speaking of, but its under the gear head and I can not access it.
Where is the pin you are speaking of in the bevel gear and how did you get to it.?
The leg is straight.
Regards
Bill

The drive bevel gear and horizontal shaft needs to be removed first. Then the driven gear is just sitting on top of the pin you refer to. This pin goes thru the top of the vertical screw shaft. The driven gear maybe jammed on by the broken pin and will need some fennesing get off other wise this pin does not go thru this gear. Its hard to tell this from the schematic. The vertical shaft does not need to come out as the lower traveling nut probably is not the problem. Hope this helps you.