Stabilizer

A 5th wheel RV trailer has the wheels towards the center of a long heavy box. This allows side to side movement at the front and rear. Landing gears aren't made to eliminate this type movement.
My 18 lb bi pod pin stabilizer can only eliminate side to side movement at the front where its used. My bi pod will work from 37" up to 60".

Then common sense tells us something will have to be added to the rear of the trailer. I found BAL telescoping stabilizers work great for that.

Also fore and aft movement/wiggle needs to be addressed. I found adjustable chocks between the tires work for that part. Now I'm rock solid per my needs.

Or invest in a system like the JTs that does the same thing.

We have a tri-pod and use it all the time. Just set it up....and with the rear jacks down we get very little movment.

I think it depends on how you use your RV. If you are an occasional user or weekender some movement may not bother you. We are fulltimers and the bi Pod Tri Pod did not work for us. It wasn't until we started using permanently installed stabilizer on the front and rear of our 38' Carriage that we really found the elimination of movement when people were walking around inside or when we were in heavy winds.
That said, some people swear by tri pods, so it comes down to what works for you. Hugs, Di

kemer wrote:
Considering a tri-pod king pin stabilizer for our fiver. Basically is it a good investment? I've seen other systems for more $$ where you attach a unit to the frame and then hook them to the landing gear when setting up. Pros...Cons....??? Thanks

I nick named mine the octopus and sold it years back in FL for a pittance of what I paid for it.

I went with Winfield's.

I started out with an aluminum tripod, then steel, and finally JT Stabilizers on our last rig. The tripods did nothing, and most of the time stayed in the truck because the campsite was uneven and the tripod was too short or too tall.

I only wish I would have put the money I used on the tripods for the JTs in the first place, would have saved time and money. When set up correctly, the JTs were more solid than my current 6-pt leveling system.

Here is another thread just started from a guy that sold his tripod and installed JTs JT Strongarms Installed

I haven't heard enough positive reports of the king pin stabilizers to invest in one.

What I did do was had a JT StrongArms knock off installed on my fiver by the dealer. If I had to do it over again, I'd likely go with the SteadyFast system. I like their marketing material the best. :)

After that, I do use a good quality between-the-wheel chock. I have only ever used it, so I don't know if it really makes a big difference.

Otherwise, we have a *lot* of movement still.

I tried a Valterra Stabilizer Stand cross-wise in front of the axles that seemed to do *no* good. I might try relocating it, we'll see.

My next step is to get scissor jacks and put them just ahead of the axles. I've heard a lot of reports that they make a big difference.

My full write up about my stabilization experience and attempts is here:
http://www.learntorv.com/2013/06/shake-shake-shake-rv-stabilization.html

When someone is walking around inside the 5er it will bounce/wiggle. Rubber tires will bounce, suspension systems are made to bounce. To eliminate the bouncing/wiggling you need to keep the weight from pushing down on the tires and suspension by making sure your stabilizers are tight between the 5er and the ground. Don’t just let them out far enough to touch the ground, turn the crank more to make sure they are tight so they will not allow the 5er to push down on the tires. Use a bipod/tripod under the king pin. Make sure it is tight between the ground and the king pin, don’t just adjust it till it touches, tighten it so the front overhang will not move. Make sure to check the stabilizers and bipod/tripod every couple of days because they will loosen up over time. Doesn’t make sense spending a lot of money on landing jack stabilizers when the landing jacks are stable and don’t bounce up and down. If you have properly adjusted the stabilizers and bipod/tripod then you shouldn’t have any bouncing/wiggling. This has worked for me over the past 15 years.
Chocks are to keep the 5er from rolling forward or backwards. They do not eliminate the weight of the 5er from pushing down and causing the bouncing/wiggling. If you park on a site that has a incline/decline then you probably want to use chocks to keep your 5er from rolling when you unhitch.
There are a lot of other options out there to “eliminate” the bouncing/wiggling if you have the extra money and want to spend it.

I used a tripod for a while but occasionally had a campsite where I had to lower the front so much the tripod wouldn't fit. It helped but not a lot. I installed the SteadyFast on the front and the fiver is a lot more stable, so much so that I haven't installed the rear stabilizer yet.

Yes they do, depends on the front part of the 5ers floorplan configuration, some have more distance from the front landing gear to the Pin.

I know our current 5th Wheel has about a 10 inches more overhang than our last 5th Wheel did.