I’m having some issues getting my current landing gear to work correctly (detailed in another thread), one of the things I’m considering is upgrading to a beefier set of legs and dual motors. I’ve added some weight to the front with new batteries, and while I’m not ready to correlate possible stripped/broken gear with that change, I figure if I’m go8ng to fix it, maybe better to fix it once and for all.I’m looking at the Ultra-Fab deluxe landing gear, it’s good to 12k lbs (my rig tops out at just over 12k total), seems to have a bit more extension at 38 inches. Any experience with this equipment? The brackets seem ok with my current setup, they recommend 13.5 inches between for one of the configurations, which is what I have.

What brand do you currently have? If you have Venture mfg legs, then its eady to convert.

I looked at both the UltraFab and the Bulldog system, and ended up going with the Bulldog. Very happy and satisfied with it.

The only negative feedback I saw on the Bulldogswas that the motors tended to shake quite a bit during extension (and presumably retraction). The UltraFab seems to mount the motors directly above and has a very direct coupling, don’t know if that makes any difference in the end though.

Bulldog legs "shake"? I've never seen that in all my usage of them. They raise my 15,000 lb. toyhauler effortlessly and quietly. Love 'em. The Bulldog system mounts the motors directly above the legs. Maybe you got them confused.

Our Carriage had Ultra Fab as original equipment, 13 years later still worked great. When I damaged a leg I found their customer service to be ready and willing.

Ultra Fab landing gear | Good Sam Community

phemens
Explorer
Jul 02, 2018
Received the hatch and did the install this morning. Thank you Wires for the info, I’m very happy with the final result, looks clean & tidy!
phemens
Explorer
Jul 01, 2018
Excellent, thank you very much for the info! My hatch arrives today, look forward to working on it.
wires
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
phemens wrote:
Ok, so if I understand, you mounted to the inside back of the hatch and then made some cutouts in the hatch cover so that the switches would protrude?

I two drilled 1/2" holes in the back of the enclosure (not the hatch cover). I then unscrewed the front of the switches, stuck the switches in from the back through the holes, then screwed the front of the switches back on. So the large square parts of the switches are actually behind the back of the enclosure. I had a ton of space behind the hatch cutout so having the back of the switches back there wasn't an issue.

So from the front the hatch is a solid cover and you don't see anything. When you open the hatch you only see the two handles of the switches.
phemens
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
Ok, so if I understand, you mounted to the inside back of the hatch and then made some cutouts in the hatch cover so that the switches would protrude? I measured the switches and tip to tail are 3.5 inches deep, so that means that the switches still stick out 1.5 - 2 inches? I kind of like the idea of totally enclosing the switches to prevent anyone messing with them (even if unlikely), so maybe I can back mount the switches in the hatch, I do have enough clearance on the back end.
wires
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
phemens wrote:
Wires, that’s a great idea! Problem solved. You mounted the switches on the inside back of the hatch with enough clearance to close the hatch cover?

Yes, I was able to mount the switches inside. The hatch I mentioned is not is a small plastic enclosure that is about 1.5 inches deep. There is plenty of clearance so that the hatch closes and you have room to get your fingers in there to operate the switches. Just be careful to mount them slightly offset to the side so that to door latch doesn't hit.

I used a Dremel tool with a drill bit style cutter to cut the opening. It gave a nice clean cut. But the hatch has a good size flange so even if your cut is rough it should easily cover it.
Wood_chip
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
donn0128 wrote:
What brand do you currently have? If you have Venture mfg legs, then its eady to convert.

I couldn't figure out why my weld tabs were at 19.5 inch apart until I looked up the Venture website to learn they they have the extended model. Not sure why I have these but the Ultra fab not Bull Dog work without removing the OEM brackets and welding new one.
phemens
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
Wires, that’s a great idea! Problem solved. You mounted the switches on the inside back of the hatch with enough clearance to close the hatch cover?
wires
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
I installed the Ultrafab landing gear recently. I didn't care for the look of the switches so I cut out where the old landing gear switch was and installed a small hatch. The one I used was the JR Products D6102-A.

Link to hatch on Amazon
fj12ryder
Explorer III
Jun 30, 2018
FWIW here is the switch gear and plate that came with the Bulldog. Personally I would use thinner metal rather than thicker plexiglass. Plexiglass isn't really very strong, and the metal would look better IMO.

Bulldog switch plate
phemens
Explorer
Jun 30, 2018
I was thinking some plexi back painted black or something similar. The switches are very solid but crazy deep (maybe 3 inches) and are designed to be screwed in directly to the filon, but that to me is just an accident waiting to happen. The existing plate is for a single motor, would not be wide enough for the two. Here’s a Link to the UltraFab switches

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