Do you carry a jack? If so what kind.

Desert Captain wrote:

DrewE wrote:

Desert Captain wrote:
Something else to be considered while we discuss jacks...

Do you have a safety jack stand or are you willing to bet your life on the jack alone? I will not crawl under any vehicle that is lifted-supported by just a jack. If it fails and you are underneath the rig bad things are going to happen quickly.

While rare, jacks do fail, had a 6 ton model that jacked the coach up just fine and then immediately began to slip back down {a seal had dried out and was leaking hydraulic fluid}. My new jack is an 8 ton bottle style.

There's no need to crawl under the vehicle while it's supported by the jack when changing a tire, so jack stands are unnecessary for that particular case. Still, the advice to never do so is spot-on. At least my motorhome has sufficient clearance underneath for me to crawl around relatively easily without jacking it up. My Honda Fit is quite a different matter.

Lacking a jack stand, properly laid up cribbing is a viable alternative. (It's worth noting that many jack stand weight ratings are per pair. A set of six ton jack stands are usually rated at three tons apiece and would be marginal or insufficient for the back axle of many class C's.)

You may not have to "crawl" per se to be exposed to disaster should a jack fail. Pulling that inner dually off you will probably be head and shoulders inside of the wheel well pulling, jerking and shaking the rig.... do yourself a favor and always use a jack stand {of the appropriate rating}.

:C