13-Pin Jager plug vs multiple 6/4pin plugs

[JoeChiOhki]

I've found myself in a bit of a quandry.

Miss Merry, my Amerigo has a lot of stuff it needs to link between her and my pickup.

Stock she had two six pin plugs, one for the main trailer wiring and a second for the intercom system.

Now, she has a dedicated lift gate plug for the 12 volt +/- leads, but also the signal/running lamp wires, a backup camera, and the intercom and I'm looking at needing to have three separate plugs in the bed and camper to connect.

So, I started looking at alternatives, and came across the European 13 pin "jager" plug, which is the common tow connector for caravans.

At this point, I'm drawn, I can only find the 13 pins in plastic and I'm not familiar with them or how well they hold up in damp weather.

So, I'm inquiring here with our fellow European camper afficiandos to find out if the jager is a durable connector or if its junk (And possible where I can find them with all metal bodies instead of the plastic).

[JoeChiOhki]

Okay, I did finally find an American shipping source for the aluminum sockets and the plugs for an umbilical, I ordered extras to keep for spare parts in the truck, and will be testing them to see how they hold up.

This will allow me to reuse the existing wiring hole in the truck bed and reduce the number of holes that will need to be cut in the camper.

I will not be the first in using a unique plug for my camper, as Lance has been using their own unique camper plug for years.

[burningman]

Here’s what I’d do.
I’d install a standard 7-pin, and use four of the terminals for the running lights, signals and ground, in the standard correct places on the plug.

Then set up your truck to use the other three for your camera.

Make yourself an “emergency” cable to use between the camper and truck that simply doesn’t have anything connected to the three camera pins. (Normally those will be a charge wire, reverse lights and brake controller wire, already not needed on a truck camper.
You can use that should you ever need to haul the camper on any other truck.
You can also use it if you ever have occasion to haul a different camper on your truck.

Then get rid of the six intercom wires and use walkie talkies or something else wireless for truck to camper comm.

Then you can obtain new parts anywhere in the US, which can be handy you-never-know-when.

My camper just went on an unplanned ride on a different truck a couple weeks ago when I was 100 miles from home and had an unplanned truck issue.
The camper plugged right in and made for one less hassle that night.

Incompatible proprietary connectors makes for future headaches.

PS oops I forgot to account for your backup light function
I was thinking originally you’d use the extra pin you’d have if you did use a second 7-pin for the six intercom wires.

[joerg68]

I found a couple caravan shops that sell an aluminum version of the plug, but none of them ship international.

Have you looked on ebay? A lot of sellers there ship internationally - at least from the US to Europe. All customs duties included. They seem to have an international shipping program.

If that doesn't work and you really want one, I'll gladly ship it over from here. Just send me a PM with an email address and we'll get it worked out.

More of the newer campers seem to have the umbilical cord at the back of the camper, so they can use the trailer plug. My Outfitter was set up this way, and so is my current Northstar. Maybe that is worth thinking about.

[mountainkowboy]

Have you looked into a Molex plug or maybe a weatherpack plug? Maybe get a firewall plug from a car/truck in a JY?

[JoeChiOhki]

joerg68 wrote:
They are commonplace here... I am not aware of a metal version, nor would I want one. Too many +12V connections in close proximity...

The pins are very close together and to wire one of them can be challenging. They also only accept fairly narrow wire gauges, so they are not well suited for higher charging currents. You can combine the pins for +12V continous and +12 ignition switched for twice the gauge (and current), but then you are no longer using the standard layout.

They are the one and only official connector for travel trailers here. There is a similar 7 Pin connector for utility trailers, and adapters between both - that is about all. There is no dedicated single systen for TCs, but the 13-Pin connector is pretty common. I have one on my Northstar.

Other than that, they are reliable connectors, connections are secure, and they are sort of weatherproof. But it does not hurt to keep an eye on the back side of the connectors once in a while and use some sort of anti-corrosion agent to keep the moisture in check - WD40 or something better.

When done right, they last many years with minimal maintenance. We don't really like them, but they work OK.

How do you wire them for an american truck? If you use the official european layout for the connectors, they have separate pins for turn signals and brake lights. While the truck's turn signals and brake are combines in one bulb. They have an extra pin for a fog taillight, which you don't have.

Is there a standard US layout? Of course you can use the 13,pins like you want - until someone wants to plug that plug into a receptacle thatvis wired differently...

There is no US 13 pin out plugs of any kind, I'll need to import the parts to make it work.

My goal is to reduce how many holes I have to cut in the side of the camper for new connectors and how many new holes need to be made in the bed of the truck.

I found a couple caravan shops that sell an aluminum version of the plug, but none of them ship international.

I use a semi-truck lift gate plug specifically for the charge wires 12+/-, the other stuff is all small gauge stuff, signals, running lamps, backup camera, intercom.

My end goal is ideally to only have two cords to hook and unhook from the truck and camper.

I'm hoping for a metal socket, because plastic doesn't hold up well on a truck that gets used for hauling things besides a camper.

The European plug wire color scheme for the important stuff (Signals, Running Lights) is identical in color to the US, so its a one to one match for those three wires (I won't be using the separated out stop wires in standard).

The rest of the plug will be getting custom wired for the intercom unit (Six wires, which originally used what looks like an outdoor rated DIN plug), and the backup camera (3 wires).

burningman wrote:
I would use a standard pattern 7-pin and a second connector for your custom stuff.
That saves potential hassle if you ever have to move the camper with a different truck.

This combo is already a custom setup, down to the running gear on the truck itself. I already use a 100amp rated Lift gate plug for a panel van for the 12 volt +/- and currently a 4 pin round for the signals and running lamps.

If I change trucks, it would be just another of the same vintage, at which point I'd be moving all of the custom wiring and charging setup over to the replacement truck.

I have multiple wires I have to contend with.

The charging portion is already taken care of. That leaves me with Running Lights, Turn Signals and the Reverse light (Wasn't wired in originally, being re-added with the new camper)

That's Four wires.

The Intercom unit uses Six.

And the Backup Camera uses three (two leads for the video signal and one for the camera's + power lead).

That gives me a total of thirteen wires. Using standard American connectors, I would need to have three plugs on the camper total (One for the camper lights and Camera, one for the intercom, and the already existing charging plug.)

That's why I was curious about the Jaeger plugs, as I would only have two umbilicals to deal with and one less potential leak location in the front wall under the cabover.

[burningman]

I would use a standard pattern 7-pin and a second connector for your custom stuff.
That saves potential hassle if you ever have to move the camper with a different truck.

[joerg68]

They are commonplace here... I am not aware of a metal version, nor would I want one. Too many +12V connections in close proximity...

The pins are very close together and to wire one of them can be challenging. They also only accept fairly narrow wire gauges, so they are not well suited for higher charging currents. You can combine the pins for +12V continous and +12 ignition switched for twice the gauge (and current), but then you are no longer using the standard layout.

They are the one and only official connector for travel trailers here. There is a similar 7 Pin connector for utility trailers, and adapters between both - that is about all. There is no dedicated single systen for TCs, but the 13-Pin connector is pretty common. I have one on my Northstar.

Other than that, they are reliable connectors, connections are secure, and they are sort of weatherproof. But it does not hurt to keep an eye on the back side of the connectors once in a while and use some sort of anti-corrosion agent to keep the moisture in check - WD40 or something better.

When done right, they last many years with minimal maintenance. We don't really like them, but they work OK.

How do you wire them for an american truck? If you use the official european layout for the connectors, they have separate pins for turn signals and brake lights. While the truck's turn signals and brake are combines in one bulb. They have an extra pin for a fog taillight, which you don't have.

Is there a standard US layout? Of course you can use the 13,pins like you want - until someone wants to plug that plug into a receptacle thatvis wired differently...