Flat

[Fishhunter]

Prolly a dumb question but...do you lift the weight of the camper off the truck before jacking the truck up...never had a flat in all my travels and was just wondering

[JRscooby]

jaycocreek wrote:
I am not going to pull an already flat tire up on a block or blocks because the tire itself is already stressed by the time you pull over and pulling it up onto a wooden block runs the risk of further damage to the tire and sidewall...

You do it your way and I will do it the way I have for over 50 years without issue..You certainly won't change my opinion on how to change a tire in the backcountry and I am sure the same applies to you and my opinion..

So I agree to disagree rather than an internet rant!

No, your not likely to change. I would love to find a better way. Retired now, so not likely to run into the issue, but I have had to dig out to get a track back on a loader on soft ground. And retired, I call myself a graduate of the school of hard knocks. But the facts that somebody started this thread, others have asked questions and more have read than posted indicates to me that some might learn from the mistakes I have made.
Will it hurt a tire that has rolled down to a stop to roll another half revolution? Maybe, but I doubt it. Now, if I come out after the vehicle has been sitting, and find the flat I would hesitate to move it. OTOH, I will air it up. Any distance from a tire shop I will use that extra height to reduce jacking. But driving, a tire goes flat, I stop as soon as I can to protect wheel and rest of vehicle. I assume the tire will be junk before I stop. I crank the spare down to ground, then unwind rest of cable. Put a wrap back on winch. Then pull forward until spare slides. This puts center of spare under bumper, so don't have to be under to get it out. Next, check pressure in spare. (No matter how fast you change the tire you will feel stupid if you have to stand there waiting to air up tire when you should be done If the spare needs air, hook to compressor before you do lug nuts.) Then I back the flat onto block and chock the diagonal wheel. Break lugs loose (more room from ground sometimes helps that too) Then I put jack under and lift to clear block. Spin nuts off, swap wheels nuts back on. (the block can chock the wheel to get nuts a little tighter before lower the jack an torque them. Winch spare up, put tools away clean hands.
Jack in hole, or on flat ground, the more distance you run the jack after you start to lift the more likely the jack is to slip. And any slip increases the chance of vehicle to fall.

[Grit_dog]

Kayteg1 wrote:

jaycocreek wrote:


As to the axle tube,never seen one bent from a jack or heard of one..Is this another ticket for being over weight in a truck camper on rv.net..:B

You wont find it till you start looking.
when in most of the cases there is not clear description how the bend happened, it would surprise me if someone come to the internet forum admitting he bend his axle with stupid jack positioning.

Because it didn't happen with a jack. But thanks for trying again to be the world's best antagonist.

And this is just another one of those, 'folks who know it all' or think they do, threads now.
Truck axles get bent all the time.....from OVERLOADING.
Any of you experts, go jack up your pickup with a loaded camper on the back. And if you bend the axle, I'll not only eat my words, but come replace your axle.
Feel pretty safe in making that claim, lol!

[jaycocreek]

I am not going to pull an already flat tire up on a block or blocks because the tire itself is already stressed by the time you pull over and pulling it up onto a wooden block runs the risk of further damage to the tire and sidewall...

You do it your way and I will do it the way I have for over 50 years without issue..You certainly won't change my opinion on how to change a tire in the backcountry and I am sure the same applies to you and my opinion..

So I agree to disagree rather than an internet rant!

[JRscooby]

jaycocreek wrote:

Hole for jack would work, but IMHO not the best plan.

Well as I said earlier,the vast majority of my changing tires is in the middle of nowhere where options are limited...You also have the option of driving to a more suitable spot on your flat to change the tire and run the risk of ruining your tire,not an option for me..I change on the spot and deal with it as is...Remember,99% of my flats have been in remote areas where you deal with what you have...

As to the axle tube,never seen one bent from a jack or heard of one..Is this another ticket for being over weight in a truck camper on rv.net..:B

Who in sam hill is talking about driving to another location? Any surface you can dig a hole in, and many places you can't, you can lay a block on the ground, pull on it. The only place that would be a issue is if you are under low clearance. And in that case a jack wouldn't work.
And as to how many axles are bent, I can't say. But I bought a ton GMC with a broken axle. Replaced the axle, it broke again less than 1000 miles, no load. This time I checked closer. The tube on that side was bent up in center.
Customer had bearing noise on F-350. Much harder than normal to remove axle. Bent up in center. I can not say a jack did it, but the housings where bent.
Also I can't say yours will bend. But when I lay my money on the Blackjack table I might loose it, or I might pick up double. IMHO gamble on jack under the tube very little, if any win and a lot to loose.
*had to change to a game I never play. I guess this site does not like the galloping dominos.

[jaycocreek]

most of the cases there is not clear description how the bend happened, it would surprise me if someone come to the internet forum admitting he bend his axle with stupid jack positioning.

Uh huh...

I can guarantee you I have changed more than my share of tires and once did it for a living at Sears auto/tire..Never seen anything like you describe and I come from logging communities where things are treated rough and overloaded to boot..Common sense must be the dividing factor in bending or not bending an axle housing with a bottle jack and being sober helps.I have heard..LOL

Have you bent one or are you relying on the internet to back up your opinion...I want to see one where the axle housing was bent using a bottle jack because that is what we are talking about..

[jaycocreek]

specta wrote:

jaycocreek wrote:
You can buy the saddle that goes on the end of the bottle jack..And note the difference in height from the axle housing to the bottom of the spring plate..Sometimes that matters...

Is this a picture from an ad for the saddle??

I'm quite sure that anyone who could not place the jack directly under the spring perch would still put the jack as close to it as possible.

Didn't read the whole post to now..:S

Specta,I whole heartedly agree but there are times with the tire already flat and the spring base lower to the ground,the jack won't fit and the farther you get towards the center the heighth increases..I always go for closest to the tire but many like to use a floor jack and jack it up by the gear case in the center raising both sides..Or dig like a dog..:B

[jaycocreek]

Is this a picture from an ad for the saddle??

No,just a random photo...

[specta]

jaycocreek wrote:
You can buy the saddle that goes on the end of the bottle jack..And note the difference in height from the axle housing to the bottom of the spring plate..Sometimes that matters...

Is this a picture from an ad for the saddle??

I'm quite sure that anyone who could not place the jack directly under the spring perch would still put the jack as close to it as possible.

[Kayteg1]

jaycocreek wrote:


As to the axle tube,never seen one bent from a jack or heard of one..Is this another ticket for being over weight in a truck camper on rv.net..:B

You wont find it till you start looking.
google has 100s of pictures when in most of the cases there is not clear description how the bend happened, it would surprise me if someone come to the internet forum admitting he bend his axle with stupid jack positioning.

[jaycocreek]

Hole for jack would work, but IMHO not the best plan.

Well as I said earlier,the vast majority of my changing tires is in the middle of nowhere where options are limited...You also have the option of driving to a more suitable spot on your flat to change the tire and run the risk of ruining your tire,not an option for me..I change on the spot and deal with it as is...Remember,99% of my flats have been in remote areas where you deal with what you have...

As to the axle tube,never seen one bent from a jack or heard of one..Is this another ticket for being over weight in a truck camper on rv.net..:B

[JRscooby]

Kayteg1 wrote:

jaycocreek wrote:
You can buy the saddle that goes on the end of the bottle jack..And note the difference in height from the axle housing to the bottom of the spring plate..Sometimes that matters...

this is the worse point to put your jack for corner lifting.
It gives max bending force on the axle pipe.
Looks like that jack would easy fit under the leaf springs, what would be perfect lifting point.

Thank you Kaytegl.
Many will say they have never seen the tube bend. And that saddle will make it less likely for jack to slip off axle. But will not prevent enough of a bend to put bearings out of line.

jaycocreek wrote:


I use where you mentioned when available but sometimes that little different in height won't let the jack under it so it's either start digging or under the tube..

3-4 inches matters :B

Hole for jack would work, but IMHO not the best plan. To start, I never liked digging under best of conditions. Laying down under the truck is not the best of condition. Then you need to jack up to level, then go higher to get spare on. Put that flat on a block/ramp, just like you are leveling to spend the night. This will make it easy to put jack under spring mount. Then you only need to jack up a little more to get weight off the block. When you remove the block and flat you have room for spare.

[Kayteg1]

jaycocreek wrote:
You can buy the saddle that goes on the end of the bottle jack..And note the difference in height from the axle housing to the bottom of the spring plate..Sometimes that matters...

this is the worse point to put your jack for corner lifting.
It gives max bending force on the axle pipe.
Looks like that jack would easy fit under the leaf springs, what would be perfect lifting point.

[specta]

jaycocreek wrote:
You can buy the saddle that goes on the end of the bottle jack..And note the difference in height from the axle housing to the bottom of the spring plate..Sometimes that matters...

We really do need a like button.

[deltabravo]

azdryheat wrote:
I also got a battery powered hammer wrench

AKA, Impact Driver.

Here's mine

I had a flat with the camper on. I lifted the camper off the truck bed. It was my inside dual that went PFFFHT and let all the air out.

[jaycocreek]

There a ton of them out there...

Bottle Jack Axle Saddle