Getting the spare tire out....

[Rotaxxx]

I got looking at the spot to put the crank in to get my spare tire out of my truck and seen I won't be able to get it out with the truck camper on. So if i need to get my spare out on the road I would have to unload the camper, to get it out. Wife said that if we got a flat to call CAA and let them deal with it instead. What do you others do if you need to get your spare out? Take it out and mount it some where else?

[Bedlam]

I know my Ford was the same way. I had different lugnuts I had to carry for my 19.5” wheels and the OEM spare - This also required a different size lug wrench. It has been about 10 years since my last truck flat, five years with the car and about every other year with my enclosed trailer. If the shoulder is narrow or the weather is poor, I will use the service. My wife had really poor luck with an older BMW that left her stranded often. Service really paid off and I was even wondering if they were going to cut us off.

[Eric_Lisa]

Bedlam wrote:
That one call would have paid for two plus years of roadside service....

Yeah, that math works if you need the service on a freeway once every two years. 1994 was the last time I called a tow truck, so the math isn't so favorable in that case.

By "lesson learned" I did not intent to imply I would get some sort of service contract. I meant to imply I would confirm my vehicles all have adequate lug nut wrenches available. The 'lesson' really pertains to aftermarket wheels & lug nuts - and confirming the vehicle's emergency kit is properly configured to handle them.

And "two is one, and one is none". Both my primary & secondary plans failed in this case. I am very much on the DIY side rather than the pay someone side of thinking, so this may not apply toward everyone.

-Eric

[SoonDockin]

I have both Ford new car roadside assistance and Good Sam. Not that I am afraid of changing a flat, just nice to know I have backup.

[Bedlam]

That one call would have paid for two plus years of roadside service. I always question renewing mine until something like this is posted to remind me. It is less of concern with me since I carry the tools and grunt to do it myself - The rest of the family relies on me or the service.

[Eric_Lisa]

SidecarFlip wrote:
Unloading the TC with a flat on the rear on the side of the freeway sounds like a bad dream in the making.....

Did that. Done that. Got the merit badge. I-405 southbound in Seattle. Exit 3, right next to Boeing's Renton plant. Sitting in the 'V' of the off-ramp. Saturday afternoon traffic (like that matters - it is ALWAYS busy there). Hot September day.

That said, it wasn't too bad. Disconnect tie-downs. Lift camper just enough to clear the crank hole. And spin the spare down. Neither camper nor truck have moved, so lowering the camper back down puts it right back where it was. Reconnect tie downs.

What did suck is learning that the aftermarket wheels & lug nuts (installed years ago by previous owner) do not fit the emergency kit lug nut wrench. No problem, I have a spare....until the spare broke. Had to call a tow truck to bring me a wrench. State law minimum charge for any call to a freeway location was $196. All vehicles now have spare universal lug nut wrench kits, lesson learned.

-Eric

[ajriding]

Moving the socket is just complicated, the frame will block it just swinging to the side, so the jobs gets way more complicated than I want to deal with for something so useless (until I flat).
The old-school threaded rod would be ideal, but my tire is super heavy, no way I could muscle that around, hard enough to lift one end of tire up to get into the bracket thing.

The socket location is at the front side of the bumper and this gives me at least 6 inches between that and the camper.
I am now considering using a long flexible 3/8 socket extension (worm?) that will stay in the socket of the truck spare tire thing, and bend to the side of the bumper where I can put my ratchet wrench to it freely.
This is easiest and least intrusive. Hardest part, which is not hard, is keeping it in the spare tire socket thing.
It may involve the flexible extension and an extension bar together.
Two extension bars coupled via a u-joint also might work.

[ajriding]

The TC blocks the rear of the truck, there is no access on my Dodge, no access by hand, tool or other by any means.
When it stops raining I will investigate more on how to move it.
I have a generator mounted up front, not room for tire there and I would rather fix it than put the tire up front, just looking for anyone who has re-routed the access.

[emcvay]

SidecarFlip wrote:

Kayteg1 wrote:

SidecarFlip wrote:


I've consider that myself. My truck is so old I'd have to fabricate a mount. and it would have to be hinged so the tire laid down on the ground to remove it from the mount.

Come-on Flip. You are fellow metal fabricator and you can do that.
For my 2000 F250 I made a clamp on factory tow eye so 1 lb of steel, 1 big bolt to clamp it and about 1 hr of work.
I would advise the idea to each TC owner who drive SRW.
The spare wheel moved from behind rear axle onto front bumper took close to 300 lb from rear axle, so sure increased safety and handling, even if it looks Redneck 😉

Kayteg..

My issue is, I don't have the stock suspension on the old girl. I extensively modified the front and rear suspension many years ago so to fit a front spare tire carrier would entail a bunch of fab and welding work and I'm getting old and don't want to.

I did an axle flip on the front and got rid of the front swing shackles with a fabricated weldment that runs across the ............

Sorry for the late reply.

I installed a front receiver hitch feo. Curt and spare tire carrier from them too with 7 inch extension. This sticks it way out front it shifts 100+ lbs forward

[burningman]

okan-star wrote:
On a Dodge that year the part you put the rod in is a 5/8 hex
I use a 7/16 bolt 4 1/2" long with a coupling jambed onto the threaded end , now has 5/8 on both ends , put the coupling end into the truck receiver and use a ratcheting 5/8 wrench on the other end to lower the tire
Clears my camper

I’ve got the same truck and I’m gonna do this.
Something I very, very highly recommend is a cordless electric impact wrench.
You can buy or make an adapter to run a screw scissor jack up and down with it and of course do your lug nuts with it. You could even set up so you can raise and lower your spare with it.
I use a Milwaukee 3/4” drive. It can do semi truck lugs but you can adjust the settings for lower torque so you don’t twist smaller stuff apart.
I carry a 1/4” drive model for lighter duty work, it’s small, light and very capable.

They have plenty of other uses but these tools make labor intensive jobs like changing 8 lug truck wheels super easy. I went with Milwaukee because they have the largest selection of tools and a great reputation among mechanics.

And who doesn’t like buying cool new tools...

[Grit_dog]

I thought about making a bunch of mods or mounting spare up front or whatever. Then realized that the potential hour it would take to unload and re load the camper, if needed, was far less time spent than modifying the truck for the potential of a flat.
I could weasel the spare crank in there though if the tailgate is off, but when we leave the tailgate on with the camper it blocks the access for the spare crank.
I suppose there could be a situation where unloading the camper is not possible if you get a flat, but it’s far more probable the camper can be unloaded.
Also, if I got a back tire flat out in the boonies, I’d likely have to change 2 tires anyway because my spare is smaller and not as heavy rated as the truck tires. So again off comes the camper to make that situation less complicated.

Another option for those that are intent on making the spare accessible, is to rig up an old school spare tire holder that has the bracket and threaded rod deal. Not as slick, but an option.

[ajriding]

This post got pointless quick.
Back to the topic….
I have a Dodge. I will need to rotate the hoist since the TC blocks everything on the back end. Holding tanks and pipes down there so no way to poke through with an extension.
I have fender well liners so not so great to just point it that direction. I hate to cut holes in the fender well, and lining it all up perfect for a hole just big enough seems very difficult.
Anybody here done a good fix?
Dodge uses a hex type key, so cant just use a wrench from under.
Im thinking of a new cable, longer, and a sort of cable housing so I can route it somewhere else.

[tad94564]

Bedlam wrote:
245/70R19.5 fit in the OEM location even with the larger SuperHitch installed. If you have a card with a serial number on it in your documentation, that is the key code to order a replacement. I kept mine with the crank handle, but it originally comes in a zip lock pouch with the serialized card.

I've heard that, but like I said they cleaned everything but the owners manual out.

I'm just prepared to call a 24 hour tire service. Last time it was $650.. and 6 hours of time.

Like a previous poster said, be prepared by trying to change your tires BEFORE you load the camper, and check your spare. Otherwise, you'll be surprised..

[Eric_Lisa]

Eric&Lisa wrote:

SidecarFlip wrote:
Unloading the TC with a flat on the rear on the side of the freeway sounds like a bad dream in the making.
....

Did that, done that. I-405 southbound in Renton, WA, exit 3, in the 'V' between three lanes of traffic and the exit ramp. The overhang of the camper blocks access to the hole for the handle. Jacks down, tie-downs unhooked, and I lifted the camper enough to get access. Yeah, this is in the 'not fun' category.

-Eric

Not to get too far off topic, but to add a bit to the story.... The previous owner of my truck put on aftermarket wheels. I always used a breaker bar / extension / socket / torque wrench to remove / install them. When I had the flat, I discovered the lug nuts were a different size from the stock emergency wrench. No problem, "Two is one, and one is none", I have a spare wrench...that promptly broke in my hands. Had to call a tow truck. $196 minimum service fee per highway patrol rules on the freeway...for them to show up and hand me their wrench to use.

The lesson: Check your emergency kit to make sure it actually works!

-Eric

[trail-explorer]

Rotaxxx wrote:
The crank for the tire gets blocked on me when the tailgate is down and it needs to be down for the camper to fit in the box. Looks like maybe I should come up with some sort of plan I guess. Still not sure what to do.

Remove the tailgate when you haul the camper. That's what most other truck camper owners do.