Camper jack mod's? Any way to reduce time putting jacks on and off...

[Stan@FourWheel]

Jens is our FWC dealer in Germany / Europe.

We would like to carry those quick release brackets and use them (great product), but US customers don't seem to be willing to spend $500 - $600 for a set of just the brackets.

: (


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[wuck]

I've sheared two of the bolts during the few years I've had my Finch.

ET - Could you elaborate a bit on your sheared bolts? Wondering if they were corroded and sheared on removal, or broke as result of impact, etc.

Reason being, I removed the grade 8 bolts a previous owner installed and replaced them with regular grade 5 stuff. I don't tighten them all that much, so I figured grade 5 are plenty strong.

 

[Johannes]

Ok Stan I understand.

Interesting that the american market for such products is so different as it is here. It's true Jens developed a very good product in a very high quality. Once you've used them you don't want to miss them any more.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Another welcome to WTW.

<snip>Has anyone tried cleavis pins/cotters?

<snip>Pins/cotter pins may be asking for trouble.

My concern with pins is the potential for the two part jack mounts to have misaligned holes if pins or bolts are not installed when you have the jacks removed

 

[LLS]

Stan,
Just curious is that a set of 2 or 4. With those I could take the camper off by myself, still would probably need help to get it back on.
Thanks

 

[Johannes]

The D-Jacker set comes with 4 brackets and everything what is needed to install them. One hole must be drilled in each of the original brackets to install the D-Jacker. The drill is also included in the set.

There is also a FB-Site with more pictures of the system.

https://www.facebook.com/djackergermany/?fref=ts


Best
Johannes

 

[LLS]

Thanks, not in the budget right now, but I will keep an eye on it.

 

[billharr]

Welcome Johannes, what part of Switzerland are you in? My daughter is working in Basel, so we will be going at lease once a year. Spent 6 weeks there in May and June. I plan on a fall trip next year so I can ride a motorcycle through the Alps. May make a trip this winter if there is an airfare sale.

The D-jacker is a neat system, might get out the pencil and paper. Should not be hard to duplicate out of alum plate and stainless bolts. The price is not out of line for stainless, not sure I could make for much less. I do have a friend with a plasma cutter so I might see what it would cost to make a set.

 

[Johannes]

Hello Bill

I'm living near Zurich, one hour away from Basel.

Biking in the alps can really be great. There are very nice tours to go. Switerland in general is not such a nice biker-country for me because there is so much traffic and as soon as you left one village you enter already the next one. But yu will know this when you are here so often.

 

[ETAV8R]

ET - Could you elaborate a bit on your sheared bolts? Wondering if they were corroded and sheared on removal, or broke as result of impact, etc.

Reason being, I removed the grade 8 bolts a previous owner installed and replaced them with regular grade 5 stuff. I don't tighten them all that much, so I figured grade 5 are plenty strong.

Not corroded at all. I think that when I bump the camper from time to time while parking under it the forces at work might mess with the threads. What was happening is when taking the nuts off they would get caught on the threads that were bent/crimped slightly and then it was all I could do to keep attempting to loosen the nuts. After forward and backward attempts the bolts finally failed and broke. This is fortunate because otherwise I'd have had to take my jacks camping with me and I don't want/need the extra weight.

 

[wuck]

Thanks, that sounds like what happened on my first jack removal. I assumed the threads were galling, but they may have well been distorted from the thick 3" steel extensions a previous owner had used. He also confided he had a hard time backing his truck under the camper. None of the bolts broke (they were grade 8), but they sure fought me taking them off. I've only removed them once in the last year, so no damage as yet with std hardware.

 

[ETAV8R]

I remove the camper after every trip. I also have the extension plates from FWC. My truck was my DD and doesn't fit in the parking garage at work plus the commute is bad enough without the camper. I got my other DD back from my daughter so the truck stays put more often now. I still use it as a truck though. Usually to haul bikes. I'm thinking more and more about the pins. I think it might work. Maybe I'll be the guinea pig.