Front Stabilizer Legs....HELP

[boatmates]

Pulled my 2010 3650 home from that lake today and as always pulled great....then I parked it and pulled the truck from under the hitch.
Driver side front stabilizer hydraulics failed and now I am stuck with a 5'vr that is sitting "strangely" and I can't get the front stabilizers to go up or down....any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. home email is Boatmates@msn.com and I really need some help. thanks. dtrees

[bncinwv]

Some clarification may help. Do you have the Level-up system or the battery powered front legs? Your mention of hydraulics is puzzling unless you have the level up system. If they are the conventional two front battery powered legs, there is a pin at the top of the shaft that possible could have sheared off. You should be able to check these in the propane compartments. Not much help, but that is about all I know about the systems.
Bingo

[DQDick]

On the electric landing gear, if the pin that locks the lower portion of the leg isn't clear thru the hole it can hold and then pop out when the rig moves slightly when the truck pulls off. If that's what happened you'll have to jack the rig up so you can extend the leg and then lock the pin fully.

[boatmates]

Yes it is the standard electric front stalizer legs. I have the drivers side of the trailer sitting on blocks now and the entire leg slides up and down freely inside the tube. conversly, the passenger side leg is supporting that side of the 5'vr. My next step is to get the passenger side up on blocks and then see what I can find broke. anyone have any suggestions about blocking the front of the rig. I was thinking of putting a 2ton floor jack onblocks in the bed of my truck and jacking the trailer at the hitch ball?

[Overlord]

quote:Originally posted by boatmates
.....I was thinking of putting a 2ton floor jack onblocks in the bed of my truck and jacking the trailer at the hitch ball?

If the jack slips off, or otherwise squirts out from under the king pin or pin box suddenly, the 5er will drop and the truck suspension will rebound quickly. If that happens, your truck's bed rails will smack into the overhang of the 5er, possibly damaging both the truck and the 5er.

If you choose to do it this way, make sure to use cribbing or jack stands under the forward frame rails of the 5er, and adjust them frequently as you lift so the 5er can not drop too far if the jack fails or slips.

In my opinion, a safer way would be to use two hydraulic jacks, cribbing and/or jack stands under each side of the forward part of the frame rails, making sure to alternate jacking each side to keep the lifting even side to side(or with a helper, operate the jacks simultaneously) while adjusting the cribbing/jack stands as you go, so there will be a minimum of drop should a jack fail or slip.

Either way, make sure to chock the wheels securely in both directions on both sides of the 5er.

[HOOK]

Chock the wheels, all 4. Put the 2ton under the frame at the bad jack. Use the 2 ton and power jack to get the trailer high enough to unhook. Use jack stands to secure jacks. Pull truck out. Allow trailer to rest on stands. You should be able to work with jacks at ease.

[Rondo]

I'm confused! No comments please! Your first post said you had pulled the TV out and then the leg gave way but in a second post you said you were going to put the 2 ton floor jack in the bed of your truck and jack from there. Is your truck out from under the hitch already or not? If it is out already, get yourself some jack stands to put under the frame while you jack on the frame by the bum landing leg. I use cribbing of 6X6's, or 4X6's long enough to stack to build up while jacking incase that jack slips also. This insures me the unit will not drop back down to it's original starting position and gives you some security for yourself also if you are under it some. Once you get it up high enough to put the truck back under it let it rest on the hitch in the truck while you are working on the bum leg. It's my guess you have lost a bolt or pin in the leg that supports the two sections of the leg. I'd also use the jack stands to support the Monte also for more security and as others have said use those chocks on both sides of the Monte block the wheels both front and back to make sure it does not roll either direction. Let us know what you come up with once you get it up and stable. Good luck and be careful!

[boatmates]

Sorry for the confusion. What I meant by the TV being out was the 5'vr was disconnected from the hitch; I was using the jack from the bed of my TV and that got me to a "stable" position for the 5'vr. Called a tow truck and they then lifted the front of the 5'vr allowing me to block it up under the frame. examined the driver side front stabilizer leg and the gears at the top were junk. calling lippert tomorrow to see what is my next step. thanks for all the assistance and keep it coming.

[Carl n Susan]

Don't waste your time calling Lippert. You want to talk to Venture Manufacturing - the folks who make the legs. The have a gear replacement set or replacement legs depending on what is wrong. There are lots of PDFs on their web site to help you.

Venture Mfg. Co.
3636 Dayton Park Dr.
Dayton, OH 45414
Toll Free: 866-365-1957

PM me your email address and I will send you a copy of the PDFs I received from Venture.

[Phil P]

Hi

I have had 4 of the front legs or landing gear fail. I am on # 5 & 6 and they are now making noise like the # 3 & 4 did before they failed. # 1 & 2 failed in the first 90 days of my owning this trailer which I purchased new.

Just for the record Keystone did replace the first 2 for me. Just too bad the unqualified farm mechanic that did the repair used the wrong leg and welded “lugs” on the back side to make them fit.

I disassembled # 3 and I think I still have the disassemble unit in the shop. If I haven’t taken it to the scrap yard with the last load I will take some pictures and post them here.

I have weighed the trailer to make sure the front legs are not over loaded. They are operating at about ½ of their rated capacity.

The failure that causes the portion of the leg that normally only moves when you run the motor to move up and down freely is not repairable.

The gears in the top of the unit that everyone is talking about have pins in them that will shear. When the pin shears the leg will not move up or down. These gears can be replaced and correct that problem.

When the lower portion (not the one with pin holes in it) moves up and down freely the long threaded rod that actually makes the “screw jack” has failed. This is not repairable.

There is not any provision for lubricating this screw and the large nut at the top of the leg just below the gear pack.

Phil P

[Phil P]

Hi

I have disposed of the leg I had taken apart.

Here is a picture of the parts of the leg.

Item #1 is the part that is fastened to the trailer

Item #2 is the part that moves when the motor is run.

Item #4 is the part with the holes it.

If you can move part #2 more than a very little bit without running the motor then the leg is not
repairable.

Phil P

[boatmates]

Thanks to everyone for all the advice; I have contacted Venture Mfg. Co and they are sending me some trouble shooting info. I will let everyone know what the outcome is when I figure it our. dtrees