Chocking Fifth Wheels

[Flymutt]

Man...you gotta chock! That's part of the deal.

[Rondo]

Besides using the X-chocks I also use two "nature made" chocks. One infront of the wheels on one side and one on the other side of the Monte thus eliminating forward and backward movement or rolling. When I say Nature Made, they are from a tree where a branch comes off the main trunk and it is sawed off flat at the main trunk of the tree and just the right angle for a wheel chock and it works perfectly.

[rving2us]

If you don't chock your wheels I hope you have chained the rig to the nearest tree (lol) and I hope you are not parked upwind from me.

[edmojenks]

The one time I didn't chock (it was on one of my first outings and I simply forget) I was setting up on a pad by a lake. The rig slowly started rolling backwards and if it had kept going it would have ended up in the lake. My first reaction was pure instinct. I grabbed the tongue of the trailer. Guess what, I can restrain an 11,000 pd. rig from rolling. In the end the trailer quit rolling before it reached the end of the pad, otherwise there was a 45 degree drop straigt to the lake. I occasionally forget some things when I set up but that little scare has assured that the first thing I do when I set up is put chocks behind the wheels. I wouldn't dream of NOT chocking my trailer.

[bncinwv]

The newly invented word "Montanaquarium" has resulted in some very interesting images being formed in the dark recesses of my brain. Good tale of bad experience edmojenks!!
Bingo

[richfaa]

Don't known if it is good, bad, right, wrong, recommended or not recommended but we have been chocking the wheels on our Campers for well over 25 years and will continue to do so..

[steelpony5555]

Even if you didn't care if your rig rolled away the X-Chocks are great at stopping the movement you get inside. As an old telephone man you gotta chock it, heck it was hard to break the habit of throwing a cone out behind me when I park lol...

[Petmoose]

We moved from a TT to a 5 and it is a habit with me to chock. If you have the lippert auto level system and you are on uneven ground you have to be careful. If you chock after you level then make sure that you adjust the chocks before you drop the unit down to hook up. If not you could drop the unit down on top of the chocks. If it is one of the plastic ones like camping world sells them you may break it or worse slice a tire.

[mlh]

I could see a TT moving. There isn't much weight on the hitch, but on a 5er there is 3000 pounds on the landing gear. Has anybody had their Monty move on near level ground?
Lynwood

[8.1al]

quote:Originally posted by mlh

I could see a TT moving. There isn't much weight on the hitch, but on a 5er there is 3000 pounds on the landing gear. Has anybody had their Monty move on near level ground?
Lynwood

I haven't but then I always chock my wheel. Even if the ground is level you run the chance of pushing the trailer back when hitching, maybe bending a leg

[Clemson1881]

Simply not worth the risk on not chocking.

[seanjackmc]

I once made the mistake of removing the chocks before I put the landing gear up after hitching. With the bed of my truck so high I need to really extend the gear to hook up. When raising the landing gear with no chocks the trailer really wants to slide back as I bring up the gear. No danger as the trailer is hooked to the truck but I'm sure it puts some unneeded lateral strain on the legs.
Now it's the first and last thing I do when arriving/leaving a park.
STM

[seahunter]

After seeing twice now with both of our trailers not chocked at the dealership I decided to tell the employee about chocking the rigs. He just blew it off of course. It also made me not happy both times as I walked up to see the level-up legs not extended, but the slides were out. I tried to explain it is best to have the rig leveled before the slides are out and basically got the same blow off about how it's fine to extend the slides with the rig just on the tires and front jacks alone.

[bigmurf]

quote:Originally posted by seahunter

After seeing twice now with both of our trailers not chocked at the dealership I decided to tell the employee about chocking the rigs. He just blew it off of course. It also made me not happy both times as I walked up to see the level-up legs not extended, but the slides were out. I tried to explain it is best to have the rig leveled before the slides are out and basically got the same blow off about how it's fine to extend the slides with the rid just on the tires and front jacks alone.

Never teach a pig to sing, it waste you time and irrates the pig.

[snfexpress]

Seahunter,

One reason that you will see only the front legs down (and no others) is that they typically move a trailer with a fork lift. If more jacks were down the fork lift driver, not paying attention, could bend/break something. The reason for not chocking is that the fork lift driver has to get off his duff and retrieve said chock!

[seahunter]

Good points Michael. Just amazing what seems like common sense sometimes is often either overlooked or as you said probably just laziness...

[HamRad]

I used to chock the wheels every time I dropped the rig off at the dealer. They told me to NOT chock. The reason was what snfexpress stated. I watched one day as they moved my rig. The guy comes zooming out with the fork lift and hooks up to the rig. And not too gently I might add. Immediately lifts the front end up.... I doubt he even glanced at the wheels or rear to see if there were any chocks or stabilizers in place.

It always makes me nervous to leave the rig without any chocks in place but I do what the dealer says.

Good luck, Dennis.

[deadeyenevermisses]

Someone asked about a fiver (as opposed to a TT) moving on the jack legs. Well I hadn't either until two days ago. I'm in Bear Canyon Campground in Bozeman, Mt. Guy pulls his Montana into a nose high pull through spot and has his girlfriend park her Tahoe cross ways behind it. He runs the jack legs down to unload the hitch and (without chocking) pulls the disconnect handle. Well, God was watching because it only slid about three feet before stopping one foot from the Tahoe. Nope, it's still sitting there without any chocks of any type on the wheels.