King pin tripod stabilizers

[BobM]

I just bought the Ultra-Fab steel tripod for the king pin hoping to alleviate some of the movement while at the campsite. It was too short. Then I found on Amazon an extension kit of three legs adding 8 inches.
Has anyone used these with success?
Is there a better brand out there to use?
Do they really help much?
Should I wait for the rally for more ideas?
Appreciate your thoughts.

[jsb5717]

I think you'll find that most here who had tripods have gotten rid of them...me included. I used one on older 5ers and it did help to stabilize. But they are cumbersome and take up too much storage space IMHO.

I found the new leveling systems to be much more stable than previous rigs. But on ours I added Strong Arm Stabilizers which added a bunch of stabilization. Nothing to load or unload or store. Just tighten once you're set up and loosen before retracting the levelers...Easy Peazy.

Nothing will eliminate movement but you can definitely reduce it. The amount of movement that is acceptable is subjective. The Strong Arms do it for us.

[Rotnjonny]

Agreed it’s above. You will find supporters and detractors.

I have a camco model along with the X-chock wheel stabilizers. If I am parked for more than a few days, I always use them. I also use wood blocks under all jacks / levelers (min of 4” up to 8”). I believe you can feel a difference. PLUS The fifth wheel support keeps me from walking into the king pin.

[BB_TX]

Agree with above. Washer on spin cycle shook the whole trailer. I bought a tripod and used it for a year. Helped maybe a little, but not much. Installed JT Strongarm stabilizers and almost all the washer shake was eliminated. Still a little vibration but nothing like before. I set the tripod in front of the trailer with a $40 price on it and it was bought within a couple hours. Lost about $80 but I was happy and the buyer was happy.

[NCFischers]

Bought one for my first Montana, used it for a year then left it home until I sold it. It didn’t do much except keeping me from banging my head on the hitch.

[BobM]

I guess I will send it back to Amazon.
The Strong arm stabilizer does not appear to work with hydraulic jacks.

[Rick n Kelly]

Originally Posted by BobM

I just bought the Ultra-Fab steel tripod for the king pin hoping to alleviate some of the movement while at the campsite. It was too short. Then I found on Amazon an extension kit of three legs adding 8 inches.
Has anyone used these with success?
Is there a better brand out there to use?
Do they really help much?
Should I wait for the rally for more ideas?
Appreciate your thoughts.

Using wood blocks under jacks will shorten the stroke and add more stabilization. Helpful in windy conditions.

[AZ Traveler]

If you have 6 pt level up, I would not buy the tripod.

[mlh]

I just learned to live with a little movement. After you get used to it you don’t notice it.
Lynwood

[jsb5717]

Originally Posted by BobM

I guess I will send it back to Amazon.
The Strong arm stabilizer does not appear to work with hydraulic jacks.

If I had hydraulic jacks I'm not sure I'd bother with stabilizers but the Strongarms can work. You just need to get some lug adapters so you can anchor the arms to the feet of the jacks. A little spendy on top of the Strongarm kit but doable. You would probably need 4 of these

https://www.amazon.com/Lippert-31459.../dp/B00G6UG89K

[mhs4771]

Don't know the price, but MOR/ryde just released their new stabilizer system they've developed for the Level-Up system. Similar to the JT System.

[jimcol]

Originally Posted by NCFischers

Bought one for my first Montana, used it for a year then left it home until I sold it. It didn’t do much except keeping me from banging my head on the hitch.

Same for us. We found shortening the stabilizers, adding Steady Fast system and X-Chocks on the wheels did a great job in reducing movements.

[Foldbak]

Bought one.....don't use it. I did for the first couple months and then the floor started squeaking. removed it and it stopped. I use Anderson blocks under the front so I have very little leg extension.

[Skw774]

less stroke on your jacks equals less wiggle. x-chock both sides. you will see a big difference

[BobM]

For now I will try the Anderson blocks. I have the x chocks and use them. Thanks for all the input. It helped. Hope to see you at the rally.

[ReneT]

I did a lot of research when I was looking for stabilizers like the JT Strong arm. I talked to a couple of guys in my park. One guy said they were better than nothing and the other guy said they were OK. The problem is that there are so many connection points so that when they loosen up, the rv is back to swaying. The other thing is the “T” nut. The tip is ground to a point so it dogs into the mating shaft. After a while that shaft is full of holes and rust will start. Also occasionally you have to remove them and grind a point in them again because they round over and will not grab very good.
I went with the Steady Fast system. Only one large wing nut to tighten and that’s it. My fifth wheel had three and I could stabilize the entire rig in about 60 seconds. And it was rock solid. I would highly recommend them

[kowbra]

We have a 3790RD, and since you are similar length, you may find what we found...
With the 6 point hydraulic system, the front and middle of the rig are actually very stable; far more stable than any past 5iver we've had... the problem is the back with the long overhang behind the rearmost jack.

So, I had a friend build me a hitch mount stabilizer similar to a product you can buy from Mor-ryde...
https://www.morryde.com/products/hit...nt-stabilizer/

I don't have the skills to build it so was going to buy one, but a gracious friend built one for me in exchange for my helping him.
It makes a huge difference, more than I expected! And, since it takes only a few seconds to use, I find we use it any time we are staying somewhere for more than a night.
Never once have I thought about going back to a tripod; in fact a few weeks ago, when I helped a friend setup their 5th wheel and fought with the tripod setup, I was reminded of how grateful I am that our Montana is so easy and stable without that.

Now, if someone has a washer/dryer up front, they may think the front is not stable, so perhaps YMMV.

hth!

Brad

[glendodom]

We have a 2018 3791RLMontana with the six point level-up, and have always used the triPod with the added extension options. It definitely adds an added stability. I think it is worth it.

[BB_TX]

Originally Posted by ReneT

I did a lot of research when I was looking for stabilizers like the JT Strong arm. I talked to a couple of guys in my park. One guy said they were better than nothing and the other guy said they were OK. The problem is that there are so many connection points so that when they loosen up, the rv is back to swaying. The other thing is the “T” nut. The tip is ground to a point so it dogs into the mating shaft. After a while that shaft is full of holes and rust will start. Also occasionally you have to remove them and grind a point in them again because they round over and will not grab very good.
………..

Interesting. I had the JT Strongarm for 12 years and never experienced any of those things.

When setting up you need to put some down force on them (tighten the T handles and bump the jacks down) to get maximum stability as explained in the instructions. Otherwise they have a small amount of free play in them and can move a little, reducing effectiveness. Many probably don’t do that.

[pvcoach]

I did the same as "kowbra" but I made my own by repurposing my old Tripod legs and the improvement is HUGE. I will be at the rally if you would like to come by and see it.