hal

Hello Frenchy,

In response to your request for information pertaining to motorized tongue jack: First of all, this is one “luxury” item that everyone would enjoy. Some people with health problems (heart, etc) may find it necessary. Using a crank to raise and lower the trailer tongue uses a lot of upper body and arm movement which could have a toll on someone with heart problems.

Most likely there is more than one company that makes this brand. I bought mine from Camping World and see the same model on their shelf each time I visit there. But, there are at least two models. The both function pretty much the same. One may have more horsepower and selection could depend on your tongue weight. Mine is the lesser in cost and not as fancy. One concern I have with mine is its use during a battery failure. It has a socket (included and available if you can remember where you stored it). If your battery fails, to raise and lower the jack manualy, you must remove the motor housing that sits atop the shaft. Then using the socket mentioned above plus a socket wrench, you can maneuver the tongue up or down. It is a slow process but one that can done in time of emergency. There is an easier way. It is built into the more expensive model. This model includes a crank which if I recall, is permanantly attached to the mechanism thus saving you time in the wilds looking for the socket and a socket wrench. Also, this model has a built in light for servicing the front area of your tongue. If I recall it also has a built in bubble for aid in establishing the levelness of your trailer.

Installing either type can be a simple procedure.
1- begin by blocking up the front of your trailer, leaving the tongue and wheel hanging freely thus removing the weight off the tongue wheel
2- Remove the three bolts that are attaching the wheel dolly assembly to the tongue frame.


Now comes the problem.
3- The hole through which the tongue jack shaft pass through the tongue frame was smaller than the size of the replacement jack shaft on the battery powered lift. This hole needed to be ground out to a larger size. This could be a difficult job as it needs to be ground out from below the tongue by grinding upward on your back. Fortunately for me, my tongue was of the removable type. I could remove the tongue and turn it over and grind it from the bottom side. This was slow process. There probably is a tool that will work better than a hand file. I had tried a couple tools that would fit into my hand drill but they wore out quickly. Most of my grinding was by using a hand file. The circumference of the more expensive of the two power tongue jacks is even greater. (When we transferred the power tongue jack from the 1999 to our 2003 TrailManor, the factory drilled hole was ok, at least for the lesser expensive jack from our 1999. The larger jack shaft may also fit ok. You may wish to meaure your existing shaft or even better, the predrilled hole on your tongue to get an estimate of any alteration that will need to be done.

4- Install the new jack, using the three bolts, attach a fused electrical wire to a 12 volt power source and enjoy.

Another thing, by changing to a power jack, you will be giving up a tongue dolly. The power lifts come with a flat plate and have eliminated the wheel. I tried replacing the flat plate with a wheel. It was unusable because it raised the trailer tongue too high to be lowered onto the ball hitch on my tow vehicle.

CAUTION: It has been recommended that you not use the power jack while the trailer is attached to house current (110 volts) as this may cause the battery charger in your converter to burn out.

Hal