Beech lane levelers for for Legacy Elite II

[Jason Foster]

6 hours ago, jd1923 said:

These are designed for lifting the good wheel on a dual axle trailer to mount the spare on the other. I don't believe if you have a pair of these that one would fit between the two tires as needed to level one side, as the Oliver dual axles are spaced closely to each other. Amazon.com: ANDERSEN HITCHES | RV Accessories | Single Rapid Jack | 3620 : Automotive

I've had an old aluminum version of this since the 90s. I used it to change a spare tire or two on the road since. Not sure why I've been carrying this, as the Oliver has power stabilizer jacks that can be used to mount the spare. I should just keep it on our flatbed trailer. Amazon.com: EZ-Jack Combination Jack and Wheel Chock for Dual Axllee Trailers - 20,000 Lb Cap. EZ-Jack EZJACK : Automotive

I would probably just ramp it up on the big 6x6s I keep in the bed of the truck.  If it needs to go higher, I need a better spot.

[Geronimo John]

 

On 9/21/2024 at 10:26 AM, Jason Foster said:

At full extension, the stabilizers create tons of leverage which can damage the frame, mounts and even the tubes.

Yes, they "can".  But, I'm not aware of any OTT reported frame, mounts or jack tubes from use on reasonably level ground.  However, I can certainly envisonate situtations where it could occur when unwisely used on sloping ground and well extended.  But I have not yet heard of such damage actually happening within the OTT community. 

I believe that it is very important that we use blocking under all three jack plates every time.  They reduce the lever arm and will prevent jack damage when moved while extended.  But this is a topic of a previous post....

A bit off topic, but important.  I recently lost on the highway one of my jack foot plates.  Recommend checking their single bolt tightness occasionally.  Anybody know how to do so and to what torque?  My concern is that one could damage the jack tube if it is not restrained during tightening.

GJ

[Jason Foster]

On 9/27/2024 at 7:23 AM, Geronimo John said:

 

Yes, they "can".  But, I'm not aware of any OTT reported frame, mounts or jack tubes from use on reasonably level ground.  However, I can certainly envisonate situtations where it could occur when unwisely used on sloping ground and well extended.  But I have not yet heard of such damage actually happening within the OTT community. 

 

I have never heard of anybody damaging these either, but I have always been an Abundance-of-caution type of guy that just can't allow camp time to be marred by the unlikely breaking, or bending, of a jack tube.  Because, lets be clear, if it can happen, it will happen to me.  Even saying this, I use them exclusively to level the trailer as long as all four tires can touch the ground.  Once they hang, they get blocked.

[Jason Foster]

On 9/27/2024 at 7:23 AM, Geronimo John said:

A bit off topic, but important.  I recently lost on the highway one of my jack foot plates.  Recommend checking their single bolt tightness occasionally.  Anybody know how to do so and to what torque?  My concern is that one could damage the jack tube if it is not restrained during tightening.

I don't know the torque specs but I would just use loctite and snug the bolt reasonably tight while using a strap wrench to hold the tube.  It doesn't really have to be that tight and the loctite will do the trick.

[Geronimo John]

17 hours ago, Jason Foster said:

Because, lets be clear, if it can happen, it will happen to me.

I fully understand that perspective.  

You would be a good canidate to be using at least two 2 X 6" lumber blocks under each jack plate to create slip planes for when the jacks get moved or move under duress.  Sure have saved bending a LOT of Ollie Jack Shafts. 

Thanks for the strap wrench idea and Locktite on the 5/8" jack leg ground plate.  

GJ

[jd1923]

On 9/28/2024 at 6:21 PM, Jason Foster said:

I have never heard of anybody damaging these either

I have...

[Geronimo John]

On 9/29/2024 at 10:29 PM, jd1923 said:

I have never heard of anybody damaging these either

Like JD said, I have as well.  For my first year OOPs I broke a jack leg.  It happened when I did not feel I needed the use the slip 2" X 6" slip planes under the jack feet.  Did that just ONE time.  Lesson learned. 

I know that 2 X 6 blocks will slip when pulled or pushed by the TV, saving the jack leg.  I suspect  that the plastic ones likely will as well, but do not know this for sure.

It would be nice to know from the plastic block users what their experience is when driving off with their trailers on plastic blocks.    With two or more of the wood blocks in place there has been no damage when another driver did not know they were in place and the trailer slipped the 2 X 6's and dropped to the ground.  

To warn all potential drivers of my rig when blocked, I tie hot pink flagging on the steering wheel every time I put the jacks down and always use two or more 2 X 6 blocks under every jack. The more blocks used the more slip planes you have.  It also increases the odds of no damage if the trailer is moved.  This is due to shortened lever arm effect.

GJ 

Edited October 13 by Geronimo John

[Jason Foster]

On 10/1/2024 at 10:43 AM, Geronimo John said:

Like JD said, I have as well.  For my first year OOPs I broke a jack leg.  It happened when I did not feel I needed the use the slip 2" X 6" slip planes under the jack feet.  Did that just ONE time.  Lesson learned. 

I know that 2 X 6 blocks will slip when pulled or pushed by the TV, saving the jack leg.  I suspect  that the plastic ones likely will as well, but do not know this for sure.

It would be nice to know from the plastic block users what their experience is when driving off with their trailers on plastic blocks.    With two or more of the wood blocks in place there has been no damage when another driver did not know they were in place and the trailer slipped the 2 X 6's and dropped to the ground.  

To warn all potential drivers of my rig when blocked, I tie hot pink flagging on the steering wheel every time I put the jacks down and always use two or more 2 X 6 blocks under every jack. The more blocks used the more slip planes you have.  It also increases the odds of no damage if disturbed due to shortened lever arm effect.

GJ 

No one but me drives my truck with the Oliver attached, so I'm not concerned about taking off with the jack plates down.  In fact, I don't put the jacks down if my truck is attached.  I have a procedure I follow every time I set up and tear down.  

[Jason Foster]

On 9/29/2024 at 11:29 PM, jd1923 said:

I have...

I use these as well but I put a piece of rubber between the jack plates and the blocks.

[jd1923]

3 hours ago, Jason Foster said:

I use these as well but I put a piece of rubber between the jack plates and the blocks.

We often do a one-night stay, where we stay hitched, still need to level. BTW, camp these days anywhere near the border, stay hitched in case you need to leave in a hurry  Not a good time to Boondock south of Tucson or anywhere from McAllen to Del Rio, TX!

I stopped using the 1” blocks everywhere but the front jack where we may need a few inches or over a foot. I’ve gotten to where I only want to use the levelers up or down 6” at the most, usually less.

Love these for the back levelers. Magnet on and down a few inches. When we leave, I only go up enough to free the block and leave the leveler at that height, it’s high enough! 🤣

OMG, everything is so expensive these days! Thank you .gov. I bought ours at $60 on eBay last year:  https://a.co/d/aWFURPk

[Jason Foster]

2 hours ago, jd1923 said:

We often do a one-night stay, where we stay hitched, still need to level. BTW, camp these days anywhere near the border, stay hitched in case you need to leave in a hurry  Not a good time to Boondock south of Tucson or anywhere from McAllen to Del Rio, TX!

Makes sense.  However, if I was in a place where I needed to leave quickly, I'd just forgo the jacks and sleep on the slant.  I think I prefer the northern country anyway.  Or at least somewhere cooler.  I'm really tired of the heat.

[jd1923]

1 hour ago, Jason Foster said:

I'm really tired of the heat.

Leaving to the Texas Rally next Wednesday. Five nights in the Arizona White Mountains on the way followed by 3 nights in Ruidoso. Highs should be 65F at 7000 ft, lows about 40F. We dislike the heat, reason why our Oliver has been parked for maintenance and mods for the last 5 months. Central Texas should be warm, daytime highs in the 80s, but hopefully not too hot since we still have that noisy Dometic Penguin.

[Ronbrink]

On 9/16/2024 at 6:30 PM, mossemi said:

I have rarely ever needed this type of leveler on both sides of the trailer before using the stabilizer jacks and it is wise practice to always have all 4 tires in contact with the ground or a levered or the square plastic pads.  You want to avoid the tires being unsupported.

In ONE rare instance I lifted the back of the Oliver up high enough to level on a downward slope, whereby all four tires cleared the ground. I thought, “that’s cool”!  Yes and yes, the trailer remained hitched to the TV and I severely regretted deploying the ‘landing gear’. Upon descent and ground contact, I came to the realization that the leaf spring shackles on both axles had flipped at the Dexter EZ Flex equalizer, YIKES! After several hours of toiling on the ground in the Texas summer heat and humidity I was back on the road. Not a proud moment, “chalk it up” as a learning experience! 

[Mike and Carol]

8 hours ago, Jason Foster said:

 I'm really tired of the heat.

Amen to that!   We’re camped in Alpine, TX for a few days.  Elevation is 4,500’ which is not bad for Texas.  Woke up to 51 degrees.  We’re here for the Big Bend Bluegrass Festival this weekend.  Mike

[Ronbrink]

15 hours ago, Jason Foster said:

No one but me drives my truck with the Oliver attached, so I'm not concerned about taking off with the jack plates down.  In fact, I don't put the jacks down if my truck is attached.  I have a procedure I follow every time I set up and tear down.  

On 9/28/2024 at 8:21 PM, Jason Foster said:

I have never heard of anybody damaging these either, but I have always been an Abundance-of-caution type of guy that just can't allow camp time to be marred by the unlikely breaking, or bending, of a jack tube.  Because, lets be clear, if it can happen, it will happen to me.  Even saying this, I use them exclusively to level the trailer as long as all four tires can touch the ground.  Once they hang, they get blocked.

Same here, but never say “never”!

[Geronimo John]

16 hours ago, Jason Foster said:

In fact, I don't put the jacks down if my truck is attached.  I have a procedure I follow every time I set up and tear down.  

On a slope, you may want and need to reconsider your procedure.  Having a 6,000 + anchor attached by at least a chain can be a day saver.  IMHO that is.

GJ

[Jason Foster]

20 hours ago, jd1923 said:

Leaving to the Texas Rally next Wednesday. Five nights in the Arizona White Mountains on the way followed by 3 nights in Ruidoso. Highs should be 65F at 7000 ft, lows about 40F. We dislike the heat, reason why our Oliver has been parked for maintenance and mods for the last 5 months. Central Texas should be warm, daytime highs in the 80s, but hopefully not too hot since we still have that noisy Dometic Penguin.

Morning lows in east Texas have been mid 50s but it climbs to lower 90s by afternoon.  I worked outside yesterday and got heat exhaustion.  Not fun.  Better today, but I limited my time out there and drank lots of water.

[Jason Foster]

13 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:

We’re here for the Big Bend Bluegrass Festival this weekend.  Mike

That sounds like fun.  If our old house ever sells, we might be able to go do some fun stuff as well.  Economy.  uhgg.

[Jason Foster]

13 hours ago, Ronbrink said:

Same here, but never say “never”!

NEVER!!!  

[Jason Foster]

12 hours ago, Geronimo John said:

On a slope, you may want and need to reconsider your procedure.  Having a 6,000 + anchor attached by at least a chain can be a day saver.  IMHO that is.

GJ

I'm usually pretty careful not to pick sites with bad slopes, but it can always happen regardless of careful planning.

[jd1923]

41 minutes ago, Jason Foster said:

Morning lows in east Texas have been mid 50s but it climbs to lower 90s by afternoon.  I worked outside yesterday and got heat exhaustion.  Not fun.  Better today, but I limited my time out there and drank lots of water.

Normal highs in Prescott AZ (at 5,400 FT) late September/early October are high 70s. We had those temps a couple weeks ago and I thought fall had begun, summer was over. Instead, we've had more than a week of highs in the 90s and it will take until next week to drop again. City of Prescott has broken high-temp records every day for the last week.

I've been in the driveway, sun burning down (sun here hotter than the dry air) installing an 180A HP alternator which turned into a bigger job replacing lower radiator hose and all heater hoses (9 of them on a 2001 Dodge Cummins). Another half day should be done tomorrow. At least when I duck back into the garage it's better. Should have moved some stored vehicles to get the Ram into the garage. Just thought it was going to be a quick alt swap, a two-hour job! When I got the old alt out, I noticed how I could get to the lower hoses (can of worms).🤣

We are always 20-25 degrees cooler than the Phoenix Valley and the desert down to Yuma, Lake Havasu, etc. Flagstaff and the White Mountains, all at 7,000 FT, can be up to 10 degrees cooler than us. Looking forward to the cool down next week and camping in the White Mountains!

Edited October 5 by jd1923

[MAX Burner]

On 10/4/2024 at 9:21 PM, jd1923 said:

Looking forward to the cool down next week and camping in the White Mountains!

Hannigan Meadows!  We love camping in the Whites!

[Geronimo John]

On 10/3/2024 at 4:12 PM, Jason Foster said:

I use these as well but I put a piece of rubber between the jack plates and the blocks.

Just two cents from my end.... when using slip planes on level ground...

The idea is that you want a low coeficient of friction (CoF) from your stack-up elements, and ideally get at least four inches of height in their stack up when the trailer is accidently moved when jacked up.  Why?

• Under such an event, you WANT a low CoF for the jack plate to move and slip.  Rubber does not have a low CoF.  Likely it would preclude the slip planes from slipping.  Instead I would consider using a 3/4" plywood or hardwood piece between the jack plates and the Andersor (or others) blocks.
• When the jacked up trailer is moved while on your blocks, when moved you want the jack plate slip and fall towards the ground.  If you have 4+ inches of clearance, it may touch the driving surface, but likely will not dig in enough to cause sufficient torque to damage the jack mast.  If it only drops an inch or two, this is sadly is not likely the case. 

Word of caution for new owners:  All of the above is assumed to be for use on relatively flat or low cross sloped camp sites.  For other less than ideal camp sites, I do NOT recommend ever using your OTT jacks for leveling.  For such conditions you would be far safer to use the tire drive on ramps (Of various designs) to elevate the low side of the trailer.  

[Jason Foster]

On 10/4/2024 at 10:21 PM, jd1923 said:

I've been in the driveway, sun burning down (sun here hotter than the dry air) installing an 180A HP alternator which turned into a bigger job replacing lower radiator hose and all heater hoses (9 of them on a 2001 Dodge Cummins). Another half day should be done tomorrow. At least when I duck back into the garage it's better. Should have moved some stored vehicles to get the Ram into the garage. Just thought it was going to be a quick alt swap, a two-hour job! When I got the old alt out, I noticed how I could get to the lower hoses (can of worms).🤣

Two hour jobs always take half a day for me.  Just ask my wife.  Slowest mechanic in the world.  Not really, but why do one job when you can do 10 all at the same time.  12 hours later, I've got the Cummins tore down to the block.

[Jason Foster]

8 hours ago, Geronimo John said:

Just two cents from my end.... when using slip planes on level ground...

The idea is that you want a low coeficient of friction (CoF) from your stack-up elements, and ideally get at least four inches of height in their stack up when the trailer is accidently moved when jacked up.  Why?

• Under such an event, you WANT a low CoF for the jack plate to move and slip.  Rubber does not have a low CoF.  Likely it would preclude the slip planes from slipping.  Instead I would consider using a 3/4" plywood or hardwood piece between the jack plates and the Andersor (or others) blocks.
• When the jacked up trailer is moved while on your blocks, when moved you want the jack plate slip and fall towards the ground.  If you have 4+ inches of clearance, it may touch the driving surface, but likely will not dig in enough to cause sufficient torque to damage the jack mast.  If it only drops an inch or two, this is sadly is not likely the case. 

 

I very much prescribe to setting up for the least chance of failure.  With this in mind, I like to elevate the jack stand feet off of the ground by quite a bit.  Rubber might have a high CoF, but I like the fact that it helps keep the trailer stationary.  Slipping off of the jack stand plate is not something that I will do.  At least not for some time.  I'm a bit OCD when it comes to this.  I check, then check twice, then check three more time and think about it for an hour on the way home.