Moving Stabilizer Jack Switches

[Tony and Rhonda]

I've tried searching the forum but haven't had any luck finding what I'm after so....

My 2017 hull has the stabilizer jack rocker switches located at the front of the trailer. This is not so convenient since I can't see the jacks during operation. I've noticed the newer trailers have the switches behind the basement door so the are jacks visible. Has anyone moved their switches? This seems like a fairly straight forward mod but I've been surprised before. Thoughts, comments?

Thanks,

Tony

[topgun2]

Tony -

I agree - this should not be a difficult mod.

However, I do not recall any post from the past that talked about actually doing this.

Good luck.

Bill

[Mike and Carol]

Like BIll, I don’t know of anyone who has moved their switches.  If they are in the back you would be able to monitor the jack on that side but not the other side.  I prefer them on the front so I can use the bubble level on the front jack to get the trailer approximately level.  I’ve found that when retracting the jacks I estimate about an inch per second, then I do a visual check before finishing.  Mike  

[Geronimo John]

16 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:

then I do a visual check before finishing.  Mike  

Amen to that!  Not doing the check and moving Ollie ultimately will make you cry....

[SeaDawg]

Our 2008 has the switch at the wheelwell, just above each wheel and jack.

Pros and cons to each placement,  I guess.

 

Edited November 23 by SeaDawg

[Tony and Rhonda]

I got the idea of moving the switches while watching @shhQuiet's videos. It does seem there are positives and negatives of the two (or three) locations. I have lots of chores I need to do on the camper so I can put this on the back burner and think about it some more.

Thanks everyone for your imput, Tony

[ScubaRx]

On 11/22/2025 at 7:19 PM, SeaDawg said:

Our 2008 has the switch at the wheelwell, just above each wheel and jack.

Pros and cons to each placement,  I guess.

We bought our first Travel Trailer in early 2008. It was Oliver Hull #026, one of the first group of 46 Oliver Elites built between 2007 and 2009. As some of our members probably already know, the trailer line shut down in late 2009 due to a dramatic sag in the economy. No employees were laid off, instead they were moved into other areas of Oliver such as the tub line.

Standard equipment on one of the original Elites included a satellite dish on the roof, an electric cord reel that automatically rewound the power cord back into the body, air conditioner, heater, television, audio system, microwave, refrigerator, outside retractable awning, bathroom and three electric leveling (yes, leveling) jacks. Some of these items had optional availability on other fiberglass trailers (Casita, Bigfoot, Escape, etc.) but not one of those manufacturers had all of them as standard equipment and a good many items on that list were not even available at any cost. All this on a trailer that was selling for under $30K.

The electric leveling jacks were the absolute stand out among the fiberglass trailer crowd. No other fiberglass trailer manufacturer even offered them. But with them, you could stabilize and level your trailer with the touch of only three buttons. And, as Sherry stated, the rear jack switches were located near each tire and the jacks could be observed while operating them. 

As the new Elite II builds were coming together it was realized that the outside body molds were different from the ones in the old Elite and the area where the Elite rear jack switches had been located was completely different and there was no place for the switches to go. They asked where they should be mounted and I had them place mine in waterproof boxes built into the sides of the trailer. I also had them extend the wiring from those switches into the left and right areas of the overhead cabinet in the rear. After delivery, I used that extra wiring to make remote inside switches to control the rear jacks. I did the same for the front jack. Now we can comfortably setup or breakdown in the rain using the controls on the inside.

Sometime in early 2015, about a year after we had taken possession of the first Oliver Elite II produced in 2014 (Hull # 050), we were at the factory for some reason. John Oliver, (Jim and Evon’s youngest and only child) who was over production of the trailer line at the time, approached me and asked my opinion on a modification they were planning. The placement of the rear jack switches had always created an issue and their new plan was to move them to the front of the trailer where they would be near the front jack. “Now”, he said, “all the jacks can be controlled from a central area. What do you think?” My reply was that I thought it was a “...terrible idea.” I explained that you need to be able to observe the jack while operating it. He disagreed. I told him that I would hate it and I figured the future owners would hate it and the company would have to eventually backtrack and move them back to the rear. It took a while for them to do something about it but I can’t tell you how many times I was questioned by owners as to WHO thought it would be a good idea to put those switches at the FRONT of the trailer. 

And now you know the rest of the story... 

Edited Monday at 01:22 AM by ScubaRx

[topgun2]

I don't know if I'm in the minority or not - but - I happen to like the rear jack switches located on the front of my Ollie.

Unlike Mike, I found the bubble level that is on the top of the front jack to be virtually useless.  So, I installed three small bubble levels on or near the front of the Ollie.  All three are right at the "belly" line where the top and bottom shells are joined.  The first one is just above the front jack, the second is basically under the bath window and the third near the front door.  These levels are much more accurate and sensitive than the one on the front jack and can be observed with a simple step in one direction or the other.  I also didn't hurt that they were very inexpensive and are attached with exterior double sided tape.

Finally, even though I very seldom use the rear jacks, when I do I use 6x6 blocks under those jacks.  This makes positioning easy (in most cases) with one quick look to make sure that the jack and block are properly aliened.

Perhaps, the "perfect solution would be to have three way switches so that these switches could be placed in BOTH the front and the rear which would allow for the use in either location depending on the situation.  Having thought about this solution, I'm marginally surprised that ScubaRx has not done this type of mod (note that if you ever get a chance to see ALL of the switches that he and Tali have in their Ollie, you will see what I mean here).

Bill

Edited Monday at 11:11 PM by topgun2