4 jacks instead of 3?

[dfrank]

I assume cost is the main reason so many pop ups only have 3 jacks, but of course any three points are always in the same plane. with 4 you'd probably need to move from jack to jack with less raise on each one, right? My one side jack may be getting soft at the mounting point, and was thinking about getting one more to have them at all the corners.

Thoughts?

TIA.
Dave

 

[NothingClever]

Hunh?

 

[docdave]

My camper has 4 corner jacks. There is a bit more shuffling from one to another.....but I'll bet it would address your concern.

 

[98roamer]

My 98 Coachmen Clipper popup has 4 corner jacks (stabilizers).

 

[pods8]

I assume cost is the main reason so many pop ups only have 3 jacks, but of course any three points are always in the same plane. with 4 you'd probably need to move from jack to jack with less raise on each one, right? My one side jack may be getting soft at the mounting point, and was thinking about getting one more to have them at all the corners.

Thoughts?

TIA.
Dave

Older pop-ups used 3. I can't really think of any new ones that don't use 4 (maybe alaskan?) and by new I mean over the last 10-20years...

 

[Pest]

4 jacks would almost certainly be better than 3, however, make sure to investigate the corners and ensure that there is solid frame to mount the jacks into first!

 

[xdbx]

Brand new fwc being loaded with (two) jacks.

 

[docdave]

I've used camper jacks like that alot. In the old days jacks on the camper were not common. We loaded and unloaded our old heavy hard side with a pair of tripod stabilized jacks placed at the balance point of the camper......not for the faint of heart....but never had an incident. I've still got the old jacks out behind the garage......after 25 years probably not very serviceable. A modern lightweight popup might not be all that hard to handle with that type of jack, and you don't have to carry the weight all the time. Hummmmm............

 

[pods8]

Brand new fwc being loaded with (two) jacks.

What does a super flat, well lit environment, with two spotters have to do with reality? Also note that camper has jack brackets on each corner for 4 corner jacks to be used on it...

 

[pods8]

and you don't have to carry the weight all the time. Hummmmm............

Many of us with FWC campers never run around with the jacks on. Weight savings and also if you snag one on something you're going to do some frame damage...

 

[goodtimes]

Many of us with FWC campers never run around with the jacks on. Weight savings and also if you snag one on something you're going to do some frame damage...

Uh-huh. I'm pretty sure that one of the previous owners backed into something with one of the rear jacks on my current camper - resulting in a broken frame. That damage is what started me on the road to replacing all of the siding on my FWC. Lots of $$$ to fix that mistake.

I've used camper jacks like that alot. In the old days jacks on the camper were not common. We loaded and unloaded our old heavy hard side with a pair of tripod stabilized jacks placed at the balance point of the camper......not for the faint of heart....but never had an incident.

I've had two *incidents* with that style jack. Both involved a 1969 Open Road Manhattan model hard-side, wind, and setting the camper on to uneven ground. It was a big SOB when you get the truck out from under it & the wind starts pushing it around.

 

[1stDeuce]

I'm running four of the three jack style jacks on my camper. It came that way to me. It's more stable this way, but still nothing like the new jacks that mount solidly to the corners. My take on it is that three jacks works well with one person, while having four works good with two people cranking. When I do an offload by myself, I run from jack to jack to jack, going 10 cranks (~1/4") on each one. That's a lot of running! When I have a friend, we go about 20 cranks on the front, then on the rear, then the front... Much faster!!

As for stability, I don't feel comfortable leaving the camper on the two bolt removable jacks. Even with four it's pretty wobbly. As I said before, the new ones that bolt to the corners are what you want if that's what you're after.
Honestly, if your mounting points are iffy, I'd just swap the jacks from side to side, so you're getting three fresh mounting points and then just enjoy your camper! I rebuilt my corners and it was NOT FUN.
C