Trailer Jack Swivel Mod

[yngbuck19]

Hey guys I'm gonna chop off the skid plate that's on the bottom of my trailer jack. Has anyone done this before? Should I chop off more of the post to compensate for the extra height of the wheel? Here's a pic.

Height of the wheel is approximately 7". What are y'alls thoughts?

The jack fully extended is 29" tall. Jack fully lowered is 14" tall.

 

[brentbba]

No pic, but I did this.

Extra height or what you chop off should be determined by how much total length you want/need from your jack. I had a fixed/flat bottom on my trailer jack and saw a jack that AT Trailers built on Paul May's (Equipt1) trailer. I went home and ordered a base/wheel and built one myself.

For my needs, I just chopped off the minimum from my jack and attached the wheel. If my aging brain remembers, I'll take a pic and post it for you.

 

[dstock]

Hey guys I'm gonna chop off the skid plate that's on the bottom of my trailer jack. Has anyone done this before? Should I chop off more of the post to compensate for the extra height of the wheel? Here's a pic.

Height of the wheel is approximately 7". What are y'alls thoughts?

The jack fully extended is 29" tall. Jack fully lowered is 14" tall.

I would chop off a little extra, I did this recently and the jack with the wheel on it just barely goes low enough to hitch it to the vehicle. I'm going to go back and take a little more off.

 

[yngbuck19]

I'm a little upset that I have to return this part after I measured the I.D. of the caster pipe and the jack post O.D. both were 2''Dia. Bummer.... good thing I got it off amazon!

 

[brian90744]

I modified my jack wheel to 8"hard rubber.

 

[brentbba]

Here's what I did.

 

[yngbuck19]

Here's what I did.

Any part numbers for that bracket on the end of your jack post. By the looks of the weld it must be factory made. Really good job on that one. Probably the best I've seen that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

 

[brentbba]

I think I just ordered from etrailers or someplace like that. I'll see if I can find the receipt and let you know. I had to cut off the bottom of the jack and drill the holes in the jack tube for the quick release on the upper bracket and then just bolted the lower wheel to it. I think the new jack, connecting plate and wheel cost me about $50 as I recall. A slightly larger wheel would be nice, but in all but very soft dirt/sand it works great. Nice to be able to just push the trailer the small portion I can't back it into the garage rather than have to lift the tongue. Nicer in camp too being able to roll the trailer into position rather than lift as well!

 

[brentbba]

Ok - looked up what I ordered.

Wheel/bracket came from Amazon:
6" Swivel Caster, Black No Flat Pneumatic Wheel w/ Brake, 250 lb Capacity

Ordered the Caster plate and a new jack from eTrailers.

BDCA555 Bulldog Caster Adapter Plate

PS1401420303 Pro Series Round, Pipe-Mount Swivel Jack w/ Footplate - Sidewind - 10" Lift - 5,000 lbs ( I cut off the base of this for the Bulldog Caster Adapter plate)

Looks like grand total for all three parts was around $100

 

[yngbuck19]

Ok - looked up what I ordered.

Wheel/bracket came from Amazon:
6" Swivel Caster, Black No Flat Pneumatic Wheel w/ Brake, 250 lb Capacity

Ordered the Caster plate and a new jack from eTrailers.

BDCA555 Bulldog Caster Adapter Plate

PS1401420303 Pro Series Round, Pipe-Mount Swivel Jack w/ Footplate - Sidewind - 10" Lift - 5,000 lbs ( I cut off the base of this for the Bulldog Caster Adapter plate)

Looks like grand total for all three parts was around $100

You are awesome thankyou very much on following up on those part #'s

 

[brentbba]

No worries. Glad to help.

I think about the only thing I'd do differently, perhaps, if I had a do over, would be to go with a slightly larger tire. The one I ordered works great in most situations. In soft dirt/sand, it's a little small but works. If you look at the tire Adventure Trailers uses, it's a larger pneumatic tire than what I have. Just another tire to air down!

 

[yngbuck19]

Ok just a quick last update. The last part I was waiting for finally came in the mail today.

I ordered a new shorter Bull Dog jack from Etrailer.com. The existing one was too tall when retracted. Went from an 11" retracted length jack that extends 18" to a 7" retracted length jack that extends 10". Also found an 8" flat free swivel caster on Amazon.

Here's a pic of the parts I used

The bull dog adapter plate, an 8" flat free wheel and swivel caster, and a 1/2" universal clevis pin with retention clip, and new bull dog jack 7" retracted length measured from the mounting point.

 

[jwilson2598]

Looks good, might have to steal this for making my Manley a bit more maneuverable. What's in your tongue box? I ask because adding the battery and stuff to mine made the tongue weight enough that I can't move it, but I'm hoping with the wheel like yours I might be able to roll it around some again.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[yngbuck19]

Looks good, might have to steal this for making my Manley a bit more maneuverable. What's in your tongue box? I ask because adding the battery and stuff to mine made the tongue weight enough that I can't move it, but I'm hoping with the wheel like yours I might be able to roll it around some again.

Yes the tire makes it nice to move the trailer around even on gravel. The tongue box is an Owens brand tongue box. I use it now for just a junk box flashlights ratchet straps, camping stuff, and such. I have not committed it to being a designated battery box yet but could easily be one in the future. I just don't have much in the way of electronics when I camp that need 12V of power. I've got a few stand alone solar devices like lanterns and Some RTT fan/light combos that run off of D size batts. If I get a BUNDU RTT that has a electric motor actuators then I would need an onboard 12V source for that. But that will be a little ways down the road once I sell my tent and fabricate an adjustable hight X-Venture style trailer rack made out of that 80/20 stuff and get a hard side open lid on gas struts for the trailer too.

 

[brentbba]

Nicely done!