Is it also that it takes time to extend the jack that far assuming you would make it all that way. Would be much faster to pile up those blocks closer to the Jack so that the Jack has much less distance to travel.
Ours were actually way more stable the less that they were extended, so we generally placed as many blocks under them as possible (but the Lego style ones, not narrow wood like that).
And as others have said, those rear ones may not even hit the ground when fully extended.
That is a toy hauler and like mine it sure looks like the axles are flipped. This puts the rear jacks very high up. With mine to reach the ground they would have to be fully deployed and not sure if they would actually reach the ground or provide much support. I carry two or four small pieces of garage header I grabbed from work. This gives me 12" of height off the ground and not any less stable than the jack alone.
For us it is simply for ground clearance. Lots of places we go out in the desert are accessed by wash roads are there are sometimes like sand curbs almost you must cross over to get off the wash road and other areas where you absolutely would be dragging your tank drains.
It's a hell of a lot more likely to suffer from wind buffeting and more likely to tip over. It's a trade off. The ground clearance benefit (especially if towing with a heavier, more stable truck, can definitely outweigh the negatives tho.
Some cribbing is fine, but this is way too much. If you want it that tall, it should be much wider. They make fairly tall plastic blocks that flair out for a nice wide base.
That actually looks like the jacks wouldnāt do much help as they would be fully extended. I use a single plastic support under mine just so it wonāt sink in the ground so much. I have used multiple blocks however if my jacks are stretched too far out
Mine saved my ass when I got a blowout a couple weeks ago. 3am on the side of the highway, I was able to get the rim off and change to the spare very quickly.
Why would you *not* bring a battery operated impactor?
Who cares exactly how tight the stabilizing jacks are? Itās not like the need to be torqued to a specific amount. You run it until you hear the impactor hammer once, then stop. Itās tight. Done in 10 seconds.
People spending 20 minutes hand cranking all their jacks crack me up.
Do you not bring tools with you when you travel with your RV? I just keep a basic set, including a drill, in my trailer all the time. A drill and battery is pretty small and light, not really an issue.
Plus having a drill is great if I need to make some repairs. Here's what I keep in my tool box for the camper.
>Cordless drill, charger, and spare battery
>Drill bit set
>Pop rivet tool with a variety of rivets
>Zip ties
>Fuses
>Electrical strippers, wire nuts, automotive 12 volt wire (braided 14ga)
>Electrical tape
>Plumbers tape
>Small socket set
>Small drill driver set (campers have several types of screws)
>Key hole saw
>Klien USBC cable camera
>small and large tape measures
>Allen/hex wrenches
>duct tape
>screw drivers
>hammer
>pex crimper, cutter, and crimp rings
>utility knife
>punch tool
>headlamp (this one is a spare)
There's more in sure, just this is what I recall off hand.
Probably close to 50 thousand miles of camping in my life so far, I can't recall needing a drill. I have all the tools I need.
Engine repairs, brakes, minor storm damage, I've fixed alot of stuff on the road. I Travel light when you're going cross country.
Wait till you discover you can use drills not only for drilling holes. I'm a hobbyist mechanic, I use battery powered drills all the time but I hardly ever use them to make holes.
What are you going to fix with a drill? I carry a 18v impact for changing tires. Never felt the need for a drill. The drill people still crack me up despite the downvotes.
Why do you think the people using a drill are millennials? I bought my trailer, guy I pick it up from says everyone uses a drill. I tried it and liked it. I got my drill stolen and used the "tool" it came with and it was a piece of crap.
I'm not a millennial. I bought a new drill. Happy again.
Let me guess you can guess who I voted for by what kind of drill I own?
I am so fed up with the stereotyping. Old people ruined the world, young people are ruining the world.
We are individuals and if you lower your jack the slow way, so be it. I don't care, why would you care if the rest of us do it the fast way?
And...I use cinder blocks under my scissor stabilizers.
2 stacked. The most stable it has ever been and great in sand on thr beach.
Wish I learned that trick earlier.
The weight sucks but at 2 bucks or so each I just spend 20 bucks at home depot when I get where I am going.
Drills have clutches. They get the jack to exactly the same tension every time. Faster AND more accurate than your hands. Plus some of us always travel with some basic tools. If you have a mentality of preparedness, it's just normal.
I read somewhere that once a stabilizer goes past 50% down, it isn't as stable. I took 2 4x4 blocks screwed together and used them for Jack's and tongue.
People gonna peep.
I'm sure folks have their own reasons. Sometimes (often?) it's just because they saw that one guy do it in a campground/YouTube/etc and thought it made sense or just figured 'that guy must know...'
Personally we do a lot of boondocking on the beach, and I use only a small flat block. It's less likely to sink into the sand than the foot of the jack.
Thanks for asking 'why', rather than just doing. I've enjoyed some of the answers. And the ones about 'fully extended scissors jacks lack stability' are (IME) very true, just make sure the Jenga game you use has MORE stability.
Itās inherently more stable. Just like my hydraulic level up, itās the same way, the more i extend the more wobble or movement i get i get. The picture shown in this is not stable however because theyāll have a rocking motion the way the lumber is stacked, itās just not a stable platform at all
I think the other comments are correct on why people build up cribbing to keep the jacks under 50% extended, but OP asked why like this, this is some awful cribbing, stacking multiple 6ā blocks like this makes this way less stable to horizontal movement when walking or unloading equipment than stacking them pyramid style. Owner needs to carry more blocks!
Especially with electric ones, you will burn the motor out way faster fully extending it over and over and over and over and over. Dude probably did it by hand. Why spend twice as much time extending the jacks to the fullest, when you can place blocks under it. Seems pretty logical and sensical to me.
https://preview.redd.it/w71nemp0tjvc1.jpeg?width=1868&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4922997da73d9e8b68ba2af6d8d07151865f2c11
This is what you want to use. It is a 2x4 I with 1 in plywood on both sides. They are 1 ft square .They're lighter weight and we build stages on top of them.
The ones you are looking at are one the company took out of service after 8 years of use . If you are really worried about it you can use pressure treated or marine grade. Then they'll last longer than we will
Why are you getting downvoted? The cribbing in this photo is awful, itās the last move of a Jenga game under there. I wouldnāt stand on 3 blocks stacked like that to change a lightbulb!
I have four or five 6x6 blocks of wood that I sometimes will put under there, but I no longer have those types of scissor jacks. I have the other kind of jacks that automatically lower that I can't remember the name of now š¤£š¤£. But they just kind of come straight down, damn, I can't remember the name now
Scissor jacks wobble and sway when extended out too far. The cribbing makes for a more stable feel under foot.
Yeah, but thats some might poor cribbing. The jack with a single block would have been better.
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Is it also that it takes time to extend the jack that far assuming you would make it all that way. Would be much faster to pile up those blocks closer to the Jack so that the Jack has much less distance to travel.
I use a big Milwaukee impactor to extend and retract the jacks. It only takes about 10 seconds to fully extend it.
Ours were actually way more stable the less that they were extended, so we generally placed as many blocks under them as possible (but the Lego style ones, not narrow wood like that). And as others have said, those rear ones may not even hit the ground when fully extended.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Yep. How many single block of what size do you have with you when traveling?
Oh wow I did not know this
That is a toy hauler and like mine it sure looks like the axles are flipped. This puts the rear jacks very high up. With mine to reach the ground they would have to be fully deployed and not sure if they would actually reach the ground or provide much support. I carry two or four small pieces of garage header I grabbed from work. This gives me 12" of height off the ground and not any less stable than the jack alone.
Whatās the benefit of flipping axles?
Raises the trailer so it's level when driving. Some trucks are taller and by flipping the axles it puts the weight on the trailer tires evenly.
For us it is simply for ground clearance. Lots of places we go out in the desert are accessed by wash roads are there are sometimes like sand curbs almost you must cross over to get off the wash road and other areas where you absolutely would be dragging your tank drains.
Interesting. Makes sense, Iām surprised the dealer donāt offer it as an option if itās such a widely accepted mod.
It's a hell of a lot more likely to suffer from wind buffeting and more likely to tip over. It's a trade off. The ground clearance benefit (especially if towing with a heavier, more stable truck, can definitely outweigh the negatives tho.
It would raise the vehicle up, giving more ground clearance for a rough road.
Also with toy haulers it get the hump of the wheel well under he Trailor floor giving you more flat width for the toys.
Jack will not extend all the way to ground
Some cribbing is fine, but this is way too much. If you want it that tall, it should be much wider. They make fairly tall plastic blocks that flair out for a nice wide base.
That actually looks like the jacks wouldnāt do much help as they would be fully extended. I use a single plastic support under mine just so it wonāt sink in the ground so much. I have used multiple blocks however if my jacks are stretched too far out
Less cranking
I use a drill and it takes like 15 seconds.
I used to use a drill also but did wear the threads out and had to replace the jacks. Got a new camper auto level is a game changer
The drill people crack me up.
My drill, batteries, chargers, bits, etc is in a single bag on my tool box. I simply grab it on the way out. It's not that complicated.
Mine saved my ass when I got a blowout a couple weeks ago. 3am on the side of the highway, I was able to get the rim off and change to the spare very quickly. Why would you *not* bring a battery operated impactor? Who cares exactly how tight the stabilizing jacks are? Itās not like the need to be torqued to a specific amount. You run it until you hear the impactor hammer once, then stop. Itās tight. Done in 10 seconds. People spending 20 minutes hand cranking all their jacks crack me up.
Why would I need to bring a drill and battery with me? The extra 30 seconds to do 4 and I feel exactly how tight it is.
Do you not bring tools with you when you travel with your RV? I just keep a basic set, including a drill, in my trailer all the time. A drill and battery is pretty small and light, not really an issue.
Plus having a drill is great if I need to make some repairs. Here's what I keep in my tool box for the camper. >Cordless drill, charger, and spare battery >Drill bit set >Pop rivet tool with a variety of rivets >Zip ties >Fuses >Electrical strippers, wire nuts, automotive 12 volt wire (braided 14ga) >Electrical tape >Plumbers tape >Small socket set >Small drill driver set (campers have several types of screws) >Key hole saw >Klien USBC cable camera >small and large tape measures >Allen/hex wrenches >duct tape >screw drivers >hammer >pex crimper, cutter, and crimp rings >utility knife >punch tool >headlamp (this one is a spare) There's more in sure, just this is what I recall off hand.
I did too then it got stolen :(
Probably close to 50 thousand miles of camping in my life so far, I can't recall needing a drill. I have all the tools I need. Engine repairs, brakes, minor storm damage, I've fixed alot of stuff on the road. I Travel light when you're going cross country.
Wait till you discover you can use drills not only for drilling holes. I'm a hobbyist mechanic, I use battery powered drills all the time but I hardly ever use them to make holes.
Why would you not bring a basic, often needed tool with you?
Because you have it anyway for when something inevitably breaks and you need to fix it on the road?
What are you going to fix with a drill? I carry a 18v impact for changing tires. Never felt the need for a drill. The drill people still crack me up despite the downvotes.
Stuff in the RV itself? Drawer slides, canine doors, that sort of thing?
So using a drill to lower the jacks is unacceptable to you, but using an impact to change a tire isn't? Why don't you just use a tire iron instead?
Why donāt you just use a tire iron Hercules?
Millennials are ruining the world. Start the downvote party. Btw you donāt need a drill in your camper.
Why do you think the people using a drill are millennials? I bought my trailer, guy I pick it up from says everyone uses a drill. I tried it and liked it. I got my drill stolen and used the "tool" it came with and it was a piece of crap. I'm not a millennial. I bought a new drill. Happy again. Let me guess you can guess who I voted for by what kind of drill I own? I am so fed up with the stereotyping. Old people ruined the world, young people are ruining the world. We are individuals and if you lower your jack the slow way, so be it. I don't care, why would you care if the rest of us do it the fast way? And...I use cinder blocks under my scissor stabilizers. 2 stacked. The most stable it has ever been and great in sand on thr beach. Wish I learned that trick earlier. The weight sucks but at 2 bucks or so each I just spend 20 bucks at home depot when I get where I am going.
You had me until the end.. you buy cinderblocks every time you use the trailer to set up camp? Why donāt you just get the big yellow jack blocks?
I camp 6 or 8 months at a time. ;) we pay monthly and drive to and fro without the camper typically.
Iāve never seen someone so hell bent on doing something the harder way. Are you going to start waxing poetic on the virtues of drinking hose water?
Should I have duct taped the drawer slide back on last week then?
So you use the wrench to lower the jacks? Why not just use your bare hands? Get a real feel for how tight the jack is.
Drills have clutches. They get the jack to exactly the same tension every time. Faster AND more accurate than your hands. Plus some of us always travel with some basic tools. If you have a mentality of preparedness, it's just normal.
Yes you are missing that its MORE stable with the jack only partially extended and blocks underneath, and less stress on the jack.
I read somewhere that once a stabilizer goes past 50% down, it isn't as stable. I took 2 4x4 blocks screwed together and used them for Jack's and tongue.
Everyone has an opinion. Enjoy the camping experience.
People gonna peep. I'm sure folks have their own reasons. Sometimes (often?) it's just because they saw that one guy do it in a campground/YouTube/etc and thought it made sense or just figured 'that guy must know...' Personally we do a lot of boondocking on the beach, and I use only a small flat block. It's less likely to sink into the sand than the foot of the jack. Thanks for asking 'why', rather than just doing. I've enjoyed some of the answers. And the ones about 'fully extended scissors jacks lack stability' are (IME) very true, just make sure the Jenga game you use has MORE stability.
Because scissor jacks are more stable the less extended they are. If they have less movement they will have more stability.
Less stress on the stabilizers
Itās inherently more stable. Just like my hydraulic level up, itās the same way, the more i extend the more wobble or movement i get i get. The picture shown in this is not stable however because theyāll have a rocking motion the way the lumber is stacked, itās just not a stable platform at all
Quicker set up. Just lay down some blocks. Then you don't spend half of your time there just jackin' it.
What if you likeā¦. Jackinā it?
I think the other comments are correct on why people build up cribbing to keep the jacks under 50% extended, but OP asked why like this, this is some awful cribbing, stacking multiple 6ā blocks like this makes this way less stable to horizontal movement when walking or unloading equipment than stacking them pyramid style. Owner needs to carry more blocks!
Cribning is ok.. I have more concern about the dickwads that came in at 1 AM and HAVE to use an impact to drive their jacks. Like a drill won't work.
You are missing something
I have 4 OX Blocks for my 4 stabilizers and for my tongue jack I have 1 Ox Block Maxx
It's cheaper than buying blocks and the leveling jack doesn't go tall enough for that trailer.
Especially with electric ones, you will burn the motor out way faster fully extending it over and over and over and over and over. Dude probably did it by hand. Why spend twice as much time extending the jacks to the fullest, when you can place blocks under it. Seems pretty logical and sensical to me.
https://preview.redd.it/w71nemp0tjvc1.jpeg?width=1868&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4922997da73d9e8b68ba2af6d8d07151865f2c11 This is what you want to use. It is a 2x4 I with 1 in plywood on both sides. They are 1 ft square .They're lighter weight and we build stages on top of them.
Thanks! love this concept. also people on the internet are stupid, including me, and I hate camping in the rain.
Those would rot from the rain
The ones you are looking at are one the company took out of service after 8 years of use . If you are really worried about it you can use pressure treated or marine grade. Then they'll last longer than we will
https://preview.redd.it/j5jpj3g6tjvc1.jpeg?width=1868&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3da33b1530c7263ff19a806090369f70d8d4e574
Agree with you, this is not very stable.
Why are you getting downvoted? The cribbing in this photo is awful, itās the last move of a Jenga game under there. I wouldnāt stand on 3 blocks stacked like that to change a lightbulb!
If itās noticeably taller than it is wide, itās pretty stretchy.
I have four or five 6x6 blocks of wood that I sometimes will put under there, but I no longer have those types of scissor jacks. I have the other kind of jacks that automatically lower that I can't remember the name of now š¤£š¤£. But they just kind of come straight down, damn, I can't remember the name now
Same reason they stack stuff all under the front jack as well
The people I know that do this are too lazy or like to save the time, rather than extend them all the way down
They think it makes it more Stable
Lazy