Landing Assembly for a 5th Wheel Landing Gear on a Trailer UPDATED

Landing Assembly for a 5th Wheel Landing Gear on a Trailer

It was a Monday lunchtime in September, nobody was around, kids were back in schools. Linda and I had only backed our fifth bicycle trailer onto the Forestry Committee-approved dry camping site. We were at Kootenai Falls, Montana. Kootenai Falls is located between the towns of Libby, and Troy, northwest Montana.

It happened every bit nosotros were levelling our 5th wheel trailer. 1 landing leg stopped driving out.

Later calls for aid failed to go any immediate on-site help, information technology was fourth dimension for a DIY repair.

Trout Creek, Motel & RV Park

Trout Creek campsite.

Three days earlier, we had arrived at Trout Creek Motel & RV Park, Trout Creek, Montana, and booked in for iii nights.

This is a peaceful and well-maintained campground with a few full-service sites available; each site well-separated from the next by natural forest.

"You're lucky we have one site available." Bert at the desk told united states. "Getting a site hither without an advanced telephone booking on the weekend is unusual."

The full-service sites are all gravel and reasonable for parking; fifty-fifty with our 12-metre rig, we had no problem. There are also grass tent sites available.

Sunday Morning time

As usual, nosotros went to a local church building service on Dominicus morning. Nosotros were invited to join the congregation in their hall for the monthly lunch. Meeting people is 1 of the things that makes RVing interesting.

Our lunch companions were Jim and Bev Orland. Jim, who is ex-military, has called Trout Creek abode all is life. Bev, too ex-military, moved back there with Jim fifteen years earlier.

During the lunch conversation, they suggested that we would bask a visit to a local natural treasure – a place about tourists from outside the area don't get to see. Jim told us how to get onto the wood dorsum roads and observe the approved dry campsite at Kootenai Falls.

Kootenai Falls is about one hour'due south bulldoze from Trout Creek, on the continental separate. The rivers run west and the falls comprehend approximately i mile of the river. The acme drops a spectacular 100 ft, with thundering h2o winding through the gorge below a suspension bridge and cascading downward waterfalls.

Thundering water winds through the gorge.

The casual conversation became the unplanned destination for Mon; a one-60 minutes drive and a dry camping site in the forest close to the falls.

Dry Camping on Forestry Land at Kootenai Falls, Montana.

With no signpost, y'all would not find these campsites without directions. It was a dirt back-in, off a forest dirt road, no signposts, and no facilities. Once on the army camp, yous can shut off the engine, open the windows, and let your senses have it in. The scent is was not roses just the clean, fresh aroma of a healthy pine forest. At first, information technology is very quiet. Your big diesel engine stopped all animal sounds. Then slowly, the animals and birds accept your monster truck in their midst, and wildlife restarts its chatter. As your ears accommodate, y'all hear the rustle of the leaves and in the distance the sound of running water cascading over rocks. There it is—the falls.

The Curbside Landing Leg

After backing in, we started the task of unhooking the trailer from the truck. This is a unproblematic operation which is performed regularly.

The curbside landing leg was lifting off the ground—a sure sign of trouble.

My prison cell phone calls went to vocalisation mail. In that location was no doubt this was going to exist a DIY repair.

Foursquare driveshaft connects to the landing leg beveled greer shaft that bankrupt.

Diagnosing the problem is the starting time footstep, and feel plays a office in this. Nosotros had experienced a cleaved shaft in the landing leg gear drive before. At that time, the rig had been parked at our dealership, Campkins RV Center, Ontario. The dealership had repaired it nether warranty, and nosotros had purchased a spare gear mechanism, reasoning that if it tin can fail once, it is likely to neglect a 2nd time.

Selecting the spare parts to comport with you requires a crystal ball, magical powers, and the knowledge of how far your future travels will accept yous away from dealerships.

WARNING: Do not try lifting the fifth wheel with only one landing leg operating. One leg is non designed to take the weight and may plummet, causing severe damage and injury.

Preparation for the Repair

1. The whole landing leg must be removed.
2. Removal of the landing leg meant you must first back up the trailer weight to forestall it from moving.
3. You should reconnect the truck deeply, every bit this will forestall the working leg from collapsing. The trailer cannot collapse with the fifth Wheel connected.
4. You should use wooden blocks under both sides of the trailer.
5. You must check the cycle chocks and bike cross jacks. All must be in place and tight to prevent the trailer from moving.

How the Landing Leg Mechanism Operates

An electric motor drives a small gearbox in the front end storage compartment. The motor force transmits movement through square connecting rod that goes to a set of beveled gears located at the tiptop of each landing leg. The motor rotation turns into a vertical lift through askew gears and a pair of screw jacks, with one in each landing leg.

Manufacturer's Drawing

The Lead Driveshaft is secured to the Connexion Rod past a 0.25inch bolt through this hole. It was the stress of rotating that cause this "Lead Driveshaft" to suspension at this point.

Manual Operation

The landing legs on most fifth wheel RVs have a transmission hand crank for utilise when the motor or electrical arrangement has failed, and the mechanical side is intact. This was a mechanical failure.

Landing leg manual crank.

Removal of Curbside Landing Leg Assembly

1. Disconnect the pb driveshaft from the foursquare connecting rod by removing the 0.25 inch bolt, typically a Hex head requiring an Allen wrench or Hex Primal to loosen the screw. Note: It would be best to use a new commodities and nut with a cocky-locking insert for replacement.

Vertical landing leg upper casing, showing top cap, horizontal foursquare connecting rod, and Hex commodities.

2. Slide the square connecting rod clear of landing leg assembly and support it. Note: The square connecting rod is in two parts that telescope together for ease of installation/removal.

The square connecting rod is in two parts that telescope together.

3. Remove the bolts from the upper and lower landing leg u-clamps. Note: the positioning stops on the outside of the leg casing. These forestall the upper landing leg casing from moving.

Upper landing leg, u-clamp, and bolt. The leg positioning stops tin be seen to a higher place u-clamp.

4. Remove the leg from the two holding brackets and slide it down and out of the trailer storage compartment.

Removal of Cleaved Driveshaft from the Landing Leg

1. Remove the two screws securing the peak comprehend.
2. To remove East-Clip 919-00, you lot should employ a removal tool.
3. Several unlike manufacturers make like products, all marketed under their own names.
4. Directions will help remove E-clips without the proper tool; Using a small, flathead screwdriver, you can insert the screwdriver in the visible gaps between the E-Clip and the shaft and twist, push up, and out. Warning: piece of work with the screwdriver blade inside a rag wrapped around the driveshaft then that you are sure to catch the E-clip when it springs costless. Carefully remove the E-clip, clean off grease and identify safely to one side for reuse.
5. The Spirol Pin 1020-08 secures the beveled gear to the Pb Driveshaft 913-00. "Spirol Pin" is the trade name for a coiled spring pivot. The blazon used on the bevel gear in the landing leg is known as a through-hole blueprint. Work within a rag to catch the Spirol Pin when it falls costless. A through-hole design coiled leap pin can exist removed hands and quickly by borer through with a punch of the same diameter. Push the pin carefully with a hammer and punch until the coiled pin exits the other side. You will reinstall the coiled pin back into the assembly after the repair. A substitute dial can be used with intendance, such as a smash, wire, or plyers, to push or pull the pivot.
6. With the beveled gear free, remove the damaged atomic number 82 driveshaft by sliding it out of the bushings.
7. Make clean the beveled gears, driveshaft, and both bushings.

Rebuilding the Landing Leg

1. Insert new driveshaft into the bushings at the pinnacle of the landing leg taking care to have the driveshaft slide through the beveled gear.
2. Reinstall Spirol Pin in the beveled gear.
3. With a screwdriver, button Due east-Clip dorsum in identify.
4. Apply Wheel bearing grease by manus through the top cover, ensuring that the Jack screw and bushing are well lubricated.
5. Testing. With the top cover plate still removed, perform a visual inspection of the landing leg operation. Turn the atomic number 82 driveshaft which in turn will turn the Jack screw using a battery-operated drill. The use of an electrical drill griping the driveshaft makes this task easier. WARNING: The rotating beveled gears could cause injury to fingers.
6. Replace the pinnacle comprehend and the ii securing screws.

Reassembly of Repaired Landing Leg onto the Trailer

1. Slide landing leg into the alignment brackets.
2. Ensure the leg casing marks line up with the mechanical stops on the trailer frame and supervene upon the belongings bolts deeply.
3. Align the lower leg. The exact number of locking holes equally the roadside leg should be showing.
4. Slide the square connecting rod dorsum in place.
5. Supercede the 0.25 inch nut and Hex bolt through the square connecting rod and landing leg lead driveshaft. Tighten.

Recommended Preventative Maintenance

1. Annually, you should remove the meridian cap off each leg and hand push bearing grease into the top of the leg. Alternatively, some landing legs are fitted or retrofitted with a grease nipple in the side of the upper casing.
2. Drive the legs to the peak and lesser limits several times to ensure the grease reaches all parts of the jack spiral.
3. Supplant the superlative cap and screws.

A Job Well Done

With the satisfaction of a job well done, y'all tin accept yourselves for an afternoon walk to Kootenai Falls, along with the human foot traffic suspension bridge and the trails surrounding them. Kootenai Falls has a fascinating history dating dorsum thousands of years. The Kootenai or Tunaxa people lived in the surface area in nomadic bands. These bands then continued on to cross what is now known as the Canada/The states border.

An afternoon walk to the Kootenai Falls.

It wasn't until the early 1800s that European fur traders first saw this surface area as "A Wild State of Run a risk." The rest, every bit they say, is history and can be read on the many trail signposts.

Human foot traffic suspension bridge, Kootenai Falls.

I would recommend camping at Trout Creek and taking a day to drive to the falls for the afternoon and back to Trout Creek RV Park in the evening.

Campground Data:

Trout Creek Motel & RV Park
2972 Mt Highway 200
Trout Creek, MT 59874
Telephone: (406) 827-3268

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Landing Assembly for a 5th Wheel Landing Gear on a Trailer UPDATED

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