5th wheel stability

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Jimmcdeb

New member
Joined
Dec 9, 2006
Posts
2
When parked which is the best for trailer stability.?  Wheel chocks or pin tri pod supports. Thanks
 
I use both.  My 5er has four kids bunks in the upper room and with four kids jumping around up there, things get rocking and rolling pretty well.  Chocks are pretty well a must in my opinion to reduce the minor rolling movement.  If your layout has a bedroom in the top and you are the only ones that are ever up there, you may not need a tripod.

There are also cross member systems that can be added to the landing gear in an "X" pattern to reduce the movement in that area as well.
 
Good chocks and JT Strongarm stabilizers are far superior to a tripod.
 
The locking wheel chocks will do the most for the least effort. I wouldn't get a tripod pin stabilizer unless nothing else worked, but that would be unusual.
 
Cricketdaddy said:
Anybody using the Steadyfast stabilizing system? http://www.steadyfast.com/

I think Tom posted that a month or so ago. I have this website saved for future reference. Those look really good to me and I'm anxious to hear if anyone here is using them too.
 
In our TT a few years ago, I was going nuts with the trailer movement when the DW was walking front to back or vs.... drove me crazy!  I purchased these stabilisers and problem immediately solved.  Use them now on the 5th wheel, same result, no moving.  Easiest solution to a common problem if you ask us.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/New-Pair-Tandem-Wheel-Locks-Tire-Chock-Trailer-RV_W0QQitemZ190371270900QQcmdZViewItem?rvr_id=222491415074&adtype=pla&itemid=190371270900
 
We've been using out permanently mounted stabilizers for over 5 years.  No more complaining about interior movement when someone is walking around, the washer is spinning or when it is super windy out.  We use the Plug It Right brand.  Hugs, Di
 
I've tried various things but the item that made the most difference was chocks between the wheels that you can tighten up to take much of the play out.  I suspect this is a problem because the radial tires we now use have softer sidewalls and are more prone to movement.  Forcing a chock between the wheels takes some of that away.
 
Marc:  How did you make your wheel chocks?  Ours are chunks of wood that have been shaped to fit between the tires - one up, one down - with a long bolt that tightens the upper and lower pieces of wood.  I have often wondered how effective these really are (they came with our 5th when we bought it).
 
Sew2bhappy, yes that's exactly what I have.


They work good on tandem axles with tires close to each other, not very well on those with close to a foot in between.


I use a ratcheting box wrench to tighten them really good.  They stop most of the fore-aft movement.  If your tires are under inflated, it does not work well, but worse than that you risk a tire failure on the highway, so the tires should always be properly inflated anyway.


Marc...
 
Gotta love that homemade stuff!  I had noticed we didn't have that much 'rock-n-roll' in the 5th.  I thought the chocks were to help keep it from moving on down the road without us  ;D  And yes, always keep the tires inflated correctly in all vehicles 8)
I do like the looks of the Steadyfast system - and since I believe in redundant-redundancy - would use both!  Only used the tri-pod once, and it was a real pain to set up :mad:
 
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