Landing Gear Issue

Whammon · 07-21-2021, 05:57 PM

Hi folks…have a 2018 26.5 ft Eagle HT FW. Recently I’ve noticed the landing gear laboring to raise a lower the unit while taking on and off my truck. The is no generator or added weight on the front end. During my last trip, while lowering and leveling the trailer, the bolt attaching the slave lander sheared, rendering the slave lander useless. Also, the motor on the main unit seems to labor while raising and lowering. It’s fixed now but the motor still seems to be overworked. Has anyone else experienced this problem? My technician says it’s an industry wide problem. If so, can it be remedied without a lot of expense?

White Ox · 07-22-2021, 07:29 AM

Laboring enough to shear that bolt is a sign to me it's time to replace the slave landing gear asap.... either the leg is bent... or (and more likely) the brass nut that mates to the threaded rod is about to give way as the threads are peeling out of the nut and are stuck in the threads of the rod.

When hitched to your truck, you can take the drive shaft out from between jacks - you should be able to spin the input shaft for the slave leg with your bare hand.. if you can't, there's an issue. You can remove the leg from your rig and then take them apart. The only piece that's not relatively easy disassembly is removing the brass nut from the lower leg and in turn removing the threaded rod from the brass nut - mine's got a weld tach on both ends. The tach weld on the bottom could be ground off if you want to remove the nut from the shaft and have a new one manufactured with longer threads.

The part that likely needs replaced is the brass nut - and they are "crimped" into the lower leg and not easily removed without a press and some tooling. I seem to recall a threads where others have found just the lower leg (brass nut included) for sale by itself vs. having to buy the entire landing gear leg.

The industry wide problem is there hasn't been an easy way to lube those threads and after x number of cycles, the factory applied grease has all been rubbed right off. Without preventative maintenance putting some sort of lube back in, it's a problem that will in fact cause issues in short order.

Whammon · 07-22-2021, 10:09 AM

Thanks for your reply…the problem is fixed for now as the slave lander guts have been replaced and lubed. The master has been lubed also. It not sure about either screw. The motor still labors. Found this on YouTube. I like the idea and might try it. What do you think?
https://youtu.be/emcOISsW2PA
It’s titled DIY Fifth Wheel Landing Gear Maintenance…that’s if the above link dosnt work

White Ox · 07-22-2021, 10:56 AM

That's a good way to get grease in there. Do note, grease has it's pro's and cons.

I just did a thread for how I opted to get a spray lube onto the threaded rod.

To each their own.

It might also be time to lubricate the gear-train in the gearbox that drives both landing gear. They aren't hard to remove/disassemble/lube.

Whammon · 07-22-2021, 02:51 PM

How can I locate that thread? I’d like to read it…

White Ox · 07-22-2021, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Whammon

How can I locate that thread? I’d like to read it…

Tis as simple as clicking right here ---->https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...ion-89045.html

Bluegill · 10-02-2022, 04:44 PM

I am experiencing the same problem on a 2018 26.5 RLDS. Aslo found the slave side shear bolt with the nut broken off. Replaced the bolt and nut. The landing gear has never stopped working. It has always been slow but seems a lot slower. The guy at etrailer.com suggested changing the gearbox. Sent Jayco a note but haven't gotten a response. Looking at the electric motor, everything looks normal but the motor and gearbox has a lot of play in as I can shake it and it appears loose but all bolts are tight and the tabs on the rear of the gearbox are all there and not broken off. Not sure if it is suppose to have a lot of play in it or not. I replaced the battery as it was 4 years old and that did not make any difference. Is the motor suppose to be loose and shakey? Any help would be appreciated. I am going to contact my dealer as they have always been really helpful but would like feedback from other owners.
Thanks

etex211 · 10-28-2022, 05:53 AM

Those single motor landing gear systems are woefully inadequate. Every component in my system was replaced at one time or another under warranty. As soon as the warranty ran out, I scrapped the entire system and replaced it with landing gear legs with individual motors from Ultra-Fab. They've been going strong since 2015.

If you add a second switch, you can raise and lower the legs independently.

https://ultra-fab.com/product/ultra-...-landing-gear/

Bluegill · 11-04-2022, 03:58 PM

So I installed an entirely new landing gear replacement and everything appears to be working fine. I did go with the OEM lippert system recommended by my dealer. The landing gear is still operating very slow even with all new components and new motor. It appears from looking inside the slave leg that the screw nut has failed. Will see how long this on last as the first lasted just four seasons.

Thomson · 11-04-2022, 11:57 PM

I replaced both landing gears with independent motors. It seems to be bullet proof with the benefit that if the ground is uneven you don't have to use blocks to compensate.

Pammac36 · 11-05-2022, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Whammon

Hi folks…have a 2018 26.5 ft Eagle HT FW. Recently I’ve noticed the landing gear laboring to raise a lower the unit while taking on and off my truck. The is no generator or added weight on the front end. During my last trip, while lowering and leveling the trailer, the bolt attaching the slave lander sheared, rendering the slave lander useless. Also, the motor on the main unit seems to labor while raising and lowering. It’s fixed now but the motor still seems to be overworked. Has anyone else experienced this problem? My technician says it’s an industry wide problem. If so, can it be remedied without a lot of expense?

Might be a dumb question but can someone post a picture of what a slave leg is? Thanks!

etex211 · 11-08-2022, 05:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pammac36

Might be a dumb question but can someone post a picture of what a slave leg is? Thanks!

In a single motor landing gear system, the slave leg is the right landing gear leg. The single motor and gear box are on the left side and drive the left landing gear leg directly. There is a driveshaft that goes from the left side to the right side that drives the right landing gear leg. That drive shaft is usually just a simple piece of square tubing.

Pammac36 · 11-10-2022, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by etex211

In a single motor landing gear system, the slave leg is the right landing gear leg. The single motor and gear box are on the left side and drive the left landing gear leg directly. There is a driveshaft that goes from the left side to the right side that drives the right landing gear leg. That drive shaft is usually just a simple piece of square tubing.

Thanks!

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