A Frame tongue jack

[Timmy G]

I need a new one for my Surf Side ... I want one that has the lowest aspect possible (so that it doesn't interfere with the back door of my Highlander), as well as good quality. Anyone have any experience buying these?

Merci,

Tim

[Curtis F.]

I like the Ultra fab 3502 elect jack. It doesn't have that low a profile, but can hanle 3500 lbs. I chose to get a refurbished one from EBay. Seller Campinggurl (100% positive feedback) has an inside conneciton with the factory and sells the remanufactured units on EBay. Starting bid is 109.00 and buy it now is 129.00. Comes with one year warranty. I broke mine and they are replacing it anyway. If you are like me and don't want to bid up the price. Just keep bidding the minimum and you will eventually get one for 109.00. Only took me a week before the other bidders bought theirs and one was left for me.

Campinggurl on Ebay

Curt

[Pete Dumbleton]

If you get the kind that clamps to the side of the tongue, it can be mounted further back and folds out of the way when not in use.

[Byron Kinnaman]

If you get the kind that clamps to the side of the tongue, it can be mounted further back and folds out of the way when not in use.

With a top crank you can't get very far back or the crank runs into the Propane tank. When my 13' was delivered that was the case. It had to be cut off and reattached as far forward as possible. A side winder would be different matter.

[Bigfoot Mike]

I use a weld on swing away jack. It is totally out of the way.

It looks like this one. http://www.drawtite.com/dt53525.html

[Brian B-P]

My Boler has a 16" top-of-frame and top-to-ball height, which I'm guessing is at least as high as a Surfside. My tug is a Sienna, with a lower floor than a Highlander, and a taller hatch, both of which suggest to me that the bottom of the hatch would swing lower than that of a Highlander. My jack is mounted through the hole in the back of the coupler, as far forward as possible. The trailer rides level.

The net result is that I should have hatch-to-jack clearance problems, and indeed I must have the handle of my front-wind jack in the down position to clear.... but it clears. I would be surprised if it's necessary to go to the trouble of changing the jack mounting to clear the Highlander's hatch.

If the rear of the tow vehicle is pushed down too much by the tongue weight, that will increase hatch-to-jack clearance problems. I use air bags in the van's rear suspension, which essentially eliminates this potential problem.

My jack is presumably the 1979 original, and other than the plastic of the handle grip coming apart (not completely yet) and the foot being missing (it's just a tube end now, distorted by being dragged at some point by a previous owner) it is working fine. I believe that it's an Atwood, like the coupler.