changing tires

[cyndi H]

I need to change the tires on my '76 Boler, i think they're original. This may sound like a stupid question, but is there any specific type of jack i need to use? All i have is the one for my little car. Thanks

[Chris L.]

A little one ton hydralic jack (a bottle jack) will do the trick for you. They are inexpensive and do the job. Place it under the frame just behind the axle on the side you are working on to lift the Boler.

[Byron Kinnaman]

The bottle jack is a good thing to carry alright.

It sounds like you're replacing your tires, if so I would do the same thing I do when I replace my car tires. I'd take the trailer to a tire shop and let deal with getting the old tires off and the new ones on.

[Paul from NWOnt]

The bottle jack is a good thing to carry alright.

It sounds like you're replacing your tires, if so I would do the same thing I do when I replace my car tires. I'd take the trailer to a tire shop and let deal with getting the old tires off and the new ones on.

Good advice here. If the tires haven't been removed in a while, they can be a bear to get off. If you have an impact gun at your disposal, then doing it yourself isn't so bad, but since you're asking, I'll assume you don't have one of those either, and it could be a nightmare.

Let the pro's deal with it first time 'round, but ask if you could watch for pointers in case you have to do it yourself someday.

[Tom Trostel]

And watch to be sure they put the wheels back on with the a torque wrench not an impact gun. Nothing worse than having a flat in the middle of nowhere and discovering you can't get the lug nuts off because they're on too tight.

I use the jack from my tow vehicle, a Toyota minivan, and it works great. No need to carry two jacks if you don't need to.

Tom Trostel

[Brian B-P]

...I use the jack from my tow vehicle, a Toyota minivan, and it works great. No need to carry two jacks if you don't need to.

Same for me! My trailer's a lot heavier than Tom's, but it's still within the capacity of the jack, which is the common (traditional in Japanese cars) scissors type.

The biggest issue with any jack - hydraulic or not - might be the way the top of the jack sits against the trailer frame. Car jacks are usually shaped to fit a specific point on the car, and general-purpose bottle jacks have a round flat end with cross-hatch grooves for grip. You don't want the trailer to shift or even fall off of the jack, so check for how it will fit.

Our Sienna jacks have a notch to match the structure, but a flat top that works okay against the flat bottom of the frame. I have been meaning to make a saddle adapter to fit between them for security... but that's one of those "some day" projects.

[Pete Dumbleton]

I carry a bottle jack also. Lots more useful than a specialty jack, and it's also a backup for my truck's jack.

I use my 1/2" socket set for wheel lugs/nuts and have a pipe for the handle to gain leverage.

Because our wheels are mostly lug-centric, it is important to tighten the lugs to three sets of increasing torques, going around the wheel in a pattern each time, rather than just tighten them all the way at one time (like an impact wrench gorilla might do even if he sets the wrench torque correctly to the final torque).

Lots of info on the Dexter site regarding this, esp the various torques that some wheels take. There's even a difference between 12"-13" and 14"-16".

For Dexter Steel Wheels Prior to June 2004
Wheel Torque Sequence
Size 1st Stage 2nd Stage 3rd Stage
12" 20-25 35-40 50-75
13" 20-25 35-40 50-75
14" 20-25 50-60 90-120
15" 20-25 50-60 90-120
16" 20-25 50-60 90-120

Lug torques on some larger trailer wheels go up to 325 ft-lbs, so beware of folks who think one torque fits all wheels...

[Des Nolan]

I need to change the tires on my '76 Boler, i think they're original. This may sound like a stupid question, but is there any specific type of jack i need to use? All i have is the one for my little car. Thanks

The original three-fold manual with my '77, "How to Maintain & Operate Your Boler Trailer", under Tire Changing, says: "To change a flat tire, place your car bumper jack at the rear trailer bumper, and remove wheel as you would on a car".

While I no longer have a bumper jack, those of us beyond a certain age will recall that they cradled the outside of the bumper and were then ratcheted up. I now use a scissor jack, with a small piece of wood between it and the appropriate bumper corner.

More than once I have passed this instruction on to professional tire changers seeking to lift from underneath the trailer.

Des

[Brian B-P]

Des, have you ever looked at how much the frame twists, and the fiberglass shell is forced to twist with it, it you lift from one rear corner? The B1700 frame is pretty stiff compared to some, and can be supported from the rear frame ends on both sides with little effect on the frame or body (although there's enough sag that the door doesn't close quite right), but jacking on one corner jams the body into the frame rail at the adjacent body/frame overlap, where there is usually a gap. The B1300 might flex less, but I wouldn't bet money - or a trailer body - on it.

I jack on the frame immediately behind the rear spring mount (I have leaf springs).