Creaks and groans when lifting off the truck..

rickbsgu

rickbsgu
Hi - new to fiver.

I notice I get a lot of creaks and groans when I extend the front feet to lift my 3670RL off the truck.

Is this normal, or is something strained?

thanx,
rickb.
 

Tom of Ypsi

Well-known member
This is normal, it is a sigh of relief by the truck for getting the weight off of its back and a thank you from your Heartland coach for picking me.
 

dewwood

Well-known member
That is possibly a strain you are putting on the mechanism by trying to lift the truck as well as the trailer. Raise the trailer just enough to take some of the weight off of the truck then pull out slowly and finish leveling the fiver. The truck will start to rise up as the weight is lifted but if you go too far it will be trying to lift the truck also. Try this and see if it helps with the creaking and groaning.
 

rickbsgu

rickbsgu
That is possibly a strain you are putting on the mechanism by trying to lift the truck as well as the trailer. Raise the trailer just enough to take some of the weight off of the truck then pull out slowly and finish leveling the fiver. The truck will start to rise up as the weight is lifted but if you go too far it will be trying to lift the truck also. Try this and see if it helps with the creaking and groaning.

Yeah, I've considered that, and have watched for it. I put my hand on the truck and feel it begin to rise. I don't want to undo the jaws until the trailer is firmly on its feet, though. Always, after release, I still have to raise the trailer to get it up off the plate. It still creaks and groans during this process.


I talked to another guy out here (Yuma - Imperial Dam LTVA) with a (big) fifth wheel of a different make, and he says his does the same thing. So, I guess it just comes with the do.

rickb
 
Last edited:

SmokeyBare

Well-known member
....So do my knees... but in my case... it's new sounds... I don't remember them when I was new. :)
 

bsummit

Arkansas Chapter Leader-Retired
The sounds you are hearing is from the trailer suspension, which is normal.
My 3670 does the same thing and so did my other 5er. Nothing to be worried about.

Bill
 
I had cracking popping noise in mine and one of the shears pins on the crank handle break in two. then last year it couldn't raise the fiver all the way of the hitch, had a trailer dealer come and look at it said the gears had stripped. Ordered some new ones
then it started raising never installed them yet. Didn't work so well in the cold and worked in the warmer weather? Go figure, not to sure that was the reason or not?
They had bolts for shear pin replaced with shear pins!
Sonnybeech
 
Last edited:

pmmjarrett

Not just tired..... RETIRED!!!
You'ld creak and groan if you had to lift 2500 lbs too:DNone

Me I cheat.

I have air bags on my truck and I UUUUUUSE them, just like you would in a semi truck.

I lower my landing gear until both pads start to take the weight and then I dump the air in my bags to about 10 psi which lowers the truck usually enough to start to see a little daylight between the 5th wheel and pin box, then I disconnect and pull out.

When I hook up, I lock the fifth wheel in with the bags at 10 PSI and then inflate the bags to 50 PSI (what I usually run with an avg 5th wheel), sometimes more with a bigger trailer. Now most pressure is off the landing gear and it comes up easily without any binding.
 

leftyf

SSG Stumpy-VA Terrorist
You'ld creak and groan if you had to lift 2500 lbs too:DNone

The correct answer is...drum roll puhleeze!

If I did not hear creaking and groaning coming from my front jacks while loading the trailer...my first thought would be:

D*MN!! Another *&&$%&*) blown fuze!!
 

wyleyrabbit

Well-known member
Obviously, I'm no expert as I've only disconnected a total of three times now. When I'm unhooking, I watch the space between the 5th wheel hitch and the bottom of the hitch pin plate and wait for there to be a gap of between 1/8" and 1/4". I also watch the hitch pin itself to make sure that the bottom of it doesn't touch the hitch and start trying to lift the truck. Seems to work okay.
 
Top