Bighorn landing gear problem

[cookie]

There are plenty of landing gear motors, they are not all the same.
Here is a replacement for Lippert #141893. Amazon

Peace
Dave

 

[sengli]

Strange, when my pump unit was leaking, and replaced under warranty. The dealer told me that the entire assembly( motor, pump, and manifolds) was going to be replaced, as parts werent available.

 

[wyleyrabbit]

Here's a quick question for everyone. Our landing gear has a manual crank connection that is accessible through the battery compartment, and we have a manual crank. If I could use my power drill or impact driver to turn this, it would mean that I wouldn't have to use the bottle jacks while I wait for a replacement motor.

I think my local hardware store has a "wing nut kit" that might do the trick. Does anyone know what size the landing gear manual connection is so I can go shopping?

 

[JohnDar]

On older hydraulic pumps, there was a 1/4” socket on the end of the pump motor that you could use an electric drill to operate the pump by inserting a bit into it. Might need an extension to reach it.


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[wyleyrabbit]

On older hydraulic pumps, there was a 1/4” socket on the end of the pump motor that you could use an electric drill to operate the pump by inserting a bit into it. Might need an extension to reach it.

Thank you.

I picked up a "wing nut kit" from my local hardware store and a 12" extender. I'll know tomorrow for sure but this should do the trick!

 

[wyleyrabbit]

I phoned the dealership where we originally purchased our Bighorn from. Yep, they quoted me $1,145 for exactly the same motor that's on Amazon for $315 with free prime shipping. These guys have zero shame.

 

[Gary521]

You can get a motor on Amazon for $150.

 

[wyleyrabbit]

Good news and bad news friends. Good news is, I think my motor is actually fine.

Bad news is the off-door landing gear leg bolt has sheared off at the top where the square steel tube connected to the motor on the door-side. I guess if something had seized up in there, that's why the motor wasn't turning.

Sad part is, my wife, our youngest, and our dog are here to pick up the trailer. The trailer is connected to the truck and we were to be at the campground 2 hours ago. And, of course it's Sunday and Heartland and Lippert are both closed.

I don't know whether I'm going to need an entirely new leg, or whether one of those "landing gear repair kits" would do the trick. Maybe I just need a new "shear pin"? I took the dust cap off of the landing gear and from what I can see it appears that the gears aren't missing any teeth or anything.

Would anyone happen to know what model of landing gear I might have on our 2009 Bighorn?

Any advice would be very appreciated!

 

[JohnDar]

If the motor runs and the connecting rod turns but the leg doesn’t move, it sounds like the shear pin is missing. A small screw and nut is a temporary fix.
You said the rig is on the hitch and the gears look intact. Can you move the leg up manually and pin it? If the connecting rod isn’t holding, you may be able to do that. You might need to disconnect the rod from the drive jack to make it easier.
Sounds like you have the older Venture front jacks. When we had our 2009, I replaced the OEM jacks with the original Ground Control jacks that had independent electric motors. Lippert bought the inventor out, unfortunately.


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[Gary521]

I would replace the entire leg. As I said before, doing anything from the top is not going to help. You need to remove the leg and take it apart. Yes there are two different leg part numbers but I cannot remember the part numbers or the difference. Call Venture manufacturing for help

 

[centerline]

There is a DIY dual motor upgrade out there on the internet somewhere:

How to Convert a Venture’s Single Motor Landing Gear to a Dual-Powered Landing Gear

Fifth wheels and gooseneck trailers are one of the popular types of Recreational Vehicles (RVs) in use today. These vehicles are equipped with various types of accessories that contribute to their functioning.

www.linkedin.com

RV and 5th Wheel Landing Gear Manufacturer - Venture Mfg. Co.

RV 5th wheel landing gear contains all the accessories as well as mounting options. Venture is well known manufacturer of RV landing gears and it’s accessories and you can also customized it as per the requirements.

www.venturemfgco.com

I did this upgrade a couple years ago.... each leg has its own motor, and the lift/lowering time is nearly 3 times as fast... and each leg operates off its own switch, so they can be adjusted individually......

 

[wyleyrabbit]

It turns out that the motor was not at fault at all. The off-door-side leg was at fault, not the motor. We ended up with a seized leg, not the gears at the top...those were worn, but fine. It was the leg that was seized up.

I ordered a new leg from the folks at Venture and installed it yesterday. Was a tight working space, but I got it installed and it works...perfectly.

Thank you everyone for your help.

 

[wdk450]

Seized leg, huh? Maybe the leg lead screws DO need routine greasing.

 

[wyleyrabbit]

Maybe the leg lead screws DO need routine greasing.

After this experience, I would most definitely agree!
Anyone have recommendations on the best type of grease to use, how much to use, and how best to get it to the long screw?

 

[wyleyrabbit]

Loading the trailer onto the truck this morning was the easiest in years. The motor wasn't straining at all. Thank you again to everyone here for their perspective and advice.

 

[wdk450]

After this experience, I would most definitely agree!
Anyone have recommendations on the best type of grease to use, how much to use, and how best to get it to the long screw?

Previous postings have Heartlanders quoting the Lippert people as saying that the landing gear legs lead screws "need no greasing" for their lifetime. With the loads involved, this makes no sense to me.

 

[Gary521]

The legs are constructed with an inner leg and an outer leg. The screw that raises and lowers the unit (jack screw) is in the middle of it all. There is a captured nut that the jack screw turns in. This is what needs to get greased. To accomplish this, raise the legs to their full height and drill a hole in the outer leg maybe 8" from the top. Raising the legs will separate the inner and outer legs so that after drilling this hole you will have access to the jack screw with a grease needle and not hit the inner leg. The type of grease does not matter. Getting grease on the jack screw will lube this captured nut. When drilling this hole, put grease on the drill bit to capture a lot of the metal shavings.