rear stabilizer jacks

[danemayer]

We have an '07 Bighorn 3400RL and tThe rear stabilizer jacks are in the up position and will not extend using the electronic toggle switch. I tried using the manual crank, and the legs won't budge. Any suggestions?

Thanks in Advance
William

You may also need to lubricate the worm gear and bushings.

 

[itinerants]

You may also need to lubricate the worm gear and bushings.

I also have a 2008 3400RL with the same issue. It's stuck in the up position (thank goodness) but the legs are free moving and are not indicating any binding. Manual does the same bind. Any suggestions from anyone that has experienced this before?

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[JohnDar]

With the motor still attached, manually cranking the jacks will take considerable effort. Is that what you’re feeling? I’ve rebuilt two of those motors, mine and a friend’s, due to internal corrosion.


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[danemayer]

I also have a 2008 3400RL with the same issue. It's stuck in the up position (thank goodness) but the legs are free moving and are not indicating any binding. Manual does the same bind. Any suggestions from anyone that has experienced this before?

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I can't tell if your stabilizers are moving freely by hand, or if they're not moving freely by hand. Are you saying you have a motor problem, or a mechanical bind?

 

[JohnDar]

Possible that the problem is in the gear box for the motor. There are four Allen screws that hold the assembly to the jack frame. Try removing it and then manually operating the jacks.

With the motor detached, try operating it with the switch to see if it works.

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[rmeyer]

On my 3585rl the rear jacks quit. I drove on snowy roads and when I auto level the jacks were real slow. They quit. Used hand crank and the jack turned real easy.(usually a lot of resistance) Used VOM and tested. No power to motor. Cannot find inline fuse or breaker. Any help would be appreciated. The LCI manual show a controller but do not see one.

 

[JohnD]

On my 3585rl the rear jacks quit. I drove on snowy roads and when I auto level the jacks were real slow. They quit. Used hand crank and the jack turned real easy.(usually a lot of resistance) Used VOM and tested. No power to motor. Cannot find inline fuse or breaker. Any help would be appreciated. The LCI manual show a controller but do not see one.

Not sure, but the fuse might be near the battery.

 

[JohnDar]

On my 3585rl the rear jacks quit. I drove on snowy roads and when I auto level the jacks were real slow. They quit. Used hand crank and the jack turned real easy.(usually a lot of resistance) Used VOM and tested. No power to motor. Cannot find inline fuse or breaker. Any help would be appreciated. The LCI manual show a controller but do not see one.

When I had to work on my motor, I found there is no inline fuse for the rear stabilizers. There is an auto-reset mini-breaker that covers several systems, including the rear stabilizers, though. When checking for power, you need to do it at the back of the operating switch for the stabilizer.

Check out this diagram:
https://manuals.heartlandowners.org..._Buss_Bar/Heartland/12V diagram and notes.pdf

 

[rmeyer]

When I had to work on my motor, I found there is no inline fuse for the rear stabilizers. There is an auto-reset mini-breaker that covers several systems, including the rear stabilizers, though. When checking for power, you need to do it at the back of the operating switch for the stabilizer.

Check out this diagram:
https://manuals.heartlandowners.org..._Buss_Bar/Heartland/12V diagram and notes.pdf[/QUOT

Thanks for the reply. The diagram is great. All of the hydraulic system(slides and 4 pt) work great. If I go into level up program and bring up rear stabilizer jacks and enter. when I try o extend or raise jacks I have no voltage to the motor I have the auto reel for my power cable and the leads are in that compartment. If we ever get over winter, I will put 12 volts to the motor and check the motor out. Thanks to the people who put the diagram together. The LCI manual doesn't show this diagram.

 

[itinerants]

I can't tell if your stabilizers are moving freely by hand, or if they're not moving freely by hand. Are you saying you have a motor problem, or a mechanical bind?

I'm not sure. The motor jerks the gear both up and down but no significant movement of the legs.

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[danemayer]

I'm not sure. The motor jerks the gear both up and down but no significant movement of the legs.

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If you haven't already done so, get a spray dry lube and liberally spray the worm gear from one side to the other. Also spray the moving parts on the legs.

If that doesn't help, you can remove the motor assembly by loosening the nuts on the side of the mount. Don't try loosening from the bolt head as that'll likely shear the head off. With the motor disengaged, see if you can operate the legs easily from the other end. There's probably a fitting for a manual crank that may be in your basement storage area.

If it turns freely, you can open the gear case on the motor assembly to see if the grease is holding up. If that's ok, you may have a motor problem.

The springs inside the motor that load the brushes against the armature can easily rust out from water contamination. They're very thin. If you find a problem there, you can take a spring from a ball point pen and use 1/2 of it to replace a brush spring.

 

[itinerants]

If you haven't already done so, get a spray dry lube and liberally spray the worm gear from one side to the other. Also spray the moving parts on the legs.

If that doesn't help, you can remove the motor assembly by loosening the nuts on the side of the mount. Don't try loosening from the bolt head as that'll likely shear the head off. With the motor disengaged, see if you can operate the legs easily from the other end. There's probably a fitting for a manual crank that may be in your basement storage area.

If it turns freely, you can open the gear case on the motor assembly to see if the grease is holding up. If that's ok, you may have a motor problem.

The springs inside the motor that load the brushes against the armature can easily rust out from water contamination. They're very thin. If you find a problem there, you can take a spring from a ball point pen and use 1/2 of it to replace a brush spring.

Thanks for the info. I'll give it a try

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[wdk450]

The old style motor is a Klauber C-800. You can get it on E-Bay for $159. Lippert and other E-Bay vendors are charging over $300. I have a 2008 production Bighorn, and this is what I used when I managed to damage my original motor. I don't know if the new style motors will fit a 2008 Bighorn, and they are all listed at around $300.

 

[szewczyk_john]

My motor failed during the last trip last fall while in the down position. I removed the motor after determining that I had voltage to the switch and at the motor with the switch activated. I cranked them up manually. I made a homemade key that fits into the area where the motor shaft connects to the screw. I then used an socket attached to my 12 volt impact driver to move that bolt which raise & lowers the leg. It worked so good, i didn't even repair the motor, which by all accounts is a rusted spring. The impact driver is faster and makes less noise.

 

[simsfmly]

Hi Bobby A,

The stabilizers may be powered by way of a 12V DC mini-circuit breaker on the buss bar near the battery. The buss bar is a row of small circuit breakers usually covered by a red rubber boot.

A number of us have experienced a motor problem where there's a little water intrusion that rusts the springs that load the motor brushes against the armature. You can take the motor apart to replace the spring using 1/2 of a ball point pen spring.

The motor may be mounted with Torx bolts. I've found it necessary to first loosen the nuts on the inside in order to remove the mounting bolts.

You can check the voltage at the wires to the motor to determine if you need to open the motor.

Mine just left me on this trip. I have to figure it's gotten water in like you said or corrosion from being on the Texas Coast.

"You can take the motor apart to replace the spring using 1/2 of a ball point pen spring." Can you explain this in a little more detail to someone who's not as bright as you?

"I've found it necessary to first loosen the nuts on the inside in order to remove the mounting bolts." Nuts on the inside of what? Again, can you explain this a little better for someone lacking in technical knowledge?

Thanks, Dan.

 

[danemayer]

If you look at the stabilizer motor, you'll see it's held in place by 4 machine screws. The screws have torx heads if I recall correctly. On the other end of the screws, there are nuts. Loosen the nuts in order to remove the screws. If you try to remove the screws from the outside without loosening the nuts, the heads may break off.

Again, IIRC, the cylindrical plastic cover on the motor assembly slides off. That exposes 2 long machine screws on the end of the motor that hold a metal cover in place.

Once open, you'll see there are motor brushes on either side, that are pushed toward the center by springs. You'll probably find one spring is rusted/broken. 1/2 of a ballpoint pen spring will apply the necessary pressure to restore operation.

Once you get it open, some of this will be obvious.

The long screws that hold the metal cover can be a bit of a pain to get back in place because the motor's magnets tend to pull the screws.

 

[JohnDar]

I’ve done this repair twice. First on my rig and then on Bobby A’s rig. Once you get the long screws out and the cover off, be careful with the brush holders. The screws are tiny and may be corroded, too. If I recall, on Bobby’s, one broke and I had to improvise a replacement.

Test the motor before remounting it by connecting it to power to be sure it works. I used a liberal wrapping of Rescue Tape around the joint between the motor case and gear box to seal it. Mine’s held up for several years since I did it. Bobby’s still working, too, last I heard.


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