Where's the proper place to lift a BC to change tires?

[bigdob24]

Curious as to where's the best and safest spot to lift a BC to change out tires?

 

[Gaffer]

I typed change tire into the search block and came up with several hits including the following. Check them all out.
//heartlandowners.org/showthread.php/7565-bottle-jack-floor-jack/page2?highlight=change+tire

 

[Westwind]

I just had to jack up my Big Country to repack my bearings and clean and check my brakes, this is how I did it with the advise of a 35 year RV owner of multiple types. He ha done this every two years to three different brands of fifth wheels.

http://www.harborfreight.com/20-ton-low-profile-hydraulic-bottle-jack-66481.html

http://www.harborfreight.com/4-ton-hydraulic-bottle-jack-66450.html

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-ton-jack-stand-set-38847.html

The stand jacks were overkill and you probably wouldn't be carrying them with you. I do carry the 20 ton and 4 ton with me. I've learned you can never have enough blocks. Those under the jack I fabricated to put on the front legs and rear stabilizer. With the rear tire back on I used the smaller jack to lift the front axle. PS - the truck was hitched and front legs UP while I was doing this and would be if you were changing a flat.

 

[traveler44]

Just use a piece of tough wood between the top of the jack and the spring shackle. You jack one side of one axle at a time and make sure you have the trailer or fifth wheel hooked up to the truck so that nothing tries to roll on you. I have used the bottle jack from my truck and it works just fine but my neighbor has a good floor jack that saves me a lot of time when I'm at home. Try to set your jack up on a reasonably hard surface. Jack some pressure under the axle and then loosen the lug nuts before you jack it all the way off the ground. I have a short piece of two by six that I have used over and over on top of the jack.

 

[danemayer]

Heartland, Dexter, and Lippert all say that you should jack up the frame, not the axle, shackles, springs, or other suspension parts.

Lippert makes the frames and on some coaches the axles and suspension. Dexter makes axles and suspension for other coaches. And of course Heartland specs axles, suspension and frame and puts the pieces together. The fact that they all say the same thing should give you reason to believe they've put some thought into the answer.

Some people choose to ignore the direction provided by the manufacturers. Each of us gets to make his own decision. And if there are any consequences, we get to live with them.

 

[justafordguy]

I use a floor jack under the u-bolts on the axle and just jack one wheel up at a time, just enough to let the wheel roll. Much safer than jacking the entire frame up. I've done it this way on many trailers for years and years with no damage to axles, suspension, wheels, frames, etc. You can do it any way you feel comfortable with but jacking under the u-bolts puts no more stress on the components than slowly rolling over a speed bump.

 

[Jim.Allison]

When my Towmax blew and left me stranded. I used my TV scissor jack to lift the axle, it was simple. I merely positioned the scissor jack under the spring and raised the axle to the point at which I could mount the inflated tire. There was no chance of damage to the rig and no extra jacks were required. When i sold the Towmax tires and installed the G114s, I raised the rig with the 6 point, through manual operation. I know what the owners manual says, but practicality trumps CYA instructions of the manufacturer.