4 Wheeling with Jacks On Camper

[canyonrover]

I am considering a Hallmark Everest or K2 and I have a question regarding 4 wheeling with the camper jacks on the corners of the camper. I currently camp far off the beaten path where angle of departure is very important. I am new to the possibility of a truck camper but it seems to me that the camper jacks would greatly reduce your angle of departure and where I plan to continue to go I would surely rip them right off. Maybe I am missing something. So, can they be removed easily? Do they suck up higher than it would appear in photos? I looked through the "Post pics of your truck and camper" thread and noticed that the FWC typically don't have jacks on the corners. Is this because it does decrease the angle of departure and they are made to be removable. This sounds silly but if I can't go where I want because of the jacks I will look at other camper/trailer options.

Thanks for the input.

CanyonRover

 

[Overland Hadley]

Yes, they are easy to remove and are best removed before leaving the parking lot. :ylsmoke:

 

[kpredator]

jacks

drove the white rim trail in canyon lands a few years ago,found a jack that had been torn off.
really not that tough of a trail.
we always take ours off.
good luck
kp

 

[Mundo4x4Casa]

Yep, leave the jax at home. That is one of the great things about a pop-up. Small manual jax that remove easily. And it makes a percentage-wise good savings of weight when they are off. My jax never leave the compound. Remember i am the self-proclaimed, king-of-the-jax-off.
My bro John has an OUTFITTER! on his '99 Ford F250 and I finally convinced him to remove them for a hard-core trip we did last fall. His were electric jax and he had to cut and put push connectors on all 8 wires to remove the jax. It did save a lot of weight and he retained plenty of clearance.
regards, as always, jefe

 

[bob91yj]

Mine are buried in my disaster of a garage somewhere.

 

[canyonrover]

Thanks for all the replies. I know it was probably a dumb question but I have never looked that close. Off they will come. I need the clearance.

 

[JHa6av8r]

Jacks stay in the garage. As a matter of fact when picking up my FWC at the factory the fellow that did the orientation said I'll give you a set of jacks still in the box if you'll let me remove the jacks from the camper before you leave.

We would have surely ripped one off on our last trip.

 

[kylekai]

I bought a Hallmark Everest new in 2011, and put it on my new 2011 Chevy Silverado HD. I have taken the jacks off with other campers, but with this camper the tie-downs are attached to the jacks, so removing the jacks won't work with this camper. Regardless, I've never had an issue with them while off road. Maybe I'm just not as radical as everyone else here, but I do spend a lot of time exploring the local SoCal deserts.

 

[canyonrover]

I am going to the hallmark shop this week. I will look closely at the tie down attachment points. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[rotti]

When getting my new FWC Hawk installed there was a Grandby in the shop that had been side swiped and had the jack snagged in a Walmart parking lot. What a mess!

First thing I did is remove those things....not to mention the 150 or so extra pounds. I wouldn't leave them on if all I did was pound the interstates.

If in Denver, go to the Sportsman Expo this week where most of the major pop up brands will be exhibiting: http://www.sportsexpos.com

I probably would have snagged one on this trip.

 

[Regcabguy]

Mine are like new. They've spent 99% of their life in the garage.
Trucks and campers look a lot cleaner also.

 

[Larry]

I removed the camper jacks from my Phoenix before the truck tires even cooled off the day I brought it home from Denver. They haven't been back on since that day in 2011.

 

[canyonrover]

Thanks for all the info. I assumed they were able to be removed which I will do. I know I will rip them off.

 

[craig333]

The only reason I would leave them on is if you have a really soft suspension and it rocks a lot while sleeping. Even then I think I'd look at other ways to stabilize the camper while parked. Mine absolutely would have been ripped off by now I am 100% sure on the trails I drive. I would cry so much if I did something like that.

 

[kylekai]

I am going to the hallmark shop this week. I will look closely at the tie down attachment points. Thanks for the heads up.

I looked again at my setup, and also asked Matt at Hallmark, and it appears I can take the jacks off easily. I just need 4 bolts to reconnect the tie-downs. I may do that.

One reason for leaving them on is if there's a major problem with the truck or camper. For example, the camper falls out of the truck and you need the jacks to get it back upright so it can be towed away as shown in this post: http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/27461157.cfm