Community Forums

clecogirl · 01-04-2003, 03:12 PM

Flashman:
I have a 11.5 Ft. Arctic Fox with the large slide out and recently had their system installed on it. I tried having Stable Lift install the system a couple of years ago when I first got the camper, but at the time they couldn't.

I got an E-mail from Mont Peters the CEO of Stable Lift saying he could now install the system on campers with slide outs. I went back to Kalispell a couple of months ago and they installed their system and so far it works fine.

I think a lot would depend on the manufacturer of the camper and how well braced the area is under the slide. Mine has a 2 x 2 square steel piece running the length of it so it was strong enough. The slide operates fine off the truck on the Stable Lift or on the truck itself. No problem.

I will be making an extended trip shortly that will be from the Mexican border to Alaska, and I will find out just how good it is then.

If you want some streight answers, call Mont Peters at 1-800-587-4852 and he will tell you what he can and can't do. Just tell him Dewey said for you to call.

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.

Mont Peters · 01-07-2003, 06:20 AM

mail@stablelift.com

Sounds like Dewdo hit it right on the nose. Some we can and some we can't. Give me a call, I need a little more information on your camper to determine if the install is possible on this camper. 1-800-587-4852

clecogirl · 01-07-2003, 01:34 PM

Mont:
As you know we spend most of the winters in the same area as your mother, and one thing I noticed when we have taken our fifth wheel down there is this: I have 6" square aluminum plates I use beneath the front jacks. I notice when I leave there after two to four months, that the aluminum plates the jacks were sitting on has corroded very badly due to the soil acidity. Am I going to have the same problem with the tubes that are in contact with the ground with this system? If so, what should I use beneath the tubes to keep them from having contact with the acid soil?

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.

Mont Peters · 01-08-2003, 08:28 AM

Dewdo:
Unprotected aluminum will corrode no matter what the conditions. The Stable~Lift is well protected with the powder coating. The only place you would notice corrosion is where the powder coating would be cut or nicked. I think you will find very little problem, if any at all. Have a great and safe vacation!
Stable~Lift mail@stablelift.com

clecogirl · 01-08-2003, 07:24 PM

Thanks for the info Mont. The area where I will be camping does have gravel rather than sand. I might use something to keep from cutting into the powder coat and keep it clean.

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.

Art · 01-09-2003, 07:37 AM

I have visited the www.stablelift.com site and looked at their pictures and descriptions. I am very interested in the easy off – easy on feature and the under truck tie-down feature. If I have drawn the wrong conclusions (either good or bad) let me know.
My Conclusions follow:

Disadvantages:

1) Expensive - almost $2000
2) Ugly – subtracts from sleek appearance of today's modern campers.
3) Appears to have no shock-absorbing tie down (unless the whole assembly gives enough to avoid damage to the camper at the attachment points).
4) Only two or three jack motors – underpowered or slow?

Advantages:

1) Serves as camper jacks and camper stand and tie-down all in one unit.
2) Attachment to truck goes under the frame – no worry about truck bed coming loose.
3) Easy load and unload of the camper (2 minutes).
4) The pipe assembly on either side of the truck will serve as protection from careless door openers (good for parking lots and some campgrounds I have seen).

1999 Lance 1130
1999 Dodge Ram 3500 QuadCAB 6x6 5.9L gas
Old Town Camp 12 foot 35 lb. canoe

clecogirl · 01-09-2003, 08:19 AM

Art:
You forgot one key advantage. That would be: safety. That is the main reason I went with Stable Lift. My camper might not by the prettiest in the campground, but I can rest assured that it is the safest to load and unload.

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.

Mike.A · 01-09-2003, 08:34 AM

dewdo,
That is the whole point of getting this system in my opinion. The money is not a issue compared to either hurting myself or somebody else and also, how much is your camper worth ?
I know I dropped about 25k on mine & $2000 is hardley a drop in the bucket compared to fixing or replacing. When I take mine off the truck now, nobody will come even 20ft near me, so its up to me only to load and unload. If this camper was to fall on me, then who would drive the boat......because everybody in my family knows, I drive the boat....
I will be ordering mine in Feb. as soon as we pay off Santa.
Let me know how it performs on your trip.
Take care

Sinclair · 01-09-2003, 09:56 AM

Somehow, we've gotten 2 parallel Stable-Lift threads going on this forum . . .

I made some comments about convenience on the other thread that I stand by - I maintain that the convenience factor is overblown when you consider the entire task of camper removal or reattachment, not just the jacks and tiedowns.

I also have yet to see a satisfactory explanation of using the Stable-Lift on uneven ground. Not unlevel, but uneven. For instance, we've been in a number of campsites where the rig was level but the parking space was rutted. With 4 independent jacks, removing the camper would be no problem, but it seems to me that the Stable-Lift crossbars would be several inches off the ground in the ruts, at exactly the point where the truck wheels would roll over them.

But I could probably live with that. Weight is a bigger factor. According to Stable-Lift's website, their biggest system is only good up to 3600 pounds. The real-world loaded weight of our camper is close to 5500, as I expect it will be for any 11' unit.

So for me, this discussion is academic, really.

Sterling

-----------------
Sterling & Teresa
2003 Lance 1121, 1999 Ford F350 PSD 6x6, MotoSAT DataStorm
The question is, where RV now?

clecogirl · 01-09-2003, 12:40 PM

Sinclair:
I have a 11.5 Arctic Fox that probably comes in around the same weight as your unit. I admit I haven't really put the Stable Lift System to a good workout other than testing it out on the RV pad here at the house. So Far it has performed well in raising and lowering the camper onto and off of the truck.

I guess if you had weak batteries, you might have a problem. I have dual new batteries in both the truck and camper, so I have not encountered any problems. I have a generator in the camper as well so I don't worry much about the battery condition when raising or lowering the camper.

As for unlevel camping sites I don't see any real problems there either. At least none that I couldn't solve or change sites. Only campgrounds that I have been in that were like that were in MT. and I haven't been in very many campgrounds or camping sites that I couldn't find a level spot.

I think what it all boils down to is the price. Some people can't justify spending that kind of money for convenience and safety. If it was just the convenience, then I would have had a hard time trying to justyfy the system price as well.

Like Mike just said: I have over 25 grand soaked into the rig and if I can spend a couple more to protect it, and myself then I will do it.

My first attempt at unloading and reloading my rig with the corner jacks was a near disaster. One jack collapsed, and my wife ran around to that side trying to keep it from falling over. I yelled at her to get away as a quick thinking neighboring camper quickly slid the nearby picnic table under it to stop it's descent to the ground.

Those automatic jacks that come with most campers aren't the most reliable system for loading and unloading a 5,000 camper. Mine are now stored away until I sell the camper when I will remove the Stable Lift and replace the OEM jhacks on the rig I sell. Saving the Stable Lift for the next rig.

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.

FF1063 · 01-09-2003, 11:30 PM

Dewdo,
Your making it sound as if the latest remote control jack systems are outdated junk ?
I've yet to encounter any problems loading or unloading my 11.5 Lance and I have never heard of anyone reporting that an Attwood screw jack has collapsed. Are your jacks/tubes a carryover from some NASA space program ?

Ron

98 3500 Diesel Ram QC 4x4
99 Lance 1110 Slide-On Camper

clecogirl · 01-10-2003, 08:18 AM

Ron:
The automatic electric jacks that came with my camper are the square tube Happi Jac. I have a 4 X 4 and in order to get the camper high enough to load I always had to place 4 X 4 blocks beneath them.

I later bought the 6" extensions from Happi Jac. When it was up high enough to get the truck under or out from under it, just a slight breeze would rock it back and forth. This would send my wife into a nervous frenzy, and she would start yelling: "Sell that thing and we will just use the fiver!".

I bought it so I could tow my boat, so I don't intend to get rid of it since I am not ready to give up fishing yet. I might give up my wife, but not my boat and camper!

I will be loading it up as soon as I get the bags of sand out of the back of the truck and will be heading for AZ for about 2 or 3 months of largemouth bass fishing.

I have owned just about every type of RV available and I find the slide in fits my needs more than any of them. We spend most of our time outside anyway and the only time we go in is to sleep. My wife prefers to cook outside providing the weather is good.

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.

jothedog · 01-10-2003, 09:50 AM

Guess I don't understand this HappiJack instability. I have the AFox 1150 with happi Jack. It doesn't need blocks to get high enough for my 1-ton. When it's at it's highest level, it's still stable. In fact, some times when I'm lowering and not paying close attention, one of the jacks will have come completely off the ground and it's STILL stable. Switching to Stablelift for it's safety would not be an issue with me, since I already have a safe system. BTW, did I mention this raising and lowering is on uneven/unlevel ground?

clecogirl · 01-10-2003, 12:46 PM

My philosophy has always been: If you don't need it, then don't buy it. In my case I felt I needed it.

After my first use of the Happi Jacs, this was one unhappy camper. I felt there had to be a better & safer way. Using the Happi Jacs to load and unload I had to go slightly past the red line on my 3500 Dodge 4 X 4 before I put the 6" extensions on.

If you are happy with the automatic electric jacks, by all means save yourself a couple of grand, and stick with them.

If you want safety and convenience on a 5,000 lb slide in, then look at Stable Lift.

One nice thing about living in the U.S. is we have the freedom to make choices. In a lot of other countries you don't have that option.

Dewdo in the other Washington

2000 Dodge Ram 3500 dually with cummins diesel, Automatic, 4:10, BD exhaust brake, Auto Loc, DTT TC/VB, VA Box, Boost module/elbow, 4" exhaust, 14 cm turbo housing + All goodies including leather.
1992 King Of the Road fiver, 2000 11.5 Arctic Fox slide in with all the goodies. Stalbe Lift jack system.