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How about an electric winch motor?

You can buy some small winches pretty cheap these days.

I bought an el-cheapo 1500# winch recently on sale for $40.

I figured if nothing else I might use the 1/2 hp 12V motor some day for something.

Bad Ramer Jamer

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...1&d=1213508586

Well I bought this one. I got it straight from the manufacture, and saved $150.

According to the manufacture, it's rated at 10,000#'s, not 8 like the other company say's. I had them fax me their spec sheet to proof it.

I just finished the install tonight. Work's great, just a little slow, but not bad at all. I'll take slow over tearing up my $1,000,000 shoulder again. That is with no car's on the trailer though. The true test will be when I load that puppy up. I told them I was concerned it may not work. They said if it doesn't, just send it back. Can't beat that.

Jim Lane

What are you going to power this winch motor with?

Do you have a 12-volt battery in the trailer or you powering it off the 12-volt circuit from your trailer connector?

It is still going to draw some heavy amperage as it pulls more load and starts to stall.

Is it going to be permanently installed or removed and stowed when not in use?

Any case supply it with #6 or better directly to the battery (deep cycle preferred) and it should run allot better and if it is going to be removed you can use an Anderson connector.

Is there a place where you can lube the jackscrew?
Jim

Bad Ramer Jamer

I think you jinxed me. J/K

There wasn't much for instruction's. All it said was to use a 20 amp slow blow fuse. Well none of the auto part's store's around here has heard of a slow blow. Me either. So I called Barker (the manufacture) and they said I could use 10 or 12 gauge wire, and a 30 amp normal fuse. Unfortunatly, I had all ready tied into my trailer plug on the aux wire in the plug. Like I said before, it worked good with out car's. Today with car's on there, it blew 2 fuse's. I think it's only a 14 gauge wire in the plug, and that circuit is a normal 20 amp. So I'm hopeing that was the problem. It has a torque clutch, and it didn't over torque, so that's a good sign.

My next option is to pick up power at my winch. I have #2 cable ran back to there. I know that would work. Or I could just run a 10 gauge wire from the battery to the center prong on the truck plug, and get a new 7 way trailer plug with a 10 gauge wire in the center (I think). On my set up now, the center prong is not used, no wire attached. Here's the trailer plug. I just have to make sure where the 10 gauge wire's are. I'm going to call Barker tomorrow and see what the have to say. I'm open to suggestion's.

http://www.etrailer.com/pc-TEC~H20046.htm

Jim Lane

Do you have a battery anywhere on your trailer and is it a deep cycle or starting type?
You mention something about a winch.

Here are a few ideas.
Assuming there is a battery installed on the trailer I would connect your new jack motor to the onboard battery using heavy gauge wire.

If the battery is near the front you could use 10-gauge wire but if is anything more than maybe 6 feet I would go up to 8-gauce or even 6-gauge depending on how far away the battery is from the jacks.

Also run both wires to the battery terminals don’t try and save money by connecting the ground wire to the frame.

Instead of using a fuse I would use a 30 amp thermal self-resetting breaker in the (+) wire to the battery.

If the jack motor needs to be removed you should use an Anderson connector.

The problem with using a fuse with a motorized device is like you have experienced as the torque increases the motor draws more amps until it either stalls or blows the fuse.

You want the motor connected to the battery and not to the trailer connector because the battery is acting as a buffer to supply the extra current when it needs to generate the extra torque as it is lifting the loaded trailer.

I do not think the battery circuit could provide enough current to operate your landing gear jack successfully because of the voltage drop from the distance and the small gauge wire.

How are you charging the battery in the trailer, are you using the charge terminal from your trailer connector?

You could run a length of #2 welding cable from the battery (+) post to the front by the landing gear and terminate it at an insulated stud, from here you could connect the power to your jack motor with the thermal circuit breaker protecting from the stud forward.


Another idea I would be to run 2) #8-gauge wires from your battery through a 60 amp blade fuse along the frame rails to the end of the bed of your truck and to the end you will install one side of an Anderson Connector and either leave it loose or preferably mounted at the edge of the box facing rearward.

Then using 2) #8-gauge wires construct a pigtail about 8’ long with the other mating end of the Anderson Connector on one end connect the free end to the jack motor wiring. Secure the harness to the trailer by the jack.

Now to use the jack to lift the trailer unwind the harness from the trailer and plug it into the connector on your truck and using the jack lift the trailer and then back in an usual.

Once under and the gear is raised you will unplug the connector and stow it away on the trailer.

With the Andersons secured in the bed and the cable secured to the trailer if you forgot the disconnect them they would self disconnect as you drove away.

If the trailer were left unattended there would be no power to use the jack to raise the trailer for somebody else to steal your trailer.

Now you are thinking, what is this Anderson Connector I keep speaking of. I use these to disconnect all of my high current battery projects.

Scroll down to page 4
http://www.noco-usa.com/pdf/Noco-Cat...erProducts.pdf

To find these locally check your phone book for Fork Lift Repair shops, they are used on all of the electric lift truck.

I have a shop near me where I get them for under $5.00 per side.

I am not sure what you haul on your trailer but if you were to increase the wire size under your truck to #2 welding cable with the appropriate size Anderson you could then build yourself a pair of 30-foot jumper cables with good Parrot clamps on the ends.

With the #2 welding cable you can use 1 wire from the battery and ground the other one to the frame. Don’t use any fuse in this line.

Hey I just described what I have in my truck.

Now if for some reason a car you were hauling needed a jump you could plug into the recieptle at the back of your truck and go up to 30 feet from the rear of the truck.

Alright alright I will stop now and go to bed.
I hope this gives you some ideas, I know they will work.

If you want me to go into any more detail or you want me to stop just ask.

Is this the car trailer in your gallery? If it is I could have fun wiring that thing with LED’s
Jim

Any idea on how much weight is on the front of the trailer when you are trying to lift it?

Bad Ramer Jamer

Wow Jim,,,that's a heck of a write up. I really appreciate you taking the time.

Yes,,,it's my 3 car trailer in my gallery. In my post above, I mentioned the #2 cable run to my winch. It's the Superwinch battery eliminator set up with the welding cable, and connector's you mentioned. I had my first battery leak all over, and someone stole the second. So now,,,,I don't need no stinking batteries,,,,lol. Is that the same thing you have on your truck? I have no battery on the trailer except for the small break away battery.

It's all better now. I picked up power at the winch's #2 feed wire's. I temporarly used 12 gauge from there just to test it. I also used a 40 amp breaker as per Barker's recomendation. He said the motor will pull 30 amp's max. What breaker would be better. A 30 or 40 amp ? I'm going to re-do it with 10 gauge though just to have over kill. If I have the jack leg's sucked all the way up, it take's 4 minute's to get it off the truck. That's with taking a 5-10 second break once in awhile just so I don't over load anything. But nothing is even getting warm. I could cut that time in half if I didn't suck the leg's all the way up. I'm very pleased with the motor. I wished it was a little faster, but i can live with it.

Since you seem to like wiring project's, ( you mentioned you could have fun with L.E.D."S ) I'll tell you the rest of the story. This is the last leg of re-wiring the whole trailer. It was a mess with Scotch-lock connector's, and under sized wire on the whole trailer. I ran 8 gauge from the front to the back for the brake's. I ran a 12 gauge outdoor extension cord, wich is weather proof, for the light's and wire's going across the axle's for the brake's. A friend of mine told me to use the extension cord. At first I laughed at him, but it really is a good way to go I think. Oh ya. I changed all the light's to L.E.D.'s. And I have a whole sack of more to add.

I found a neat junction box too. Nice and roomy. It's color coded too to help the easily confused,,,like me. The box I have now is too small, and the plastic thread's are now striped making the cover loose. So I'm going to give this one a try.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Color...mZ120282334434

Well I'm done for now. Thank's again for the help. If you have any more idea's, throw em out there.