Barker Jack Maint w/ Pics

[mpsgolf]

My Barker electric jack has been "squealing" at some points in the stroke so I decided to conduct the maintenance recommended by the manufacturer's literature. To say the literature gives a poor description is being kind. So I decided to do it and document how. It turned out to be easy, but I documented it and posted it nonetheless. The squealing is better because I cleaned off the outside of the sliding post, but not gone so I will be contacting Barker to ask about it. Enjoy!


I have a 2015 International, 28'. It has a Barker LevelRite Hi Power 3000 electric jack (pic).


1. You'll need to be able to run the jack up and down, so I hooked up to my TV.



2. You can remove the cover, mine had two screws holding it on (pic). There was nothing under there that looked like it needed maintenance (pic). The nylon gears looked good, as did the wiring so I left it alone and did not apply any lube to the gears as they didn't appear to have any on them to begin with.


3. Run the jack all the way up (trailer "down" on switch label). Do this before you loosen the set screws as the motor didn't always run after loosening them so they are part of the electrical ground. The "powerhead" is held on with 3 set screws (pic). Loosen the set screws and lift off the powerhead. Use the jack tool on the slot in the post to manually screw the jack all the way up (counterclockwise from the top) (pic).



4. The instructions say add a liberal amount of grease every year to the top of the post where the motor interfaces the screw (pic). Mine looked to have plenty after several years use, but I headed the "liberal" and added a bit more.



5. Before reinstalling the powerhead, you need to sync the screw (pic). Use the jack tool (pic) on the post slot again and screw the jack 3 turns clockwise, then install the powerhead making sure to line up the motor pin with the slot in the top of the post. Tighten the 3 set screws.


6. Run the jack up and down to test.


You're done, have a cold one and admire your work!

[mpsgolf]

Improved pics.

[aftermath]

Thanks, this is a good reminder for all of us. Mine is older but the steps sound similar. I have serviced mine about every third year. Still running well.
You shouldn't have to connect this to your TV. It runs off the coach battery when not hooked up. I do my maintenance while the trailer is parked on the street in front of the house. My TV is in the garage.

[mpsgolf]

Connection to TV is to hold frame in the air whilst operating jack. To sync jack you need to run it all the way up.

Am I missing something? Seemed easiest way to support frame.

[Boog]

Thanks for starting this thread, it got me motivated to check my tongue jack. I looked up the data sheet on my model and it specified annual maintenance also. So, I thought that I would add to your thread and pictures by doing a video of my power head. I found plenty of grease on the jack screw, but the most important thing on mine was just getting the cover off and cleaning the metal shavings away from the motor works. They got in there at manufacture when they ran self-tapping screws into the sides to hold the cover on. If you’ve never done anything to your electric jack, it might help to at least take the cover off and check for chips.
I keep my jack head covered and the jack only gets used a couple dozen times a year, so there wasn’t a lot of wear. If you use it frequently and/or it’s exposed to the elements then annual maintenance would be in order. I think that I’ll check mine less frequently.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ef_JIV-tvwo

[Jim J]

It failed while on a trip to west Texas over Easter. Thought it might be the fuse but that wasn't it. Got out the Bottle jack and the hand crank for makeshift tongue support .

Got home and took everything apart, found a lot of corrosion around the ground terminals on the top of the motor housing and some loose push on connectors. When I removed the jack post, the main grounding point was corroded and the mounting bolts all showed rust at the top just under the head.

Tried 12 v power direct to the motor and the motor would turn forward and backward, cleaned up all the terminals and the mounting plate and hitch under it. Replaced all the mounting bolts and the star washer and the jack worked like it was new.

The Barker folks were helpful in troubleshooting the problem and I found out I could buy a new power head if my motor was bad for about half the cost of a new jack. The new head bolts up to the old post. New head eliminates the 2 limit switches with a mechanical clutch system.