Jacking up a 2021b Micro Minnie for removal of two wheels

backtrack15 · 05-16-2021, 08:44 AM

I just took my trailer to discount tire to get the wheels balanced. I did all the work (jacking, wheel removal, wheel install) except for the balancing itself. I took a few photos if anyone is interested.

link to photo album

I used 3-ton jack/jack-stand combination units, placed directly behind the axle tube on the axle mounts. I used rubber pads to keep from scratching the paint. This is a nice place to lift as the jack really cannot slide fore/aft or sideways.

RocknRoll · 05-17-2021, 03:45 AM

Thanks for posting this... Pretty nifty!

RoadRunner · 05-17-2021, 08:14 AM

Those are sharp looking jack / jack stands, I like the idea of “setting” the jack stand at the same time you are jacking up a tall vehicle like your trailer or F350.

Over 40 years ago in high school Automotive Shop class it was impressed upon us to use jack stands, that wood or concrete block was not a good idea to support a vehicle. Which is when I went to Sears and bought a set of jack stands that I still use today with all our vehicles including our 2108DS.

When I first started working on vehicles, I had initially used the jack in the vehicle for lifting until one Christmas, my father surprised me and bought me a floor jack which I just rebuilt about ten years ago and is still working great today.

On the trailer I jack up the side of the trailer under the frame next to where the axle mount of the front axle is welded and set the jack stand on the frame by the axle mount of the rear axle where it is reinforced.

As a suggestion, you would not have any issues with either your jack or the frame / axle bracket using one jack to lift each side of the trailer so you could remove all four wheels. Then you can just bring the wheels to be balanced and leave the trailer at home.

I only mention this because some businesses don’t allow vehicles to be worked on in their parking lots mostly because of liability issues.

Brian

backtrack15 · 05-17-2021, 08:43 AM

I debated jacking it up completely and removing all four wheels at the storage lot. I just wasn’t comfortable with it since the whole thing is on a slope. I could do it there if I left it attached to the truck, but then I wouldn’t have the truck to transport tires. Luckily discount tire had a huge lot and didn’t mind me playing off in the corner. This also gave me a chance to put some miles on it post-balance before putting it away.

Edit: Two tires were off by 1.75 oz. One was close to balanced, and one was off by about 4 oz. They don’t spin-balance at the factory. I’m guessing she was getting some decent vibrations back there.

DavidM · 05-17-2021, 09:41 AM

I love the idea behind these. I just bought separate hydraulic jack and jack stands to be able to change a tire myself on my new MH. These sound like a much better solution.

I checked the lift specs. The one you have will lift from 11" upwards. I think I need 9" minimum to deal with a flat tire. I can get that with the two ton model. My Axis only has about 3,500 lbs on each pair of duallies, so maybe that would work?

What do you think, is 3,500 vs 4,000 lbs cutting it too close.

David

backtrack15 · 05-17-2021, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidM

I love the idea behind these. I just bought separate hydraulic jack and jack stands to be able to change a tire myself on my new MH. These sound like a much better solution.

I checked the lift specs. The one you have will lift from 11" upwards. I think I need 9" minimum to deal with a flat tire. I can get that with the two ton model. My Axis only has about 3,500 lbs on each pair of duallies, so maybe that would work?

What do you think, is 3,500 vs 4,000 lbs cutting it too close.

David

I'm afraid I'm not really qualified to speculate on that. I guess it comes down to how much additional weight will get shifted to the jack once it starts lifting the axle off the ground. It'll likely be more than the tires supported with the whole thing comfortably on the ground.

Maybe you could plan to drive it up on a couple of inches of blocks prior to setting the jacks? I'm guessing that would be possible if only one of the tires had blown. Your current approach might still be the simplest/best overall.

RocknRoll · 05-18-2021, 12:19 PM

I ordered the jack/stand and it's definitely heavy and rugged. I like it!

Tried to follow where you placed the jack under the axle mounts and it seemed a little awkward. Do you think there's anything wrong with jacking it up by the axle itself? It seems a bit more stable but I don't want to break anything.

backtrack15 · 05-18-2021, 01:20 PM

The 2020 axles are from Lippert and have different mounts, so my approach may not work as well there. You’re not really supposed to jack from the axles themselves, for fear of bending them, but if there are no other good options I’d probably just keep the jack as close to the end of the axle as possible.

09 harley · 05-23-2021, 04:16 PM

I do it the dimple way. I have two floor jacks. The pad on each jack fits perfectly on the axle under the u bolts. I lift both jacks at the same time and you only need to lift the trailer about 2 inches. There is no possibility of axle damage this way. Mechanics lift all sorts of vehicles like this every day. If you jack on the frame you need to lift the trailer WAY up because you have to take all the suspension slack out before the wheel comes off the ground. If you don’t like this procedure please feel free to not use it. Please don’t try to persuade me or others to follow other procedures. Have a wonderful day. When I’m on the road and need to remove a wheel, which has only happened once, I use the factory screw jack from my F250. The top fits right in between the four nuts on the bottom of the spring shackle. It can’t slip out of position. Again I need to raise the jack about 2”. I would much rather go with the 3” instead of 8-12” if you use the frame

backtrack15 · 05-23-2021, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 09 harley

I do it the dimple way. I have two floor jacks. The pad on each jack fits perfectly on the axle under the u bolts. I lift both jacks at the same time and you only need to lift the trailer about 2 inches. There is no possibility of axle damage this way. Mechanics lift all sorts of vehicles like this every day. If you jack on the frame you need to lift the trailer WAY up because you have to take all the suspension slack out before the wheel comes off the ground. If you don’t like this procedure please feel free to not use it. Please don’t try to persuade me or others to follow other procedures. Have a wonderful day. When I’m on the road and need to remove a wheel, which has only happened once, I use the factory screw jack from my F250. The top fits right in between the four nuts on the bottom of the spring shackle. It can’t slip out of position. Again I need to raise the jack about 2”. I would much rather go with the 3” instead of 8-12” if you use the frame

If you have U-bolts and spring shackles, you've got a standard leaf-spring suspension instead of a torsion axle. I lifted my old spring-axle fifth-wheel via the ends of the axles using the same jacks I've shown here, but with a short cradle between the axle tube and the jack fabricated by cutting a 3" pipe (IIRC) in half lengthwise in order to distribute the pressure.

I'm not telling anyone how to do anything but merely showing the method I used when I wanted to remove more than one wheel on my 2021b torsion axle trailer. I only stroked the jacks 3" or so (torsion axles are different). One wheel (like changing a flat) can be done without any jack... as everyone already knows.

NeilV · 05-24-2021, 05:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by backtrack15

The 2020 axles are from Lippert and have different mounts, so my approach may not work as well there. You’re not really supposed to jack from the axles themselves, for fear of bending them, but if there are no other good options I’d probably just keep the jack as close to the end of the axle as possible.

You usually jack an axle from under where the mounting plate is attached to the axle be it a spring or torsion axle. I will either use a hydraulic floor or bottle jack for this purpose and over the past 55 years that I have been working on vehicles I have a selection ranging from 4 to 20 tons. If there is no corresponding mounting/clamp plate under the axle at that location you will often need to use something to spread the load when using a bottle jack.

That said its best practice to consult the trailer and axle manufactures documentation or if that information is not available call them before jacking to ensure you have the most accurate information available for your particular model and configuration.

backtrack15 · 05-24-2021, 06:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilV

That said its best practice to consult the trailer and axle manufactures documentation or if that information is not available call them before jacking to ensure you have the most accurate information available for your particular model and configuration.

Agreed.

Unfortunately it is quite common to be told that you can only jack via the trailer frame, which is not convenient due to the extra starting height and the need to jack high enough to let the springs go slack. That's why I went with an axle cradle on my old fifth-wheel (it was a spring-over-axle design and only had U-bolts around the axle tube). The 1/2 circle cradle fit between the U-bolts and worked nicely to distribute the pressure from the jack a bit. Thus I ignored Lippert and jacked on the axle for that trailer. The 2021b Micro Minnie (Dexter torsion axles) is much nicer to work with given the design and elevation of the axle mounts. Prior versions of the Micro Minnie had Lippert torsion axles (diamond design) and the mounts were different, so a call to Lippert for advice might be a good idea if there are no obvious/safe/convenient ways to lift without jacking on the axle tube. Definitely use whatever jacks you like. I've got a variety of jacks as well, but the jack/jack-stand combos work really well for this Micro Minnie.

techica · 12-30-2022, 09:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidM

I love the idea behind these. I just bought separate hydraulic jack and jack stands to be able to change a tire myself on my new MH. These sound like a much better solution.

I checked the lift specs. The one you have will lift from 11" upwards. I think I need 9" minimum to deal with a flat tire. I can get that with the two ton model. My Axis only has about 3,500 lbs on each pair of duallies, so maybe that would work?

What do you think, is 3,500 vs 4,000 lbs cutting it too close.

David

I am in the market for a jack and jack stands. Would you recommend the ones you bought? and if yes, what did you get?

Thanks so much!