There’s nothing worse than heading bush with a camper-trailer, and the jockey wheel decides it doesn’t want to play anymore. After a short-term bush fix, Ant decided to replace the jockey wheel on his Ultimate Camper with a swing-up type,…
There’s nothing worse than heading bush with a camper-trailer, and the jockey wheel decides it doesn’t want to play anymore. After a short-term bush fix, Ant decided to replace the jockey wheel on his Ultimate Camper with a swing-up type, so no more dirty, dusty wheel going into the boot!
Everything with age struggles to get up and go down. It only takes a lack of maintenance for a jockey wheel to die, and that’s a problem.
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I love a flashy new jockey wheel. But how to fit the bugger is the question.
There’s nothing that makes a man happier than a good grinding. That’s an angle grinder in hand and some cuttin’ to be done!
How exciting it is to get the old jockey wheel bracket off without losing any fingers.
Gary took me off the job. I’m not sure why – maybe it’s because I can’t see straight to measure to his exacting standards.
Once marked and the centre pop thingy used, I was ready to get the hole saw nice and hot.
Gaz handed me the drill and said, “Knock yourself out!” I wasn’t sure why I’d want to do that, so I drilled the hole while thinking about it.
The plate thingy sits neatly in my hole and it’s time to clean up the metal.
The hole wasn’t perfect so Gazman kicked me off the tools again – gee whizz, it only has to be a hole!
Have you heard the one about Gazman and the grinder? The sparks flew as their relationship grew!
How neat is the grinding work? Gaz wants it spot on before welding. He said, “Good preparation means an awesome job!”
Yes, this man is a professional, but we can show you his face. He can weld all sorts of steel stuff. Bring on The Gazman!
There’s nothing hotter than a bloke who can control his stick properly – so I’ve heard.
Before everything was welded properly, we decided to check out positioning – it was almost perfect.
Gazman’s job is done. Time for a cold Pale Ale while I clean and prep the steel for painting.
Ultimate Campers supplied some paint for me to finish the job. Now it’s time to clean up and get ready to hit the road. The bush is calling!
Getting bush is what life is all about – as long as it’s with a good jockey wheel!
Thanks
I want to thank Gary Sullivan for his help as I am still learning to weld. I’d also like to thank Ultimate Campers for their help in getting the bits out to me and the instructions so I could do the job.
GREASE
When the jockey wheel died it was a major issue. We didn’t have any grease with us so after pulling the unit apart and cleaning it, we were given some grease to get it to work well enough to get home. So now a container of grease lives in the Ultimate.
