Electric Tongue Jack....??

Lately on the Facebook side a lot of our owners have been installing the Husky 4500 jack.  Amazon had a great sell on it just a day or so ago.

The main reason I got the Husky HB4500 was that hooking up my WDH hitch requires the Pod tongue to be connected to the hitch ball then cranking up  the tongue jack high enough for the spring arms to sit on the tongue brackets, then lowering the whole assembly back down. This means lifting the tongue of the Pod & the back of my TV at the same time. My 64 year old arm does not like doing that. So for me the electric tongue jack is a necessity that I highly recommend. 

Since I use an 18v drill with the right sized socket to run the stabilizer jacks up and down, I took the hand crank off the tongue jack and put a nut on the shaft the same size as the stabilizer jack shafts (and the tire lug nuts).  I had to drill a hole through the nut and drive a drift pin through, then grind off the ends of the pin.  Fifteen minutes or so and about $4 (not counting the cost of the drill), and I have an electric jack that zooms the pod up and down with ease. 

I've been meaning to pass this along for a while.  I've been using the drill for about a year with no troubles.  If the drill or the battery dies or disappears I can use a ratchet and socket or a lug wrench, but it's never come to that.

TT

You'll be happy with the Husky, I'm sure.  It is wonderful watching the pod move up and down with the touch of a finger.  800 pounds on the tongue of your Salem might be a bit much for my drill though.

I see there is a Husky 4500 with 2 remote fobs on Amazon.  Not sure I understand the need for (or even the desirability of) a remote control tongue jack.  But since it only seems to cost an extra $2 more than the one without the remote, I'd go for it!  It seems to me there is a bit of a safety factor in wanting to be right there when you are connecting and disconnecting though... not to mention you need to deal with the chains and emergency brake disconnect and Bargman, etc. anyway!

It would be fun stand there with your hands in your pockets and impress your friends and neighbors with your ability to move the camper up and down using only mind-control.

TT

I have a 179 with WDH.  Can somebody help me with figuring out what size electric tongue jack to purchase?  I see they are rated by Lbs. / lift.  Don't want to buy an undersized but also don't want to buy oversize since the bigger the more expensive.  Also any brand preference recommendations would be appreciated.