Electric tongue jacks work on a simple principle: a small 12V motor turns a threaded rod through a gearbox, and the mechanical advantage of those threads converts motor torque into linear lift. It works - but it's slow, it has a lot of moving parts subject to wear, and the motor that has to fight gravity on every single cycle is the first thing to give out when the jack gets heavy use or sits outdoors for years. Hydraulic operates on a fundamentally different principle: pressurized fluid in a sealed cylinder, driven by a pump that never has to fight the mechanical resistance of a gear train. The result is lift that's up to 4 times faster than a typical electric jack, at 8,000 pounds of capacity that laughs at loads that would stall an electric motor.Made in USAMarine-Grade PumpUniversal Fit
The other thing hydraulics have going for them: the primary failure mode of an electric jack — a burned-out motor — simply doesn't exist. The Bigfoot pump is a marine-grade unit, built to run wet, run dirty, and run for years without complaint. There are no brushes to wear out, no gearbox to strip, no threaded rod to corrode and seize. If you've owned trailers long enough to have replaced a tongue jack, you already know how this story ends. The QT8K-16 is how you stop repeating it.
Hydraulic speed vs. typical electric jack
Handles the heaviest bumper pull loads
Fits any standard tongue jack opening – moves with you
Family-built, Midwest components
Most trailer owners think about tongue jacks as a fixed accessory — something that comes with the trailer, stays with the trailer, and gets replaced when it fails. The Bigfoot QT8K-16 changes that math entirely.
Because it's designed to fit any standard bumper pull tongue jack opening, the QT8K-16 isn't married to a specific trailer. When you upgrade from your current trailer to the next one — and most serious trailer owners do — the Bigfoot comes with you. You unmount it from the old trailer, mount it to the new one, and you're done. The jack you paid for in year one is still the jack you're running in year ten, on your third trailer.
Compare that to two or three electric tongue jack replacements at $200–$400 each over the same period — not counting the aggravation of each replacement — and the $850 price of the QT8K-16 starts looking less like a premium and more like the obvious choice. One purchase. One jack. Done.
The pump on the QT8K-16 is a marine-grade weatherproof unit – the same class of pump used in marine boarding platforms and hydraulic systems that live outdoors in salt air and constant moisture exposure. It's sealed against the elements in a way that no open-frame electric motor can match. The pump drives a sealed hydraulic circuit filled with Dexron III automatic transmission fluid – a fluid that doesn't freeze in cold weather the way some hydraulic fluids do, doesn't degrade rapidly, and is widely available anywhere transmission service is done if a fluid change is ever needed. The entire hydraulic circuit ships pre-assembled, pre-filled, and pressure-tested for leaks before it leaves the factory. You're not assembling a hydraulic system from scratch – you're mounting a proven, tested unit to your trailer.
Most RV and cargo trailer tongue weights run between 500 and 2,000 pounds on the lighter end, and up to 3,500+ pounds on heavy fifth wheels and goosenecks. A jack rated at 8,000 pounds is operating at a fraction of its design capacity on virtually any bumper pull trailer – and that margin is exactly the point.
When a hydraulic system operates well below its rated capacity, two things happen: it's faster (less pressure required, pump cycles quicker), and it lasts longer (components under less stress). The same electric jack that works fine at 3,000 pounds will labor, slow down, and shorten its own service life when you load it up. The QT8K-16 at 3,000 pounds isn't straining — it's barely waking up.
The 1-1/2" diameter hydraulic cylinder rod is serious hardware. It's the same basic cylinder technology Bigfoot uses in their full RV leveling systems — equipment designed to move and hold loaded motorhomes that weigh tens of thousands of pounds. On your bumper pull trailer, that cylinder is massively overbuilt by design, and that overbuilding is your decades of reliable service life.
The QT8K-16 is designed to fit any standard bumper pull trailer tongue jack mounting hole — the same bolt pattern used by virtually every production cargo trailer, equipment trailer, utility trailer, horse trailer, and camper trailer built to industry standards. If you currently have a standard A-frame or side-mount tongue jack, the Bigfoot bolts into the same location.
The tank assembly — the pump and reservoir — mounts directly to the jack by default, or can be remote-mounted separately for installations where a different position makes more sense. Custom hydraulic hose lengths for remote mounting are available by calling Bigfoot directly.
• Hydraulic cylinder with 1-1/2" rod and pump assembly (pre-assembled, pre-filled, leak-tested) • Toggle switch (stored inside pump box during shipping) • Heavy-duty steel stabilizing foot plate (64 sq in / 8"×8") • Stabilizing coupler • 5 feet of 4 AWG battery wire for hookup • Complete installation hardware • User manual • 1-Year Limited Parts & Labor WarrantyDownload the Bigfoot QT8K-16 Installation Diagram Not included / required for installation: • 12V battery source (uses existing trailer/tow vehicle 12V) • 2 quarts Dexron III automatic transmission fluid (if topping off needed) • Basic hand tools for installation
There is no crank handle. There is no waiting. There is a toggle switch mounted to the back of the pump assembly — flip it one direction to raise, flip it the other to lower. The hydraulic cylinder responds immediately, moving the tongue up or down in seconds across the full 16.5" of travel. From "ball under coupler" to "trailer nose up and level" in one smooth motion.
The toggle is positioned on the pump assembly itself, which means it's right there at the jack — no running a wire to a remote switch panel unless you want to. For installations where a remote switch location is preferred, the wiring is straightforward to extend.
Manual override: If power is unavailable, a manual override option is available from Bigfoot. No jack should ever leave you completely stranded, and the QT8K-16 doesn't.
The QT8K-16 requires a direct 12V battery connection — it cannot be powered through your trailer's 7-pin brake/light connector. This is true of all hydraulic tongue jacks and is not a limitation unique to Bigfoot; the pump draws more current than the light/brake plug circuit is designed to supply. The included 5-foot run of 4 AWG wire is appropriately sized for the pump's current demand — do not substitute smaller gauge wire. Connection is typically made directly to the tow vehicle battery or to a dedicated trailer battery. Most installations take 30–60 minutes total with basic tools.
This jack is for the trailer owner who has already learned what cheap costs. It's for someone who runs a cargo trailer or equipment trailer hard and needs gear that keeps up without complaint. It's for the RV owner who unhitches and hitches two or three times a weekend and is done counting crank turns or watching an electric motor slowly climb. It's for anyone who upgrades trailers every few years and wants one premium piece of kit that travels with them. And it's for anyone who has ever had a tongue jack fail at the wrong time and decided it would never happen again.
If you're comparing this to a $200 electric jack, you're not comparing the same thing. You're comparing one purchase to a recurring cost. One jack that works instantly, every time, to one that eventually won't. The QT8K-16 costs more up front because it's genuinely in a different category.
Electric jack route: $200–400 initial purchase + replacement in 5–8 years + another replacement when you upgrade trailers = $600–1,200+ over a decade, plus your time and frustration each time. Bigfoot QT8K-16 route: One purchase. Transfers to your next trailer. Outlasts the trailers you put it on. When you frame it that way, $850 isn't a premium — it's a discount.
Tools required: Basic hand tools (wrenches, sockets, drill for new mount holes if needed) Fluids: 2 quarts Dexron III automatic transmission fluid (if pre-fill needs topping off) Power: Direct 12V battery connection – tow vehicle battery or dedicated trailer battery Professional installation: Available directly from Bigfoot – call 1-800-752-9815 Remote tank mounting: Call Bigfoot for custom-length hydraulic hose if remote mounting is needed
• Cargo, equipment, utility, horse, and travel trailers with standard tongue jack opening • Owners who hitch and unhitch frequently • Anyone who has replaced a tongue jack before and won't do it again • Trailer upgraders who want premium equipment that moves with them • Heavy loads where electric jack speed and capacity fall short • Anyone who has stood in the rain counting crank handle rotations for the last time
• Direct 12V battery connection required – This jack cannot be powered through the trailer's 7-pin brake/light connector; wire directly to a 12V battery source using the included 4 AWG wire • 4 AWG wire minimum – Do not substitute smaller gauge wire; the pump requires adequate current capacity • Professional installation recommended – Especially for hydraulic hose routing and electrical connection; Bigfoot offers professional installation services at 1-800-752-9815 • Product registration required to activate warranty – Register at Bigfoot's website after installation • Toggle switch ships inside pump box – Do not discard the pump box packaging without retrieving the toggle switch from inside