Money saving tip: There's a trade-off between carrying and not carrying rarely used hardware with you in your truck. The former allows you to make repairs such as a crank handle repair quickly and easily. The latter means that you'll probably have to stop somewhere along your route and buy it. For smaller repairs like this, it makes no sense to call a service truck and rack up the charges associated with that.

It pays to carry some basic tools and equipment with you. What if Mike hadn't had even a screwdriver with him?

For those times when the crank handle is missing altogether, you may be able (although we don't recommend it) to slowly and painstakingly rotate the landing gear by turning the screwdriver when inserted in the holes in the shaft. This is especially difficult if you are lowering your landing gear in preparation for dropping your trailer. Don't strain your back. And remember that the shaft of a screwdriver wasn't meant for horizontal applications, only rotating vertically. We've never heard of a screwdriver snapping from being used in this way, but it is a possibility. Beware of potential injuries from doing this.

Another temporary stopgap is "borrowing" the crank handle from another trailer temporarily -- as long as you put it back when you're done with your immediate task. Get permission from whomever you need to get it before doing this.

Finally, if other drivers are nearby, you may ask them if they have the kind of hardware you need to make this repair. If they do and the cost is not too expensive, you may choose to pay for that. You just might have made a new friend in the process.