Van Jack - Page 3

Carl · 08-28-2013, 11:17 AM

This discussion brings up a great point which is "how" to use the Hi-Lift. (or any other jack)
There was a great detailed Hi-Lift article done a few years ago by Bruce Elfstrom at Overland Experts which made its way into the Overland Journal. In the article he covered how to safely use this valuable tool. Bottom line is that safe practice/training is key. Jack points, bumper lifting capacity, storage, etc... are also certainly things to consider.
The reason so many carry the Hi-Lift is the multi purpose ability to jack/lift, clamp, and winch.

rob_gendreau · 08-28-2013, 01:43 PM

I prefer scissor jacks because they have a smaller profile, but I also carry a bottle jack. The one cited looks nice.

I've used the Hi Lift version of that wheel lifter, shown earlier in the thread. It does press against the tire pretty hard, but not enough to knock if off the bead if that's the concern. It would be sketchy if you were on the downhill side.

I have stock-ish bumpers and there's nowhere to use a hi lift on them. Those guy line setups look kinda nice in a parking lot, and I've tried something similar using webbing (which at least you can cinch tight). Still a bit of a mess on a van; you've gotta go pretty high and unless you've got a way to tie off the suspension (again, nice to have webbing to do this) you have to lift awfully high. It just doesn't make me very happy. Getting a wheel up to stick stuff underneath, and helping others, is about all I'd count on it for...although one often does seem to come up with interesting uses when one has to.

Zeta · 08-28-2013, 01:59 PM

These are terrific: http://item.mobileweb.ebay.com/viewitem ... 1148414126

I carry two. Very safe as they fit nicely around the axles. I made a 3' handle so jacking is easier.

Z

Zeta · 07-10-2015, 11:54 PM

I still have my original two. They've never failed me, I'm using them right now!

Z

MadScience · 07-12-2015, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zeta

These are terrific: http://item.mobileweb.ebay.com/viewitem ... 1148414126

I carry two. Very safe as they fit nicely around the axles. I made a 3' handle so jacking is easier.

Z

+1

I just bought one after dealing with my blow-out with a standard bottle jack. I had a chance to play with it today. Good stuff! The only thing it needs is a longer bit of pipe to act as a handle with something on it so I can turn the relief valve from a sane distance.

Tienckb · 07-17-2015, 11:03 PM

Bought one just now

MadScience · 07-18-2015, 12:30 AM

Perhaps worth mentioning is that I changed my blown tire in the dust off of i5. Since the bottle jack was just going to dig in, I tossed a board (3/4" or better mdf) under it. Just as I got the spare in place, the jack went through the board. I got at least three of those lug nuts on surprisingly quickly after that.

Not ever wanting to spin that particular barrel again led to picking up one of the combo jack-stands.

Somewhere between that and I the blowout, I would have ordinarily needed to fall back to emergency pants, but I was mildly de-hydrated. Apparently there are up-sided to that condition.

REF · 07-18-2015, 12:48 AM

I ended up getting this attachment tool for my high lift, haven't used it yet. I posted this up in another jack thread a while back, just thought I'd share it again. Which brings up another point, know how to properly use your recovery gear and practice using it before you actually need it. I missed the last Bill Burke trip......someday.
http://www.sleeoffroad.com/products/pro ... detail.htm

coyotearms · 07-28-2015, 10:15 PM

This thread has been going on for years, and it still seems that many folks don't understand that with 16" wheels, the bottom of the rear axle when the tire is flat is about 7.5" from the grown. The stock crank-up jack I have goes from 7.5 to 16-3/4". That is pretty incredible, because I have not seen a hydraulic jack strong enough to lift one side of the axle that can go that low. I figure with the PowerBult whose minimum height is 10-3/4, which I bought by mistake (and it leaks too!), I would need to carry 3 pcs of 2x6 lumber at least 12 in long to run the flat tire up on to get enough clearance for it. That is just too much stuff to carry to be called a good solution. And I don't even care to think of using a high lift to change a tire, macho bumpers in place or not. So am I correct to say there have not been any solutions significantly better than the stock bottle jack proposed yet? I hope I am wrong!

coyotearms · 11-04-2015, 09:49 AM

Since no one responded to my challenge above and by now having experienced flats on both the front and rear (fortunately not at the same time), I came up with my own tweak of the by-the-manual method of using the stock Ford mechanical bottle jack and the official jacking locations for my 10,000 lb van. For the front end I just use it---relatively easy given the axle loads there and the formal lift point is more of a pin protruding from the axle, for which the Ford jack is fully compatible.

For the rear, since I have a highly capable ARB twin compressor and a pneumatic impact wrench, I made an adapter out of a short 3/8" to 1/2" socket extender by grinding down the 3/8" male end to fit the Ford bottle jack. The 1/2" female end via a longer 1/2" extender for safety goes to the impact wrench. With that it was just barely possible to get the tire off the ground, not speaking of jacking it high enough to change a flat. And it is a heavy enough load that the impact wrench had to bang away so hard that I was afraid the mechanical jack's life would be dramatically shortened. But by carrying just the adapter, which I now do, I have a way to change a tire even with a broken arm!

But my final solution for the rear came after not being able to find a capable scissor jack. I bought a cheap Harbor Freight 4 ton hydraulic jack so it can fit under the axle with a flat tire (7-5/8" to 15-1/8" vs. 7-1/2" to 16-3/5" for Ford jack). For leverage I stick in the larger of the two handles so I can get more leverage with a 2' 3/8" socket extender I carry anyway slipped in that handle, which makes it far easier than using the Ford jack with its flimsy 4' winder. The last step is to use the Ford jack as a jack stand and if necessary to reset the hydraulic jack by screwing out its head (and maybe a wood block under it because it does not have quite the reach of the Ford jack). But in the end the hydraulic jack stays put along with Ford jack next to it, which should be safe enough for changing a tire---remember any hydraulic jack can loose pressure and the head is not a cradle like the Ford jack has. This approach then only requires the additional jack that is no larger than the Ford jack and a small block of wood---not too much more stuff to carry. But I am also considering take-apart jack stands such as the compact "Torin T43004 3 Ton Aluminum Jack Stands" currently available on Amazon and carrying one of those---a good idea no matter how the van is jacked up!

Maybe if I learn how to bench press as much as I could when I was twenty, or jack up the rear before every breakfast, I would just carry the Ford jack for the rear, but until then the above approach will be my go-to way of staying cool and collected the next time I get a flat. And that hydraulic jack may just come in handy for some unforeseen need, such as maybe splitting wood?