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how big of a floor jack/jack stands do i need?

i've got a 1993 F150 supercab 4x4.

i'm looking at getting a floor jack and jack stands. i really don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on either. i don't plan on using them a ton (maybe a few times a year), so they don't need to be the best money can buy.

2 ton? 2.25 ton? 3 ton? 4 ton?

like i said, i don't want super-overkill, but i also like how my face looks currently
 

CaFordDude

Charter Member
7,748
464
Cali
i'm looking at getting a floor jack and jack stands. i really don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on either. i don't plan on using them a ton (maybe a few times a year),2 ton? 2.25 ton? 3 ton? 4 ton?

nice little play on words there....maybe unintentional but made me laugh.

but i also like how my face looks currently

well I guess you got one vote for that option..haha


Sorry man..it just seems like one of those days to me. Now my uneducated opinion says get a good set of jackstands and the actual jack is less important since you will only use it to jack it up then slide the stands underneath.

Here looks like three pretty decent deals from sears.
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00950188000P
3 ton jack, jack stands and creeper $149

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00950140000P
3 ton jack, jack stands $79

OR even

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00950138000P
2 1/4 ton jack and jack stands $49
 

CaFordDude

Charter Member
7,748
464
Cali
I like Sears only cause they are all over the place and even though I think the overall quality of their tools has gone down compared to 20-30 years ago, I have NEVER had a single issue returning a tool to Sears.
 

Skandocious

Post Whores Make Me Sick
19,076
655
California
I'm pretty sure I bought that 2 1/4 ton jack and stands set that Aaron posted-- third link. It's nice and compact so I keep that set in my toolbox in my truck in case of emergency. It lifts up my truck just find. They're not the same quality as the jacks I've got at home but they do the job just fine.

I did notice that the 2 1/4 ton jack is a lot HARDER to jack up my truck than my 4 or 5 ton jack (I dont remember what it is) at home. Like the handle is physically harder to push down.
 
These guys are correct. You are better off getting one from Sears.

I have a couple of the little tiny ones and they are fine for a flat tire, but that is about it.

Dad recently bought a big floor jack from the home depot (online-free shipping) for around $150. it goes down to 3.5" and up to 23" I think. Works well, especially on my truck. The straight axle is low in the front, but needs to go pretty high to work on anything under the truck.

I do have a larger one at home, but so far I have not tried it out. It came from Sam's in springfield. They have mixed reviews on hotrodders. The pros who use them every day hate them. The occasional user says they are ok.

Open:

http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h163/Brian_B_1956/misc/open.jpg

Closed:

http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h163/Brian_B_1956/misc/closed.jpg

Truthfully, I have never used jack stands. I have seen a few of the collapse (might have been chinese junk). I use rail road tie blocks (about 2' long) to set under the frames or tires as needed.

I also have a set of old (wide) steel wheels I use on concrete to set the tires on, if I just need the vehicles up in the air for something.

EDIT: I just looked at the links. That little 2 1/4 ton one...is one of the little ones I have. I also have an off brand one the same size. On my 89 ranger (stock tires) I had to put a 4X4 block on top of the jack to change the tires.


I know they will not lift my explorer high enough. It is a lot higher than the ranger to start with.


Look at the lift height and measure your truck!!!!
 
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Ridgerunner

Missouri Chapter member
23,457
573
Stillwater Ok
I have 3 ton jackstands that came with my floor Jack from Lowes now it's $99.00,I bought mine for 88.00 Kobalt brand
 

Skandocious

Post Whores Make Me Sick
19,076
655
California
EDIT: I just looked at the links. That little 2 1/4 ton one...is one of the little ones I have. I also have an off brand one the same size. On my 89 ranger (stock tires) I had to put a 4X4 block on top of the jack to change the tires.


I know they will not lift my explorer high enough. It is a lot higher than the ranger to start with.


Look at the lift height and measure your truck!!!!
Huh? Where are you jacking it up? On the frame? These jack/stand sets are meant for jacking up under the axle. Even with my 33" tires-- the small Craftsman 2 1/4 set works just fine for lifting the tire off the ground.
 
Look at the lift height and measure your truck!!!!
yea, when i was looking at them, some of the jack stands talked about having a low of 10" and a high of 16". i haven't measured, but that doesn't seem like much
 

Fellro

Moderator
Staff member
I always use the 4 point stands, never had a problem with them, the old tripod stands are junk though. For regular use, nothing less than a 3 ton, the longer handle and larger cylinder make the job easier than with the little 2 1/4 and 2 1/2 jacks are good for emergency type use, but not so great in the shop.
 

Skandocious

Post Whores Make Me Sick
19,076
655
California
I always use the 4 point stands, never had a problem with them, the old tripod stands are junk though. For regular use, nothing less than a 3 ton, the longer handle and larger cylinder make the job easier than with the little 2 1/4 and 2 1/2 jacks are good for emergency type use, but not so great in the shop.
smilieIagree smiliewhathesaid
 
Huh? Where are you jacking it up? On the frame? These jack/stand sets are meant for jacking up under the axle. Even with my 33" tires-- the small Craftsman 2 1/4 set works just fine for lifting the tire off the ground.


Yes the frame on the ranger. With the TTB running at a slope...it was not safe to jack it up that way. Besides the fact that the bottom flange was only around 3/16" think and could easily be bent with the full weight of the truck sitting on a small round jack top.

It was bent up enough when it was a few months old from wheeling. I did not need to make it worse. LOL

For changing a tire...like you indicate (lifting a tire off the ground) it might be fine, if you have a nice flat area to lift from.

If you need to lift from the frame...you have to go a lot higher. The suspension drop is a lot more than most people think.

Now...the straight axle under the 56 has nice big flat spots under the spring perch that are safe to lift from. I still won't use the little jacks on it though. You have to practically be under the truck while lifting to reach the handle. The jack has to go in from the front in order to get under it properly.
 
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Fellro

Moderator
Staff member
Good point to bring up there Brian. The 3 ton jacks give additional safety in that you don't have to be so close to the vehicle. I have had the little jacks tip over as well, since they don't have enough of a base spread.
 
I have never had one tip over, but I warped one bad when we were picking up the 56. It twisted sideways and slid out from under the straight axle. Dad and I jumped out from under it fast enough that neither of us were injured, but the jack was toast.

Tom: I am not sure what mechanical work you might be doing, but I have had to lift from the frame a lot on my 56. Most of that has been suspension work (which you more than likely will not be doing), but it made it a lot easier to install the shocks that way. That is something a lot of people do at home.
 

Skandocious

Post Whores Make Me Sick
19,076
655
California
Jacking under a properly setup TTB axle on a level surface is perfectly safe. If setup properly, the outer ends of the pivot arms should be pretty much parallel with the ground. With a lift kit like mine, it can be accomplished with drop brackets.

You can see here that even with my lift kit, the ends of the pivot arms have no slope to them. I jack underneath them all the time without any problems. It's MEANT to be done that way. Les Schwab also does it this way when they rotate my tires.


dsc01691xr5.jpg

dsc01687ls0.jpg

dsc01689my7.jpg
 

Fellro

Moderator
Staff member
I jack under the spring perches as well. I have twisted even my one 3 tone jack, but it has been well abused, and not quite the way it was designed for... but on average, int he shop, I can use the jacks safely. It is when you get out of the shop that the bigger jack is well worth it...
 
That has a little more room than a ranger. Looks fine on a hard surface for changing a tire.

Where is the end of you little jack handle when you are lifting it there? How far away from the bumper are you at the time? Jacks can slip, tip, collapse (spring a leak), and whatever else.



The jack would rub on the back of my tires (ranger again), if I used it there, plus with the jack there...I could not put anything under the tire to get the truck far enough up in the air to do something...like say...drop a transmission.

I just do not like being under a vehicle when I am jacking it up. I do not want to even be close to one going up (or down) on a little jack. Maybe that is just me.

On...fellro. That is another good point. I do not have a shop to work in. A gravel driveway is not the best place to use small jacks either.
 

Skandocious

Post Whores Make Me Sick
19,076
655
California
Yeah I'm always careful when I jack the truck up, never put my end under and part of the vehicle until I get some stand down there. You're right that the smaller jack with shorter handle makesnit harder but on my truck it still reaches far enough that I can stand just clear of the front bumper.
 
Glad you are staying clear. We do not want your girlfriend reporting on here you were smashed by your own truck. :nono:

I guess I am just overly scared by jacks. I have seen (in pictures) way to many people injured or even killed with them as well as the little jack stands.

I actually have 4 of them, but won't use them.

I am more of the over kill type when it comes to equipment. You should see the engine stand I made. The upright is a piece of 2" X 4" X 3/8" wall tubing. The rest is just as heavy made. I think you could probably hang an entire car off of it if the front legs were longer. :rolling laugh:

I have to unbolt the bottom half just to load it in a truck. :suspicious:
 

andym

Real men are fanatics
I bought a kit at Sears a few years ago for $100. It had BEEFY floor jack, two jack stands, and some other odds n ends. I still use the jack, but I upgraded to some heavy duty jack stands I bought at Costco for $30 or $40.

I still use it all regularly, although the floor jack is a heavy SOB and I don't like to lift it unless I have to. It probably weighs about 120 lbs.
 

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