Low Profile Trolley Jacks

[mosoto]

Guys, I'm after a trolley jack as per the heading BUT every one I've looked at has a serious design flaw. They are all labelled "Low Profile" around 80-90mm minimum height but this is only at the front. I need to get the "Whole" jack under the front of my car so it will reach the crossmember. Has anyone found a low profile trolley jack that will lift the whole front end, and not one side at a time.

[Evman]

The best advice I can give is a few planks of wood or some bricks to drive the front wheels up onto to gain the extra clearance :)

[mosoto]

good idea but the car is too heavy to push....................

[RAWKUS]

Unless you have a hoist, I suggest you fashion up some low ramps with a flat section on top to prevent rolling off. This is easily done with timber sleepers or weld some up. Handy for oil changes too...enough to get yourself under to remove stone tray and sump plug without jacking (safe) :goodjob:
Make sure you chock both the front and rear of the rear wheels so that the jack moves when jacking up, not the car.


good idea but the car is too heavy to push....................

Turn the wheels by hand rather than pushing the car or drive it up.

[mosoto]

I have ramps but rarely use them as I prefer to back my car into the garage, gives me more light & space around the front end when i'm nearer the garage door. This unfortunately presents the problem of zero manouverability...............hence I cant use the ramps.
Edit: actually come to think of it the last time I did try to use the ramps on the front they were too steep.

[Evman]

good idea but the car is too heavy to push....................

Drive it up :) I've done it about 10 times to do oil changes, etc :eyes:

[mosoto]

Drive it up :) I've done it about 10 times to do oil changes, etc :eyes:

hehe.........If i could "drive" it I wouldn't waste my energy pushing it :rofl:
under normal circumstances you'd be right tho........

[Evman]

hehe.........If i could "drive" it I wouldn't waste my energy pushing it :rofl:
under normal circumstances you'd be right tho........

Ooooh sorry, I didn't realise you couldn't drive it :jester:

[vuss383]

Mosoto , maybe some driving lessons may be in order if you can't drive it up a pair of ramps !! :1peek:

[mosoto]

LOL, there's always one comedian amongst us...........

[Ahyeah]

Mosoto , maybe some driving lessons may be in order if you can't drive it up a pair of ramps !! :1peek:

:rofl::rofl::rofl:


Possibly the most dangerous thing you could do is dig a small shallow ditch in your grass.. enough to put a normal trolley jack in, then put a plank of wood in the ditch to make a flat surface, roll car over jack and with the extra clearance provided by the ditch hopefully the jack fits....

Providing you dont mind working on grass or dirt, it should get you out of trouble :1peek:

[CeeVee8]

I have one of these 2.25T jacks and find it to be pretty good. Bought it from Gasweld in Newcastle.


http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h132/ceevee8/Misc/jack.jpg

[mosoto]

Thanx CV, thats fairly similar to the one's I've been looking at. The problem is the body at the hinge point doesn't fit under the front bar. The low section of the jack needs to be nearly 850mm long to reach the xmember OR the whole jack needs to be lower in height over it's entire length.

[OPTIMUS]

not sure if your vx has a bash plate but i normally jack from that then put jack stands at the crossmember as my trolley jack wont fit any further under. you probably only need an inch or 2 of wood as ramps to get it high enough should be able to push it that far no?

[mosoto]

that's an option yeah.........I was hoping to do it in one hit with no f**kin around if you know what I mean :)
I didn't think the bash plate would be strong enough !!!!!!!

[GHZ28]

that's an option yeah.........I was hoping to do it in one hit with no f**kin around if you know what I mean :)
I didn't think the bash plate would be strong enough !!!!!!!

A bash plate, as supplied on Police and country pack cars is, the piece of tin that is a splash guard on normal delivery cars is not.

I took the "sump guard" off my VX ex-police car and put it on my VT track car, and it handles being used as a jacking point quite well.

But that was all superseded by onboard airjacks today.....

Garry

[JezzaB]

that's an option yeah.........I was hoping to do it in one hit with no f**kin around if you know what I mean :)
I didn't think the bash plate would be strong enough !!!!!!!

Hmm yours must be f**kin low low coz I can jack mine up with most of those jacks and a piece of wood and I have pushed and driven on both and you can roll a coke can under my ute and it will get stuck. And it has a VX Clubby front bar.

Or, whats wrong with jacking up at the Jack Point on the skirt and then an axel stand and then the other Jack Point and an axel stand. That would certainly get you higher than Joe Cocker with no problems

Jez

[mosoto]

another option I've done before, but I'd rather not.
jezzab i'll get a pic................

this is my old 'lil' jack under the front
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u24/mosoto/Calais/230808008.jpg

The jack is small and has had it's day but as you can see it's not going to get past the sump guard. I guess if I remove the guard (2 bolts) I might actually get a "low profile" jack in close enough to the crossmember. So can anyone suggest a good low profile trolley jack?

[TAKEITEZ]

buy yourself a proper high quality jack...
i have a blue point one... it was about $450 but its VERY low...

even still though, to get it under the front of the ute its just easier to get some 50mm thick timber and drive up onto it...
because you can't drive though, how about jacking up from one side, then putting some wood under that wheel, then going to the centre under the cross member??????

[mosoto]

that's what I'm going to have to do I think, no other way. I'll have a search for Bluepoint :goodjob:

[shaunv8]

Have a look at these Jacks (http://www.nextag.com/low-profile-jack/search-html)

[Blown 540]

You can get the low profile long nose jacks in australia , just need to do a bit of searching ,they have a longer low profile reach but will still not go fully under your car if it is low.

[macca_779]

What I do is use the scissor jack from the boot to slightly jack up one side of the car.. Then my trolley jack fits right under no problems.

[zorro]

I have a bluepoint 1500kg jack which will fit under a commodore with ultra lows and monaro bodykit. it sits about 70mm from memory

be prepared for a scare on the price though.

[shaunv8]

I have a bluepoint 1500kg jack which will fit under a commodore with ultra lows and monaro bodykit. it sits about 70mm from memory

be prepared for a scare on the price though.


Bluepoint, meaning Snap-on, meaning ridiculous price :)

[zorro]

your not wrong there shaun

[mosoto]

Thanx for the link Shaun, plenty to look at there.
Blown.......do you have a name or link to the "long nose" make.

[Blown 540]

Thanx for the link Shaun, plenty to look at there.
Blown.......do you have a name or link to the "long nose" make.

Dont have a link , but do a search for Omega low profile trolley jacks and see what comes up.:)

[will_menz]

Bluepoint, meaning Snap-on, meaning ridiculous price :)


yeh but ****ing good tools ya get what ya pay for in the tool department. wouldnt use anything other than snap on/blue point or stahlwillie but then i use mine everyday so they pay off.


all i got is two skids of red gum cut 30 degree angles on on end of each and then i just roll onto them and jack away from the cross member. if ya back into ya shed then put them behin ya front wheels and reverse onto them works for me. they dont need to be very big so they will fit under the side skirts

[mosoto]

cheers Will, I'll be doing that in the future...............
having at look at Stahlwille...........3 sites and no reference to jacks?

Did a search on the Omega long nose, getting up around $500 in Oz.:spew:

I can get this locally for $229.00 http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/Products?stockCode=J041. it looks like tradequip.

This would be the desired unit http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200345429_200345429
excellent reviews, low profile, long reach...............not available in Oz:vpo:

[Bozza_VE]

You could take the front bar off and the jack it up when it hasno front bar on??

[Blown 540]

cheers Will, I'll be doing that in the future...............
having at look at Stahlwille...........3 sites and no reference to jacks?

Did a search on the Omega long nose, getting up around $500 in Oz.:spew:

I can get this locally for $229.00 http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/Products?stockCode=J041. it looks like tradequip.

This would be the desired unit http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200345429_200345429
excellent reviews, low profile, long reach...............not available in Oz:vpo:


If you buy a cheap jack though that is what you get,pay a bit extra and get a decent one ,IMO and have chucked a few out cause there sh#t its your arms, legs and body that you will be trusting it to keep the car off.

[bpm]

dont get under a car supported only by a jack!!

[Blown 540]

dont get under a car supported only by a jack!!

I was going to add that bit, but many people do,some of the car stands you buy these days are no better(cheap crap).

[HJGTSMunro]

I saw some alluminium trolley jack on ebay a few months back that were 65mm all the way. they were designed for race cars and lifted 2500kg. Pricey though - abount $890. can't see them there now

[mosoto]

You could take the front bar off and the jack it up when it hasno front bar on??

Front bar is not really the problem it would seem, more the stone tray and most jacks wont reach the crossmember from that point (see prev pic).
Otherwise removing the front bar :rofl: I prefer not wasting time on uneccesary tasks..............


If you buy a cheap jack though that is what you get,pay a bit extra and get a decent one

I purchased the Tradequip Jack for $239 at Glenfords, came with a work light & recoiling lead ($99 value) The jack was $229 from the distributors outlet Hare & Forbes, so not a bad deal thanks to Fathers Day specials :)
Pretty hefty unit, double valved piston, good quality base all steel construction. This suits me as it will never leave my garage floor, so no real need for an ally unit.


I saw some alluminium trolley jack on ebay a few months back that were 65mm all the way. they were designed for race cars and lifted 2500kg. Pricey though - abount $890. can't see them there now

An all ally unit that would actually lift 2500Kg would not be cheap, if it lifted what it claimed......there's lots of shonky ones on ebay that claim capacities far greater than they achieve.

[GMH-TWR]

The omega jacks are pretty good,

Got mine from Bursons, lowest point of the jack is 58mm. I can easily reach the diff or the front cross member on a lowered vehicle

[Mozz]

I purchased the Tradequip Jack for $239 at Glenfords, came with a work light & recoiling lead ($99 value) The jack was $229 from the distributors outlet Hare & Forbes, so not a bad deal thanks to Fathers Day specials :)
Pretty hefty unit, double valved piston, good quality base all steel construction. This suits me as it will never leave my garage floor, so no real need for an ally unit.


The current glenfords catalogue has this special back on but obviously the oz dollar has taken a hit so it's now $259 including the work light with recoiling lead ($99 value) - picked up the last one at Glenfords Archerfield here in Brisbane - very heavy unit - probably 25-30kg but as suggested in previous posts, aluminium is lighter but lots of dollars for one that can lift 2000kg.

Another plug for safe working practices around the home, get a good set of car stands and wheel chocks and never work under a car with only the jack supporting it. Unfortunately I have had the sorry task of investigating more than one death resulting from poor decisions by blokes working on their cars at home.

Here is a link to the pdf document - bloke at the store said they had sold though a pallet load of them which surprised him as they had previously had a special on some aluminium trolley jacks so he thought that everyone who wanted one already had one - obviously not.

http://www.glenfords.com.au/Uploads/Images/Cond-18-23.pdf

[ls1nos]

I have one of these 2.25T jacks and find it to be pretty good. Bought it from Gasweld in Newcastle.


http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h132/ceevee8/Misc/jack.jpg


these jacks are sh!t and very heavy, l had one it leaked and l brought it back, brought it from some speed shop in Melbourne can`t say which one because at first they didn`t want to give a refund until l grab the little prick by the throat and made him give me my money back

what l did was keep my old jack that doesn`t fit under the car and brought 2 go-jacks on ebay for $250, they fit around the tyre and lift the tyres up, then slide the other jack on to the k-frame and jack up the car, also handy to push the car around

[singlecampshrod]

i have the latest blue point low lift jack 70mm i think from memory straight under all our cars. Best money i ever spent but always seems to be at mates places lol.