/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>1780720
i also put the tire under the car for backup to my jackstands, which are a backup

These guys don't fail usually.
But I would always limit the time under the car to the minimum. (like places that would crush me)

Dont put your skull under the brake disk for very long times please :)

And if you want put extra tyres under the car as a "back up support"

anyways these guys are good - way saver than the car jacks

keep up the work and dont be too scared but stay safe

I had a large commercial riding mower slip off a floor jack (no jackstand) and break my goddamn collar bone last summer.

After a couple of weeks when I went back to finish fixing the mower I lifted it up by the roll bar with a forklift instead of relying on the jack.

That way if it failed at least it would kill me instead of just breaking my collar bone.

>>1780720
Was thinking of building some of pic related to use in parallel with Jack stands for extra back up if I'm doing extensive work under my vehicle. Good idea or is this just be a meme?

>>1780727
sorry to hear.

but funny ending xD

>>1780729
That's kind of neat, but pretty purpose-specific. Large amounts of DIY would be wheels off, so at least one corner can't use that. If you don't need wheels off, one axle you can roll up on rhino ramps to save time and effort.
I don't very often need all four wheels up like that unless they're coming off for a rotation or a 4 wheel brake job. It might be nice for working on exhaust, but even that can often be managed with just rhino ramps.
Anyway, I trust jack stands more than I sometimes trust my own use of them. The biggest issue is to make sure there's enough weight on the stands, so they don't slip from you kicking them, or you somehow lift the latch with your foot and open the ratchet. Someone made the news doing that under his old air cooled Porsche, but it was such a light car in the first place I think he was hardly injured.

>>1780729
the higher the car the better (to work)
so the wood stuff could be a good idea imo

but if you have the $$ I'd buy a old very good trolly jack (https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NjYxWDgxOA==/z/oRcAAOSwATdd0GeW/$_35.JPG
and use extra jackstands (4t)
make sure its not slippery and the ground is good

it will stay a little dangerous but you have kinda double safety (trollyjack + jackstand)

the trollyjack should be able to lift the car very high (expensive i dont own one but they are very helpfull)

>>1780729
I wouldn't leave a bunch of wide open spaces like the one in the picture but wood is fine.

>>1780730
Glad I could give a chuckle! :)

It was one of those things where I was in a rush to get shit done and needed a slice of humble pie I suppose.

The first 5 days brought the suck. Couldn't even wipe my ass properly because of course it was my right shoulder and I'm right handed. Had to button my pants by pushing the button against the footboard of my bed so I could hook it into the hole with my left hand.

On day 6 I was back to work doing some wrenching and driving a tractor... It would get sore and tired, but beat sitting on the couch watching t.v.

Mower pictured isn't mine, but the exact same model.

>>1780729
Seems like a waste. Jack stands rarely fail and the pics people post on /o/ are like 95% user error.

Some 6-ton or 12-ton double locking or otherwise quality stands will make you feel a lot more comfortable under there. Not just the extra weight capacity, but the wider base and not having little stands fully extended is good when you need to really yank on stuff under the car. The red ones in pic related have the ratcheting lever like other stands, but also a pin to lock em in place. Also I always leave the jack just touching the car as backup.

>>1780752

Yeah those bigger 6 and 12 ton stands from HF are pretty fucking beef...

I've used the 12 ton (orange) ones to support tractors and large trucks many times. I think I also ended up with another pair of them but they are in gray now.

>>1780744
nice mower

but you must be scaring the OP :D

why you guys all have tractors ^^
but they sure are usefull if only as a portable cherry picker

>>1780723
Jack stands are a back up?
Don't tell me you use a bottle jack or something as a main holder

>>1780762

Gotta have tractors for farmer stuff...

>>1780720
Steel and welds are fucking strong. As scary as it seems, they are over engineered like crazy with lowballed weight ratings.

I leave the jack under the car, I let the weight onto the stands but leave the jack touching

Blog post impending. Let me share some accumulated advice that I got years ago.

As you already know, NEVER EVER get under a car that is supported by a jack alone. The emergency scissor-jack supplied with many cars is called a "widow maker". And even if you have a nice hydraulic jack, you do not want to trust your life to a little seal that cost pennies (or less) to manufacture. Being crushed by a car, whether quickly or slowly, is a horrific way to die.

Ramps or platforms (e.g. >>1780729) are useful for oil changes and certain other jobs near the front of the engine bay. But many other jobs require removing the wheels, or you will simply need the extra height as >>1780739 says. Thus: jack stands.

Use only jack stands that were designed and built for this purpose. Cinder blocks are NOT an acceptable substitute.

Learn the factory-designed jack points for your vehicle. Other points "could work" but cannot really be relied on. On my car, the designated jack-points are pinch welds under the door sills. Using these points for both jack & stands is indeed awkward but not impossible. You can buy rubber jack-stand pads to help protect those points (I use ones from Harbor Freight).

Even with proper jack stands, properly used, you should still have extra "insurance". To clarify what >>1780723 said: use not just a tire, but a tire WITH wheel--and a full-size wheel at that. If you have a full-size spare, that will work to start. But anyway, it should take little time to remove a wheel for this purpose. Just be sure to loosen the lug nuts/bolts BEFORE jacking the car up, since the force required could make the car fall off the jack stands. As >>1780752 says, a jack (i.e. a hydraulic trolley jack) can be used as insurance too. At my house we also use a big block of wood, like a squared-off log, maybe 14" or so in diameter.

>>1780885 cont'd:

If you are raising the front of the vehicle, then the rear wheels should be chocked to prevent movement (and vice versa). After the car is lowered onto the jack stands, try gently rocking the car back and forth in both directions (front-to-back and side-to-side) to check whether it is secure. Both jack stands should be raised to the same height (i.e. one side of the car should not be higher than the other). AFAIK all jack stands are intended to raise the front or rear of the car--not the left side or right side alone, because that would add lateral force which could cause the stands to tilt or slip.

Avoid jacking up a car on grass, mud, or other surfaces that could sink or collapse. On asphalt, put plywood under the jack stands to prevent them from sinking in--which can happen, especially on hot days. (Even aside from the safety issue, it avoids marring the driveway.)

Especially if your jack stands lack a safety pin, BE AWARE of where the release lever is located relative to your own position, to avoid accidentally pressing it while rolling around under the car.

Stay safe! And enjoy the experience (at least after the job is done).

>>1780886 cont'd:

A few last things:

Especially in the beginning, you may feel better with a friend around, at least within shouting distance. Having your cell phone within reach may also be advisable. As >>1780725 said, we do not want to scare anyone away from automotive DIY. Granted there is always some risk; I begin any job with prayer. But you can mitigate much risk with a careful & deliberate approach to safety.

As you gain experience, be careful of the opposite problem: becoming lax. Recently I saw a photograph of someone working under a car supported only by a scissor jack, with his infant son on the ground beside him. Terrifying. Probably he had been in the same position "hundreds of times" before, and probably he escaped that time too. But why take the chance? As >>1780725 suggests, there is no reason to dawdle under the car. But neither do you want to rush or be anxious, which can lead to mistakes. Taking appropriate precautions can take a little longer to start, but should make the whole job go smoother.

To those guys talking about accidentally tripping the lever on a jack stand...

Every single one that I've been around the lever won't lift unless there is no weight, or very little weight on it... The action of the lever lock actually requires that the top part of the stand with the teeth on it lifts up slightly in order to disengage the lever completely.

>>1780723
am i doing it wrong because ive never once crawled under my car to change a tire

>>1780720
A big ass hardwood block, cinderbock, or even old rim work fine as a failsafe ya dumby. Also if you are so sketched out get better equipment. I know it's /diy/ but come on dude.

>>1780902

Cinderblock is not an appropriate failsafe. They will crumble if you look at them wrong.

Chunk of wood, wood cribbing stacked up properly, tires pulled off and thrown underneath are all failsafes.

>>1780895

We're not talking about changing a tire. We're talking about working on stuff that requires you to either lift the car to gain access/clearance, or stuff like suspension work that requires you to pull the wheels and tires and work under the car.

They are used for temporarily and safely replacing tires you moron.

Take it to a car shop with an elevator if you want to work under

>>1780757
bbeeeeeeeffffffcccaaaakkkkkee!

>>1780879
this. me too. all the weight on the stands. But jack just touching the car too

>>1780720
I cross myself every time I go under the car.

I am putting about 4" of wood boards under each tire too. I still think I am dead if my car drops though.

Would be nice to have a lift one day. Next time I want to do a car like what I have, I am not doing it without budgeting for a lift in my garage.

>>1780903
this
Do not use cinderblocks for support. They are not designed to support high loads on their own. They have a habit of cracking if you have only one and put weight on it. We had a mechanic shit himself because he put an f150 up on a bunch of cinder blocks, which after three minutes cracked under the cab and fell through. Apparently he did the same thing at his house, but he was under the truck for a while.

Oak blocks are good. They're useful for building a crib to support awkward equipment of unusual shapes, or otherwise lack good spots for stands.

>>1780720

Use 2 jackstands. Make sure they're both solid, stable and each carrying about 1/2 the weight.
You used a jack to put it up, right? Let the jack down slightly, like 1/4" gap.
Go the other way, start jacking the car again.
When you get to about 1/2 the force you needed to raise it the first time, stop jacking.
Now weight is being carried 3 places, split between 2 jackstands and 1 jack.
2 would have to fail for the car to drop significantly. Chance nil.