Okay, I'm curious if you guys still use the old style bumper jacks that came with your wagon. I know they aren't the safest things in the world and could let go when its jacked up. I got mine out today and used it for the first time for the heck of it, not sure how I feel about it though. So who uses it still? Oh and sorry if this is in the wrong spot.
------I'm curious how many people lost hands, arms, legs, lives using those old style bumper jacks? Not the best thing on bumpers either.:confused: To me, they only look good in the trunk of a restored vehicle.
I fully intend on using mine, but only for roadside tire changes. If I'm at home, I'm either getting out my 3 and 6 ton bottle jacks and a pair or two of jackstands, or I really want one of those AC Delco aluminum jacks they get $149 for at OReilly. They're supposed to have a lifetime warranty or something, that's what the towing company I worked for in '07 used. They kept them in the boxes on the side of the truck and I used them heavily along with a CT4850HO Snap-On cordless impact. I miss that cordless impact and I will definitely get another when it's time to do things like bushings and suspension work in the garage. Worth every penny even at full retail. I think the current model is CT6850 and runs $555 list. Has more torque (420lbs-ft) than my 351C (prob about 325lbs-ft)!!!
occupant, if necessary buy one of those $29.95 hydraulic jacks at any auto parts store just for road emergencies. Anything is better and safer than those old bumper jacks. Your bumpers will love you for it!
You will love you for it... My Dad used them on the tire when ever we changed them, for ourselves or for others. We only stopped after a family friend was under his when the jack snapped and the jack stands weren't properly placed. Old 70s Riviera fell right on him. They said he died instantly.
My original bumper jack took a lot of beating getting me unstuck from deep sand. Jack it up, push it off the jack and out of the ruts. (repeat). Years later, it failed. The tab that fits into the bumper broke while I was changing a rear tire in my driveway. As soon as the wheel cleared the lugs, it came down with all that weight on the chrome trim strip pinning my right wrist to the tire. Luckily, it landed on the thickest part of my bones, just above the wrist joint. I didn't feel a thing at the time, just the strange realization that I was pinned. My bottle jack was nearby, just barely in reach. I got it in place only to find that the valve was open and my pliers were just too far out of reach. I had to holler for help until one of my neighbors came over and got the car off me. I was hella sore for weeks, but no serious damage. Never got x-rayed, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were some hairline fractures. I have since replaced the old jack with another one and it is what I keep for roadside use. At home I only use a rolling floor jack and jack stands.
I don't like bottle jacks, no stability. I carry a 2 - 1/2 ton floor jack (with carrying case), wheel chocks, various wood hunks, and a jackstand in the back of my wagon along with a full set of tools, don't use the lug wrench either. I'll never get a flat with all that stuff waiting and ready. The '92 Custom Cruiser I just got is stinkin' metric so I bought a crescent wrench and vise grips to add to the tool set.
I still use my bumper jack, because it allows the rear suspension to hang down so I can get those 20 inch steam rollers off of the car when needed. The jack at least has a metal dowel that inserts in the bumper of my wagon to help hold it in place. However I used the bumper jack on my 64 nova years ago and it scared the >?:"! out of me cause it did lean and kicked out from under the bumper.
-----------Years ago those bumper jacks were all that was available. I agree, getting tires to clear can be a problem. One old RV was nearly impossible to get tires to clear. But bumper jacks are too dangerous to chance. Notice how many of us mature gentlemen refuse to use them anymore. We have seen them at work! They don't call him lefty for nothing!
I use the bumper jack because my car sits to low to even get a floor jack under the frame or pumpkin. They made these things for years and they work well on some cars and some they don't. Any jack is dangerous and has to be handled with care. I'll be glad when I know everything, I mean when I mature. If your using one thats worn out and it fails that can happen with any kind of a jack/tool.
Good luck and be careful. They do make hydralic jacks that can be used on streetrods and sports cars that are only inches tall. Carrying a few boards to drive up on may help give more jack clearance. There is a rule and laws concerning scrub lines. If you were referring to me, I knew much more when I was 21 than now. Ask my dad. He said I was a know-it-all! As for being mature I'll never grow up. Many a new bumper jack has slipped and fallen. As I wrote, just be super careful. The life you save may be yours.
Oh, how I loathed those things. They are "serviceable" at best but only on hard, level ground. I learned the hard way to CHOCK THE WHEELS fore and aft and to start the jacking over from a repositioned base if the jack was starting to angle over. Fortunately, I was never injured by one but had several ocassions of these jacks falling down. Not to mention the times the lugwrench/handle was flung out with force while lowering. Lightweight aluminum service jacks are on sale at Harbor Freight for $70 all the time and most wagons have ample room for one. OH, what about the damage they would sometimes do to bodywork around the bumpers? I remember those flimsy chrome bumpers deflecting into sheetmetal under the weight of the car.
