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Bottle Jack
- Thread starter fridayman
- Start date
Not sure I would buy a bottle jack. Had a scary incedent last weekend.......
Had a flat on the way to dinner in the 120, so thought no probs, I'm a bloke, I'll change it. Jacked up the LC on the bottle jack, almost all the way to the limit, took off the wheel nuts, but could I get the wheel off, not a damm. So called my closest ELCOC buddy (Crispin) and he came armed with some 5 pound hammers and a rubber mallet....
As a precaution we pushed the spare under the car incase... anyway we still could not get the wheel off, so used his T-Max compressor (I think) to inflate the tyre in the hope I could make it home to deal with on Sunday morning. Nope, no can do, was going down way to fast, so Crispin gave it another thump with the hammer and the wheel finally came loose.... So swapped the two over, put the bolts on hand tight, and as my mate started to lower the car, the bottle jack tipped over
As the Irish say "tanks be to god" the wheel was on and no one was underneath.
I want to find a better replacement that the bottle jack, but don't want a massive jack taking up space.
oops, sorry about the long post...
Had a flat on the way to dinner in the 120, so thought no probs, I'm a bloke, I'll change it. Jacked up the LC on the bottle jack, almost all the way to the limit, took off the wheel nuts, but could I get the wheel off, not a damm. So called my closest ELCOC buddy (Crispin) and he came armed with some 5 pound hammers and a rubber mallet....
As a precaution we pushed the spare under the car incase... anyway we still could not get the wheel off, so used his T-Max compressor (I think) to inflate the tyre in the hope I could make it home to deal with on Sunday morning. Nope, no can do, was going down way to fast, so Crispin gave it another thump with the hammer and the wheel finally came loose.... So swapped the two over, put the bolts on hand tight, and as my mate started to lower the car, the bottle jack tipped over
As the Irish say "tanks be to god" the wheel was on and no one was underneath.I want to find a better replacement that the bottle jack, but don't want a massive jack taking up space.
oops, sorry about the long post...
Sheesh - close!
Exhaust jack is great but too big to cart around as well! Unless you carry axle stands with you. Might as well tow a trailer
Exhaust jack is great but too big to cart around as well! Unless you carry axle stands with you. Might as well tow a trailer
Paul
Well-Known Member
Which way did it tip? Did you have the wheels blocked?
Just ask as this is the usual to happen if they are not and we know what the cruiser handbrakes are like.
Always worth removing alloy wheels sometimes as they can stick on.
Just ask as this is the usual to happen if they are not and we know what the cruiser handbrakes are like.
Always worth removing alloy wheels sometimes as they can stick on.
Not a 100% sure as I was not the jack man, but I suspect it was in the forwards/backwards direction. Wheeled were not chocked so you may have a point, although my 120 is a auto and surprisingly the hand brake does work....
Lesson learnt though (I'll call the RAC next time.)
On another thought, has anyone used something like copper grease on the contact surfaces between the wheel and hub?
Lesson learnt though (I'll call the RAC next time.)
On another thought, has anyone used something like copper grease on the contact surfaces between the wheel and hub?
I found Vaseline / regular grease works on contact surfaces.
Many many moons back had something similar with an XR2 I had. not the jack part but the wheel welding itself to the hub. Could not get the wheel off - jacked up on flat spot between two hills near my home. ended up knocking the wheel to hell and back with a baseball bat to free it off. and the wheel finally came off with some force, and took off down the hill between the parked cars with me in hot pursuit - thankfully missed all cars and ended up in a bush.
Many many moons back had something similar with an XR2 I had. not the jack part but the wheel welding itself to the hub. Could not get the wheel off - jacked up on flat spot between two hills near my home. ended up knocking the wheel to hell and back with a baseball bat to free it off. and the wheel finally came off with some force, and took off down the hill between the parked cars with me in hot pursuit - thankfully missed all cars and ended up in a bush.
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Andrew Prince
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Feb 23, 2010
- Messages
- 2,232
The onlookers must have wondered what was going on - a nutter chasing a wheel with a baseball batadrianr said:
Bottle jacks are always tricky unless you have big cradles on top and a secure place to jack against on the vehicle. I've noticed that they seem to slip more on the way down (i.e. when letting the jack down) with a hydraulic jack. I've only ever had the jack slide out once but the wheel was about an inch from the ground, so no drama. But I've noticed the jack slipping a few times when letting down too fast - I now take it much more slowly.
Interesting the OEM screw jack has never caused me any issues - maybe its because it only descends as fast as you can unscrew it?Obviously bottle jacks are convenient because of their compactness but must always be used with caution!
Fridayman, what are you planning to lift so high? That's a very impressive toy!
