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Recovery jack comparison

jacks recovery

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#21 WanderingBison

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Posted 05 December 2021 - 10:31 PM

Awesome conversation and great article, not to mention everyone’s experience.

I travel extensively in my self-converted Ford Transit and bought a Safe-T Jack kit early on to replace the factory jack.

It includes a much better hydraulic jack, large beefy base plate (to help with stability and to spread the weight over a larger surface) along with extensions and adapter to help the hydraulic jack securely lift the vehicle.

I’ve used it to replace a tire on paved parking lot and to help raise the van so I could fit traction boards to get unstuck when nearly bottomed out.

I love the system and couldn’t be happier.

Of course, I also benefit from the VanCompas “sliders” to provide several, MUCH better lift points that a factory Transit has (lift points on a Transit are few and far between, especially in the front).

But I recently had a tire blow out (oye!) and discovered a serious limitation of my current setup.

Because of the blow-out, I did not have any point with enough clearance to fit my hydraulic jack and lift the rear axle enough to fit the fully inflated spare.

I had to lift from the leaf spring mount immediately behind the axle which did not provide enough lift.

A quick call to the local “tire guy” got me a floor jack and the ability to finish the tire change.

SO, I will be adding a second hydraulic jack to my current kit - a second hydraulic jack would have allowed me to lift the axle using the leaf spring enough to then slide in the second jack under the axle to finish the lift securely.

[mention]Machinebuilder [/mention] - That 6 ton hydraulic jack with telescopic rod would be perfect. And my current Safe-T Jack plates and cradles will continue to be perfect!

I’d love to hear your thoughts and hope this helps this conversation.

Edited by WanderingBison, 05 December 2021 - 10:33 PM.

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#22 ntsqd

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Posted 05 December 2021 - 11:20 PM

About 100 years ago I helped a friend move back from going to UTI in Phoenix. We drove his only vehicle, a V8 Vega with cooling issues, back to the Lower Left Coast. We left well after dark when it was cooler. About 10 miles East of Desert Center, at about 10:45 pm one of the rear tires let go.

 

No spare.

 

No jack.

 

Stock lug wrench.

 

Time to improvise. The desert has rocks, so we built up some cribbing under the axle at that corner. Then we dug out under the tire with the lug wrench's hub-cap popping "screw-driver" end.

About then a Lady (!) going the other way on I-10 made a U-Turn across the median and gave my friend a ride into Desert Center saying that God had told her to do a good deed that day (she did!). The kid running the gas station with tires to sell sold my friend a tire and mounted it at a steep discount because he was pizzed off at his dad (station owner) for something.

 

Meanwhile I deepened the hole that we dug knowing that an inflated tire was going to need more room. My friend came back with the Lady. After much thanks she continued on her way. We bolted the tire in place and continued on our way. We almost made it too. Ran out of gas about 7 miles from our destination at some extremely wee hour of the morning. In a gas station. That was closed. My friend never would tell me what transpired between he and the two girls heading home after some sort of party that found us and took him to get fuel (he had a gas can). It seemed like it took them a really long time to do that. They probably came across a banjo player somewhere and stopped to listen to he/she for while. Right?

 

My point is; don't get too hung up on having a tool for every conceivable situation. Your rig will weigh too much if you do, and life will throw you a situation that hadn't been considered possible.


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Thom

Where does that road go?

#23 Lighthawk

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Posted 05 December 2021 - 11:44 PM

 

 

My point is; don't get too hung up on having a tool for every conceivable situation. Your rig will weigh too much if you do, and life will throw you a situation that hadn't been considered possible.

 

Great story and lesson.


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#24 WanderingBison

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Posted 06 December 2021 - 01:17 AM

My point is; don't get too hung up on having a tool for every conceivable situation. Your rig will weigh too much if you do, and life will throw you a situation that hadn't been considered possible.


Absolutely agree, however, it depends where you go. The more isolated, the less likely you are to get someone who will come to help you, or at least, the longer it will take.

I also settled in for the night stuck because it preferred waiting until daylight, what’s the rush, etc.

I have also found that folks in some of the most remote areas are also the most likely to come to your help.

So, you can’t and probably don’t want to prepare for the apocalypse but your should prepare to be self-sufficient , especially if you operate in more remote areas.

I’m also passed the age where roadside banjo concerts just happen to me [emoji23]
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