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On the trail jacking

I carry 1 of the 1.5 HF aluminum Jack's in my Manx type buggy. At 16.5 of floor ground clearance, I need to lift at the lower shock mount for tire changes. 31" tires.
Use a 2x4 block to jack at front beam bearly gets both fronts off the ground.
Jack worked to r&r a VW motor for clutch repair in Big Bear on another's buggy, a little lower than mine.
Has light garage duty when not on a run. Is very light weight and easy to lift in and out. The side handle is a convenient place to pad lock it to an eye bolt.
 
Ton of good info here...so much so that my purpose got a little muddy for a moment. Focusing on changing a tire on the trail, I think it comes down to a bottle or a floor. I don't see much mud, and really doubt I'll ever suffer a flat tire in mud, especially since most of the mud I would encounter is a low spot in the trail that I could get through before needing to change a tire. (I think I may have just cursed myself by saying that) Since I'm not looking to use this for recovery, I don't see a benefit in the low clearance of an airbag, to the converse, it seems if anything, I'm going to need more lift, since I've got to get that full size tire in the space where the flat was. Bottle is small, has the strength and the lift. I also don't trust the air models, just something else to break. Can be used in a pinch for some recovery, since you can jack up and drive off it. Floor jack with a skid or wheels is also a possibility. Wheels gives me more lift, but also takes up more room. A skid with a pad under it would do the same thing, and the pad could be used as a base for a high-lift or bottle jack, or even the airbag if needed. I can actually see the big wheels on the pro-eagle getting in the way in rocky terrain. I'm thinking of getting the floor jack with the skid, and maybe later when I win the lottery, I'll pick up an airbag for special situations and recovery use.

On thing I'm confused by: Is the US Military using a scissor jack on the H-1even though is isn't for lifting? Not that I doubt that, but it seems a bit unsafe, even for the military....
 
Also, thanks for the input @Fordum, I'm glad you got involved...the more info the better, especially from the guys with different experience than I have. Same for @weshardin...both of you guys have immense knowledge about all things off road, your advice is always welcome with me.
 
Mastiff said:
I got one of those cute 1.5T HF jacks yesterday, since I wanted another for tire rotations anyway. Amazingly light and portable, the downside is the lifting height is not very much. With 35" tires, it can't reach the axle tube. Option 1 is to carry around 4x4 blocks. Option 2 is to get an extender for the main plate. Anyone been down this road?
Click to expand...
No personal experience, but saw this while I was looking at jacks:
pro eagle.JPG
 
anwat said:
No personal experience, but saw this while I was looking at jacks:
View attachment 362883
Click to expand...
The floor jack I carry in the crewcab has one of those extensions with it. The irony is I bought it after having trouble with the jack by itself not being tall enough on 2 occasions. Now since buying a better setup, I haven't needed to use it.
 
Since I noticed another thread covering this topic just get referred to this, I figure I should update. I ended up going with the floor jack and extension and then throwing a exhaust jack in the cavity of the spare tire. My problem was mostly space related so standing the floor jack up helped clear up some space...the exhaust jack is kind of limited in it's use, but it doesn't take any useful space away, so I figured I should have a second option. It would also be helpful if a rig ends up on it's side and you've got to roll it back over. Hopefully, since I'm prepared, I won't ever get another flat on the trail.
 
I got the Pro eagle extension and base plate and attached it to the HF floor jack I had already. I'm going to try to weld the little cup end from swag onto the extension, but haven't ordered it yet. Got the Bestauto 4 ton bag, works great on the driveway, is a lot more stable than I expected. We have yet to see how it will work on the trail.
I'm one of the wuss guys that can actually say I've never ventured more than a few hours' walk from a paved road unless I'm with at least one other truck. It was drilled into my head for so many years that it finally took hold as a fact that you don't venture into the desert assuming someone will be there to help. On many of our trips, we don't see another human for 3 or 4 days, so although I try to have everything I need, I won't go without at least one other vehicle. I'm also the guy who has never used his winch for "self-recovery" . I've been winched out by other people, and winched other people out. Just this last year I had my first experience with trees on the trail...usually there are just rocks and bigger rocks. I never realized how trees can scratch the hell out of your truck and why a bow saw would be a good tool to have on your truck. I know my experiences aren't typical, so sometimes I have a different viewpoint on things than a lot of guys on here.
 
This reminds me that I saw a couple of diy 'feet' along w/ some stabilizing for the hi-lift's a while back.. still on my to-do list.
 
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