Recommend me a trolley jack

londonTiger

heard great things aboutt he costco arcan one. Could probably get a membership with my business but that's another £25 that I don't want to spend.

forgotmyname

Most clarke products are other rebadged versions of other brands

When you checkout the tool tests and comparisons you will probably find sealey, Draper, Clarke are actually the same tool in a different colour or package.

A good wide base clarke jack will last you many many years. Mines about 20 years old. And i would risk working under a car supported only by that. I would never do that with the cheaper units you can buy from argos etc.

AdrianC

forgotmyname wrote: »

And i would risk working under a car supported only by that.

I wouldn't, even if it was a brand-spanking Snap On jack...

londonTiger

my 2 cents.

Use any cheap jacks. But use proper axle stands. Dont buy those foldable axle stands, use the solid ones with as little moving parts as possible.

Hydraulics fail even on the most expensive stuck. On any hydraulic there is just 1 tiny rubber washer holding all the pressure and they can fail and when they do the load will drop freefall speed.

londonTiger

the only reason to use an expensive jack is if you have a garage and lift the car up regularly. In which case the big ones will be worthwhile because they can lift a lot quicker and reach deeper.

But they're big, beefier and not easy to carry.

Rodney_Trotter

londonTiger wrote: »

my 2 cents.

Use any cheap jacks. But use proper axle stands. Dont buy those foldable axle stands, use the solid ones with as little moving parts as possible.

Hydraulics fail even on the most expensive stuck. On any hydraulic there is just 1 tiny rubber washer holding all the pressure and they can fail and when they do the load will drop freefall speed.

Hydraulics are more likely to fail on a cheap jack are they not?


A cheap jack with a narrow wheel base lifting to its capacity all the time is maybe not a long term solution.

londonTiger

Rodney_Trotter wrote: »

Hydraulics are more likely to fail on a cheap jack are they not?


A cheap jack with a narrow wheel base lifting to its capacity all the time is maybe not a long term solution.

I agree but in my case (and for most domestic users) jacks are simply collecting dust 99.9% of the time.

If used correctly and you use axle stands after you lift vehicles and don't change wheels while it's lifted by a jack the cheap ones should last a long time.

its all about affordability at the end of the day. The £25 lidl one does the job and suits my needs. it would be silly to spend £120 on one.

BeenThroughItAll

londonTiger wrote: »

I agree but in my case (and for most domestic users) jacks are simply collecting dust 99.9% of the time.

If used correctly and you use axle stands after you lift vehicles and don't change wheels while it's lifted by a jack the cheap ones should last a long time.

its all about affordability at the end of the day. The £25 lidl one does the job and suits my needs. it would be silly to spend £120 on one.

If you put axle stands under the car every time you change a wheel, you've got way too much time on your hands.


Fair enough, you use stands if you or any squishy part of you is under the vehicle, but for changing a wheel? Life's too short.

AdrianC

BeenThroughItAll wrote: »

If you put axle stands under the car every time you change a wheel, you've got way too much time on your hands.

I don't get under the car when I'm changing a wheel.

BeenThroughItAll

AdrianC wrote: »

I don't get under the car when I'm changing a wheel.

Er... that's my point.