I had a friend die under a car in 1998, and freak out when I see someone not using jack stands. I was on Craigslist and one ad had a link to their home page.
[ LINK REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF B&D AUTOMOTIVE ]
Check out the pictures of the blue Mustang with the three year old under it, with no jack stands. I tried to put one of their pictures up here but couldn't. If anyone can, please copy the one with the kid showing the jack, and the stand not being used.
[ PHOTO REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF B&D AUTOMOTIVE ]
wow of all the places for a rug rat, man some people.
wherethefmi wrote: wow of all the places for a rug rat, man some people.
Scary. Chock up the wheels on the ground as well, folks. And get the best stands you can find.
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3465487&page=1
I always have a jackstand under a car if I'm gonna be under it.Had a couple close calls over the years, so now I keep a pair in my truck. Last week I pulled into the parking lot of the parts store I work at and there was a kid working under his Acura, I scared the crap out of him when I slid a jack stand under his car. Told him I didn't wanna clean up the mess if his scissor jack broke.
I can't believe people wouldn't use them.
But then again, I won't even get under the car without 1. Jackstands 2. Someone else there.
z31maniac wrote: I can't believe people wouldn't use them. But then again, I won't even get under the car without 1. Jackstands 2. Someone else there.
+eleventy billion
number 2 goes for useage of a majority of my power tools as well...imagine trying to dial 911/drive to the ER without fingers...pencil in the mouth FTL
E36 M3, I've even had a jack stand fail on me once. I was jacking up my old Mustang from the diff and I was resting the suspension on the jack stands (it was a nice secure spot that fit perfectly into the stands' slots). I started to lower the jack and one of the stands collapsed completely leaving the car somewhat twisted with the suspension probably close to maxed out. It was scary. I always make sure (including that time) that there is NOTHING near the car when I'm lowering it onto the stands. Even after the car is on the stands, the jack stays put just in case.
I just bought an awesome set of stands from Home Depot yesterday for like $30. They are 3 ton stands with a sturdy base, a nice look, and my favorite feature: a thick steel pin that acts as a failsafe double-locking mechanism. That would have completely solved the Mustang's problem.
Yep... I always do two jackstands and I keep the jack under it with a little pressure in case the jackstands pop out.
...And shake the crap out of the car once its on the stands, making sure its solid. I always do that. Don't want some fat guy inadvertently killing me while looking for a place to rest his flabby arms.
I have never had good luck with jackstands. The best pair I had came from my Grandfather and they never came back from an ex-friend when he borrowed them.
I tend to use cement blocks with wood on top now. Seem a LOT more sturdy than a small footprint stand
Um.. cement blocks can crack and leave you forked, if your under the car. I had it happen years ago when I was changing a tire on a trailer. I got lazy and just grabbed what was closest in the back yard, and the cement block was it. When I came back from the tire store, the hub was resting in the dirt, with cement chunks scattered about.
If I'm doing something that involves taking a wheel off then I always slide the detached wheel under the body of the car, just in case.
mad_machine wrote: I have never had good luck with jackstands. The best pair I had came from my Grandfather and they never came back from an ex-friend when he borrowed them. I tend to use cement blocks with wood on top now. Seem a LOT more sturdy than a small footprint stand
FAIL
After reading that VW Vortex thread, I immediately got some 2x8s and 6x6s and buit a pair of no-E36 M3 wood blocks. I screwed handles to them so they can easily be slid/carried. I feel a good bit better with those ready to catch the car if I do something really stupid, I'll probably build 2 more soon.
I used to use cement blocks until i read that they will shatter if a rock or a sharp bit of the car creates a stress riser on them. It makes sense,..They are strong but brittle. With an even static load (in a wall set into mortar for instance), they are strong. that is what they are designed for. I doubt concrete blocks undergo much in the way of quality control as you could have a crappy one in a wall and everything is still cool. All it would take to make a crappy concrete block that looks good is for a nice sharp piece of crushed aggregate to be suspended in it, or for it to have a bad mix, or a few bubbles...
I took to shoving the tires under the car as my third line of safely. Floor Jack with a smidge of load, Jack stands, then wheel/tires. Call me paranoid.
I end up forced to do under car work when alone at the workshop frequently. (otherwise my cars would sit for months until I could get someone to align their schedule with me and get the work done)
Wheels go under car, cellphone on my person, ALWAYS jackstands, and the jack stays under (although the load is transferred to the stands as the jack can roll)
I may have to get some wood blocks set up like you guys are talking about.
I do like the wood block idea...
and when I say cement blocks.. I am not talking the hollow cinder blocks. I have some SOLID cement ones that picked up from a defunct marina years ago. I do not put them on end, but lay them on their sides and use a pice of 2x4 between them and the car.
Since I tend to do a lot of work around the cars with no one else around, I tend to do the following:
If using jackstands, try to use them without extending them. I have a bunch of 2x4, 2x6, and 2x10 planks that I can put under the stands.
For the completed cars, I got a http://kwiklift.com. It gets my cars about 2~2.5' off the ground so I can do stuff underneath them pretty easily.
I also built a set of 4 wooden "chocks" that are pretty useful in the shop. Lift up an end of the car, place chocks under wheels, lather, rinse, repeat for other end of car. The chocks are about 7.5" high and are just 2x4's that are screwed together with some 1/2" plywood on the ends. Pretty useful while I am putting my TVR together......
Safety first!!! I'd hate to get killed while under one of the cars. Probably worse, I'd hate to lose an arm, leg, etc.......
-jeff d
I remeber reading a story about a guy who got stuck under his car when the jack let go.
He was working in a dirt driveway and the jack collapsed. He had a bit of room under there and lasted quite a while because when the rescuers pulled his corpse out they found the holes that he had dug in the dirt trying to get out.
Creeped the hell out of me, I always double and triple check my stands now. I also bought a big pair of 6 ton stands to use instead of extending my 2 ton units all the way.
Shawn
"and when I say cement blocks.. I am not talking the hollow cinder blocks."
I missed that part about the chunkiness of your cement blocks somehow. Absolutely, chunks of cement aint going anywhere. I too like the wood block idea and will build some in the next week or so.
+eleventy billion on the chocks.
My truck rolled of the ramps when I was working under on it once. my chest was compressed about 2 inches from the frame rail.
thank GOD it was the truck and not a car.
I always chock the wheels now
That picture is so full of wrong it makes me sick.
Here's the thread on the old board where we discussed this as well.
http://archive.grassrootsmotorsports.com/board/viewtopic.php?id=29784
Just a reminder from my personal experiences... avoid SnapOn Bluepoint jackstands with the round base. Seen here:
Round things like to roll. Neighbor of my coworker died while using these as they leaned over and rolled out from under the car. He was a certified Honda mechanic changing axles on his CRX in his driveway.
Jensenman wrote: After reading that VW Vortex thread, I immediately got some 2x8s and 6x6s and buit a pair of no-E36 M3 wood blocks. I screwed handles to them so they can easily be slid/carried. I feel a good bit better with those ready to catch the car if I do something really stupid, I'll probably build 2 more soon.
J-man, would you share some more details and pics of these (the picture in the archived thread is gone)? I just got my new project car in the garage last night and will be under it quite a bit over the next several months. Having something more secure than 4 jackstands would make me feel better.
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