Jack Stands seem too tall

Vette66AirCoupe · 05-03-05, 12:33 AM

Every time I put a jack stand under my '60 I wonder if there are any that are shorter than the ones I got in a package deal with my Sears floor jack. If I jack it up from the side and locate the jack far enough back to get the jack stand in front of it on the frame I have to go up so high that the rear wheel comes off the ground and the front is way higher than it needs to be. that's just to get the stand in there at it's minimal height. When I let the car down onto the jack stand the rear wheel sits down. Obviously I'm jacking the car up near the midpoint of the cars weight for this to happen. Then when I go to the other side it makes me nervous that the stand will slip when I start jackin' and the same thing happens on the opposite side (the rear wheel comes off the ground and the front is way higher than it needs to be). Seems like a shorter jack stand would alleviate this problem. When you guys want to pop both front wheels off how are you jacking up your C-1's and how do you make out with your jack stands?

05-03-05, 08:27 AM

so, when on the jack stand positioned towards the front wheel, the rear wheel is on the ground and front is up (I myself see no prob there, unless you want less room to maneuver under the engine) and then, and I understand this one, you get nervous jacking it up from the opposite side to locate a second jack stand on that side - are you doing this on a basically level, and solid (not asphalt on a hot day) surface? The frame rail should be squarely within the jack stand "saddle", and if you worry about slippage, try a jack stand saddle pad (JEGs has em), also helps to avoid scratching the frame rail (you can get a similar "puck" for your floor jack too).

Another option for getting the nose up (since you are talking about jack stands on both sides of the front) is ramps - I have a heavy duty set of two-piece ramps from Sears, very easy to drive up on to and certainly trust worthy when underneath - plus if the car is going to be up for a while

I prefer not to flex the frame at the jack-stand fulcrum point, mine a vert with more of an issue there.

BarryK · 05-03-05, 08:33 AM

Terry, maybe this is a dumb idea but.........can't you put the car you want on the stands on your lift, place the stands under it, than lower the car down from the lift onto the stands? You could get all the stands done at once and none of the risk of one side collapsing while you jack up the opposite side.

Vette66AirCoupe · 05-03-05, 08:51 AM

Barry,

Given that it is a drive on lift it would be a logistics problem locating the jack stands in a place where they'd contact the frame in the right place while staying out of the way of the ramps. I might even run into the opposite problem, that is, the jack stands might then be too short! Also, the other Vette is on the lift (Backyard Buddy) and currently inoperative due to the fact that the instrument cluster is at Corvette Specialties of Maryland. Hence, I am working underneath it.

allcoupedup · 05-03-05, 09:13 AM

I had the same problem so I went with smaller jack stands. The only problem is that smaller jack stands are rated for less weight. I had 8 ton stands and went to 3. 3 Tons still gives a huge safety margin but they look so weak and fragile compared to the 8 ton stands with pins.

Brian

BarryK · 05-03-05, 09:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vette66AirCoupe

Barry,

Given that it is a drive on lift it would be a logistics problem locating the jack stands in a place where they'd contact the frame in the right place while staying out of the way of the ramps. I might even run into the opposite problem, that is, the jack stands might then be too short! Also, the other Vette is on the lift (Backyard Buddy) and currently inoperative due to the fact that the instrument cluster is at Corvette Specialties of Maryland. Hence, I am working underneath it.

ok sorry, as I said, I guess it was a dumb idea.

see you tonight at the meeting

markiemyster · 05-03-05, 12:18 PM

Am I missing something here?

When I put my car on jack stands I don't jack the sides up I jack either the front or the rear up. If I want to put my car up on all four jacks I jack up the rear of the car underneath the rear spring then put two stands under the rear frame. Then I jack up the front of the car and put the jacks under the front frame. If I only want either front or rear in the air I use my ramps. In fact I have two sets of ramps and alot of times if I don't need alot of hieght I jack up the car and put it on the four ramps instead.
I hope I'm not misunderstanding this thread.

Mark

05-03-05, 01:57 PM

Ok Barry, just have to ask, just where do you place the jack pad when jacking the front (both tires) up, on the oil pan?

Bubba says go for it

Kidding aside, I am a big ramp fan too Barry, although I have not and do not ever plan on backing up on them, not within my comfort zone.

BarryK · 05-03-05, 02:27 PM

Hi CT

reread the post, the jacking and ramp suggestions were not mine. my dumb idea was using the lift!

Vette66AirCoupe · 05-03-05, 02:38 PM

Forget the ramps. I'm talking about jacking the car up to remove the front wheels.

Mark, I'm asking about a C-1, straight axle. The method you describe works well on my '66 and your '65 but the '60 is a different story. There does not seem to be a good place to jack the car up from the front, that's why I go to the frame from the side.

JohnZ · 05-03-05, 06:39 PM

When I had my '57 (and before I had a lift), I used an 8"-long piece of 2x6 with two 2x6 blocks nailed to it, leaving a gap between the two blocks to accommodate the third arm support bracket that sticks down from the front crossmember; that let the jack pick up on the bottom of the front crossmember on both sides of the bracket without touching the bracket itself.

IH2LOSE · 05-03-05, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by markiemyster

Am I missing something here?

When I put my car on jack stands I don't jack the sides up I jack either the front or the rear up. If I want to put my car up on all four jacks I jack up the rear of the car underneath the rear spring then put two stands under the rear frame. Then I jack up the front of the car and put the jacks under the front frame. If I only want either front or rear in the air I use my ramps. In fact I have two sets of ramps and alot of times if I don't need alot of hieght I jack up the car and put it on the four ramps instead.
I hope I'm not misunderstanding this thread.

Mark

I Never jack a car from the side,Always front or rear,Why are you jacking from the sides?

Vette66AirCoupe · 05-03-05, 09:25 PM

There doesn't seem to be a good solid spot to place the jack on the front of a C-1. I believe John Z's solution proves my point.

IH2LOSE · 05-04-05, 06:53 AM

Terry Johns has shown you a solution.

For sure if you watch what happens as you jack a car from the side its scary,especially if the jack your using is not on a perfect right angle to the car to allow it to roll backwards.

When jacking from the side you really have to know where the center of gravity is on the car so that the stnds on the other side are being "loaded" equally its almost immpossible to do this saftley.

If you were just raising one side of the car up for repair/maintnence NO problem.But to raise the whole car up on stands from the sides of the car i would say this is dangerous.

Lastly I always use a 3/4" plywood base (larger then my jack stand base) when using stands on black top.Even if I am only going under the car for one secound. I made them up years ago and they take up very little room in my garage.There just sitting there ready to use.

Good luck and be safe

Vette66AirCoupe · 05-04-05, 08:02 AM

I've got a 2X6 in the basement that's a nervous wreck right now.

Thanks for all of the comments and suggestions.