Floor Jacks: What are some good brands?

[Hector]

I have a Wal-Mart MVP floor jack that will raise up to 21". I like this feature much as it raises the car pretty high and allows me to piddle away under it. However, I've had the floor jack for about 3 yrs, and now it's beginning to leak bad. I don't have the drive to fix it. I believe this one cost me between 50 and 60 bucks but I'm willing to spend a little more on a more reliable one. Recommendations?

[Hector]

and came up with the Powerbuilt suggested by Bill R and the AC suggested by Super90. I couldn't find how high the powerbuilt one goes up to and the AC one (model DK13HLQ) can go up to 31" but didn't look hard enough for price. I'd like to stay near $100 as a ceiling.

[califblue]

CRAFTSMAN or anything they sell at COSTCO...both well have LIFETIME Guarantees :)

[Tiger]

Powerbuilt is only available on West Coast... sold by Advanced Auto chains

[632 Regal]

we have advance auto in Michigana.

[charlie]

Lincoln. very well made.


I have a Wal-Mart MVP floor jack that will raise up to 21". I like this feature much as it raises the car pretty high and allows me to piddle away under it. However, I've had the floor jack for about 3 yrs, and now it's beginning to leak bad. I don't have the drive to fix it. I believe this one cost me between 50 and 60 bucks but I'm willing to spend a little more on a more reliable one. Recommendations?

[Robin-535im]

CRAFTSMAN or anything they sell at COSTCO...both well have LIFETIME Guarantees :)

At least the one I bought wasn't. Huge floor jack, came with 2-ton stands, is on it's second leak since I bought it a few years ago. It costs $40 to rebuild it, this time I'm going to buy something else. I would personally recommend against a crafstman *floor jack*, (rest of the tools are fine of course.)

Let us know what you find out Hector - I'll be in the market very soon!

[bahnstormer]

just get a lift.
all or nuttin baby =]

[Hector]

Regarding craftsman, it got a bad rap from some here on the board according to my search. Personally, I like craftsman tools and such and I own a lot of them but never had a floor jack. It's a pity that the consesus so far for this product is that it sucks.

Also from the search, someone had mentioned how good Lincoln is but I think there was a lack of elaboration on this brand. I'll look into it so more.

Powerbuilt is a contender. I will look into this a bit more as well.

As for AC, I remember some justifiably complained about the AC plastic casters. I prefer metal myself.

A lift? Yeah, why not! I'll stick it in the living room to add to the decor and see what the GF thinks... NOT! ;o)

[Bill R.]

well Hector, although they look to be better than they were but there are much better deals out there... Lincoln used to be a very good jack, it no longer has the quality that it once had, they are no longer manufactured in the US and quality has gone way down... The AC jack is a very good jack but you'll pay the price for them and i don't see the specs on any from them that will go 31 inches in a price less that 400...
The current crop of aluminum jacks at checker auto parts/kragen/advance are 2 tons lifting 3.5 minimum height and something like 21 total lift.. with a weight of 43 pounds... I've been tempted to buy one of these since checker has them for 99.00 right now and they would be easier to throw in the back of the truck to take somewhere.... They have the identical jacks at sam's club and at costco i think for 149.00 Or you could get the double piston low clearanc jack they have at costo right now for 79. i think... or the one that i have the best luck is the 3.5 ton at checkers for 79 that I've posted about before in the past... Craftsmen floor jacks do not have a lifetime warranty , most of them are 1 year. the 3.5 at checkers has a 3 year and i took it back each year after it started looking pretty ratty and they gave me a new one every year of the 3 years, no problems no questions, but I also use mine almost every day and they sit out in the weather alot...








Regarding craftsman, it got a bad rap from some here on the board according to my search. Personally, I like craftsman tools and such and I own a lot of them but never had a floor jack. It's a pity that the consesus so far for this product is that it sucks.

Also from the search, someone had mentioned how good Lincoln is but I think there was a lack of elaboration on this brand. I'll look into it so more.

Powerbuilt is a contender. I will look into this a bit more as well.

As for AC, I remember some justifiably complained about the AC plastic casters. I prefer metal myself.

A lift? Yeah, why not! I'll stick it in the living room to add to the decor and see what the GF thinks... NOT! ;o)

[netmgr]

i find it quite interesting to read your comments in the US, especially when you name makes...i mean if you were to ask a UK guy name a make of car stand...i think theyd be hard pressed and would just go to local shop and buy the cheapest!!

its seems to be very name driven market place in the US

seems to apply to anything...'oh use m & Zs miracle car shampoo' or 'cleanaway'...you get my meaning?

[Bill R.]

very quickly find out what brands are junk and what brands are good value for the dollar... the same theory applies in any business... you ask the people who actually work with the tools , and no, as far as i'm concerned I'm definitely not name driven..I judge tools strictly on their quality and how useful i find them not based on name brands. Unfortunately with most tools the only way to tell the quality is to purchase or know enough other mechanics who have used them for opinions.






i find it quite interesting to read your comments in the US, especially when you name makes...i mean if you were to ask a UK guy name a make of car stand...i think theyd be hard pressed and would just go to local shop and buy the cheapest!!

its seems to be very name driven market place in the US

seems to apply to anything...'oh use m & Zs miracle car shampoo' or 'cleanaway'...you get my meaning?

[winfred]

very quickly find out what brands are junk and what brands are good value for the dollar... the same theory applies in any business... you ask the people who actually work with the tools , and no, as far as i'm concerned I'm definitely not name driven..I judge tools strictly on their quality and how useful i find them not based on name brands. Unfortunately with most tools the only way to tell the quality is to purchase or know enough other mechanics who have used them for opinions.

[Hector]

Recently, when I have gone to Kragen and Pepboys I'll stop by the floor jacks for a quick peek. I always seem to be in a hurry to take a little time to read the spec but you're right, I've noticed these stores typically have good bargains. I'll swing by over the weekend and check out their stock.

As for getting all wrapped over in name brands, ditto that Bill. Most of the time, I go with what most consumers have experience with and their frequency as repeat buyers whether it's a brand name or not. However, usually but not always, it seems that brand names tend to carry the most reliable products but this does not seem to be the case with craftsman floor jacks, for example. Anyway, I don't mine springing the extra cash for something that's going to save me time from repairing/returning the damn thing and perhaps grief. In many cases, to me it's more about who makes the product. For example, I don't touch many items, not even with a 10 ft pole, that are made in China. That goes for clothing, tools,... but sometimes you don't have a choice and haveta give in to that rarity of an item... As for most BMW parts, Germany is in the lead for high quality for obvious reasons although I have purchased stuff made in Italy that turned out just as high quality as well.

[Jr ///M5]

You mean they sit out in the sunshine :p

Yup, the crapsman sux alright, I had one and it failed right when I needed it most. The 318iS was up on stands and I had just replaced the control arm bushings without pulling the arms off, just a quick job mind you. Went to let the car down before the bushing lube wore off. The jack went up to the bottom of the car and it wouldn't lift anything. All of a sudden it puked out all it's hydraulic fluid all over the floor. Aw crap, I didn't have much time before the bushing would set in the unloaded position, so I jammed my ramps underneath the tires (barely made it) had to spin the tire while jamming the ramp with my knee. Then weilding a 3# hammer, knocked the jackstands out from under the car.
Now the front of the 318iS is way too low to decend the ramps, so I scrambled for my short 2x6's to lengthen the ramp...rolled the car down gently and finally she was on Terra Firma again in time for the bushings to set up properly. That was the maddest I've been in a long time. The one time that you desperately need the damn thing and it fails.....crapsman jacks do suck indeed.

Jr

[charlie]

Bill,
I wasn't aware that the Lincoln brand turned to crap. I have 3 of them (8-10 years old) and they are great. BTW their jackstands are good too. if they turned to **** that's bad news to me. My neighbor is a snapon dealer and I can tell you that they have some REALLY nice stuff if you don't mind pony'n up the $$$


very quickly find out what brands are junk and what brands are good value for the dollar... the same theory applies in any business... you ask the people who actually work with the tools , and no, as far as i'm concerned I'm definitely not name driven..I judge tools strictly on their quality and how useful i find them not based on name brands. Unfortunately with most tools the only way to tell the quality is to purchase or know enough other mechanics who have used them for opinions.