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I would like to jack up my Ford Excursion with a floor jack when needed. How many ton floor jack is needed and what is the required lift height?
Prioritizing lift height over tonnage is very useful, especially when also setting the Excursion on jack stands (highly recommended).
To use jack stands, one has to have the ability to lift the vehicle higher than the desired working height, so as to be able to insert and later remove the jack stands.
Quite often, floor jacks having a higher lifting height may also have a lower tonnage, such as 2.5 ton (5,000 lbs.) or 3 ton (6,000 lbs.).
The solution to this is to buy 2 floor jacks, and use them in pairs, which provides 10,000 lbs or 12,000 lbs. lifting capacity when used together.
There are greater benefits to using 2 floor jacks...
- Reduced body racking and twisting when lifting the Excursion, because any lift bias can be cancelled out by placing the 2nd jack horizontally opposed on the other side of the vehicle
- Reduced pressure concentration on the concrete driveway. Consider that the entire weight of the vehicle is concentrated on just the floor jack WHEELS, not the foot print of the floor jack
Example:
The Super Duty raised and supported in the photo above is an F-550, that weighed about 10,000 lbs with the steel bed, yet the pair of floor jacks were rated to 2.5 ton each.
When there is a need to lift the vehicle higher, I will insert both floor jacks at the front or rear of the vehicle, under each axle end, and then pump the handles together at the same time.
The floor jacks I have had for the last 25 years have a 31" lifting height. They are probably no longer made, but if shopping for new floor jacks today, I would look for as close to 31" as can be found.
Prioritizing lift height over tonnage is very useful, especially when also setting the Excursion on jack stands (highly recommended).
To use jack stands, one has to have the ability to lift the vehicle higher than the desired working height, so as to be able to insert and later remove the jack stands.
Quite often, floor jacks having a higher lifting height may also have a lower tonnage, such as 2.5 ton (5,000 lbs.) or 3 ton (6,000 lbs.).
The solution to this is to buy 2 floor jacks, and use them in pairs, which provides 10,000 lbs or 12,000 lbs. lifting capacity when used together.
There are greater benefits to using 2 floor jacks...
- Reduced body racking and twisting when lifting the Excursion, because any lift bias can be cancelled out by placing the 2nd jack horizontally opposed on the other side of the vehicle
- Reduced pressure concentration on the concrete driveway. Consider that the entire weight of the vehicle is concentrated on just the floor jack WHEELS, not the foot print of the floor jack
Example:
The Super Duty raised and supported in the photo above is an F-550, that weighed about 10,000 lbs with the steel bed, yet the pair of floor jacks were rated to 2.5 ton each.
When there is a need to lift the vehicle higher, I will insert both floor jacks at the front or rear of the vehicle, under each axle end, and then pump the handles together at the same time.
The floor jacks I have had for the last 25 years have a 31" lifting height. They are probably no longer made, but if shopping for new floor jacks today, I would look for as close to 31" as can be found.
This is very helpful. I thought I noticed a lower lift height with higher capacity. This is great. Thanks.
I ended up with 2 of these. Super high lift height. In spite of the weight rating these are bears to move once the jack makes contact after a few strokes. I am really wondering if that is normal.
ROAD DAWG ATZ830027HD Torin Hydraulic Low and High Profile Professional Grade Foldable Garage Service/Floor Jack with Quick Lift Pump, 3 Ton (6,600 lb) Capacity, Black https://a.co/d/0mThu8f
You've found some very interesting floor jacks there.
- Double pumpers (rapid low pressure pump set, slow high pressure pump lift)
- Double jacks (to maintain lateral stability, not twist the frame or body, and to distribute load, not just on the jacks, but on the concrete driveway to prevent cracking)
- High lift.
There is a BIG difference between 24" and 31" of lift when working on big projects under the truck.... pulling transmissions, rolling axles out and in while still on their tires, etc.
Good for you for tracking down a floor jack with more than 30" of lift, and for getting two of them, for all the reasons mentioned earlier in Post #3.
Your floor jacks are much more compact (and lighter, making them more convenient to haul offsite) than the style I have (also shown in Post #3).
I won't switch from my giant orange alligators (in fact, I recently snapped up another one, this time used, but it also came with a brand new spare hydraulic cylinder, originally bought by a retired machinist who used it to service his lifted 4WD Jeep that he aged out of), but if I were starting from scratch today, I would have to give what you found a hard look.
Please report back your experiences with the floor jacks you ordered, so that we can have confidence recommending them to other members who seek a super high lift floor jack.
You've found some very interesting floor jacks there.
- Double pumpers (rapid low pressure pump set, slow high pressure pump lift)
- Double jacks (to maintain lateral stability, not twist the frame or body, and to distribute load, not just on the jacks, but on the concrete driveway to prevent cracking)
- High lift.
There is a BIG difference between 24" and 31" of lift when working on big projects under the truck.... pulling transmissions, rolling axles out and in while still on their tires, etc.
Good for you for tracking down a floor jack with more than 30" of lift, and for getting two of them, for all the reasons mentioned earlier in Post #3.
Your floor jacks are much more compact (and lighter, making them more convenient to haul offsite) than the style I have (also shown in Post #3).
I won't switch from my giant orange alligators (in fact, I recently snapped up another one, this time used, but it also came with a brand new spare hydraulic cylinder, originally bought by a retired machinist who used it to service his lifted 4WD Jeep that he aged out of), but if I were starting from scratch today, I would have to give what you found a hard look.
Please report back your experiences with the floor jacks you ordered, so that we can have confidence recommending them to other members who seek a super high lift floor jack.
Thanks for your guidance on this. I had considered the HF floor jacks mentioned but I am a stubborn goat. I was waiting for it to go on sale but the other ones did instead. Of course as soon as I bought these, the HF one did. Plus I have Amazon Prime and ironically I hate driving unnecessarily as I am a real home body.
I am a bit weirded out by the 3 ton rating with the extension in place and the 2 ton rating without the extension. That just seems natively counterintuitive to me but doubt it is a misprint.
There were a good number of reviews stating that these arrive damaged which not too long ago would not have been a big deal since Amazon had a pretty generous return policy e.g. throw it back in the box and UPS came to pick it up for free. Unfortunately Amazon changed their policy and makes you pay for UPS returns now or even worse drive to a facility for a return...and I hate driving as mentioned.
As much as I hate driving, and as worried as I was about doubling my odds of getting a damaged one by purchasing 2 of these they somehow came undamaged in any way.
They show as no longer available on Amazon now. I paid about $218 each which was a steal I guess especially with inflation (specifically jack inflation).
Northern Tool had them for a similar price back in the day too but if you check these suppliers they no longer have them.
Torin doesn't even show them on their website.
I wonder if these were some secret special sauce flop.
Like I said, it takes a pretty good amount of effort to lift one side of the vehicle with one jack. The handle certainly seems beefy enough but I don't think my arms should be working that hard to lift the vehicle. I am no spring chicken and I am of average strength for my age I guess so I can't be sure.
That is all very interesting. Every aspect of your post is equally enlightening. Thanks for sharing your personal and observational perspectives.
So, on the subject of floorjacks in general, and this also applies to jack stands, transmission jacks, and even shop presses... there is one big giant company in China that now makes the majority of this crap we think we have a choice in selecting.
The sense of "choice" that we have in brands often false, but the difference in markup between various retailers and brands is often significant.
For example, the exact same 50 ton press can range from $1,400 to over $4,000, depending solely on the brand sticker adhered to it, and the retail channel selling it. When reviewing the parts diagrams and call out numbers, down to the last O ring, these dramatically different priced presses are all physically the same down to every detail. I just happened to be examining this recently, as I was interested in parts to repair a "Carolina" press, which again, had a pump and cylinder made by Tongrun.
The "Torin" brand version of my orange long frame floor jacks, not only existed in both red and blue colors, but was also replicated around the world under other brand names as well. All identical physically, but for the label, the color, and an update in handle and rapid pump foot.
Note the 52nd anniversary of Changshu Tongrun. That would put us back to 1972. Who visited China in 1972?
Since then, industry by industry, manufacturing of durable goods and tools has not only been taken over... the former American brand names, trademarks, licenses, and any lingering patents have been bought up after going belly up.
Example: Milwaukee tools went belly up in the recession of 2008, but was bought lock stock and barrel by TTI, a Chinese company, who continues to operate (and excel) as Milwaukee tools, as if no country of origin and ownership change ever took place.
Such is the case with some brand names of floor jacks.
When this one company decides to stop manufacturing a particular design, that decision will bowling ball availability across all the so called different brands that offer that design, albeit in different colors, under different American sounding names.
Act NOW and order the hydraulic seal repair kit for the models you purchased. This way, you will at least have a 3 dimensional model of the orings and U seals needed to refresh your jacks, before taking them apart for service. Even if that service isn't needed until 20 or 30 years from now, and the elastomers you've stored in a bag all that time are just as questionable as the failed elastomers in the jack itself, at least you will have an exact pattern and size of seals handy so as to order fresh ones from a hydraulic supplier, long after Tongrun and all related distributors have discontinued the repair kits for your obsoleted jacks.
Hey, it just resolved after about 40 seconds implying a distant geo-location. It looks like it is complaining about an Untrusted Certificate but I will keep rolling and fear not!
What shocking (to me) information about Milwaukee that you presented. I had no idea. In fact, just 2 years ago I had no idea what MT even was. I posed the question on Garage Forums about what tools would leave me not needing to worry anymore while things were good, tools were cheap, and inflation was low. That majority said Milwaukee and I have been a fan ever since.
This information confirms my reduction in guilt when I price shop for a part. I have learned to shut out the traffic and do what I need to do. Seldom am I wrong. Now don't get me wrong, the riskier a given part or tool is the more likely I am to purchase OEM. However, I don't mind replacing a shift **** or a hood latch with a generic one for my ALH Jetta TDI but such a public decision would get me lambasted at the TDIClub.
I am trying to hurry up and get as many parts as I can before some geo-political situation changes (I don't mean to be political in any way) and I can no longer get parts so cheaply. Nothing lasts forever...this is the time.
While I am sure that this community has it's moments and debates I am glad that I have found this platform and community to enjoy life with like minded folks like yourself.
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