Recommendations re compact hydraulic Jack

[Fordman]

My most universal jack came down from my grandfather, made before WW1. It is tiny when down and has three screw stages, but alas it isn't hydraulic, so takes a lot of handle work. It comes into its own when a second small jack is needed for suspensions etc.

Sounds a bit like the ubiqitous old Holden jack, I think supplied with every Holden possibly up to the 1970s. They were orange coloured, about 120mm dia, 130-150mm high when down (only a guess), with a square drive socket (approx 20mm squ) in a bevel gear arrangement, came with a folding crank handle about 1200mm long extended. Only guessing dimensions. I was actively looking for 2 old ones as a great way to store my camper/caravan which has low clearance below the wishbone/axle (Coromal suspension), as a jack I could slide it under the outer suspension and jack the tyres just off the ground for storage purposes. The beauty of the mechanical screw jack was they did not bleed down, a permanent storage jack, just make sure plenty of lubrication on the screws before using. I remember the Holden jack was 2 stage, maybe 3 stage. Strangely, I found it difficult to source one, and gave up. But a very handy jack for many other workshop purposes as well. I'm sure I had one 40 years ago, haven't seen it for years, as happens with those things.

 

[seasink]

I went out and measured mine. It is four inches high. Three upper acme screws come out, and that still leaves one poking out of the base. The top support fitting adds another 3/4" . The base looks like machined steel, with a pressed steel top cover. I has been painted black for a long time, longer I suspect than Holden, and if scratched appears to be a dark paint underneath.

The 3/4 " drive made me think USA. That was common there.

Keep looking. They are useful. I last used it to push a suspension into line. All I have ever done to maintain it was to pack in some grease.

I looked up "old Holden jack", and yes they are similar, but with the drive gear higher up. Holden seem to have supplied them for years. I saw nothing for sale,

 

[Whippet]

Sounds a bit like the ubiqitous old Holden jack, I think supplied with every Holden possibly up to the 1970s. They were orange coloured, about 120mm dia, 130-150mm high when down (only a guess), with a square drive socket (approx 20mm squ) in a bevel gear arrangement, came with a folding crank handle about 1200mm long extended. Only guessing dimensions. I was actively looking for 2 old ones as a great way to store my camper/caravan which has low clearance below the wishbone/axle (Coromal suspension), as a jack I could slide it under the outer suspension and jack the tyres just off the ground for storage purposes. The beauty of the mechanical screw jack was they did not bleed down, a permanent storage jack, just make sure plenty of lubrication on the screws before using. I remember the Holden jack was 2 stage, maybe 3 stage. Strangely, I found it difficult to source one, and gave up. But a very handy jack for many other workshop purposes as well. I'm sure I had one 40 years ago, haven't seen it for years, as happens with those things.

Hi.

Yes very handy, I used an old Holden screw jack recently to lift a bottom plate tangentially back onto the concrete slab for an old garden shed. I even used a square drive in a cordless drill, because I am a lazy person. Heaps of thrust and very controllable. Had to get the wall rigid and nearly straight before I could hang a replacement door. The old 5" square stumps into the dirt had all rotted.

Cheers.

Cheers.

 

[seasink]

The Holden model appears to have a cover down to the base plate.

 

[schlitzaugen]

There's a whole bunch of jacks like that on Gumtree right now. And some on ebay.

I forgot to mention, a lot run of the mill scissors jacks actually fold very flat, possibly less than 10cm.

 

[COL]

Sounds a bit like the ubiqitous old Holden jack, I think supplied with every Holden possibly up to the 1970s. They were orange coloured, about 120mm dia, 130-150mm high when down (only a guess), with a square drive socket (approx 20mm squ) in a bevel gear arrangement, came with a folding crank handle about 1200mm long extended. Only guessing dimensions. I was actively looking for 2 old ones as a great way to store my camper/caravan which has low clearance below the wishbone/axle (Coromal suspension), as a jack I could slide it under the outer suspension and jack the tyres just off the ground for storage purposes. The beauty of the mechanical screw jack was they did not bleed down, a permanent storage jack, just make sure plenty of lubrication on the screws before using. I remember the Holden jack was 2 stage, maybe 3 stage. Strangely, I found it difficult to source one, and gave up. But a very handy jack for many other workshop purposes as well. I'm sure I had one 40 years ago, haven't seen it for years, as happens with those things.

Here you go Chris a job lot of old Holden Jacks:

Holden Early Model Car Jack's lot 2/ 3 Stage - EH HR HT HG | eBay

<p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Holden jacks early lot of 4</p> <p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">3 x smaller ones 2 stage I think, one seems to work other 2 suit parts only</p> <br> <p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">1x tall one ,think...

www.ebay.com.au

 

[Fordman]

And on the Holden jack, as in post 23 above, note the little U shaped piece below the square drive. With the square block on the end of the long crank handle inserted in the U, you could place the jack up to about a metre or so underneath the car, without getting your clothes dirty.
Just one of those functional, useful, simple tools, and I'm surprised they don't seem to be available new, I thought they would be quite cheap to make.

 

[COL]

There's a whole bunch of jacks like that on Gumtree right now. And some on ebay.

I forgot to mention, a lot run of the mill scissors jacks actually fold very flat, possibly less than 10cm.

Scissor jacks are very hard to raise when they are at there lowest setting, they need to be at least 25% of their height to be easy to operate. But having said that the scissor jack is a very good jack as long as you keep the screw greased and dirt off it.

 

[DoubleChevron]

Scissor jacks are very hard to raise when they are at there lowest setting, they need to be at least 25% of their height to be easy to operate. But having said that the scissor jack is a very good jack as long as you keep the screw greased and dirt off it.

Every scissor jack I've ever had has collapsed. They aren't rated high enough to lift a Citroen (it dumps the weight of an entire side of the car onto the jack .... not the weight of just one corner).

 

[seasink]

I agree about the fragility of scissor jacks, as I have broken a couple, but every Citroen for many years, ie nearly all the Cits in existence, has come with one. In normal modern use only one corner is lifted.

You are referring to the DS and the like. It may not be an option for the OP with the cars he has mentioned he has,

 

[COL]

Every scissor jack I've ever had has collapsed. They aren't rated high enough to lift a Citroen (it dumps the weight of an entire side of the car onto the jack .... not the weight of just one corner).

I think I have only had one failure in 40 plus years. Scissor jacks come standard in most Renault cars. I find them very quick to lift the corner of the car off the ground with the speed handle.

 

[DoubleChevron]

I think I have only had one failure in 40 plus years. Scissor jacks come standard in most Renault cars. I find them very quick to lift the corner of the car off the ground with the speed handle.

Yeah that's where most of my "failed" jacks came from .... The renaults we have had over the years. There jacks are nowhere near strong enough to lift a hydraulic citroen. Been there ... Done that

 

[jaahn]

My 40 year old APAC professional floor jack is a 2-stage jack, great jack, but heavy and leaks, and I have never tried to rebuild/reseal it.
I have bought a couple of more DIY level floor jacks since, all single-stage, work OK but take about 20-30 pumps to raise jack to chassis height, and more if the car is already raised. 2-stage lifts maybe 50mm per stroke under no load, so you reach the chassis point a lot quicker with less pumps. Then when it gets under load, the second stage is the heavy lifter, with maybe 5mm per stroke, but not much more force to operate.
2 stage is worth looking for. I had a quick search and found this one, for example (that VEVOR brand pops up again):

VEVOR VEVOR 2.5 Ton Low Profile Aluminum Steel Racing Floor Jack Dual Pump Lift Car | VEVOR AU

Buy VEVOR 2.5 Ton Low Profile Aluminum Steel Racing Floor Jack Dual Pump Lift Car at cheap price online, with Youtube reviews and FAQs, we generally offer free shipping to Europe, US, etc.

www.vevor.com.au

Might be a bit bigger than you are looking for, but I wouldn't go less than 1500kg for a small/medium car.

Edit: Oh, I see they have a 1500kg version, also 2 stage:

VEVOR VEVOR 1.5 Ton Low Profile Aluminum Steel Racing Floor Jack Dual Pump Lift Car | VEVOR AU

Buy VEVOR 1.5 Ton Low Profile Aluminum Steel Racing Floor Jack Dual Pump Lift Car at cheap price online, with Youtube reviews and FAQs, we generally offer free shipping to Europe, US, etc.

www.vevor.com.au

To return to the OP question. This is my opinion, do not buy a mini floor jack of any description as most are bad and unstable except on a perfect slab, the track width is too small and the arm is too short so the arc pulls back too much as it lifts up. When i help my friends I hate working with their sh*t jacks.
I had a full sized old 1.5-2T steel jack and when it seemed to be needing work, I bought an aluminum 'racing jack' similar to ones I had borrowed a couple of times at the car club at the track. It was so good I just took the old one to the scrap. Still working well and easy to use even off the cement. Best thing I have spent my tool money on I would say. Low with small front wheels but a long arm so it lifts up without pulling back much which unbalances the load. And half the weight of the previous steel one. The long handle can be removed easy enough for transport. Two speed pump. Those side handles enable you to position it with your foot too.
Similar to the ones Fordman referred to from Vevor. Mine is not painted as sexy looking as them. I paid that much for mine 10-15 years ago. I would recommend you get one of them instead of a compact type.
Jaahn
I have a couple of the "holden" jacks and also a couple of Japanese light truck jacks which are similar with cast iron body with 3 stage lift screws but a bit higher initial height, but rated to 2T. Just cleaned and greased them.