I'm very glad you weren't injured. Were they both extended the same distance? They broke at different locations. If they both broke where the lock was engaged, there was probably side loading on them (different extended lengths in that case). Two breaking simultaneously while both are in use (with no other visible damage to the stands) is less likely a manufacturing/design issue and more likely a problem with how they were loaded. Defective things don't usually fail together. Misused things do. A good look at the fracture surfaces would help determine why they failed.
If the car were properly setting on those stands and properly chocked or on stands at the rear it makes you wander what the real cause was. That style of stand usually gets the base bent up a bit if they tip over as sinking into asphalt and tipping or sinking into bare ground and tipping over. That would put a side stress on them. I've got a same design but a lot heavier and probably 40+ years old stand that came with a pallet of stuff at an auction that is bent to hell because it looks like it tipped over. Hydraulic Jacks usually fail when you try to lift more than their actual capacity. Or you do it too many times. Been there done that with what had been a pretty good jack until I tried to lift a pickup that was just flat too heavy with it.
They were extended the same, I make sure every time I use them. I also put them at the same place on the frame every time. Obviously something was different. I didn't have the car on them very long before it fell. Larry
I appreciate your comments and concern. Thank you. I'm very glad to still have my legs, I happen to be very attached to them! Larry
Wow, glad your OK, that is a scary moment. I usually slide the tire under the car so if a jack stand fails it will land on the tire first. I've never seen a jack stand break like that, Thanks for sharing, good lesson for all to consider.
Scary! My dad caught me working under my car with only jackstands back in 1973 and I learned a lot that day. He taught me to always slide a tire/rim under the car, how to place stands to minimize risk, and either put a floor jack or backup stands under as well. He had a close call years earlier and it scared him. Final tip was once the car was up in the air…try to shake it hard to ensure it is secure. Glad you are safe.
I wonder where they were made??? Looks like "6 TON" cast into the uprights. Some countries seem to think that is all it takes to actually be able to carry the load......
Wow, you were really lucky. I think nearly everybody has something that he fears most in his life - this happening is my biggest fear. I hate jack stands and mistrust them as most come from China. Sometimes I have to use them but I feel never secure. School friend of my wife was killed when a jack stand collapsed.
I never understood the attraction of these ratcheting type stands, gimmie the post type with a pin any day of the week!
The part that broke said 6 ton, not 3 ton. The castings look pretty ruff. I've seen folks jacking cars up in the middle and opening the release and cars slamming down on the jackstands.
51P, really great advice here, I always slide a rim and tyre under just in case - actually saved me once, I was working without jack stands (stupid I know) laying under the car and the jack slowly lowered and I didnt notice. By the time I did notice how tight it was and wriggled out the car was resting on the tyre/rim - if it hadnt I could have been pinned and crushed. I emphasise I was working without jack stands but safety took a higher priority from that point and I agree with Squirrel, money spent on better safety equipment os money well spent. 34 Ratrod, glad you're OK and able to share your lesson with us.
The fact of the matter is these days anything you buy is a crap shoot. Engineers and companies don’t care about our safety the care about their bottom line. Build your own!
Glad to hear your'e still around to play another day. Those jackstands when fully extended and used on a slight slope will have their centre of gravity very close to the edge of the base. Doesn't take much to upset it and go bang!
If they are Harbor freight, the recall is still active with additional stands included since the first recall. I took a couple sets back about a month ago. I saw it on the Garage Journal https://em.harborfreight.com/pub/sf/ResponseForm?_ri_=X0Gzc2X=AQpglLjHJlYQGzcIS6zehh4AknfUUAHzdamGzazbWEb2azfqluyIr0biJsIMlK1Bze9mjSTIRVXMtX=AQpglLjHJlYQGzcIS6zehh4AknfUUAHzdamGzazbKTutWopkBjKBzbzdKIBKH51beAEnze5IsR&_ei_=ERPDYJQy6-A5MgkuWZ9k6ndiiILlQs5hWB_DwuKZ7aUixm-UJKBC6OiZbepdhblEH2CN&_di_=r1np9ro66sdi230heufrj70imjvlv041dk64dber3lnree375vog
I've always put the stands under the lower control arms and watched as the control arms slide as you let the jack down. Never dreamed that anything would snap off like that. I have some 50 year old Blackhawk and Napa stands as well as some of those H.F. stands. Got me thinking now....and a little worried.
Never ever EVER depend solely on the jack stands. Gotta have some kind of extra under there just in case. Blocks of wood, wheels, the cat... something. No matter who made 'em.
A car on jack stands on an incline is just asking for trouble. And I'm going to remember your incident and my own advice. Cuz the apron outside our garage is slightly inclined.
My ex-wife was going to buy me a pair for my birthday... so it winds up that I got ONE of the stamped-steel pieces of crap. It went out with my next load of scrap. My racing partner made a pair like that, they were extra tall and massive. He welded a flat plate of diamond plate steel to the bottoms.
Actually makes me want to make my own jack stands. Not cast. Certainly not stamped. Made with nice, heavy-duty, ductile, thick-wall, pipe and angle iron. And at least a 1/2" dia pin.
Hey @'34 Ratrod First of all, yes indeed, you are very lucky that, you didn't get seriously injured! That sucks that those type of jack stands failed in the way they did. I never trusted those those type with the ratchet teeth. I used to keep an off topic truck in storage back in Oshkosh Wisconsin, so that I could use it once a year for when I was at the annual airshow as a vendor. I had a friend that would come and start up the truck several times in the winter and put it in gear to let it run a little while. I bought 4 heavy duty jack stands that were beefy and that had the pin in post style, that you see here in these photo's. I thought that by having 4 of them, for the truck to be off of the floor, so that the tires didn't get flat spots in them, was the way to go. But I really didn't like the way they supported the truck by just the frame. The metal to metal contact area didn't seem to be stable enough, especially if the truck was going to be running while elevated off of the floor. I bought that set of jack stands back in 2009, from Menards there in Oshkosh, as you can see, they used a 1" pin, and the post was forged NOT cast. So I went to a local rigging company that I knew, would have a bunch of 12" X 12" wooden blocks, I bought 4 of them, money well spent by the way. As you can see by the pictures, the 12" X 12" wooden blocks was a much better way to go for the front end of the truck, I used the jack stands on the rear end housing, which they fit a lot better because of the roundness that fit the head of the jack stand a lot better. Same as with the trailer to keep the tires off of the floor, wooden blocking for the tongue of the trailer, jack stands for the axle. It should be more than evident, from all of the input on this thread, always have sufficient wooden blocking, to be the best safety back up element, when when working under cars or trucks. Your results may vary !
Young dumbass walked into my garage one day with a mutual acquaintance. Looking at my collection of big wooden blocks, he quipped sarcastically, "Oh yeah, that's what every shop needs... big blocks of wood." Darn right. Dumbass.
Unless I’m doing suspension work, I’ve started using Race Ramps for under car work and oil changes. I have a few options with front end up or all four corners in the air. Still throw in an extra safety point, but light and easy to use. I was never a fan or ramps before, but these are solid and don’t scoot when driving up on them.
The Jalopy Journal
