1952-59 Ford Always hated those old Ford bumper jacks.

I hated them all. Never seemed like enough to hold the car up nor did they have enough to catch the lip or the little slot of the bumper

 

My Auto Shop teacher was a stickler for us using jack stands a buddy of mine got yelled at on several occasions for getting under his car and not using them. It ended up costing him his life I had sold him my '53 Ford when I went in the Army in April of '64 six weeks later Mom told me he was working on it using the bumper jack out in his parents barn it came down on him and the rear end pumpkin crushed his scull.

 

I've met a few people over the years that have had cars fall or roll on them because they were not properly blocked or propped up. Two were in wheel chairs because of it. When I am at the track you see people going under their cars all the time and I just cringe, I even had a guy argue with me about how safe it was. What a tard. I always throw at least 1 stand under where I am working.

 

We lost a kid in high school from using a bumper jack too. 1966 or '67, story was he used 2 bumper jacks then crawled under the car to work on trans linkage.

 

I was about 10, helping my dad jack up a car with a bumper jack. The jack slipped out and the upright caught me under the eye... had a big shiner from that. Before I could afford a floor jack I used bumper jacks all the time, but never got under a car without it being blocked up. I'd never use one again.

 

I remember using them and once they started going down they would just keep going by themselves.

 

Yep, about 25 years ago I was working under my car, had Jack stands under it with rear wheels chocked. When I finished i removed the stands and chocks when I remembered that I needed to check something and slid under "Just for a second". I reached up by the exhaust and my arm bumped the shift linkage and knocked it out of park. As it rolled back i put my shoulder against the frame to protect my head and was able to lift a few times and got out. End result was fractured neck, all ribs broken on left side, broken right soulder, broken collar bone, along.with ***ociated nerve damage. So even surviving can have lasting results.
I emphasize to everyone to please use Jack stands even if your going under the car "just for a second.

 

I just walked up to a friend who was under his car, up on stands but they were on a hot asphalt driveway. It fell on him (1966 Mustang) and I grabbed a jack and helped him get out. He's a big guy, 6'6" and 280 lbs, not fat. Something severed an artery in his arm, but pinched it closed so it hardly bled. The local doc took a look and sent him to the ER, they had to re-section the artery and put in a drain. From then on, I use 3/4" plywood under all my stands, I have at least 4 or 6 of them cut up ready to go.

 

I have my original bumper jack, but never thought about using it. I use the floor hidraulic jack only and at least one jackstand to go along with it, depending on what I'm working on.
Anyway, I feel kinda relieved when I finally get her back on the ground after working..

 

I am still looking for the correct 52/53 Mercury, bumper bender, mechanic killer.. Doubt I'd ever use it, but look good in the trunk