You know what your getting when you buy a Harbor Freight. Low quality and a low price. I have several. But I never rely on them because they can and will fail, and can be dangerous. The last one I bought will slowly collapse, so when you jack up a wheel and come back the car is on the ground.
found an antique roller jack in a junk shop many decades ago--heavy as hell and feels like a truck to pull it around. Thing about it is it will go up about 2 1/2 feet or so, just about straight up which makes it nice to get under one and have some room left (braced of course). Leaks a little now, but jack oil is cheap. No brand name on it. Look around those shops and you might find an old one that works.."me no want no stinkin' aluminum".
I have a 40-50 year old sears 3 ton floor jack that still works good . And i got a newer harbor freak jack that hasnt failed yet
A friend bought a HF racing jack, 1.5 rating. Was really light weight, I liked that easier for me to use when had to pick up to high place. So I buy one, is like 10lbs heavier, we couldn't find where the difference was, even checked with a magnet. Next time I have a need its going to get a bunch of holes.....
Same thing happened when I was working at a heavy equipment dealership in WI Guys took several transmission jacks for the hoist and a couple older Hein Warner Jack's that leaked a bit snd a original portapower pump and a few othet cylinders saying they would rebuild them for **X money. Last I saw that truck was heading south on I90 near IL completely full of Jack's. Never got anything back and the number on there card and receipt was no good.
18 years since toddc's post, and not much has changed Down Under. Still hard to find a reliable floor jack. After several el-cheapos that developed the "self-lowering option", I bought an Armstrong jack. They were once an Australian company, but now manufacture offshore. Quality is still outstanding, and a lot cheaper than SnapOn. Cheers, Harv
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