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theoldwizard1

Floor Jack rebuild

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theoldwizard1

As I mentioned elsewhere, I have been building my tool collection for over 40 years. Most of what I have is Craftsman (reasonable price for a non-professional and good warranty).

One of my first "big ticket" purchases was a Craftsman floor jack. It is over 30 years old and won't lift to its full height. There also seems to be a bit of leakage (oily dirt on the outside). I'm pretty certain it is an import (probably Japan; this was before China and the rest of SE Asia manufactured "everything"), but it is fairly well made. Big saddle, cast iron frame. It is the same physical size as most "professional" 1-2 ton units.

It has "sentimental" value (I bought it for my "mobile" oil change business which was one of many jobs I had to get through college).

Can it be repaired ? Is it worth it ? Or should I just add some jack oil and hope for the best ?

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VinsRJ

I had a Craftsman jack for about 12 years when it started to leak oil. Looked into fixing it but ended up purchasing a new one when it was on sale. As part of the Craftsman club I got an additional % off, IMO super deal. Keep the old one but save yourself the grief and get a new one. After 30 years of service its served you VERY well.

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Redbirdman

did you look to see if you can tighten the seal where the jack handle pumps the oil?

Also. a lot of jacks get water or air (air compresses) trapped inside. I have completely drained some old ones and refilled them to find they still work great. The seal not only lets oil drip out but air get in.

ED :thumbs:

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horsefeathers

Wizard, Why it it so hard for us to give up our old stuff?

I finaly retired my "Buck Rodgers" timing light! Still works!

I got me one of those new ones with the advance dial on it!

Very cool now I can check total,inital,and full advance with a turn of a dial!

I think Redbirdman hit this on on the nose! Good advice!

And as always "consult a profesional"!check your yellow pages for hydraulic repair shops.

Or scrap it and add the cash to your new "Made in China" floor jack!

You will be disapointed!

:thumbs: HORSEEATHERS!

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theoldwizard1

@tophatbuffalo - WOW ! What a well written post with excellent pictures. For any one else interested, that post is all you need ! The good news is disassembly is not difficult and the most likely failed parts (O rings) can be obtained out of a Harbor Freight O ring assortment kit.

@horesfeathers - I still have my Sears/Penske timing light (no advance) and dwell tach. I also have an assortment of distributor wrenches.

As for "professionals", I've tried that. They all say it would cost more for them to rebuild it than what I paid for it.

My son already bought me a new jack (also Craftsman), but you can always use 2, right ? :thumbs:

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300zx

Wizard, I bought my Sears jack back in 1972 when I was rebuilding VW engines on the side. I needed to rebuild it in the 90's, so I went to Sears with the model number and found out it was made by Black Hawk. Once I got the Black Hawk number, the rebuild kit was available from my local jack repair shop. I wouldn't trade that jack for any of the other jacks I have. It goes lower and higher than my other jacks and it is the only jack I have that can go under a car with low clearance and you can still stroke the jack with the handle parallel to the floor. Have I already said "I really like this jack." So, if there are thing about the jack that you can't get in a new one, rebuild it. If not, buy a new one. Good luck!

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AMC RULES

While we're on the subject of floor jacks, can someone recommend a recently purchased floor jack that is well made, reasonably priced, and works well too? :thumbs:

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DMK855

I have to laugh when reading this!! I have an aluminum Craftsman jack (That I paid WAY too much for when I bought it!!) I bought it to take racing when i was traveling. It was nice and light and easy to carry around. Needless to say, It lasted just a hair over a year. I have been toting it around for the last 6 years or so with the intentions of "digging" into it to see why it doesn't work!!. It is a China jack I am sure.......... Maybe this thread will help me decide to tear into it, or decide to toss it!!!!

Now my 25 year old Craftsman jack that my neighbor was tossing out works great, and My Lincoln jack, well, it is my favorite!!!

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Redbirdman

Whoa............. thanks for the link to that excellent jack rebuild thread! :thumbs:

But I think the main worry point is simply what they call the 'tank cap o ring', which is the one I meant (and usually had to replace or repair some I had you just could tighten down on the 'tank cap nut'.....(although I never knew thats what it was called). It lays sideways which is never good for any seal, gets a zillion back and forth motions (for every single turn of the release valve)

But anyhow.....I sent the link to my son and grandson who have inherited all the jacks collected by me, pop and my grandfather...... :thumbs:

ed :thumbs:

PS: I found a solution to the jack problem....."Hey Ralph can I borrow your jack?"

works great! :thumbs:

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6wheeler

Good jacks are very hard to come by these days. Don't buy any of those crappy Grip ones they sell at Fleet Farm, unless you need boat anchors. In the last 5 years I have gone through 4 floor jacks and 2 bottle jacks (its possible I may be a little hard on them :thumbs:) My problem is, they want to tip sideways and fold right over. I finally bit the big one(cuz I'm a tightwad) and ordered one from Carquest it cost $190.00, but with my discount it was $150.00. So far so good. It is a very good jack, heavy construction and high lift. I went to an auction last fall and bought 4, 20t bottle jacks for $7.00 apiece and they are old but work well. I am gonna keep that websight for jack repair, lots of info on it.

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stevasaurus

That link from garage journal is fantastic. I found that thread a few months ago, and bookmarked it. When I started reading this thread, I remembered it and was going to post it here...tophat beat me to it. Good luck with the rebuild. :thumbs: Already did mine...works great now.

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theoldwizard1

From further research, it appears that Sear/Craftsman floor jacks with model numbers starting with "328." where made by Yasui in Japan. They are still in business. These are far superior to newer ones made in China or Korea.

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