Hi-Lift Jack
 

Just to discuss something other than LC vs LR.....

Back to the point - just got a hi-lift jack sent through with compliments from a 4x4 company and not wanting to turn down anything thats free.....BUT its very heavy!

It is a 4ft jack and I do wondor if I'll ever use it? and hence is it worth carrying the extra weight (14KG) as I have a winch? What do you think?

Also where can i jack the rear of the toyota up?

Cheers

Becky

I think there is a hook and chain accessory you can get for rounded bumpers
though not much use if it's plastic. Probably more use than a winch in the desert but very dangerous if not used properly. It you google hi-lift you should get lots of info on their use. I've used one a lot around the farm and always carried it in the desert but never been that stuck.

Leave it at home and use a good quality hydraulic bottle jack - much quicker to use

- the problem with a rack jack is you have to jack up the chassis/body until the wheel lifts - the bottle jack under an axle etc lifts the wheel straight away

I find they are better in muddy conditions, where its not always easy to get under the vehicle and place a bottle jack, you can also cast the vehicle to the side with them.

and yes they are heavy, a pain to store on/in the vehicle and as mentioned can be dangerous - if the handle is left down and it starts to self lower.

cheers
Grif

You just strap the axle to the frame so it doesn't droop.

They can also be handy for breaking the tire bead.

Hi Becky,

You can use the rear chassis rail for jacking on an 80 - what sort of winch bar do you have at the front - for ARB style ones will need additional attachments to hook onto the lower lip.

Personally I hate hi-lifts and would rather stick to the standard 80 bottle jack and then an air bag jack for the rare muddy jacking.

I also am not a fan. Big, heavy, they dont like dust or sand in the mechanism and if that handle slips through your hand before the pin locks I don't even want to think about it...

I bought one and it sat in a corner doing nowt (it is still there). I would say a good thing for extreme off roading in experienced hands but dubious for expedition use. Maybe worth it if you see yourself doing heroic sand and jungle action.

I have thought about a modified hydraulic cabin lifting cylinder from a MAN truck - kind of like a really long stroke skinny bottle jack with a small remote pump. But I have no idea of the lifting capability, but it would be light and easy to stow, and capable of lifting a considerable height.

Gil

This is a lot more use in the sand
YouTube - DreamingOfDakar.com -Bowler Wildcat High Lift Ram in action!

I love my hilift (no, not in that sort of way.... :-)

I never go off road without one, used it for lifting, pulling, pushing, bead breaking, as a (slow) winch, all sorts,

as they're long and (relatively) thin, you can store them quite well "out of the way" so shouldn't really be a problem, and 14kg isn't that bad... compared to a cars overall weight.

Dunk it in water or pour water over it.
Never grease them.

Becky,

From your post it appears you have no off-road experience. You need to get proper training to appreciate how useful a tool it is, but also how dangerous it may become in unskilled hands. The same applies to the winch. Until then, you'll be safer without them.

Sound advice:thumbup1:

Off roading and winching is no problem - just have never used a hi-lift myself although have seen them used.

There are jacking points on the ARB bumper but its where to jack at the rear? I plan to get someone to run through with me before I go.

This post was more of a "do I need it?"

hmmmm, having thoughts about taking mine now - I wouldn't normally travel anywhere without it but as there will be at leat two others carrying one in the group I guess it's dead metal. Good bottle jacks aren't exactly featherweight either though and I much prefer changing a wheel with a high lift, saves all that scrabbling on the floor and I find it much quicker.

A bottle jack is much more useful for doing repairs though - I found out how unstable hi-lifts are in the summer when doing an impromptue rear bearing change on a trip - as careful as I was it only took some pressure on a wrench to send the car backwards and off the jack. Luckily I kept myself clear and it was on grass, would have done some damage on hardstanding. :pinch:

You probably all know this, even if by bitter experience (we've all done it), but for anyone new or inexperienced NEVER rely on a hi-lift or simmilar to hold a vehicle in the air to work on. Once it's raised you must put something under the axle or sill - spare wheel works well or even a log or rock. And it's not just the car falling over the jack itself hurts when it lands on your toe.
Used properly they are a usefull tool.
Chris

Do I need it ?
 

It's one of those items you buy and hope you'll never need.
Same goes for sandplates, a shovel, winches, towropes, etc. or even beter a fire-exthinuiser or a firstaid-kit.
Their value only shows when you wouldn't get out of a situation without them. Otherwise when you are without them you wil probably figure a way to improvise another solution.
It will mostly depend where you are planning to go and how independant you are, one hi-lift per expedition is more than enough.

About using a highlift, never forget their nature (it's a lift or jack not a support). It is a serious but very instable tool, which can lift incredible loads incredible high, but always secure your load (vehicle) before starting working on them. For changing wheels I use a bottlejack but I've been in situations I was glad we brought the Hi-lift too.
Getting some practise before really needing one is advisable, maybe let somebody really demonstrate you one before deciding if you can life without one.
If you take one, consider making or buying a extended baseplate to bolt under the base. For easy recovery there are some extensions available, they fit in your rim or around the axle, which makes it possible to directly jack a wheel off the ground and slip a sandplate under the wheel without lifting the entire body skyhigh before clearing a wheel.

About storing them, the fact that most people tend to bolt them somewhere on/in their vehicle shows how often they are used. BTW they are easy to dismantle a bit, removing the baseplate and slide the rail off the mechanism and/or removing the handle will give you much more freedom to easily store it somewhere inside your vehicle or a trunk.

But please don't forget the 'street'credability, you are not a real overland traveler without some highly visible sandplates mounted on your roofrack (or better on the sidepanels of your 'rig') with a robust hi-lift beside them, on the backdoor-sparewheel-shovel-carrier-unit or mounted on the frontbumber.