Recommendations for a floor jack
 

Gents,
What are some good floor jacks? I do have a local Harbor Freight, but I bet most of the stuff is made in China (low quality). The last time I had a floor jack was in the 70's/80's when I worked on my 71 El Camino. I don't want to spend a lot of $$$ but want a decent one. Does Sears Craftsman make a decent one?

I have a Torin aluminum jack that I like. It's nice and lite, and <$100. Costco sells them as well as Northern Tool & Equipment. I think it's the same as the Craftsman, but Sears charges a few bucks more.

Thanks Tom. Went to the Costco site, and I'm assuming its this one:
http://content.costco.com/Images/Con...uct/159901.jpg
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product...t21277&topnav=

Also checked out Sears, and all the floor jacks mentioned, a lot of people were not every happy with, including some of the more expensive ones. Went to Harbor Freight on line and did not see any prices.

I got the Arcan XL35. It's a tank, very durable and gets the car up quick. You can see pictures of it in this older thread:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c4-g...le-jack-3.html

I have the same jack as in the pic except I bought it at the local Shuck's Auto Supply or whatever it's called now. I paid $79.99 on sale. Most chain auto parts stores sell the same jack just under different brand names.

I've had mine for 4 years now and while I don't use it a lot, it has developed a nasty hydraulic oil leak at the piston. It won't lose height if I raise the car and leave it in the up position, but I now check fluid level before each use and top it off. But's a PITA to clean the floor or step in the fluid :willy:

NAPA sells a low profile jack. It is more expensive than all other mentioned above but it is great to work on C4s.
:thumbs:

I have a great craftsman jack that's just a liitle too tall to get under the car. Ugh. Be careful.

Harbor Freight jacks are a-OK. I have 2. They have a low-profile, high-lift one for $80. It's steel, so it's heavy, but they also have a comparable Al one for $150. Just depends what you care about.

I also have the XL-35 I purchased from the local Costco....Great Jack!

Harbor Freight is running a sale, take a look in magazines. They have a full page ad. Low profile jack for $70.

I bought a Craftsman jack for $200 and it isn't what you would expect.

It works pretty damn good, but it also leaks like a sieve. Also the saddle isn't removable, so you can't put a "jack-a-vette" on it.

This was a question I had a few weeks ago until I bought a spectacular jack. I bought an Arcan Quick Lift Service Jack. It fits under my lowered C4 at 3.5 inches and raises it to above 21 inches. It raises quick, is relatively cheap at $150, and gets an almost perfect 4.9 out of 5. I also bought 4 Torin jack stands to support the Vette off the ground. Check it out:
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...5429_200345429

Yep, that's the XL-35. Great jack.

This is identical to the one I bought at Harbor Freight on sale and with coupon for $71 last spring. Its rated at 3000lb and works great on the Vette. My only complaint is the saddle is not removable.

:iagree: I bought that same jack from Harbor Freight a couple weeks ago and I like it so much I'm going to get another one. I like the fact that it is wide in front, the single roller wheel on the aluminum ones are too narrow. If you've ever seen a narrow jack roll on it's side with a car on it you know what I mean.

I'm sure the Costco one is made in China and the Craftsman probably is too.

I have a craftsman jack that works fine. It is a little high for the vette so I drive onto a couple of boards first.

I bought the Harbor Freight aluminum low profile one. The magazines have an ad for $59. I tried it and it works good. For that price, I bought a second one. I need the low profile on my C5.

For the C4 I have a Craftsman steel 3 ton floor jack. Not a low profile one. They put them on sale once in a while for about the same price.

I generally like the Craftsman better, but the aluminum ones do work OK so far.

I don't think that I would trust a Harbor Freight floor jack. A lot of the stuff from them is junk. I have 2 Craftsmen floor jacks. They are very rugged and reliable.

The harbor freight jack is now $59.99

Really? I might have to check them out if several of you have already confirmed that they are not that bad. If i was using it daily, then I would spend the $$$ for a decent quality one. My use is probably only 4x/year. Thanks fellas.