Hi-Lift Vs. Floor Jack

[goleee33]

Hi All,

I was just curious what your thoughts are between a Hi-Lift vs a Floor Jack? I personally use both, but personally if I had to just pick one, I would have to say I'm going with a Floor Jack. I currently use the Pro-Eagle jack that has a plate on the underside to keep it from sinking in the sand. It also has high clearance vehicle adapters. Its awesome! A Hi-lift just seems a bit more dangerous, granted they do have other uses. Pros and cons to both.

Lets hear your thoughts!

 

[Njtraveler]

Hi-lift has more potential uses. Like using it as a winch, albeit a very slow one. But My decision would be based on the vehicle. Do you have lift points for a hi-lift? Iow. My jeep would have a hi-lift hands down. But my wife's lr4 with all its plastic and stock bumpers would be pretty useless.

 

[Lifestyle Overland]

But my wife's lr4 with all its plastic and stock bumpers would be pretty useless.

I think this is the main factor for hi-lift use, if you have hard jacking points then they're great (albeit dangerous). I love my floor jack but it stays in the shop because without level, firm ground it's just as dangerous as a hi-lift.

 

[goleee33]

Here is a photo of a tire replacement we did a few weeks ago where the floor jack was awesome. To get the wheel high enough with a Hi-Lift, it would have needed to be near the top of the lift due to the amount of wheel travel he has on the rear.

 

[Scott]

I'll throw in another option.. The bottle jack. I carry a bottle Jack and it has always worked for me in the limited times I have needed it. That being said, I'm looking to improve my bottle Jack setup with a lot from www.safejacks.com

 

[Gunnermoose]

I think this is the main factor for hi-lift use, if you have hard jacking points then they're great (albeit dangerous).

Any jacking procedure is dangerous when not properly conducted and the operator is not properly trained! It's not the jacks fault.

 

[Lassen]

Something ran into a long time ago. Not a recovery situation, but a tire change issue on a Chevy Suburban. Was out east of Death Valley and got a flat tire, back right. In attempting to change the tire, discovered that with a flat our 6 ton bottle jack was too tall to fit underneath. Grabbed the stock jack and, though it fit under the jack point, did not have enough lift to enable us to put spare on. So, with car on that jack we then had enough room to use bottle jack to raise the extra amount to put on spare.

Moral: for us, know what works and how before going out in the wilderness. We happened to have both, but if we didn't, well, it would have been a long day!

With that said, a hi-lift has multiple uses, but, as noted above, they can kick out on you if you aren't careful. Everything outside of the shop can be precarious as dirt, sand, gravel, rocks can add an unexpected element to jacking a car.

 

[Barton Fink]

.

 

[Travis Barker]

I use this with my hi-lift, helps keep it from slipping
http://jeepsneeds.com/products/d-lift-adaptor-hi-lift

I also carry a bottle jack.

 

[TreXTerra]

"Would you rather have a claw hammer or a rawhide mallet?"

Although these tools are similar, they are for different jobs. I would never use my hi-lift at home in my shop or to change a tire, and I wouldn't use a floor jack in the field to unditch myself. A floor jack is wonderful for lifting a vehicle for maintenance or repairs, but it can't be used as a come-along, clamp, rescue spreader, wire puller, or any of the hundreds of other things a farm jack can do.

I don't carry a floor jack, they take up a lot of space, are heavy, don't like dirt and grime (it erodes the seals), and often can't be put in place depending on the terrain. I carry a bottle jack for changing tires and a hi-lift jack for recoveries.

 

[Vyscera]

TrexTerra nailed this one, similar tools with different uses. I've got a hi-lift on my truck and jeep, and 3 floor jacks (1 larger and 2 smaller ones) at home. I do like the look of the recovery kit that safe jack offers. that may make it onto my wish list.

 

[SilverSurferJKU]

Here is a photo of a tire replacement we did a few weeks ago where the floor jack was awesome. To get the wheel high enough with a Hi-Lift, it would have needed to be near the top of the lift due to the amount of wheel travel he has on the rear.

I was concerned with the height that the Hi-Lift would travel to clear the tire, after that I started strapping the axle to the frame. Now it takes very little to clear the tire.


Sent from my iPhone using OB Talk

 

[Kevigizmo]

I've used both on a number of occasions and I've always found there to be pro's and con's of each,

The usual culprits are:
Sinking mud - put a waffle board under to give more sturdy base
Stability - Hi-Lifts due to its nature will wobble side to side and could be potentially dangerous if not used correctly
Floor Jacks tend to be more stable as they are simply close to the ground and a larger footprint (bottle jacks fall into the same category as the hi-lift ones for stability)

It depends on the scenario and where you are physically located as if the ground is soft all of them will dig in :)

 

[Jkroberts]

I love my pro eagle floor jack as well!! It's a lot easier and safer to use in my application, wheeling a full size rig. I've never had a flat but my buddies have and they have even fuller sized rigs. What's cool about the pro eagle is that I put the extension on and then put it right on the axle behind the flat tire. I'm able to jack it up enough quickly and the truck is still very stable because it still has 3 points of contact to the ground. Now I still carry a hi lift and accessories because a floor jack is almost useless for other recovery methods. Other pros for the pro eagle jack isltself is that it is light weight and comes with a mounting bracket so you can easily secure it to your rig.

I guess the bottom line is I take both :)

Sent from my SM-G920V using OB Talk mobile app

 

[Vyscera]

I'll throw in another option.. The bottle jack. I carry a bottle Jack and it has always worked for me in the limited times I have needed it. That being said, I'm looking to improve my bottle Jack setup with a lot from www.safejacks.com

I really like the look of the safe jack recovery kit. I asked about size and weight of the 6 ton kit. From safe jack "Our 37M-BJRK-6W (6 Ton Bottle Jack Recovery Kit - With Bottle Jack) weight 24lbs. The canvas bag dimensions are: 12"x7"x9"."
While not light, it provides a lot of lift height, very versatile, and more compact than either floor or hi-lift. a good choice for anyone with space restrictions. and 6 tons of lift! they sell the kit with out jack if you've got your own.

 

[Vyscera]

FYI, shipping is pretty bad. From WA to IL its $42!! I'm debating getting a jack locally, that drops $60 ($50 for the jack and $10 less shipping) Sears has 8 or 12 ton bottle jacks for $40, instead of 6 ton.

 

[Scott]

I really like the look of the safe jack recovery kit. I asked about size and weight of the 6 ton kit. From safe jack "Our 37M-BJRK-6W (6 Ton Bottle Jack Recovery Kit - With Bottle Jack) weight 24lbs. The canvas bag dimensions are: 12"x7"x9"."
While not light, it provides a lot of lift height, very versatile, and more compact than either floor or hi-lift. a good choice for anyone with space restrictions. and 6 tons of lift! they sell the kit with out jack if you've got your own.

Agreed.. After doing some research, I'll buy the safe Jack kit without the bottle Jack. I can find plenty of bottle javks locally for significantly cheaper.

Sent from my LG-H810 using Tapatalk

 

[Vyscera]

Agreed.. After doing some research, I'll buy the safe Jack kit without the bottle Jack. I can find plenty of bottle javks locally for significantly cheaper.

Sent from my LG-H810 using Tapatalk

after playing on their site, trying to figure the cheaper way to go (who doesnt have an extra storage bag/box?) I found the shipping went up ordering the peices vs. the kit. So for $3 more I got bag.

 

[1derer]

Big plus for me concerning the Hi-Lift is the ability to use it for recovery in case of a winch failure. Yes hard points can be an issue if your rig is not armored with sliders and bumpers. Floor jack just takes up too much space and doesn't have enough versatility imho.

 

[Polaris Overland]

Personally I carry a hi lift and a small bottle jack. As I have a defender I have solid jacking points for the high lift. But to get the wheel off the ground I have to jack very high. And even with an additional base plate on uneven ground it can be dangerous. So to reduce the height I need to jack the bottle jack can be used to clear the wheel off the ground sooner


Sent from my iPad using OB Talk