Hi-Lift Jacks

[Falcon]

Not an expert by any means. But my only experience with the Hi-Lift was in AB with a bunch of Scouts. One of the leaders got his chevy stuck, and in the process of lifting the SUV managed to rip a huge tear in the rear door skin. Not impressive. In Frogman's hands they are a viable option, but in the majority of the rest of us they are a deadly weapon.

I think my money is in the exhaust inflated air bags. IMHO it is the best option... and if I am trying to get my truck unstuck you can bet it will still run, so exhaust is not a problem. And I like the possibility to place them under the suspension to lift. The biggest problem I have had lifting a 4x4 is suspension droop. By the time I got the tire off the ground, I was at or near the max lift height of the jack.

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Bushranger has a good write-up on it.. http://tinyurl.com/RapJack

I don't know about the puncture danger that was talked about... but it shouldn't be anything a doubled up piece of canvas or beach towel couldn't mitigate.

And since this thread has morphed into lifting in general - this is a interesting option to using a high-lift jack and logs. Watch the video... some cool applications.

http://tinyurl.com/yb49329

Falcon

 

[BigJ]

I've got the opportunity to "borrow" a new Hi-Lift Xtreme 60" as well as their bull bar mounting solution. It should all be here next week.

Honestly I don't know what I'm going to do with it. I guess I'll mount it up on the bull bar and take some pics. But in terms of actually figuring out how to use it... I don't think I'm qualified.

Dammit frog, hurry up and get your Raptor already. I need you to crawl around under there and figure out where/how best to use a hi-lift!

 

[BigJ]

The jack came in today and I've been staring at it, and my truck, on and off throughout the day. I've crawled around underneath and played around with various idears.

And unless I'm being a total maroon, I don't think we're as bad off as we all assumed. I think frog has the right of this:

...a better bet would be to use a very short tree protector looped through the tow hook hook then attached to the lifting nose of the jack...

In looking at it carefully, why wouldn't a short tree protector mounted to the hi-lift as he suggests work on all four corners, via our four tow hooks? The rear appears to be no problem; the hooks come out *just enough* to allow what I would think is a comfortable angle between them and the hi-lift's nose connected via a tree protector (just enough to clear the bumper).

The front, at least in my case, is the easy part. We've moved the hooks forward (thanks to the Aries Bull Bar) and there's a straight shot between the hooks and open air about 1 foot above. Plenty of space to fit a tree protector down thru the hook and back up to the hi-lift nose. I don't remember the stock setup well enough to speak with the same confidence. Someone want to stand above and look straight down and see?

The not so good news is that I don't see any way to go at this from the sides of the truck, as it sits stock. The only thing I could come up with was to build a connection between the feet of the running boards and the boxed frame. Maybe some bar or tube stock welded to plates, and those plates are bolted / welded to the back of the foot and to the frame. Then the nose would easily slip under the foot and there'd be plenty of strength to jack right up.

But, is that really necessary? If we can get all four corners up via the stock tow hooks, would being able to lift from the sides ever really be required?

 

[MagicMtnDan]

It just seems to me to be far too much effort to use a tool that's not designed for use on this kind of vehicle. Sure you can make it work but what are the compromises that need to be made?

That said I will be happy if you and the Frog Chucker find a way to make that thing work on the Raptor and you bring it along on your drives.

 

[MarkT]

I agree the hi-lift can be a great tool. But use extreme caution. They can tip easily.

A friend of mine got high centered on a rock once with his FJ. He had nice sliders attached to the frame which made a great jacking point. The base of the jack was on solid level ground. Up the FJ went. The FJ shifted suddenly and the hi-lift dented and ripped through the body in a split second.

I had another friend that managed to scratch the heck out of his FJ using the hi-lift in his garage. He was jacking up one corner pretty high when the jack slipped due to the angle of the vehicle. Deep scratch. Be extra careful when lifting high.

These were all experienced off roaders who thought they were being careful... and had used a hi-lift many times before without incident. The safest way to me seems to be to use the liftmate wheel attachment.

 

[BigJ]

Hell I dunno. I don't want to start defending a tool I've never used "in the real world".

If frog gives his blessing on my four corners thought, in theory I think we're in good shape using a Hi-Lift on our Raptors. And after researching some, it seems a Lift Mate is really a great addition. If that proves out, now we've got our side lift points as well.

The dangers of this tool are real. But then, so are the dangers of other options. The common theme in all how-to's I've read, all instructions I've seen and all videos I've watched is to go slow, use your head and think about what you're doing. Good advise, really, regardless of the tool.

 

[frogslinger]

Seeing as you have the jack and the truck you are a little ahead of this one J... can you get the jack close enough to the rear bumper for the lifting nose to grab the hooks without the mast touching the bumper? I so then that is definitely a superior methodology to the straps...

I cannot tell on your truck, because it is photos, but can you insert the nose into the tow hook on the front from the side? If you can do that it would be a perfect setup. If not you can try having some straps fabbed... I am looking at trying to get a local canvas/tent place to mod mine... I will try to do a pull of my tahoe using the modded strap to test for weight.

I would not recommend using a stock strap except in expedient conditions... you are going to have to loop it a couple of times to get it down to the 1.5ish feet that you need (estimated from looking at an fx4)... which is probably not the best solution.

If you want to wait the 45 days for me to do the reaserch for you, I am more than happy to get it done (the truck should be here around the first of next month).... if not, the safest solution will be to spend the 30 bucks and get the wheel lift and a jackstand... that will definitely work, be stable and only has the downside that you need to carry a jackstand around with you...

Sorry to not be more decisive but I definately do not want to recommend to a new user a technique i have not specifically done myself... as MMD has pointed out, this is a potentially dangerous tool that demands respect.

 

[Falcon]

Hell I dunno. I don't want to start defending a tool I've never used "in the real world".

If frog gives his blessing on my four corners thought, in theory I think we're in good shape using a Hi-Lift on our Raptors. And after researching some, it seems a Lift Mate is really a great addition. If that proves out, now we've got our side lift points as well.

The dangers of this tool are real. But then, so are the dangers of other options. The common theme in all how-to's I've read, all instructions I've seen and all videos I've watched is to go slow, use your head and think about what you're doing. Good advise, really, regardless of the tool.

Ummm.... we all shoot guns, don't we? Same logic applies.

Falcon

 

[MagicMtnDan]

Looks to be a good source of Hi-Lift Jack accessories: http://www.expeditionexchange.com/hilift/

 

[BigJ]

Whoa.

Dad always taught me that we learn more from our failures than we do from our successes. Welp... I've just given myself one hell of a learning opportunity.

No damage, no injury... unless you count ego and whits. I took lots of pictures in hopes we can learn together. I'll post up details later today. Right now, I need to go clean up, chill out for a bit and recover...