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bottle jack vs. hi-lift? bottle jack vs. hi-lift?
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Equipping the Overland Vehicle Vehicle accessories - Making your home away from home comfortable, safe and reliable.
Photo by Sean Howman, The Pamir highway in an unseasonably cold late October, Tajikistan

I haven't been everywhere...
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Photo by Sean Howman,
The Pamir highway in an unseasonably
cold late October, Tajikistan



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  #1  
Old 12 Nov 2004
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bottle jack vs. hi-lift?
any recommendations from folks on whether to travel with a hi-lift jack or a bottle jack? and if you like the bottle jack, which size do you prefer?

i noticed on an old (2001) posting that Chris S said he sold his old hi-lift and now travels with the OME bottle jack (with an airbag jack in reserve for tight jams) and doesn't regret the change at all.
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  #2  
Old 13 Nov 2004
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Chris' advice might purely refer to North African deserts etc so he may be right in that environment, but I have worked and traveled in Southern Africa alot and have found the hi-lift to be superior to a bottle jack.

If your vehicle has the appropriate "lifting" points then the hi-lift stops you having to squirm under the vehicle in, sometimes, not very pleasant situations/conditions such as getting a flat in deep mud etc. The hi-lift has a multiple uses and is good for getting out of ruts and boggings and not just for flats which the bottle jack is more suited to.

I carry my hi-lift, an airjack (never used) and the bottle jack (as a back-up) but for ease of use (in often unbearably hot conditions) the hi-lift is wonderfull.
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  #3  
Old 13 Nov 2004
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I abandoned my hi lift when I found that a suitably sized hydraulic jack was adequate. I am referring to use in desert, not muddy conditions. Maybe in deep mud a hi lift is more suitable I don't know, I don't have any experience. For desert use the hi lift is potentially dangerous, in a situation where you are remote from help, not to mention big, heavy and difficult to stow.

Andrew Baker.
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  #4  
Old 13 Nov 2004
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Any recovery procedure is "potentially dangerous" and I assume we have all heard all the horror stories about bodged snatch recoveries and hi-lift handles "twatting" people in the face, but I have never experienced it myself. I can only say that I have respect for my tools and especially the hi-lift - it has saved my arse more than once.

As to stowage I put it in an old innertube and bolt it onto my front bumper where it is easily accessible and it will be in exactly the right position to gouge holes in the body work of Jo'burgs' bloody combi drivers!
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Old 13 Nov 2004
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Hi guys,

Can someone please describe how to change a shock absorber using only a bottle jack?

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www.overlandcruiser.info
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  #6  
Old 15 Nov 2004
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There is another option that I only saw on Dakar prepped cars and only in Equip Raid (French) catalog and that’s a hydro jack just as tall as the hi lift and the hydro mechanism climbs over the shaft just like a hi-lift. It looks just as capable and much less dangerous, no personal experience though.

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Old 15 Nov 2004
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Perhaps if I was working with the Paris-Dakar budget for such things I might consider it, but until then I'll have to stick with low-cost and low-tech.
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Old 15 Nov 2004
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I bought a bottle jack for a 110 from halfords with a 3 ton rating. It worked once and then could not hold the weight of the Landie and kept deflating.

If you do go down the bottle jack route then I would go way over spec to be sure you don't experience similar troubles.

Personally I'm a high lift fan, which dont forget you can also use as a winch.
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  #9  
Old 15 Nov 2004
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I think using a 3T rated bottle-jack isn't leaving much of a safety margin for an overland 110!

I got a 6T bottle-jack from Machine Mart (Clarks brand IIRC). I use that most of the time as it's usually punctures I'm dealing with. It's a lot less faff than the hi-lift.

I still carry the hi-lift though, bolted to the rear wheel carrier. Didn't use it on the last two trips, but I can see when you'd need it in the mud and even on the rocks.

Cheers,
Nick.

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Nick Taylor
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  #10  
Old 15 Nov 2004
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Also, I've seen the results, twice, of people being "twatted" (colourful word that!) by hi-lifts. Nasty, but ok if you want to loose weight on your soup-only diet for the next month or so!

Keep your head out of the arc of the handle!

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  #11  
Old 15 Nov 2004
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Quote:
Originally posted by Bundubasher:
Perhaps if I was working with the Paris-Dakar budget for such things I might consider it, but until then I'll have to stick with low-cost and low-tech.
It wasn't that much more expensive than a hi-lift. They use it because it's faster since its hydraulic.

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  #12  
Old 6 Jan 2005
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Hi lifts are totally unsuitable for lifting a vehicle to work on unless they are suitably stabilised. Even if you have other support under the vehicle if it slips when you are working, so unable to get outof the way sharpish, it will give you a right 'twatting' on the way down. Always make sure the handle is moved through it's full arc before releasing it to avoid the drinking through a straw syndrome. I managed to catch mine but it didn't do much for my right hand grip for a few weeks!

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Old 7 Jan 2005
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Did Alg once and Belgium to cape town last year. Never got the high-lift of. Had to bolt it down once again because someone tried to nick it.

Same as with sand plates. It's heavy, clumsy to stow etc, but gives confidence.

For working on the car I prefer the bottle jack and axle stands, and for changing chocks Roman, I don't use a jack at all. Just unbolt, take out, slip in thighten nuts and done.

;-)

Rob
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  #14  
Old 7 Jan 2005
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Other high travel option from the US:
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...=14544&R=14544
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...=19798&R=19798
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...=19797&R=19797




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  #15  
Old 19 Jan 2005
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We have a hi-lift and a bottle jack, and use the latter for most things. When a hi-lift jack gets muddy, the mechanism gets jammed up. They pinch you and try to break your face and drop your vehicle onto you, and they are heavy and awkward and rattle.

But if you need a hi-lift, a bottle jack won't do. The problem with any jack other than a hi-lift is that they either don't get low enough to fit underneath (the long-ram bottle jacks would be hopeless in most bogged-down situations), or they don't have enough lifting range.

I have used hi-lifts in just enough situations to feel uncomfotable travelling without one.

My 2p worth...

Michael
www.expeditionoverland.com




[This message has been edited by SandyM (edited 22 January 2005).]
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