JACK STAND FAILURE? Ever have one?

Have you ever heard of, seen, or had a properly used jack stand fail? Not roll from poor usage, actually fail when 'used as directed'. How about the Chinesium stands from HF or any of the other box stores?

To be honest, after a guy I knew was recently crushed by his truck, I think maybe this is a good conversation to have. Btw, his stands werent the issue - pretty sure he was not working safely. Now his wife and little girl visit him at a home - permanent brain damage.

Maybe we could extend the conversation to overall jack stand safety.

Proper positioning of them is crucial too. Like don't put them on your tie rods,oil pan, radiator core support. These are no brainers,but people sometimes get in a hurry and think ' I won't be under there that long '. That's when the snake bites you. I never get under a vehicle with only the jack holding it up. I jack it up,put stands under the frame and let the jack down SLOWLY. Sometimes I leave the jack under there too after letting it down on the stands.

Ditto on keeping the jack under the car with the car resting on the jackstands, added security.

I usually do the same, let the jack down slowly to put the weight on the stands then re-tighten the handle and put just a touch of upward pressure on it, that way if a stand failed the car would not move at all.

I have never had a stand fail in proper use. I even have a set of cheap harbor freight stands...I even damaged one and it still works so they are built pretty well.

Always use a stand and jack rated for more weight than what you are working on as well...and if possible don't use blocks of wood or anything like that on the jack as they can slip off more easily.

Wow, great minds do think alike. I also leave the jack underneath if it's not in the way or if I have a tire off, slide that under the vehicle in case anything happens.

when i am under my car i always use my floor jack under car for backup.be careful take nothing for granted.

I also bring my jack up a touch after getting it set on the stands. and like eric said if I have a tire off it goes under a frame well. Figure if it falls I might break an arm but at least it wont crush my chest.

AND I always have my phone in an accessible pocket as well just in case I need to call for help.

Yes, I have had a 3-legged jack stand fail, on concrete and set right. Left the car on the ground for a few days as "punishment". It was when nothing was coming from mainland China. Pulled the pin and throw away the rest. Last fall came from wet ground and jack stand settling uneven after heavy rain, found the morning after. I have NO 3-legged stands at all.

Nope

NOT YET

4 legs all the way with more load rating than needed, on solid concrete! If its longer term I run cut down railroad ties in addition to stands. I shove em back till they meet rail.

I have thick metal , four leg jackstands. Not the stamped sheetmetal kind. Also, leave the jack underneath or a big, 10x10 inch block of pressure treated wood under the frame as a backup.

My jack stand are rated at 6000 lb each and are super duty types, I trust them with my life literally.
I usually leave the jack also if it's not in the way.
A while back I saw my neighbor putting his 3/4 ton pickup on those 3 leg cheap *** stands and I brought him over mine and told him to throw his away and come ask me when he needed them or go buy some good ones.
You only live once, no sense in cutting it short.

I don't like being under the car with jack stands, it gives me the heebie geebies, lol! As stated above, I also leave the jack touching the frame rail.

My Jack stands are wood 12"x12"x20" sections used on flat concrete..extra ones are placed as a "safety"....Jackstands scare me a little, metal tends to slip on metal, and there is a ratio between height and base area for safe stability that a lot of the chinese jack stands tend to exceed..

I use minimum double rated jack stands or cat blocks or both on solid ground and give it a good shake to make sure before crawling under

bm02tj said:

I use minimum double rated jack stands or cat blocks or both on solid ground and give it a good shake to make sure before crawling under

Click to expand...

Good point, I always push the car in all directions pretty hard before I go under.

Mine are heavy duty four leg stands, and I too leave the floor jack up against with slight pressure "just in case"!
I do like the large block of wood idea as well. Maybe I can find some railroad ties (or something) to lay on the floor just in case all else fails..... At least you dont get the full force of the car coming down on you!
It freaks me out lying under the lifted car too!!!!! Especially when shoving things around like transmission installs!

I use 4 6000lb stands and also leave my jack where it is unless it gets in the way. Bigger stands aren't only beefier, but they have a wider base and the part that contacts the frame is larger too. Makes me feel a lot better about having the car "high" up.

One thing to keep in mind. Jack stands are over engineered because the company producing them doesn't want to be sued for a leg or a brain. I'm sure a 6000 lb stand would support WELL over 3 tons. But as with any tool, it's crap unless you do your part. And when it comes to lifting heavy things and getting under them. It pays to be careful and double check.

Yes I have had a couple of welds fail on a set of Grand Auto specials, stamped steel type, jack-stands... That were properly placed etc. & almost crush me under the 68 Charger I was working on... I was trying on some new 15x10" Cragers & N50-15's & some 15x5"s up front {back in the late 70's}, jacked car up in the garage, on a flat surface etc., put the jack-stands under the rear axle tubes & under the sub-frame on both sides in the front... Rocked the car in all directions just to make sure... Proceeded & I took off all the old wheels, trial fit the new ones, made sure they fit 1st... Then got under the car & started to do a shift-kit, deep trans-pan & ratchet shifter... I only had one rear tire actually installed... fast forward I heard a pop noise, I climbed out... I was wondering/contemplating if it was the punk kid across the street, he had shot a couple of my cars with his BB gun in the past {long story}... I saw nothing so got back under the car again & continued to do the trans work, I had just finished up the trans & was re-bolting in my cross-member... Now I heard a big loud pop this time... I got out again, went across the street banged on the punk kids door & torched the father, gave him a piece of mind about his POS punk kid shooting my car again {so I thought}... I went back across the street got under the car again, the car just fell, while I was under the car putting the drive shaft back in... Thank God, I had the one tire on or I'd be dead/flat crushed for sure, it split the old wood creeper I was on, literally in half... I was able to barely get out from under the back, on the side that the tire was on, the car was now partially sitting on the "now broken POS jack-stand"... No-one was home, to help me either... I had a kind of sore arm & sore chest, but needed my car finished, to go to the hospital, so I put the rest of my wheels & tires back on, finished bolting in the drive shaft, car now sitting on wood blocks... I got to the hospital... Now sitting in the waiting room to get service finally, just scratching my chest, now holding my aching arm, my fingers literally went into my chest, between the 2 sides of my ribcage... I had broken/split my sternum in 2... I freaked out & started yelling, they took me in & medicated me up, they said I was probably in shock & my adrenaline was only thing keeping me going, is why I was able to even get to the hospital... I was lucky, I didn't puncture my heart or lungs... Anyway they fixed/splinted my fractured arm & wrapped my chest for the broken sternum {not much they can do, except keep me immobile}... It was at-least 6+ months before I could race or work even again... I never did apologize to the punk kid or his father, that punk kid got a real beating too... I should have sued Grand Auto, but people just didn't do that stuff, very much back then... sorry for the long story... but yes I had a jack-stand fail...