Sears red jack modification
Banned
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 5,403
Likes: 7
From: Southwest Florida
So anyway, I'm reading the little booklet and it sez to purge the jack. Makes sense to me. I'm thinking, if air gets trapped in the bottle jack for whatever reason, it's gonna compress and blow the seals out, right? Air compresses, liquids can not compress. High School Physics. About the only thing I remember (except the good-looking babe that sat to my right).
So I get it all put together and remove the fluid (oil) fill plug. Why? Because I'm not real smart. And because the little booklet doesn't specify how to purge the jack. But it was my fault. I think it's called stupidity.
Anyway, removing the fill plug while the jack is upright causes the oil to spurt out, all over the place. Brilliant. So I remove the bottle jack after I went to the parts store and bought a gallon of hydraulic fluid. I only needed a few ounces, but they sell it by the gallon.
Removed the jack from the frame, laid the jack on its side, fill plug up, and filled and purged the jack.
The moral of this story (other than confirming that I'm not particularly bright) is that you probabaly should purge the jack, but do it on its side. Before you install it on the jack frame.
Know what, SC? Hydraulic fluid really likes to cling to stuff. Leaves a film, too.
Thread Starter
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Club Member
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 11,483
Likes: 39
From: Passaic County, NJ
Well, I went and bought the jack. $99 -- An 'online' special. Picked it up, put it together in about 15 minutes. Well, 15 minutes of trying to interpret the instructions and 15 minutes of wrenching. Not even.
So anyway, I'm reading the little booklet and it sez to purge the jack. Makes sense to me. I'm thinking, if air gets trapped in the bottle jack for whatever reason, it's gonna compress and blow the seals out, right? Air compresses, liquids can not compress. High School Physics. About the only thing I remember (except the good-looking babe that sat to my right).
So I get it all put together and remove the fluid (oil) fill plug. Why? Because I'm not real smart. And because the little booklet doesn't specify how to purge the jack. But it was my fault. I think it's called stupidity.
Anyway, removing the fill plug while the jack is upright causes the oil to spurt out, all over the place. Brilliant. So I remove the bottle jack after I went to the parts store and bought a gallon of hydraulic fluid. I only needed a few ounces, but they sell it by the gallon.
Removed the jack from the frame, laid the jack on its side, fill plug up, and filled and purged the jack.
The moral of this story (other than confirming that I'm not particularly bright) is that you probabaly should purge the jack, but do it on its side. Before you install it on the jack frame.
Know what, SC? Hydraulic fluid really likes to cling to stuff. Leaves a film, too.
So anyway, I'm reading the little booklet and it sez to purge the jack. Makes sense to me. I'm thinking, if air gets trapped in the bottle jack for whatever reason, it's gonna compress and blow the seals out, right? Air compresses, liquids can not compress. High School Physics. About the only thing I remember (except the good-looking babe that sat to my right).
So I get it all put together and remove the fluid (oil) fill plug. Why? Because I'm not real smart. And because the little booklet doesn't specify how to purge the jack. But it was my fault. I think it's called stupidity.
Anyway, removing the fill plug while the jack is upright causes the oil to spurt out, all over the place. Brilliant. So I remove the bottle jack after I went to the parts store and bought a gallon of hydraulic fluid. I only needed a few ounces, but they sell it by the gallon.
Removed the jack from the frame, laid the jack on its side, fill plug up, and filled and purged the jack.
The moral of this story (other than confirming that I'm not particularly bright) is that you probabaly should purge the jack, but do it on its side. Before you install it on the jack frame.
Know what, SC? Hydraulic fluid really likes to cling to stuff. Leaves a film, too.
Tourer
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 427
Likes: 1
From: Hot Springs, AR
The first time I used the jack, on a Triumph, I didn't understand the directions either. I figured using the strap to hold the bike steady would be pretty important so I strapped it down before I lifted it. Of course only to find it wouldn't jack but a little teeny bit cause the strap was holding it down. Sometimes I'm not to good with Chinese instructions.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 6,642
Likes: 48
From: Ogden, UT
The first time I used the jack, on a Triumph, I didn't understand the directions either. I figured using the strap to hold the bike steady would be pretty important so I strapped it down before I lifted it. Of course only to find it wouldn't jack but a little teeny bit cause the strap was holding it down. Sometimes I'm not to good with Chinese instructions.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 7,138
Likes: 26
From: Southern Oregon
Sure the bolts are tough but Id still consider equaling the length of the spacers so the force on the left and right channels are the same. The long spacer will apply additional leverage to the channel and may eventually cause distortion on that tubing.
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Elite HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 4,990
Likes: 9
From: Marina del Rey
lift modification stage II
Just picked up one of these Sears lifts on CL for $66. Inspired by Vic's mods, I have added what I believe to be an important safety feature. Moving the supports outboard creates a cantilevered load, heavily stressing the new longer bolts. So I have installed a new "spreader bar" to stabilize the top channels.
The photos show how the original short bolts create a simple, closely supported load w/o cantilever, and how the new longer grade 8 bolts introduce a greater bending moment. To allow more safe load-carrying capacity, I have installed a 7/8" solid 1018 steel bar which goes all the way through both top channels, preventing sagging of the channels. I drilled new holes through the inner channel legs, offsetting them as far as possible to allow for minimum lowered height. Cost was $11 for the round bar plus welding. Space between the channels was sized to allow room for a flat washer between upper and lower channels. Also I removed the tie-down strap loops at one end (as shown) since the strap hooks can interfere w/ lowering, and the straps can easily be hooked under the lift frame itself.
The photos show how the original short bolts create a simple, closely supported load w/o cantilever, and how the new longer grade 8 bolts introduce a greater bending moment. To allow more safe load-carrying capacity, I have installed a 7/8" solid 1018 steel bar which goes all the way through both top channels, preventing sagging of the channels. I drilled new holes through the inner channel legs, offsetting them as far as possible to allow for minimum lowered height. Cost was $11 for the round bar plus welding. Space between the channels was sized to allow room for a flat washer between upper and lower channels. Also I removed the tie-down strap loops at one end (as shown) since the strap hooks can interfere w/ lowering, and the straps can easily be hooked under the lift frame itself.
Last edited by lo-rider; Aug 7, 2010 at 12:55 AM.