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For those of you that have a QuickJack,  which capacity do you have?

Normally, I would think the 3500# version would be the one to get.  But, Costco has the 5000# one on sale for $999.99.  I am wondering if it fits the Speedster.  It looks like it is a little longer than the 3500# version.

1957 CMC (Speedster) in Ann Arbor, MI

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Wel, consider two things:

1.  Yes, the 5500# is slightly longer than the 3500# version and that is a good thing if you're trying to line up with the jack points of a VW pan.  The 3500 comes up a little short so I just use a 2 X 4 across the rear.  The 5500 would probably be long enough to hit all four corners better.

2.  If you get the 5500, you can use it for your daily drivers for things like tire rotations and stuff without worrying about lift capacity.

I can't remember that lift that Alan Merklin had, but that one lifted even higher and you could drive over it.

@Gordon Nichols Nichols, thanks for your reply.  I lift my Speedster in front under the vertical frame piece that supports the doors.  In the rear, I support it at the original VW jack points.  I have a thick aluminum pad at all 4 points.  I have a 928 jack that has a bump that fits into holes in the aluminum blocks.  This jack is compact and lightweight.

The heaviest of my cars is about 3000# so I could use the 3500# unit for my daily drivers.  But, it doesn't seem to be available for less than the 5000# unit from Costco.

I think Alan had a scissor lift.  It would raise the car higher than the QuickJack but you would not have the same freedom of movement under the car. 

Mike, the 3500 frame is physically shorter than the 5500 frame so getting it to fit the four usual jack points (front corners of the footwells, rear corners under the torsion arm ends) is really hard so I catch the front corner points and then run a 2 X 4 across under the car and just behind the dips in the floor pans.  the 2 X 4 spreads the weight and I see no pan distortion when lifting.

I would think that the 5500 length would suit the car jack points better IF the frames are run front-to-back on both sides.

Now, if you were to turn the 3500 90º and lift across the pan rather than front to back, you can perfectly pick up the recommended jack points.  Makes a lot of sense and I'm STILL wondering why I never thought of that......

Ray, I'll try calling them tomorrow and see if I can get a new set of connectors.  Must have belched out a quarter of a quart last time I used it.

On my IM with frame the quickjack original 3500 not the XL unit fits perfectly between the wheels on the left side and the right side of the car along the frame edge following the inside or the rocker panels 

I know the XL 3500 or 5000 are a bit longer and might only work if used aligned with the windshield frame.  

As to the quick connectors I would tell them how long you have had it and how long they have leaked. 

In their instruction videos they suggest we lock the jacks then we release all the hydraulic pressure then disconnect the connectors.  I take it this prevents some oozing. 

"I am wondering if people use jack stands after getting the car lifted with the QuickJack."

ALWAYS.   

That was one of the first things my Dad taught me when working on anything that could fall and maim/kill me - Put a support under it to safely keep it where it's supposed to be.  It takes maybe a minute to get jack stands under it.  I can afford to take a minute.

Ray wrote:  "In their instruction videos they suggest we lock the jacks then we release all the hydraulic pressure then disconnect the connectors.  I take it this prevents some oozing. "

Well, Real Men don't read instructions.   

It would be nice if the quik-connects were adjustable, somehow.  I'll give them a call right after I finish rebuilding my back deck.  Keeping me kinda busy right now, in between showers.

Last edited by Gordon Nichols

Here's old thread on the 3500 model:

https://www.speedsterowners.co...-still-available-800

I bought mine for $800 delivered to my door (no tax).  It was an "open box" item and the prior year model.  Apparently the safety lock was changed to be easier to release in newer model.  It had a few scratches that I attribute to shipping.  If I recall it has a shorter warranty.

I don't see any deals on eBay for the QuickJack.

2 documents the manual and the schematic..... Here is the original 3500 Quickjack and the dimensions shown allows you to know how much of a wheel base this would fit under.  On my IM it is the perfect fit between the wheels Front and back that is... @Gordon Nichols  I am not sure how long the pan is so maybe you could chime in and tell us if it fits that way for you Gordon.   

 

 

 

quick jack bl3500

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Shoot, that leak's nuthin'!

Mine looked like a tributary of the Red Sea, but in reference to the Quikjack user manual, my connections leaked most AFTER I had the car on jackstands and relieved the HD pressure, almost like the air pressure cylinders were pushing it out.  Almost nothing at the pump, LOTS at the frame connections.  Can't remember if it was both side or just one.

The system seems to like the hoses connected just one way between the frames and pump.  If I turn the hoses around and swap ends it leaks more one way than the other.  I think I marked the ends with a Magic Marker to always get them right but noticed after the last "Red Sea Flood" that they were bass-ackwards.

I'll play with it and figure out what's going on and then call QJ to vent a little.  Just finished my deck rehab so now I have time for this.

Oh!  And yours looks about the same length as mine.  I can catch the front jack points, or the rear jack points but they're too short to reach both.  Chris' 996 is a lot longer (and the floor looks flimsy) so we totally gave up on that.  On Pearl, I line up on the rear jack points (under the torsion bar end castings with a 2 X 4 ) and then run another 2 X 4 under the front floor pans (where it's a lot lighter and the floor is flat) and it lifts up nicely.  It won't reach the front points in this diagram.  I end up about 6" behind the front bulkhead of the footwells, but I believe the center of gravity of the car is about in the middle of the jack frames.

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Last edited by Gordon Nichols

You know maybe someone here would buy that older unit off of you.   I think it works well and you could get a longer XL unit and it might do both your car and your sons. 

FWIW, I would go for the 5000XL with the 911 that is heavier much heavier.   

FYI, for under $1K you could get a 5000XL delivered to your door open box by calling the company and insisting you want to get it from them.   I can spend your money very easy  

@Lane Anderson the 3500# unit is 62" overall and the 5000# unit is 70" overall. Here are all the dimensions: https://www.quickjack.com/quic...measuring-guide.html 

@IaM-Ray you say "Look at the space between the wheels that is the critical measurement".  Using their method of measurement I got a 60" tire spread measurement and they say I need 62" for the 3500# unit.  I am not sure how accurate my measurement was.  Is this only an issue if you want to slide the frames under from outside the car?  Could the longer 5000# unit be used if it was under the car before being slid into position?

Lane if you look at my car the quickjack is nearly touching the front wheel and still has a few inches after the jack to reach the rear tire.  I store them away and I placed them from the outside and then push them in and locate the jack points and place the rubber pads to lign up with them so that when the jack goes up it will be at the right place.   The front of the car is to the right in the pict below and thus the ladders swing to the right when they extend and raise 21 inch or so.  This is the 3500 NON XL.

 

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@Gordon Nichols, The spots where I want to lift are between the tires and the 5000# unit won't fit there.  Previously I asked, without response, about the need for the QuickJack to fit between the wheels  "Is this only an issue if you want to slide the frames under from outside the car?  Could the longer 5000# unit be used if it was under the car before being slid into position?"

Maybe I will look for alternate places to lift.

Thanks for continuing the conversation.

Yup, that’s the problem.  

Lift points are about 16” too short for the 996, plus there’s one helluva lot of weiht on that rear lift section with a 996 unless you shift the lift CG back and then the car lift points are fragile.  More thought required there.

Leaks are fixed.  Changed to AN6 connections.  No leaks. 

Chris will probably end up with a 4-poster.  He has more headroom than I do.

Where I would like to use as lift points are the points right under the rear torsion bar end mounts (the cast iron parts that the end caps bolt to) and in the front, the front outside corners of the footwells, where the body bolts to the pan corners.  That would put the QJ just inside of the tires at the front and just ahead of the tire at the rear.  When I get some time I’ll get out there and play with it to see if I can get a better system for doing this.  It’s a good lift, but I haven’t used it enough to figure this stuff out fully (yet).  

Last edited by Gordon Nichols

Offer her a bunch of shelving installed in exchange.

Yes, Ray, the hoses are permanently attached at the lift ends only.  Those were the ends that leaked, not at the pump.  So I disconnect at the pump and store the lifts on the floor under the car with the hoses coiled up at one end of the lifts.  I did that even with the quik connects, anyway, so what the heck.  QJ was giving me excuses and the AN fittings were $30 with my business discount so this is the cheapest alternative.

Come to think of it, when we built those 4 BendPak lifts in SC, all of the air fittings for the safety latches were junk, too.  We ended up getting a bunch of new fittings at Lowes which didn’t leak and worked great - Can’t remember who made them.

Last edited by Gordon Nichols

I have been using my QuickJack now.

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I am lifting near the rear of the pan and under the vertical tube in front of the door.  I have aluminum blocks there to work with my 928 jack.  In the rear, I filled in above the aluminum block with epoxy paste.

Currently, I have the frame designated right on the right side and the designated left on the left.  This puts the hoses in the rear near the engine and makes it a little difficult to roll under the car at that end. I am thinking about rotating them 180 degrees with the left frame on the right and the right frame on the left.

Does any else do that?

The first time I lowered the frames, pushed them to the center, and drove off, I made the mistake of leaving the rubber blocks in place.  They caught under the car and dragged the frames along.

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Last edited by Michael McKelvey

oops........

I've messed around with mine exiting the lines front (best, for me) and rear    and either will work so long as the safety stop lever is on the outside where you can get at it.  Fortunately, all the stuff you need to get at is at the front or rear of the car - not too much going on in the middle, usually.

The biggest thing to not screw up is to have both of them reasonably parallel to each other once located so they lift equally and in the same direction.  If one is a little off, they'll let you know with complaining creaks and groans on the way up (I think it's the sound of the rubber blocks sliding slightly to try to maintain position).  They don't have to be dead nuts parallel, but eyeball close.

Hey, what is that piece of gray PVC pipe behind the rocker panels for?  You got some trick undercarriage "glow lights" under there??

Last edited by Gordon Nichols

When I added my cylinder head temperature and air/fuel gauges I needed to run more wires from back to behind the dash.  I didn't want to disturb the carpet so I ran the PVC conduit.  I used elbows with removable covers to make it easier to pull wires.  Currently, I have one flat multi-conductor cable in it.

I am still trying to get my cruise control to work.  I selected a wireless switch so I wouldn't have to run additional wires front to back for the cruise.  Typically, the wireless switch would be on the steering wheel and the receiver would be behind the dash.  I have the receiver in the engine compartment.  The switch does communicate over that distance when the car is not running.  I don't know if the engine running caused interference or if I have some other problem.

I bought a quickjack and sold it without ever taking it out of the packaging. I figured it would take up to much of my garage space to have it just laying around and had heard about leaks and other mods that may be needed to get it to fit under the frame well. 

If I find the urge to get under the car for any extended length again I think I'll consider using four 1,100 lb rated screw type motor cycle jacks. Just as much lift I think with appropriate pads underneath, they take up much less floor space in use and in storage and they're quite portable and more versatile at about 1/3 the price. 

Michael anything that is dependant on airwaves for controllers I do not enjoy using in my car as I find the performance always sporadic.   I hardwired it in. 

BTW I dislike bluetooth as well on all devices and phones as well. Just frustrating except maybe Apple's new chip that is auto reload.  My Bose wireless are continually reloading during a call it is no fun. 

The cat's meow would be a four post lift but at times you would still need a center jack that spans to lift the front or back and you still can't do the between the wheels easily so nothing is perfect but maybe David has the right idea but then I can see him running from one side to the other to make sure it goes up smoothly and evenly

Ah what a wonderful life.  

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