Hydraulic Jack?

[TarnishedCopper]

In every vehicle I had owned for the past 3 decades I've always carried a small hydraulic jack and 4-way lug wrench of my own. I am curious if anyone else carries a jack in their F-150 and what the range of lift and weight rating should be. Should it be a bottle jack, or a small trolley jack.
I was under my truck yesterday and measured the distance from the rear agle to the garage floor to be 13 inches. I also measured the height on the inflated tires to be 5 inches. Of course with a deflated tire, or on an irregular surface it would be different.

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[imnuts]

Your biggest issue, in my opinion, is going to be finding something that has enough lift height to get the tire off the ground, especially in the rear. For capacity, I'd say 2 ton minimum, 3-4 ton to be safe. Even though you'd never lift the full weight of the truck, you don't know how surroundings may impact the process. Personally, I'm just sticking with the stock jack behind the seat.

Also, I'd recommend just getting a breaker bar, such as the collapsible one from Harbor Freight and a proper sized socket to go with it. It'll likely make changing the tire easier than the "universal" one and be easier to store in the truck

 

[Kanuck]

I carry a 1.5 ton bottle jack with an adjustable screw. A 4x4 block. 36 inch breaker bar with a 3 inch extention and 21mm socket. Lug nuts are torqued to 150 ftlbs...don't know if you can break a lug nut loose with a star wrench.

 

[Cobraman428]

I carry a 4-ton bottle jack and a tire plug repair kit for my truck and trailer tires. I carry a can of fix- a-flat in my TT when I tow it.

 

[Ricksc]

I carry this when towing. Jack/jack-stand combo. Breaker bar and sockets

 

[HammaMan]

I carry a 1.5 ton bottle jack with an adjustable screw. A 4x4 block. 36 inch breaker bar with a 3 inch extention and 21mm socket. Lug nuts are torqued to 150 ftlbs...don't know if you can break a lug nut loose with a star wrench.

That poor little jack -- I'd be very concerned about exceeding that thing's capacity. You can't lift a front tire off of the ground without putting more than 1.5 tons on the jack.

 

[Kanuck]

That poor little jack -- I'd be very concerned about exceeding that thing's capacity. You can't lift a front tire off of the ground without putting more than 1.5 tons on the jack.

Lifting one side of the front end enough to change a tire. One corner of the truck is not going to be over 3000 lbs. I like it because it is not a tall jack and fits when the tire is flat.

 

[HammaMan]

Lifting one side of the front end enough to change a tire. One corner of the truck is not going to be over 3000 lbs. I like it because it is not a tall jack and fits when the tire is flat.

I think you're misunderstanding the physics of springs, levers, and lift points. When you jack up one of the front tires at the frame's lift point, you're removing weight from the rear wheel on that side and the opposite side's front wheel. That weight is being carried by the jack. The closer you get to the center of balance, the greater the load.

 

[Natetroknot]

I carry this when towing. Jack/jack-stand combo. Breaker bar and sockets

I like that a lot, thanks for posting.

 

[Kanuck]

I think you're misunderstanding the physics of springs, levers, and lift points. When you jack up one of the front tires at the frame's lift point, you're removing weight from the rear wheel on that side and the opposite side's front wheel. That weight is being carried by the jack. The closer you get to the center of balance, the greater the load.

That is true IF you use the frame lift points. I don't see the need to extend the suspension all the waty to change a tire.

When I jack up a vehicle, I do not jack on the frame. I place the jack right beside the wheel. Front it is on the A frame and rear, it is usually where the spring mounts to the dif. With an axle load rated at 3800 lbs., if loaded to the max, I am lifting under 2000 lbs. Just high enough to install the tire. If anything, I am transferring weight to the otherside of the vehicle.

 

[HammaMan]

That is true IF you use the frame lift points. I don't see the need to extend the suspension all the waty to change a tire.

When I jack up a vehicle, I do not jack on the frame. I place the jack right beside the wheel. Front it is on the A frame and rear, it is usually where the spring mounts to the dif. With an axle load rated at 3800 lbs., if loaded to the max, I am lifting under 2000 lbs. Just high enough to install the tire. If anything, I am transferring weight to the otherside of the vehicle.

Jacking an A arm is incredibly risky and I wouldn't advise it w/out a jack that can both cradle the arm safely and stay clear of you putting the wheel back on to avoid dislodging the jack. Most vehicles in most situations, jacking the LCA is neither practical nor safe.

 

[Kanuck]

Jacking an A arm is incredibly risky and I wouldn't advise it w/out a jack that can both cradle the arm safely and stay clear of you putting the wheel back on to avoid dislodging the jack. Most vehicles in most situations, jacking the LCA is neither practical nor safe.

This jack is for emergency tire change on the road. I think it has been 11 or 12 years since I have had to put the spare on because of a flat. At home I have a 3 ton floor jack I use when I switch out my summer / winter tires.

 

[HammaMan]

This jack is for emergency tire change on the road. I think it has been 11 or 12 years since I have had to put the spare on because of a flat. At home I have a 3 ton floor jack I use when I switch out my summer / winter tires.

Not disagreeing. Rarely does an emergency tire change happen under the best of situations. The time to be testing out one's emergency tire swap jack isn't the first time it's needed.

 

[Graygoose2021]

I have a jack in a hard plastic case, and a breaker bar under the mat under rear seat, plus a full size spare rim/tire combo that matches what on the truck. So no ugly spare

 

[terihenry]

In every vehicle I had owned for the past 3 decades I've always carried a small hydraulic jack and 4-way lug wrench of my own. I am curious if anyone else carries a jack in their F-150 and what the range of lift and weight rating should be. Should it be a bottle jack, or a small trolley jack.
I was under my truck yesterday and measured the distance from the rear agle to the garage floor to be 13 inches. I also measured the height on the inflated tires to be 5 inches. Of course with a deflated tire, or on an irregular surface it would be different.

I carry a small cheap floor jack and a bottle jack. I also carry a Dewalt cordless 1/2" impact wrench, and a set of sockets for changing tires, the sockets are a different size on each end. There are 3 sockets that will fit 6 different size lug nuts. I bought these sockets on Amazon. They were inexpensive. I also carry a torque wrench to torque the nuts when I change a flat. I bought the socket set so that I could help other people, if I need to.

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