Jacking FRONT tires

W

wayne newland

New member
Jul 5, 1999
1,588
0
0
>
> > i'd really like to avoid having to buy
> > a big new floor jack.... and having to find another place to stow it.
>
> Greg,
> Wish I had an OEM jack, but I've never seen one. I carry a 6 ton bottle
> jack and rear bogie support hook for same. But my usual jack, and the one
> I'd recommend, is a relatively small, cheap (~$45 IIRC) 3 ton floor jack
> bought on sale at K-Mart. It's either Made in China or Hecho in Mexico, or
> somethin' like that. (Coach is across town at the storage lot right now.)
> It's strong enough to lift the entire front end or either rear corner. In
> a pinch it would probably lift one entire side if you found a place to put
> it. Nice thing is it's light enough to pick up easily, and stores under my
> dinette seat, along with my jack stands, tire and tow chains, jumper cables,
> lug wrench, torque wrench, chock blocks, and all like that. (My dinette is
> rased about 3+", so I have a little more room under the seat.)
> Even with the floor jack, you need to be careful once both front wheels
> clear the ground. Braking and chocking the rear wheels helps a little.
> Also, a good-sized piece of 3/4" or thicker plywood should be carried to
> spread the jack's load on soft ground.
> HTH.
>
> Rick Staples
> '75 Eleganza
> Louisville, CO

Rick

No you don't wish for an original jack. They are dangerious. I have one, and
believe me, it is comming out of the coach, in favor of a bottle jack and Leigh
Harrison's Hook for the rear.


- --
Wayne

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E-Mail: wayne

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Rick,

I have the OEM jack but the only time I ever used it on the GMC was for
re-bending the curvature of the entry door. I wrapped a hefty nylon tow
strap around the door and jacked against the hinge side of the door frame,
sort of bow-and-arrow style.

The jack also works great for pulling tree stakes out of the ground!

Richard ('77 Birchaven)
rguthart

> Wish I had an OEM jack, but I've never seen one.....

> Rick Staples
> '75 Eleganza
> Louisville, CO
>
 
I have the OEM jack as well but have never used it. In fact I don't think I
know how to use it. I use floor jacks, bottle jacks and my neighbors service
ramp. In the past my neighbor (who is the original owner of a '73 23' Canyon
Lands) used his jack to pull out fence posts. I used his to straighten the
frame of a Jeep pickup. It works well for those tasks. I don't think he's
ever used the jack as intended either

Whenever he or I have to work underneath our GMC's we use his service ramp.
The ramp looks like a dock that you can drive out on. His house has a small
hill in the back so that if you drive off the end of his driveway onto the
ramp you are actually driving over the place where the ground slopes down.
But the vehicle stays level with the ramp. We can pull out boards in the
center of his ramp and stand right underneath the full lenght of our coaches
for servicing. It works just like you were working under a large hoist. It's
a very nice setup for me! I'm glad he built it. It is harder to describe then
it looks. Maybe I should take a picture of the setup sometime. It's sure
nice for oil changes and lube jobs.
Richard Waters
'76 PB, Troy, MI

> Rick,
>
> I have the OEM jack but the only time I ever used it on the GMC was for
> re-bending the curvature of the entry door. I wrapped a hefty nylon tow
> strap around the door and jacked against the hinge side of the door frame,
> sort of bow-and-arrow style.
>
> The jack also works great for pulling tree stakes out of the ground!
>
> Richard ('77 Birchaven)
> rguthart
>
> > Wish I had an OEM jack, but I've never seen one.....
>
> > Rick Staples
> > '75 Eleganza
> > Louisville, CO
> >
 
> Greg,
> Wish I had an OEM jack, but I've never seen one.

The Chinese say be careful what you wish for!

The OEM jack is big (2-3' long' and in my opinion very dangerous. I gave
mine away years ago. If you try to lift the coach and are off level it
will likely let you down! :)

Since I don't ever jack the coach, I don't need to carry the extra
weight.


David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
Dedicated to the preservation of the Classic GMC
http://www.gmcss.com/registry.htm
 
We have been using the original jack for the past 25 years without incident.
I'll admit it isn't the greatest set up in the world, but it works well if a
bit of care and caution is used. Try not to jack the front any higher than
needed, and try to keep one wheel on the ground, and NEVER use it on uneven
terrain. It stores fairly easy as far as I'm concerned. I can tell you that
I have owned a few cheapo made in China jacks that I wouldn't use to jack up
a baby carriage. If you are going to use something other than the original,
make sure you buy a quality model and always, , always use jack stands or
blocks under the vehicle.

Just the 2 cents of an original owner who still does most things the
original way (for better or worse!)

Tony B.

- ----- Original Message -----
From: Richard Waters
To:
Sent: Wednesday, April 05, 2000 2:23 PM
Subject: Re: GMC: Jacking FRONT tires

> I have the OEM jack as well but have never used it. In fact I don't think
I
> know how to use it. I use floor jacks, bottle jacks and my neighbors
service
> ramp. In the past my neighbor (who is the original owner of a '73 23'
Canyon
> Lands) used his jack to pull out fence posts. I used his to straighten
the
> frame of a Jeep pickup. It works well for those tasks. I don't think
he's
> ever used the jack as intended either
>
> Whenever he or I have to work underneath our GMC's we use his service
ramp.
> The ramp looks like a dock that you can drive out on. His house has a
small
> hill in the back so that if you drive off the end of his driveway onto the
> ramp you are actually driving over the place where the ground slopes down.
> But the vehicle stays level with the ramp. We can pull out boards in the
> center of his ramp and stand right underneath the full lenght of our
coaches
> for servicing. It works just like you were working under a large hoist.
It's
> a very nice setup for me! I'm glad he built it. It is harder to describe
then
> it looks. Maybe I should take a picture of the setup sometime. It's sure
> nice for oil changes and lube jobs.
> Richard Waters
> '76 PB, Troy, MI
>
>
>

>
> > Rick,
> >
> > I have the OEM jack but the only time I ever used it on the GMC was for
> > re-bending the curvature of the entry door. I wrapped a hefty nylon tow
> > strap around the door and jacked against the hinge side of the door
frame,
> > sort of bow-and-arrow style.
> >
> > The jack also works great for pulling tree stakes out of the ground!
> >
> > Richard ('77 Birchaven)
> > rguthart
> >
> > > Wish I had an OEM jack, but I've never seen one.....
> >
> > > Rick Staples
> > > '75 Eleganza
> > > Louisville, CO
> > >
>
>
 
It makes sense until your stranded on the side of the road with a flat and
no jack!
- ----- Original Message -----
From:
To:
Sent: Wednesday, April 05, 2000 3:14 PM
Subject: Re: GMC: Jacking FRONT tires

> In a message dated 4/5/00 2:01:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

>
> weight. >>
>
> Since I don't ever Jack the coach. Boy does that sentence make sense.
>
> Talk about all those OEM, bottle, floor jacks etc.
>
> I just took my coach to an authorized GMC Motorhome repair shop and had my
> wheels taken off, brakes inspected, greased, etc., for less than $100.
>
> Expensive? It all depends how you look at life. Instead of going out to
> dinner and having steak and cocktails, we'll stay at home and have dinner
> here.
>
> One thing is certain, when I ride down the road, I know that the underside
of
> my coach was checked properly by people that do it on a daily basis and
> supposed to know what they are doing. DO WE? I hope some of you do.
>
>
>
> Ed Lubo
> 75 Landau
>
 
Ed,
Have you got a list of authorized GMC Motorhome repair shops? Cinnabar is
too far away for me and I need one in the Dallas/Fort Worth Texas area.
Thanks.
Bob McLaughlin

- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-gmcmotorhome
[mailto:owner-gmcmotorhome]On Behalf Of ELUBO
Sent: Wednesday, April 05, 2000 2:15 PM
To: gmcmotorhome
Subject: Re: GMC: Jacking FRONT tires

In a message dated 4/5/00 2:01:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

>

Since I don't ever Jack the coach. Boy does that sentence make sense.

Talk about all those OEM, bottle, floor jacks etc.

I just took my coach to an authorized GMC Motorhome repair shop and had my
wheels taken off, brakes inspected, greased, etc., for less than $100.

Expensive? It all depends how you look at life. Instead of going out to
dinner and having steak and cocktails, we'll stay at home and have dinner
here.

One thing is certain, when I ride down the road, I know that the underside
of
my coach was checked properly by people that do it on a daily basis and
supposed to know what they are doing. DO WE? I hope some of you do.

Ed Lubo
75 Landau
 
> In Cinnabar last newsletter he mentioned Key Fry as authorized, so we
went
> there.
>
>
> Ed
I heard from Bounds that he is also a Cinnabar Approved (VBG) Shop!

David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
Dedicated to the preservation of the Classic GMC
http://www.gmcss.com/registry.htm
 
> hey Dave Keep up the good work. Looks like you spend as much time
> on this thing as I do. Carol

I don't think you were formally welcomed to the Net, Carol, so first let
me say, "Welcome" to you and Gary. I hope he is recovering from his
recent surgery.

Fortunately, I have a job that allows me to catch my mail and update the
Registry from time-to-time during the day.

Besides, I am learning enough from all the wrench heads to ensure I leave
the technical work to the experts.

I was hoping to see you both at the Sunshine Statesmen Rally next week at
Lazy Days.

Note to any Netters, Lurkers and otherwise: If you are in the Tampa area
next Thurs til Sunday, come join us. Call or write for details.

David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
Dedicated to the preservation of the Classic GMC
http://www.gmcss.com/registry.htm
 
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