Unscrewed the "DO NOT ADJUST" port from HF Jack (2 tons) - help!

[PugetDude]

I'm sure the original jack was finely calibrated by the 9-year old Ugyhur girl that assembled it and then lovingly applied the "do not adjust sticker" to show pride in her work.

 

[gregs]

Worse case is if you have it set lower than it’s rated capacity you don’t get full use of it. Anytime I use a jack I have stands or cribbing next to it to immediately set the load on it. I wouldn’t trust a new jack anymore than an old one. Repaired several with old, rotten, failed u cups. Typically your jacking something up when the relief valve comes into play. I’m willing to bet if it’s set to high it and overloaded, the seal would fail and the load would just set back down.

Now if your dumb enough to be under something while jacking it up and no safety plan in case the jack fails for other reasons (age, lack of maintenance, load shifting, etc) then we can’t help you.

 

[mike93lx]

Worse case is if you have it set lower than it’s rated capacity you don’t get full use of it. Anytime I use a jack I have stands or cribbing next to it to immediately set the load on it. I wouldn’t trust a new jack anymore than an old one. Repaired several with old, rotten, failed u cups. Typically your jacking something up when the relief valve comes into play. I’m willing to bet if it’s set to high it and overloaded, the seal would fail and the load would just set back down.

Now if your dumb enough to be under something while jacking it up and no safety plan in case the jack fails for other reasons (age, lack of maintenance, load shifting, etc) then we can’t help you.

No, worst case is it fails catastrophically and damages something or injures someone. You don't have to be under to get hurt by a failed jack.

 

[PoorUB]

No, worst case is it fails catastrophically and damages something or injures someone. You don't have to be under to get hurt by a failed jack.

If you set the relief valve on the low side the only issue it will have is not picking up a load. I don't see any catastrophic failure other than the relief valve releasing with a load on it. That is why I mentioned jacking up the heaviest vehicle you have of a known weight and adjusting the relief valve accordingly. If it will lift it, it should not drop it.

 

[gregs]

I agree^^

 

[oldmachinenut]

PoorUB is correct,
The check valve/ball is after the relief valve/ball in the hydraulic circuit. A relief valve failure will not catastrophically drop the vehicle.

 

[rlitman]

It would take a little bit of rigging but if it was me I would set that bypass tension off of another jack in the same way that you can use a calibrated torque wrench to ballpark calibrate another.
If you can find another 2T jack and place the two so that they are in series you can adjust the screw to the point where the calibrated jack starts to bleed off instead of the questionable one, then turn back just a bit.

Will that work (assuming you can put this stack under a load exceeding 2 tons)?

PoorUB is correct,
The check valve/ball is after the relief valve/ball in the hydraulic circuit. A relief valve failure will not catastrophically drop the vehicle.

Ok, so no, this idea will not work.

 

[Cairo94507]

As cheap as those jacks are, toss it and buy another. Why gamble with your or some else's safety?

 

[mike93lx]

As cheap as those jacks are, toss it and buy another. Why gamble with your or some else's safety?

But everyone is saying nothing bad can happen, so send it!

 

[oldmachinenut]

But everyone is saying nothing bad can happen, so send it!

I apologize for my previous post on how a jack works. I re-read it and realized it was inconsiderate, I shouldn’t post when I am tired.

 

[mervyn]

 

[fsae0607]

Me, I'd be buying a new 2nd jack and use the old one as a back up holding trannys and such. One jack is never enough.

Best option here.

OP, treat yourself to a new jack!

 

[egdede]

I'm sure the original jack was finely calibrated by the 9-year old Ugyhur girl that assembled it and then lovingly applied the "do not adjust sticker" to show pride in her work.

Hey no Chinese politics : )

 

[Lassen Forge]

We had a shop that we used to rebuild jacks when we had issues with them (use them enough and they have issues), mainly Lincolns and Werners, floor jacks and bottle jacks... including having to remove the pressure regulating screw (that tells civillians "do not remove")... We used to set them on a hydraulic press with a pressure gauge - the "2 ton" floor jacks got set at 2 1/2 tons, We would turn the do not touch screw so it held at that point overnight, but would bleed off at 3. Probably similar to how they do it when built.

As to "number of turns", trying to set them like a carburetor idle adjustment screw doesn't work, as some may take 3 turns while others may take 5 or 6... it's not a fuel metering device, it's an overpressure relief valve, so judging by the number of turns won't work.

 

[ATC]

Will you be using the jack to lift over 4,000 lbs.. if not , run that screw all the way..

This! No need to be a safety nazi. Don't try to lift the front of a diesel pickup and you'll be just fine.

I don't see how some of you make it through the day. Poor thing could stub a toe on the way to the bathroom in the morning...better not get out of bed

 

[mrpizza]

Nice! A magic jack

No, magic jack is for telephone calls, sheesh!

 

[oldmachinenut]

THIS IS SARCASM

My previous advise on adjusting the relief valve should have included these warnings,

1. Fill the repaired jack with only synthetic jack oil with a traceable COO

2. After several up/down cycles send an oil sample to Blackstone for analysis and lock-out/tag-out the jack until you get the analysis report.

3. Only use the jack on a floor that has been checked for level and a certificate issued.

4. NEVER use the jack in a shop with PVC air lines

5. The user of the jack must attend a training course on lifting vehicles and posses a certificate.

6. NEVER! Use the jack to jack up a bus full of nuns.

THIS IS SARCASM

 

[Lassen Forge]

Will you be using the jack to lift over 4,000 lbs.. if not , run that screw all the way..

This! No need to be a safety nazi. Don't try to lift the front of a diesel pickup and you'll be just fine.

I don't see how some of you make it through the day. Poor thing could stub a toe on the way to the bathroom in the morning...better not get out of bed

They had to fit in a rack on the front of our tow trucks, and once you bent the frame on the jack, it wouldn't stow... part of what that screw is is to keep **** like that from happening. We also had this group of comedians called OSHA who would crawl up our heinies every so often to see if they could make some easy money by finding f***-ups we did (or were)... We were **** about these, because the one time we DID have a mis-adjusted jack (thanks to a FNG who figured "**** it, I can fake it") fail it cost a guy 2 fingers... but hey, don't be a weenie, lose them digits like a man...

 

[ATC]

They had to fit in a rack on the front of our tow trucks, and once you bent the frame on the jack, it wouldn't stow... part of what that screw is is to keep **** like that from happening. We also had this group of comedians called OSHA who would crawl up our heinies every so often to see if they could make some easy money by finding f***-ups we did (or were)... We were **** about these, because the one time we DID have a mis-adjusted jack (thanks to a FNG who figured "**** it, I can fake it") fail it cost a guy 2 fingers... but hey, don't be a weenie, lose them digits like a man...

Why are you (them) lifting something WELL over the rated capacity of the jack...enough that it BENDS the frame of the jack?

People with no common sense get no sympathy from me if they lose 2 fingers being stupid.

And OSHA is a joke. Our warehouse should be shut down every time they come, but yet we never hear a thing about it after they come and go. They don't care about safety, they care about money (fines).


Here's my chinese 2-ton jack lifting the front of my 1-ton diesel pickup truck and not folding up like a pretzel (relief valve never touched). I'm sure the OP's 2-ton jack is going to fold up and kill him while rotating the tires of his Honda Civic....

 

[bwringer]

FWIW... on the Project Farm YouTube channel he tested a bunch of jacks not long ago, and the relief valves were actually all pretty well calibrated to trip just above the jack's rated capacity.

 

[JRC3]

...and i unscrewed the pressure port within the cover screw with the name "DO NOT ADJUST".

Some men just want to watch the world burn.

 

[welder4956]

Take the jack back to HF and tell them it quit working. They will either fix it (not likely) or swap it for a new one.

 

[red61cj5]

Take the jack back to HF and tell them it quit working. They will either fix it (not likely) or swap it for a new one.

Most likely put it back on the shelf and sell it again

 

[BigGarage]

Maybe I'm cynical but I do not believe a word the OP wrote in any post. I guess next he'll/she'll tell us they also ripped off the "do not remove" tag from a mattress or pillow or where ever they are.

Dennis

 

[Lassen Forge]

Why are you (them) lifting something WELL over the rated capacity of the jack...enough that it BENDS the frame of the jack?

People with no common sense get no sympathy from me if they lose 2 fingers being stupid.

I'm hoping you never get injured in an industrial accident... How does a guy operating a tool as it's designed and he's trained in using qualify as "stupid" when the equipment fails? Oh, that's right, it's fashionable to blame the victim... I forgot this generation believes in **** like this.

Serious, dude... seems like you need to get a life.

 

[ATC]

I'm hoping you never get injured in an industrial accident... How does a guy operating a tool as it's designed and he's trained in using qualify as "stupid" when the equipment fails? Oh, that's right, it's fashionable to blame the victim... I forgot this generation believes in **** like this.

Serious, dude... seems like you need to get a life.

The 'victim' should have inspected the equipment before he used it, which is more important when multiple people use the same equipment. This is in no way shifting any blame off of the "FNG" that damaged the equipment in the first place and said nothing. Such a vague and ill-written post made it a bit confusing. Maybe you can't comprehend the difference between a regulated place of employment, and some dude's private garage at home...because this thread is about one and not the other...
I've got a couple decades under my belt in a manufacturing warehouse with nary a scratch on a finger. I must be doing something right.

But nice try on the personal attack. That really shows who YOU really are...

 

[JRC3]

It's seems odd to complain about OSHA and the like, but then also complain about someone getting injured because those rules or regulations were ignored. IDK. One thing I do know...Don't touch that damn screw. lol

 

[Lassen Forge]

The 'victim' should have inspected the equipment before he used it, which is more important when multiple people use the same equipment. This is in no way shifting any blame off of the "FNG" that damaged the equipment in the first place and said nothing. Such a vague and ill-written post made it a bit confusing. Maybe you can't comprehend the difference between a regulated place of employment, and some dude's private garage at home...because this thread is about one and not the other...
I've got a couple decades under my belt in a manufacturing warehouse with nary a scratch on a finger. I must be doing something right.

But nice try on the personal attack. That really shows who YOU really are...

Yep... you said it.... not me, pal...

You dropped trou on that one, and we find it... lacking...

Hope you feel important about yourself, and happy Sunday.

 

[bubinga]

Maybe I'm cynical but I do not believe a word the OP wrote in any post. I guess next he'll/she'll tell us they also ripped off the "do not remove" tag from a mattress or pillow or where ever they are.

Dennis

You're not allowed to remove the tags from pillows and furniture.
It tells you right on the tag.

 

[PoorUB]

WOW! This thread is sure going off the rails!

It is a two ton jack, set it trying to lift something you know weighs less than two tons. It will be fine!

In my case I would roll it under the front of my Ram 1500 and screw in the relief until it lifts it, and maybe one more turn. That will be the heaviest thing I will lift and it certainly doesn't weigh two tons, maybe 2500 pounds.

 

[Big Bad Dad]

WOW! This thread is sure going off the rails!

It is a two ton jack, set it trying to lift something you know weighs less than two tons. It will be fine!

In my case I would roll it under the front of my Ram 1500 and screw in the relief until it lifts it, and maybe one more turn. That will be the heaviest thing I will lift and it certainly doesn't weigh two tons, maybe 2500 pounds.

Maybe. "Maybe one more turn"... Exactly how much will that affect the overload protection? But YOU know it's been screwed with. How about the next person that uses it? Somebody that does not know about the improper adjustment. "Maybe" your kid or a friend borrows and uses it in a couple of years and gets hurt or killed because the jack failed under a load that was too heavy.

 

[PoorUB]

Maybe. "Maybe one more turn"... Exactly how much will that affect the overload protection? But YOU know it's been screwed with. How about the next person that uses it? Somebody that does not know about the improper adjustment. "Maybe" your kid or a friend borrows and uses it in a couple of years and gets hurt or killed because the jack failed under a load that was too heavy.

Well, because I lifted something and set the relief that was way less than the max of the jack?

I never said anything. but years ago I was given an old Hein Werner jack that didn't work. I dismantled it, bought replacement seals and reassembled it. I set the relief just like I said, by jacking up the front of my pickup, then used that jack for 30 more years until it stared leaking again and a seal kit was more than a replacement jack, also it was just getting tired.

This isn't rocket science, although some want to make it sound like it!

Plus, any jack can fail. You should treat them all like they are going to fail. If you were injured by a failed jack you were not using it correctly. You should not be any where close to under the load until you have jack stands under the vehicle. Never lift anything over the rated load of the jack.

 

[Big Bad Dad]

Well, because I lifted something and set the relief that was way less than the max of the jack?

I never said anything. but years ago I was given an old Hein Werner jack that didn't work. I dismantled it, bought replacement seals and reassembled it. I set the relief just like I said, by jacking up the front of my pickup, then used that jack for 30 more years until it stared leaking again and a seal kit was more than a replacement jack, also it was just getting tired.

This isn't rocket science, although some want to make it sound like it!

Plus, any jack can fail. You should treat them all like they are going to fail. If you were injured by a failed jack you were not using it correctly. You should not be any where close to under the load until you have jack stands under the vehicle. Never lift anything over the rated load of the jack.

This is why I question your post> "In my case I would roll it under the front of my Ram 1500 and screw in the relief until it lifts it, and maybe one more turn." The ''and maybe one more turn'' is making a guess as to how much more is being dialed in to the jack. Is one more turn another 50 pounds? Or another 1000 pounds? Tell me specifically, IF you can honestly know the answer and not just make a guess.

 

[PoorUB]

This is why I question your post> "In my case I would roll it under the front of my Ram 1500 and screw in the relief until it lifts it, and maybe one more turn." The ''and maybe one more turn'' is making a guess as to how much more is being dialed in to the jack. Is one more turn another 50 pounds? Or another 1000 pounds? Tell me specifically, IF you can honestly know the answer and not just make a guess.

If it makes you feel better, then try lift something you know is near the limit of the jack and set the relief so it will not lift it. That should satify you concerns.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

Maybe I'm cynical but I do not believe a word the OP wrote in any post. I guess next he'll/she'll tell us they also ripped off the "do not remove" tag from a mattress or pillow or where ever they are.

Dennis

I'm with you. An absurd thread by new member "RandomInternetUser." I think we allowed a troll in the house who is just sitting back and laughing at the chaos he caused.

 

[Big Bad Dad]

If it makes you feel better, then try lift something you know is near the limit of the jack and set the relief so it will not lift it. That should satify you concerns.

So the answer is..... You don't know. You are guessing. Thanks for making my point.

 

[bwringer]

Y'all seem... tense.

 

[mike93lx]

Y'all seem... tense.

Maybe a little....pumped up?

 

[Walkers]

Easiest way to solve this problem is to screw the port all the way in. Then jack up heavier, and heavier things until the jack collapses. Then rebuild the jack to the exact same specs and rate it for 10% under whatever it collapsed at.

 

[whateg01]

Most jacks when topped out (fully extended) any further pumping will hit that bypass valve.
The amount of force on the pump lever to actuate that bypass valve can be used as a "gauge" to determine the setting of the valve.
That lever pressure could be "gauged" on a jack that has not been adjusted and duplicated on the jack that is out of adjustment.
jmo,
.

Actually the jacks I've had apart have a blessed hole in the wall near the end of the stroke so when the ucup passes it the excess hydraulic fluid drains back out. It never hits the bypass.