So I've been lurking around for a while now enjoying all the knowledge and pics (mostly the pics
), and decided I would like to contribute some with a floor jack review.
I originally joined GJ to help me with my floor jack decision. I really wanted to buy USA but after weeks of reading and researching USA made jacks I realized 2 things. 1-there wasn't that many choices and 2-I'd be looking at spending upwards of $500. So I started looking into the lesser of evils between the imports.
Criteria:
-Had to be at least a 3 ton capacity (used mainly for my dodge Cummins)
-Had to be well made, decent quality (best it could for an import, kinda an oxymoron)
-Preferably rebuildable
-Low enough to fit under the wife's car
I had it narrowed down to 2 brands: Arcan and Sunex. I read a lot of good reviews for the Arcan 3.5 ton model sold at Costco but when I went to my local store I saw they were 3.25 tons
. So I researched that a little and found that they had to derate the capacity for some reason, don't remember now. The same time I was reading good reviews on the Matco Beast and found out Sunex makes them along with other truck brand jacks (the 1 thing I'm really learning is that happens alot in the tool world). Also read that they are rebuildable which was another deciding factor. Found a good deal on the Sunex, $230 delivered, so the rest is history.
Intial impressions upon opening her up was great! No shipping scars and everything was there. Once I got it out of the box I put it up on the bench to check everything out closer:
-Paint was nice, no chipping or flaking
-All the welds look acceptable. Nice heavy construction (shipping label said 108lbs), looks to be 3/16" thick steel for the side rails, and they're bent on top and bottom creating a nice stron "C" channel.
-Has a nice coat of thick tacky grease on all the moving parts.
-The front wheels are 3" diameter, which is way better than others that are 1.5"-2".
-Has a rubber pad on the saddle that comes off if need be (realistically it will probably get thrashed after a few uses)
-Saddle pin is 1 1/16", no retaining pin to keep it in
-Low hieght is 4.5" and raised hieght is 21.5"
Next I tested it on the front end of my dodge. I've heard these trucks weigh in at about 4,600lbs up front. It took 3.5 pumps to hit the pumpkin and 4 more to get the wheel off the ground. Went up like butter compared to my buddies 3 ton craftsman I've borrowed in the past. The release valve allows for alot of controll, easy to crack just a little for a nice easy descend or slowly turn for more or less flow. Real easy to control, not finicky at all. Oh and also fits under the wifes car, now I have no excuses when oil change time come...
All and all I think this jack is super, not too expensive and in my opinion alot of jack for the money. Only time will tell how it will hold up, I think it will though. Please chime in with any facts, experiences good or bad to help in this thread.
ps: sorry if this reads like a book
), and decided I would like to contribute some with a floor jack review. I originally joined GJ to help me with my floor jack decision. I really wanted to buy USA but after weeks of reading and researching USA made jacks I realized 2 things. 1-there wasn't that many choices and 2-I'd be looking at spending upwards of $500. So I started looking into the lesser of evils between the imports.
Criteria:
-Had to be at least a 3 ton capacity (used mainly for my dodge Cummins)
-Had to be well made, decent quality (best it could for an import, kinda an oxymoron)
-Preferably rebuildable
-Low enough to fit under the wife's car
I had it narrowed down to 2 brands: Arcan and Sunex. I read a lot of good reviews for the Arcan 3.5 ton model sold at Costco but when I went to my local store I saw they were 3.25 tons
. So I researched that a little and found that they had to derate the capacity for some reason, don't remember now. The same time I was reading good reviews on the Matco Beast and found out Sunex makes them along with other truck brand jacks (the 1 thing I'm really learning is that happens alot in the tool world). Also read that they are rebuildable which was another deciding factor. Found a good deal on the Sunex, $230 delivered, so the rest is history.Intial impressions upon opening her up was great! No shipping scars and everything was there. Once I got it out of the box I put it up on the bench to check everything out closer:
-Paint was nice, no chipping or flaking
-All the welds look acceptable. Nice heavy construction (shipping label said 108lbs), looks to be 3/16" thick steel for the side rails, and they're bent on top and bottom creating a nice stron "C" channel.
-Has a nice coat of thick tacky grease on all the moving parts.
-The front wheels are 3" diameter, which is way better than others that are 1.5"-2".
-Has a rubber pad on the saddle that comes off if need be (realistically it will probably get thrashed after a few uses)
-Saddle pin is 1 1/16", no retaining pin to keep it in
-Low hieght is 4.5" and raised hieght is 21.5"
Next I tested it on the front end of my dodge. I've heard these trucks weigh in at about 4,600lbs up front. It took 3.5 pumps to hit the pumpkin and 4 more to get the wheel off the ground. Went up like butter compared to my buddies 3 ton craftsman I've borrowed in the past. The release valve allows for alot of controll, easy to crack just a little for a nice easy descend or slowly turn for more or less flow. Real easy to control, not finicky at all. Oh and also fits under the wifes car, now I have no excuses when oil change time come...
All and all I think this jack is super, not too expensive and in my opinion alot of jack for the money. Only time will tell how it will hold up, I think it will though. Please chime in with any facts, experiences good or bad to help in this thread.
ps: sorry if this reads like a book
