Harbor Freight Jack

[Dead Skunk]

I was outside putting snow tires on my MINI this afternoon and noticed that my aluminum jack (from Harbor Freight) puked out the oil in a significant puddle. Does anyone know if these things can be fixed readily? Will there be some sort of seal at the end of the cylinder that I can find in a local hardware store , industrial supply house, or whatever?
Thanks
Warren

 

[goodfellow]

Download the manual and parts description from HF and try to ID the specific part. Chinese aluminum jacks are notorious for "O" rings leaking at the pump assembly. Also make sure the filler screw on the jack body is tight. Being cold outside, it could have contracted and gotten loose.

 

[Uncle Buck]

I doubt you will fix that without splitting the frame and taking the bottle apart if you are talking about the seal at the ram.

 

[Danglerb]

Could just be the cold, NASA even had a bit of trouble with orings and it wasn't snowing.

 

[Merkava_4]

Did you guys know that the SR-71 spy plane has seals that are designed to leak on the ground so that they will seal with atmospheric pressure at the outer edge of space? That Chinese racing jack is built with state-of-the-art spy plane technology.

 

[autoace]

Did you guys know that the SR-71 spy plane has seals that are designed to leak on the ground so that they will seal with atmospheric pressure at the outer edge of space? That Chinese racing jack is built with state-of-the-art spy plane technology.

: almost spit my coffee

 

[eschoendorff]

Merkava....

 

[Frank Elson]

I was outside putting snow tires on my MINI this afternoon and noticed that my aluminum jack (from Harbor Freight) puked out the oil in a significant puddle. Does anyone know if these things can be fixed readily? Will there be some sort of seal at the end of the cylinder that I can find in a local hardware store , industrial supply house, or whatever?
Thanks
Warren

would that be a real Mini, or a BMW one?

I recall a wonderful day in 1969 when a friend and myself, both in Mini Coopers, drove on the wrong side of the road for around five miles through heavy snow 'cos nothing else was moving on the road.

 

[Dead Skunk]

Thanks for the input ,Guys. The filler plug is tight. As near as I can see the leak is around the cylinder shaft. It does look like the whole thing will have to be split apart. It was only a hundred bucks several years ago, so it doesn't owe me a whole lot. Maybe it's time for a new one.

Frank,
It's a BMW MINI, although I did have an original (1972) model and know what you mean about it in the snow. It had a 1275 America engine ,LCB header, twin SUs ,so it went like stink. It would have been even better with a limited slip dif.
Warren

 

[Dead Skunk]

Well, the temperature went up over 50 today, so I was outside and decided to split the jack and see if it could be repaired. It wasn't hard to take apart, other than a pipe wrench was needed to get the cylinder off the pump block. There were 2 crappy looking O-rings that I replaced and then reassembled the whole thing. It appears to have worked. If it blows out the oil again I'll see if I can find metric o-rings instead of the conventional ones from Ace hardware.Since I'm retired, I figure my time was worth it to save buying another 100 buck jack !

Warren

 

[bgott]

Harbor Freight now stocks a metric O- ring kit.

 

[ImportTuner]

Well, the temperature went up over 50 today, so I was outside and decided to split the jack and see if it could be repaired. It wasn't hard to take apart, other than a pipe wrench was needed to get the cylinder off the pump block. There were 2 crappy looking O-rings that I replaced and then reassembled the whole thing. It appears to have worked. If it blows out the oil again I'll see if I can find metric o-rings instead of the conventional ones from Ace hardware.Since I'm retired, I figure my time was worth it to save buying another 100 buck jack !

Warren

Good to know; thanks for the follow up Warren ..

 

[wrenchr]

Could just be the cold, NASA even had a bit of trouble with orings and it wasn't snowing.

I wonder if they buy the space shuttle's from HF

 

[oldtools]

Did you guys know that the SR-71 spy plane has seals that are designed to leak on the ground so that they will seal with atmospheric pressure at the outer edge of space? That Chinese racing jack is built with state-of-the-art spy plane technology.

Not due to pressure, but due to temperature. Air friction generate alot of heat (hot enough to melt steel) at that kind of speed. Metal expand and contract as a function of temperature.

 

[cruiser808]

Could just be the cold, NASA even had a bit of trouble with orings and it wasn't snowing.

Yeah, when I was living in Florida (Vero Beach) I had the misfortune of witnessing the results first hand. Hard to forget seeing something like that.

 

[Dead Skunk]

bgott,
Is that o-ring kit available in the stores , or did you see it on line? I'd go get one to keep in the tool box for the next time this thing burps. Although, the o-rings from the hardware store were only 49 cents each (x2) and seem to be working just fine. Not a drop of oil when I used it yesterday.
Warren