Overseas Jack Rebuild Help Tutorial.

[Hiball]

Hi,

I'm new to this site and just recently, I've had the same jack, Sears 214.12400 go out on me. I've had it for around 20 years and it has been a great jack.

Maybe you can tell me what I may need to do or look for, but what is happeneing is, I go to lift my racecar and it starts to lift and then it looses all it's pressure.

Does this sound like a total rebuild or could it be something else?

thank you,

Bruce

Hello Bruce and Welcome to GJ.. Now back to your Jack, It could be that the overload is backed off or it could be that the Main Ram is Compromised. I would first check the Overload, Now there is no way to properly set a overload without having a pressure gauge. Generally on these jacks a good rule of thumb is to tighten the Overload adjusting screw all the way down and back it up 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 turns. This is a simple check as you dont have to tear the jack down. The overload normally is on the right and sometimes has a "do not adjust" sticker etc.. If this doesnt fix your problem you will have to tear into your jack and i would first inspect the Ram Cup. Remember if you are gonna be working under a vehicle to always use jack stands, Regardless if its a $40 HF or a $3000 dollar Hein Werner. If i can of further assistance please dont hesitate to ask.

Steven

 

[bruce69camaro]

I just wanted to give you an update.

I removed the overload cap, and found that the adjusting screw was around 1-1/2 turns out, so according to your comments, this does not seem to be the problem.

What's funny about this power unit, it does not leak much and the only sign I had that the unit was not working correctly was when the jack started to fall with a load on it.

Does someone sell a complete seal kit for this power unit or do I need to go out and buy an assortment kit or metric o-rings?

thank you

Bruce

 

[Hiball]

I just wanted to give you an update.

I removed the overload cap, and found that the adjusting screw was around 1-1/2 turns out, so according to your comments, this does not seem to be the problem.

What's funny about this power unit, it does not leak much and the only sign I had that the unit was not working correctly was when the jack started to fall with a load on it.

Does someone sell a complete seal kit for this power unit or do I need to go out and buy an assortment kit or metric o-rings?

thank you

Bruce

Depending on your model its only gonna have 3 seals, Pump piston which will be a Oring, Tank nut seal, which will be a Oring and then the Main Ram Seal which could be a Oring or hopefully a Ucup. You can probably source the Orings at a local store with the exception maybe being the Ram Cup/Oring. There wont be a rebuild kit available but all seals are available. Every seal will be Metric and if you have issues i can supply you with the required seals if you have problems getting them locally. I will of course need some measurements but its pretty straightforward.

Steven

 

[racer1735]

Nice write-up.

I have a HF 3-ton floor jack...had it about 6 months with no issues at all until yesterday. Jacked up my car, no problem. Let it down and went to the otherside. Starting turning the handle to close the valve to lift and it turned, and turned and turned and never met any resistance to close the valve to lift.

Thouth it might be air in the system (don't know why, as it had always worked perfectly)...removed the rubber fill plug (simple push/pull plug, not a threaded screw) and when removing it, it went flying across the garage into never-never land.

Question 1 - is the plug something I can find at the hardware store/Lowe's, etc? If so, what size?

Question 2 - I removed the release valve, with intentions of removing and reinstalling the spur gear to make sure it was meshing properly. Upon reintalling the release valve (it has a 27mm head), I tightened it down, installed the spur gear, and it wouldn't turn either direction!
I Removed the spur gear and put a 10mm wrench on the release valve and noticed it wasn't turning in either direction.

I then untighted the release valve ever-so-slightly, put the 10mm wrench on the valve and it seemed to be operating as normal. They don't list a torque spec for the valve, so I'm guessing I'm okay now? Can't raise or lower the jack until I get a new fill plug (or at least, I don't think I can, the jack isn't operating properly as is).

Thanks for any input.

 

[Hiball]

Nice write-up.

I have a HF 3-ton floor jack...had it about 6 months with no issues at all until yesterday. Jacked up my car, no problem. Let it down and went to the otherside. Starting turning the handle to close the valve to lift and it turned, and turned and turned and never met any resistance to close the valve to lift.

Thouth it might be air in the system (don't know why, as it had always worked perfectly)...removed the rubber fill plug (simple push/pull plug, not a threaded screw) and when removing it, it went flying across the garage into never-never land.

Question 1 - is the plug something I can find at the hardware store/Lowe's, etc? If so, what size?.

I dont know the size off the top of my head but im sure you can find something that will work, Just measure the Id of the hole and take that info with you.

Question 2 - I removed the release valve, with intentions of removing and reinstalling the spur gear to make sure it was meshing properly. Upon reintalling the release valve (it has a 27mm head), I tightened it down, installed the spur gear, and it wouldn't turn either direction!
I Removed the spur gear and put a 10mm wrench on the release valve and noticed it wasn't turning in either direction.

I then untighted the release valve ever-so-slightly, put the 10mm wrench on the valve and it seemed to be operating as normal. They don't list a torque spec for the valve, so I'm guessing I'm okay now? Can't raise or lower the jack until I get a new fill plug (or at least, I don't think I can, the jack isn't operating properly as is).

Thanks for any input.

Sometimes if the inner adjusting nut is too far out, When you tighten the outer nut (27mm) it will bottom out inside and thats why you cant get it to turn properly. You should never have to take the nut off the gear with the exception of replacing the it. All you have to do is screw the inner adjusting bolt up a bit, Replace it in the hole making sure its in the correct position to where it will square up inside the inner guide and then tighten the outside nut. The jack should work properly without a Fill plug, you will allow contaminents inside but other than that it will work.

 

[racer1735]

The release valve now feels like it should....turn clockwise a few turns and it gets resistance and stops, turn counterclockwise a few turns until resistance and stops. However, I can pump until the Angels sing Hallelujiah and the saddle doesn't rise a bit. No bubbles of air coming out the fill hole, oil visible in the hole, no leaks anywhere (never had a leak or indication of bad seals...again, jack is less than 12 months since bought new).

it was mentioned in a previous post that the release valve may be too high or low in the outer nut. If it was out of adjustment, would the valve be giving me stops at the open and closed positions?

Any idea where I should check?

 

[Hiball]

The release valve now feels like it should....turn clockwise a few turns and it gets resistance and stops, turn counterclockwise a few turns until resistance and stops. However, I can pump until the Angels sing Hallelujiah and the saddle doesn't rise a bit. No bubbles of air coming out the fill hole, oil visible in the hole, no leaks anywhere (never had a leak or indication of bad seals...again, jack is less than 12 months since bought new).

it was mentioned in a previous post that the release valve may be too high or low in the outer nut. If it was out of adjustment, would the valve be giving me stops at the open and closed positions?

Any idea where I should check?

Did you put the ball back in the Release valve hole prior to re-installing the Gear? Im just assuming yours used a ball and it wasnt a needle valve style.

Hey.. I just re-read your thread and if you bought this thing 6mos ago just take it back and exchange it. Trust me.... They wont argue about one of there jacks coming back, Its a very common trend.

 

[racer1735]

The valve had a flat bottom, so a ball would have been in the hole, but the ball never came out.

And will HF take a return without a receipt? I wasn't anticipating it not working (silly me). The last one I got from them lasted 15 years.

 

[Hiball]

The valve had a flat bottom, so a ball would have been in the hole, but the ball never came out.

And will HF take a return without a receipt? I wasn't anticipating it not working (silly me). The last one I got from them lasted 15 years.

You should have been able to see it, if it was still in there. Im not sure if you need a receipt or not, Also the older Imports where hands down better than the new stuff. I was just thinking and there should have been a little washer with a Square insert and what that does is allow the inner piece to adjust by rotating the gear. Im assuming that piece is still in place? You can troubleshoot by taking a punch and holding down the ball and working the handle to see if that helps.

 

[racer1735]

I will have to take it apart again to see...its possible everything (except the ball) was stuck to the bottom of the valve due to the hydro oil, but it all appeared to be one piece...again, tomorrow I'll disassemble and see what it looks like.

 

[Mike Scheer]

Hiball,

I have a Hein-Warner 2 ton Hydraulic Service Jack, Part code 68041 or 68401 S2. The release valve gear, part # 68152 is missing several teeth. Do know where I can get a replacement gear?

Thanks,

Mike

 

[icecap 30]

Nice tutorial on jack repair. My jack doesn't leak any oil externally, however, if I try to jack it up, it will go just so far then quit, and slowly lower itself back down.When I checked the chamber with the two check balls next to the pump, I found two balls with no springs or weights. Do some jacks come without springs? or is this my problem? my jack looks like the one in the tutorial. Thank's, Gary

 

[Hiball]

Hiball,

I have a Hein-Warner 2 ton Hydraulic Service Jack, Part code 68041 or 68401 S2. The release valve gear, part # 68152 is missing several teeth. Do know where I can get a replacement gear?

Thanks,

Mike

Ill do some checking and follow up with you.

Nice tutorial on jack repair. My jack doesn't leak any oil externally, however, if I try to jack it up, it will go just so far then quit, and slowly lower itself back down.When I checked the chamber with the two check balls next to the pump, I found two balls with no springs or weights. Do some jacks come without springs? or is this my problem? my jack looks like the one in the tutorial. Thank's, Gary

Yes, You will find some IMport jacks that dont use springs or Weights. Will it lift a load? then fall?

 

[icecap 30]

It will lift a load part way up then start quite slowly droping back down. Should I try installing springs? Or is there something else I should look at? Thank's, Gary

 

[havnfun]

Thanks for the very well written process to repair these jacks. It encouraged me to attempt for a second time repair to my long frame jack which I originally attempted to fix several years ago and failed. The jack had been used very little and became unusable because it would not raise a load. Using your instructions, I again tore the jack down and replaced the seals and orings. When I attempted to raise a load, the filler plug was blown out by the pressure. Um! Seems to me that a check valve is not working! During my most recent teardown, I found only two balls, one on the release mechanism and the other in the large hold at the base of the pump cylinder. I have attached several pictures of the pump including two of the pump cylinder showing its two holes at its base. Also holding the ball at the base of the pump cylinder is a washer with several small holes in it. Would appreciate any thoughts that you may have that may help to get this jack working again. Thanks!

 

[Hiball]

Thanks for the very well written process to repair these jacks. It encouraged me to attempt for a second time repair to my long frame jack which I originally attempted to fix several years ago and failed. The jack had been used very little and became unusable because it would not raise a load. Using your instructions, I again tore the jack down and replaced the seals and orings. When I attempted to raise a load, the filler plug was blown out by the pressure. Um! Seems to me that a check valve is not working! During my most recent teardown, I found only two balls, one on the release mechanism and the other in the large hold at the base of the pump cylinder. I have attached several pictures of the pump including two of the pump cylinder showing its two holes at its base. Also holding the ball at the base of the pump cylinder is a washer with several small holes in it. Would appreciate any thoughts that you may have that may help to get this jack working again. Thanks!

Thats kind of a crazy design, How it works is the ball that is in the pump cylinder is lifted by the upstroke of the pump piston, When that happens it allows oil to fill the pump resevoir and then with the downstroke the ball is suppost to seat and force the oil into the smaller hole which leads to the Ram. Sometimes there is a spring to aid the ball in reseating prior to the downstroke, It sounds like 2 things are happening. first you have too much oil and secondly the ball didnt seat properly for some reason. Was it because the seat is bad? Improper sized ball? Is the release valve and the pump piston ball the same size? Hope this helps..

 

[havnfun]

Thats kind of a crazy design, How it works is the ball that is in the pump cylinder is lifted by the upstroke of the pump piston, When that happens it allows oil to fill the pump resevoir and then with the downstroke the ball is suppost to seat and force the oil into the smaller hole which leads to the Ram. Sometimes there is a spring to aid the ball in reseating prior to the downstroke, It sounds like 2 things are happening. first you have too much oil and secondly the ball didnt seat properly for some reason. Was it because the seat is bad? Improper sized ball? Is the release valve and the pump piston ball the same size? Hope this helps..

Thanks for the explanation. The ball seat didnt look bad. The balls used in the release valve and pump cylinder are the same. I know there wasnt a spring to help the ball reseat. I thought that perhaps I lost a smaller ball. I will try putting it back together and use less oil. Thanks for the speedy response.

 

[icecap 30]

I guess you missed my reply of yesterday morning so I'll repost it for you.

It will lift a load part way up then start slowly dropping back down. Should I try installing springs? Or is there something else I should look at? Thank's, Gary
Also I'm curious about the aluminum jack's. Do they fail because they are made of aluminum or because they have inferior check balls and other parts in them. Thank's

 

[Hiball]

I guess you missed my reply of yesterday morning so I'll repost it for you.

It will lift a load part way up then start slowly dropping back down. Should I try installing springs? Or is there something else I should look at? Thank's, Gary
Also I'm curious about the aluminum jack's. Do they fail because they are made of aluminum or because they have inferior check balls and other parts in them. Thank's

On your current jack it could be a couple different things, I would first check the overload as it might have backed off a bit, If it seems to be set properly (anywhere from 1 to 1 1/2) turns back from completely closed i would check the Ram cup as sometimes they will have a crack in them and it wont seap at first. Its very hard to diagnose a jack over the internet but i hope this helps. Im not sure what brand your jack is but you can find the general overload location in this tutorial, sometimes it will have a plastic case that has a sticker that says "Do not adjust". Ive seen quite a few Aluminum jacks come in that had broken welds and frame issues, The main downfall is the hydraulic system, inparticular the type of seals used.

 

[Diesel_Crawler]

You are one devoted man to this forum Hiball, that's all I got to say.

So every one remember most times this grade of help and knowledge comes at a high premium!

 

[Hiball]

You are one devoted man to this forum Hiball, that's all I got to say.

So every one remember most times this grade of help and knowledge comes at a high premium!

Thanks.. Lol Its tough keeping up with all the PM's and thread responses but i try to be of assistance in a timely manner. My job helps quite a bit as i spend alot of time away from home in Hotels etc, so that gives me ample opportunity to answer questions. I just wish work would slow down so i could get in the shop, I have some jacks torn down now for awhile and im ready to start reassembly so they can get back to there owners.

 

[icecap 30]

When I checked that last night, it was set at 2 3/4 turns, so I'll adjust it and see what happens. Thank you, Gary

 

[Hiball]

When I checked that last night, it was set at 2 3/4 turns, so I'll adjust it and see what happens. Thank you, Gary

Thats too far, You dont want to crank it down as it is a safety feature. Without the proper testing equipment you cant set it properly, I recomend screwing it down a bit and testing it. ALSO make sure you always use Jack stands when servicing a vehicle.

 

[icecap 30]

When I checked it this afternoon, it was set at 1 3/4 turns, so it looks like I must have already set it when I found it so far off. That didn't help it so I pulled the hydraulic unit out. I'll open it up and see what I'v got. I'v got the unit that looks like the one in the piece you wrote up, I told you it doesn't have any springs or weights on the check balls. Could That have anything to do with slowly letting it down? If you have the time could you explain the function of the two balls. Are they used to control the fluid to and from the pump? Thank's again, I really appreciate you'r taking the time to write this procedure up for some of us who just need a good push in the right direction, Gary

 

[racer1735]

To close out my ordeal (3 ton HF jack), my release valve wouldn't close. Then, it got to the point where it acted as if it was 'backwards'...a counterclockwise movement activated the jack, and clockwise lowered the jack. That wasn't right, and I hadn't disassembled it, either. But noticed the main nut on the release valve kept working its way out of the jack body. When I cinched it down, the valve wouldn't turn at all.

So, called my local Harbor Freight, explained that the 5-month old jack had crapped out on me and no, I didn't still have the receipt. Without hesitation, they said bring it on in and they's swap it out for me, with the only charge being a two-year replacement warranty ($9.50). Figuring the first jack I bought from them lasted over 10 years and this one lasted five months...plus I didn't have the receipt, I couldn't complain about that. Chalk me up as a happy camper.

 

[icecap 30]

Just for general information, I had two of these $29.95 special floor jacks sitting in the garage that had frozen up. I unscrewed the pump off one, and had to drive the plunger out of the pump. I took the seal off the plunger and put it in the drill and wrapped the plunger in emery cloth, and ran the drill till the plunger was shiney and smooth. I made a tool for sanding the inside of the pump by cutting the head off a 3/8" bolt ( 5/16" would have worked better ) and cut a slot lenghtwise about half way through the bolt, and threaded emery cloth through the slot and wrapped the cloth around the bolt and fitted the bolt in the drill, and sanded the pump bore till the pump was shiney, cleaned it up and put on a film of jack oil and the seal and installed it back in the jack. Upon testing it worked just fine.I put it under the car and jacked the car up with it, and came back about an hour later and found it still holding the car up.. If you try this, be sure to back the jack up with jack stands just to be safe. Gary

 

[Ace305]

hi hiball
i joined this site specifically to talk to you. i wanted to restore a jack that has been around my garage for years. There were no numbers or stickers to identify it. I looked all over and eventually ended up at your tutorial. May i say...a thousand thank you's... for posting.
this is my first jack tear down, i learned alot before i even turned a wrench.
now, to my question...my jack is identicle to one that [1stwarrior95] has. it has the same problem, the ram cup is blown. 1stwarrior95's seal was actually in better shape. Were you able to find a replacement for him and could you steer me to the right place or sell me one?
i thank you for your time
paul

 

[icecap 30]

Hyball has not been responding for some time, however if you click on his name, it will open a box so you can send a private message to him. I hope this helps. Gary

 

[Hiball]

Hyball has not been responding for some time, however if you click on his name, it will open a box so you can send a private message to him. I hope this helps. Gary

Im still around, I sent the Previous Poster a PM a couple days ago..

 

[icecap 30]

Glad to hear from you again, I really appreciated your taking the time to help all of us with your tutorial. Gary

 

[Hiball]

Glad to hear from you again, I really appreciated your taking the time to help all of us with your tutorial. Gary

No Biggie.. I enjoy helping where i Can, It does no good to have a Leaky/Non working pile of Iron sitting in the corner.

 

[ogm94]

All I can say is WOW... nice thread Hiball . This looks like an outstanding forum... I had to join!

I sure could use some help. My favorite jack quit while I was helping my son with his car. It is a Michelin branded jack purchased at Sams club. Up till now it worked well, but after reading your thread I am afraid I must have pushed it past its limit on my 1 ton van... the main u cup seal failed. The jack was rated at 3 1/2 tons and seemed to do the job of lifting the van fine. Its next task (months later) was my sons small car. It lifted it to put it on jack stands, but left my son's car hanging when we went to take it down.

This week I tried to find some parts/rebuild kit and possibly a little guidance on "how to" but did not immediately find what I needed so I proceeded to disassemble the jack taking careful notes on the level of each screw and where possible noting how many turns it took on each screw to remove... this jack has/had three ports labeled "do not adjust":

- the first has a screw with seal, a spring, a "cup" and medium ball bearing,
- the 2nd had a screw with a seal and three different sizes of ball bearings (largest on top) and
- the third had a screw with a seal, an adjustment screw, a spring, a "cup" and a small ball bearing (I assume this is the overload protection…)

The valve consisted of a screw on the opposite end of a universal joint (that connects to the handle), and a small ball.

I disassembled the main reservoir only to find the cup seal hardened, had broken and was crumbled into 100s of pieces in the bottom of the main cylinder. My problem now is finding the right cup seal to complete the repair. Any recommendations on source? The cup seal dimensions are approximately ID: 24mm, OD: 40 (this is the id of the cylinder, does the OD of the seal need to be larger as it is in compression slightly to maintain the seal…???). The cup seal is 10mm high/thick.

In addition to the additional parts of the “speedy lift”, the feature itself threw a bit of complication into my understanding the failure. What I was seeing before I disassembled the jack; the speedy lift feature worked flawlessly (lifted the jack to full height in a few strokes), but when a load was present, it did not budge to lift the load.


Thanks for any help,

Alvin

 

[Hiball]

I disassembled the main reservoir only to find the cup seal hardened, had broken and was crumbled into 100s of pieces in the bottom of the main cylinder. My problem now is finding the right cup seal to complete the repair. Any recommendations on source? The cup seal dimensions are approximately ID: 24mm, OD: 40 (this is the id of the cylinder, does the OD of the seal need to be larger as it is in compression slightly to maintain the seal…???). The cup seal is 10mm high/thick.

Alvin

So you need a 40MM x 24MM x 10MM, To answer your question.. The 40MM seals are the same size as the ID of the cylinder but that is only at the rear, They flare at the front to provide a good seal contact. Ill check when i get home, I might have them in stock, It wont be too much. I wish you wouldnt have taken those valves apart, Those adjusting nuts are particular to allowing the speed/Power lift work appropriate. Its something you can reset but it will take some trial and error. BTW that Ram cup is Mangled.. LOL Alot of time the size is imprinted on the back (flat) side.

 

[ogm94]

So you need a 40MM x 24MM x 10MM, To answer your question.. The 40MM seals are the same size as the ID of the cylinder but that is only at the rear, They flare at the front to provide a good seal contact. Ill check when i get home, I might have them in stock, It wont be too much. I wish you wouldnt have taken those valves apart, Those adjusting nuts are particular to allowing the speed/Power lift work appropriate. Its something you can reset but it will take some trial and error. BTW that Ram cup is Mangled.. LOL Alot of time the size is imprinted on the back (flat) side.

I too wish I hadn't taken the valves apart... a little miss-information led me to believe the problem I was having may have been due to issues in the valve assembly. I started there and you can see where I ended up. I

I think I will be able to get the first correct (I assume its setting should not have changed with new parts...???), but the next two, I am not as sure I totally understand what they are adjusting and if the original position/settings will be ok. I think the third is an adjustment for the speed lift portion and I do not entirely understand how it works. I have tried to map the valves to the ports on the ram (small and main)... but I do not entirely understand the workings/purpose of three bearings in the center valve and what the third valve is setting.

P.S., My neighbor runs a machine shop and has been chomping at the bit to make a nylon or teflon replacement seal. Not being a mechanical/hydralic engineer, I am sceptical that these materials would be unsuitable to replace the original. I told him that we would try find a replacement part before we get that creative.

Thanks again for your help,

Alvin

 

[Hiball]

I too wish I hadn't taken the valves apart... a little miss-information led me to believe the problem I was having may have been due to issues in the valve assembly. I started there and you can see where I ended up. I

I think I will be able to get the first correct (I assume its setting should not have changed with new parts...???), but the next two, I am not as sure I totally understand what they are adjusting and if the original position/settings will be ok. I think the third is an adjustment for the speed lift portion and I do not entirely understand how it works. I have tried to map the valves to the ports on the ram (small and main)... but I do not entirely understand the workings/purpose of three bearings in the center valve and what the third valve is setting.

P.S., My neighbor runs a machine shop and has been chomping at the bit to make a nylon or teflon replacement seal. Not being a mechanical/hydralic engineer, I am sceptical that these materials would be unsuitable to replace the original. I told him that we would try find a replacement part before we get that creative.

Thanks again for your help,

Alvin

There are 3 different Valves there, 1 is the working valve that controls the both Lift aspects Speed/Power. The Valve that has the Littlest ball at the bottom is the Safety Overload, The other one is the Control valve that tells the jack when to switch from Speed to Power. Nylon? Teflon? NO..... I will give you Exact Price Next time i get to the shop, OEM's are not that expensive and i dont Gig Members on shipping.

 

[ogm94]

Thank-you!!!

 

[ogm94]

...I have a question, 10MM is fairly thin... Was there a White piece behind the seal that sat between it and the base? If so was it perfectly flat or did the seal sit inside it?

There is a white piece that was behind the seal. See the pictures below. When the white piece is in place it mates with the raised portion below forming a flat surface. I re-measured the space between the c-clip and the white spacer and it is about 9.7mm.

Alvin

 

[Hiball]

There is a white piece that was behind the seal. See the pictures below. When the white piece is in place it mates with the raised portion below forming a flat surface. I re-measured the space between the c-clip and the white spacer and it is about 9.7mm.

Alvin

Ill hit you up tomorrow.

 

[stereobbq]

my dad has used a made in taiwan floor jack (mid 70's or earlier?) in the garage since before i was born. thought it had finally given in to old age a few weeks ago when it seems to stop working correctly but today decided to take a closer look at it.

the thing just needed to have some air bled out of it LOL. shows what i know about jacks, which is just about 1% more than ziltch. its never had any repairs done or seals changed out, but now i know where to find some good info when i need it.

thanks for the thread hiball, i learned a lot, maybe i'll put it to good use in the future

 

[fairlaniac]

Awesone article HiBall. Thanks for the time and effort.

Maybe you or someone else can help me with the location of a few parts. This pertains to my 3 ton '96 era Sears jack. See the picture with the ports identified. On port #2 when I disassembled the ball shown by it was the last thing out of the hole but I think one of the other balls labelled A or B fell out first after the spring came out. On port #3 a ball came out but which one, A or B? Any help on these locations is greatly appreciated. This is the link to the photo http://www.fairlanet.com/images/jackparts.JPG

Also a striner like thing fell out of the cylinder. I assume it goes in one of the three holes at the base of the cylinder but which one? Any help here?

Lastly, I have a slew of hydraulic seals at work and I have one show with the rod tha thas the o-ring and cup. The plastic cup looks ok with a few faint cracks. Can I use the seal show in it's place?
http://www.fairlanet.com/images/seal1.JPG

http://www.fairlanet.com/images/seal2.JPG

Dimensionally it will fit but I am worried about the function. Your opinion is greatly appreciated. Here is the spec to the seal.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#catalog/116/3466/=9dmk47
p/n 9505K32

Thanks!