Exhaust Jacks any good ??

[goingbush]

Well I've finished building the truck and about to pack it up and head off again.

Im leaving the Hi Lift Jack on the back of the Defender as it will be pointless carrying it in the new truck, as the Hi Lift is at full extension before contacting any suitable jacking points .

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/11/424.jpg

So the only Jack I have is the standard 10 ton hydraulic bottle jack, I'm completely ignorant of exhaust jacks, in 30+ yrs of 4wd ing I've never seen one used

this type of thing

exhaust jack | eBay (http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_trksid=p3984.m570.l1313.TR10.TRC0.A0.Xexha ust+jack&_nkw=exhaust+jack&_sacat=0&_from=R40)

are they any good and how do they go under bolts and pointy things ??

[FeatherWeightDriver]

I have one.

Best described as a luxury item


Pros:

low effort (yes I am lazy)

better height than standard jacks
does not need a flat / solid base to work (good in sand)

Cons:
keep away from hot / sharp / non load bearing things
yet another piece of muddy recovery gear after use


I cant think of any situation where you could not do the same job with a different jack, but it frequently makes life easier

[sinistr]

Have one and haven't had to use it yet but I think the benefit is on either sand or maybe rocks where a stable base for another jack is hard to get. Sorry not much help.

[austastar]

Hi,
would something like this fit your wheels?

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/11/383.jpg

cheers

[bee utey]

Years ago I had an exhaust jack. The only day I actually needed it I was stuck in muddy ruts on the Birdsville Track. The thing just kept squeezing out the side like a soap bubble. Half an hour later the towrope got us out with a passing Toyhoota on the other end.:p

[PhilipA]

I have had one for years .
Similar situation where it squezzed out in mud.
However it helped greatly as a second recovery device when a D1 in my club got stuck in "vomit" country near Gulgong at the same place.
The 12Klb winch just pulled the Disco along like the Queen Mary on its belly. It was only when we added the bullbag under the front that the D1 lifted out of the vomit and it was a case of lift/roll /deflate/reposition and so on.
On another MT Walker trip a Nissan Patrol lost a RR tyre and it was too steep to use a jack. Whacked the bullbag under the fuel tank and lifted High enough to change.
You have to have a very sound NO leak exhaust though unless you have one of the new fangled ones that can be blown up ( slooowly) by a compressor
Regards Philip A

[101RRS]

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/11/383.jpg

cheers

In real life I find that does not really work if you don't want to dent your vehicle. I have found that as the vehicle gets higher the top of the jack moves closer and closer to the vehicle as it becomes more unstable and there is an excellent chance that it ends up resting against the body work damaging it and the paintwork.

As far as bull bags go - I had one many years ago and was always weary of it - they can often burst with a big bang for the obvious reasons but also for no obvious reason. Something I might carry for those situations when all else has failed and you have nothing to loose but not for use on an every recovery day.

Garry

[DoubleChevron]

My grandfather has one ..... We borrowed it once as we found a use for them where nothing else would work ..... Very, very low cars with a long wheelbase that can't be moved (think dead hydraulic Citroen.... 1/4" of ground clearance 124" wheelbase ... or something like a hydraulic/air Mercedes Grosser etc...). The flat bag will squeeze under where no other jack will fit.

Then we found no car in yard had an exhaust that was good enough to inflate it .... sigh ..... The ones that did had twin outlets, or twin pipes. We had to use my grandfathers car to blow it up.

seeya,
Shane L.

[Tusker]

They work ok, but watch for a couple id issues:

- hot exhausts.

- Hard to deflate afterwards without gassing yourself.

- The big one: As mentioned, you need a good seal. No good on a tapered exhaust pipe. A rolled edge as on a Disco 200 tdi (well mine anyway) is fine. Sharp edges are problematic. Expect to get half gassed setting it up!

Regards
Max P

[marko66]

Hi All

I've used mine to lift my 16 tonne gvm Mitsubishi front axle up when bogged and then used the tray to lift the back wheels up - tilt tray -

I use a couple of small cheap poly tarps above and below to protect it.

I only lifted one side at a time.

I think they are useful and a great aid but need the same or more caution than when using a wallaby jack.

Got the truck up and then towed and winched it out with the 120

Regards Mark