Bottle Jack Useful Accessory Build (Or - Bye, Bye High Lift!)

I've been kicking around the idea of replacing my High-Lift Jack with a Bottle Jack for years. The problem is when running 40's, it's tough to find a bottle jack that will lift high enough to get a tire off the ground.

Now to be clear, I am a high-lift fan. It's safe if you are smarter than the jack, use it correctly, and maintain it. But the downside is the weight (mine weighs 29 pounds), and it's actually tough to lift the rig high enough to change a tire if you have a droopy suspension (I've used ratchet straps to hold up the axle - but that's a pain). I've also only ever used the high-lift to change a tire, and never for any other type of recovery work.

I do have a couple of bottle jacks that I carry in the truck, and on the trailer. They are telescoping 12-ton versions, and do lift 24" - but crazy big and heavy at 25 pounds.

I came across something called Safe Jacks ( https://safejacks.com/ ), and their stuff is pretty cool - and gave me some ideas for a version of my own.

So off we go...

I like the idea of a telescoping bottle jack. You get twice the lift height from the same size jack. But I wanted the smallest and lightest version I could find that would still do the job. So I picked up a few versions of bottle jacks to compare.



From left to right, a 4-Ton telescopic, a 6-ton standard, and 8-ton telescopic, and one of my beast-mode 12-ton telescopics. All are Torin jacks.

The smaller jacks have the same total lift height - at 16.5". The 4 and 8-ton telescopic jacks both provide 7.5" of lift, compared to the 6-ton's 5.5" of lift. You can tell by the pic that the bodies of the telescopic jacks are both shorter than the standard.

The 4-ton weights 6.9 pounds, the 6-ton is 7.5 pounds, and the 8-ton is right at 9.75 pounds. And for comparison, as I said the 12-ton weighs 25 pounds.

Since it is the lightest and smallest package - I wanted to use the 4-ton. The lift cylinder and the extension screw are a bit smaller and spindly compared to the larger jacks. But the biggest problem is that I threw it under the rig to test its power - and despite its 4-ton rating it was a real struggle to lift the back half of the rig at the diff.

The 8-ton lifted the rig much easier. So even though it is a little heavier, I selected the 8-ton jack as the basis for the build.

The intent of the project is to build a couple of extensions to use with the bottle jack to increase its total lift capability, while still taking advantage of the full lift range of the jack.

The Safe Jacks concept is slick. You raise the screw extension (which does not come all the way out - more on that in a moment), and Safe Jacks provides a plastic, 3D printed clamshell piece the wraps around the threads, is secured in place by a rubber band, and is the same outside diameter as the cap. You tighten the cap down onto the clamshell spacer, and the Safe Jack extensions slide down over that assembly. This provides stability, and allows the jack to maintain its entire lift range.

But, I did not like the idea of that plastic piece and the rubber band. I'm sure it works fine, but I wanted to use a one piece, steel sleeve.

On all of the bottle jacks, the extension is not removable. So just like when I was a kid, to figure out why I pulled it apart:




In the case of the Torin jacks, the screw extension is inserted into the inner cylinder during assembly, and once in the lower threads are dimpled to keep it from being removed. With the jack apart and having access to the inner cylinder, I was able to break the dimple and remove the extension.

That allows me to remove the screw, add a 2" tall piece of 1.25" x .120 wall DOM tubing which is the same outside diameter as the head, and then screw the extension back into the cylinder and tighten it down, like so:





This provides a steady platform over which to slide the extensions.

I kicked around a few ideas on how best to make the extensions. Being a fan of Occam's Razor, this is how I did.

As I mentioned above the spacer on top of the jack is 1.25 x .120 wall DOM. So that fits nicely inside 1.5" x .120 wall DOM, with about 10 thou of clearance. A nice fit, but easily inserted and removed. Below are the pieces for a 4" and a 6" extension.



For each extension, the inner and outer pieces are the same length. The inner is positioned such that it creates an interior lip 2 3/8" up from the bottom, and also a 2 3/8" extension at the top. This allows the extension to support the load weight both on the inner and outer tubing, resulting in a 1/4" overall tube wall. It also sits exactly over the screw extension, and its spacer.



This approach allows any of the extensions to be used in any sequence, and also provides a place to install a cap.

Three plug welds hold the pieces in place. In my design, the plug welds do not support any of the load, as all of the load is transferred to the jack via the stacked inner and outer tubes. This works well and did not require me to throw a lot of weld and heat at these things, because any warping of the tubing would ruin the slip fit.

Next up was to build a cap to support the axle tubes. I used a short piece of 3/8" bar stock, and used the press to create two sharp, 45 degree bends.

The press gauge indicated a bit over 20 tons to make this sharp bend - so it's not going anywhere...



That, coupled with a 2 3/8" tall piece of 1.5" x .120 DOM to fit perfectly over the extensions, or the jack extension screw if no extension is needed, completes the cap:

After a little cleanup, here are the pieces:

And finally, a little paint. I did not paint any of the surfaces which require insertion, as the fit is tight enough that paint would have affected the fit, and also would simply scrape off during use.



I've looked into a few coating methods that would provide rust prevention, but not add thickness to the parts. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Maybe bluing? Does that provide rust prevention?

And the final product. Everything, including the pump handle and the screw extension sleeve fit together in one package about 12" long.

All in, it weights 14 pounds. So 15 pounds less than the high lift.



The total lift with both the 6" and 4" extensions is 27". If I ever need more, or would like to build a different style cap, they are crazy easy to build with this design.



So what do you all think? Can I go ahead an cut the high lift mounts off of my tire carrier????

B1Toad said:

I like it, and I've considered something like that. The thing I wonder about is the situation where you need the taller extension but the axle is too low for it, so you have to start out with a shorter setup, raise then block the axle, lower the jack and switch to the taller extension and finish raising, the same as if you just used the jack alone with wood blocks under it except that you wouldn't need to carry as much blocking.

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That was the reason I wanted to use the telescopic jack - a little more lift range than the standard jack. But, not even in the same ball park as the lift range on a high lift.

B1Toad said:

I like your axle adapter, I've been wanting to make one and having no press I'd have to weld it up in pieces. To me, making the jack work with a stable axle adapter like you have done is the biggest improvement.

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Thank you.

B1Toad said:

PS does the 8 ton fit under the passenger seat?

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Thought about that, but don’t know yet. My next task is to figure out a good place to store it.