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floor jack shootout (pg 6)
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shipping costs / mail order
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I was worried about shipping costs on any of these heavy mofo's, if purchased mail order. Many of them have a 100-115 pound shipping weight. Can UPS even ship that? Of course they can. I did a test order on the 97 pound Norco and shipping was only $29.05, UPS Ground, from Tolltopia.com [shipping from Louisiana to Texas]. UltimateGarage.com has freight prices for AC Hydraulics jacks at $40-50, which seems a tad high to me. They are letting the buyer pay for shipping to the USA and then from the reseller to the buyer. Buying anything from UltimateGarage.com is usually a last resort, as their prices are usually much higher for any product carried by any other vendor.
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test procedures
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With three degreed engineers on staff, and a garage full of measurement tools, you'd hope we could measure some floor jacks. The measurements for minimum height [the most crucial number to many of us] were made with a level, a square, and a machinist's ruler measured in .001" increments. We rounded to .010" for ease of posting. The max saddle heights were measured similarly, but with a tape measure marked in 1/16" increments. We used fractions where this tape was used, to show that level of accuracy, and decimal inches when we used the more accurate machinist's's ruler. Weights of the jacks were checked with a digital weight scale accurate to +/- 0.1 lbs, on level ground.
Testing Min Height
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Testing Max Height
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Checking Weight
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Testing Release Rate
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Two aspects we measured on the on-hand jacks, but I neglected to add to the tables, were number of pumps to max height and timed lowering rate with a set load. Since we didn't have these numbers for some jacks, we can only give them for the ones we tested directly ourselves. To measure number of pumps to max height, four of us took the 4 jacks we had and started at the fully lowered height. We then cycled the jack handle until they were at maximum height, and noted the total number of cycles for each model. More pumps means more time to reach max height, but usually with less physical effort. To measure release times, we stood a "standard 200 pound load" (Fair) on each jack at max height and lowered at full release and timed it with a stopwatch [rounded to the nearest half second]. The number of pumps to max height and timed lowering rates for a fixed 200 pound load are as follows:
- Craftsman: 3 pumps up (the winner!), controlled down - this jack has the best of both worlds: 2-stage hydraulics
- Larin: 11 pumps up, 1.5 second down - This old PoS jack isn't reaching max height anymore.
- Sam's: 19 pumps up, 1.5 second down - Pack a lunch.
- U.S.General: 6.5 pumps up, 0.5 second down - I almost busted my ass!
- AC Hydraulics: 17 pumps up, 8.5 seconds down - This jack has a FIXED release rate. Safe, slow, and idiot proof.
- Central Hydraulics: 9 pumps up, with an "easily controlled release rate".
All of the jacks we tested have an "adjustable" release [except the AC Hydraulics jacks, which have a unique fixed release rate] with respect to the hydraulic lowering rate, at least in theory. The sticky gear driven release drives on the two cheap jacks [Larin and Sam's] made rate adjustment nearly impossible, and this aspect worsens with increased load. Lowering even a quality floor jack takes some skill when they are loaded fully. Fast descents make for dangerous lowering speeds. Adjustable release rates can be somewhat finicky, if not dangerous - meaning, you rotate the handle just 1 millimeter too much, and the car comes crashing down. We all thought the AC Hydraulics jack's preset lowering rate was very safe with no worries about the car crashing down instantly. I'd rather have lowering take 8 seconds than a millisecond. Also, when lowering something like a tranny from a jack, you wouldn't want it to crash down. So, the ability for "safe descent" is fairly important. Keep that in mind especially if, even after reading this article, you choose to buy a cheap sub-$100 jack.
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conclusions
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Well, if you are as picky about your floor jack as we are, nothing beats a test drive of the various models. Read this article paying attention to the specs of the various models, narrow down your search, and see which models you might want to test out. Then ask the gearheads on the various automotive bulletin boards you read if anyone local to you has the models you seek, so you could come by and give it a whirl. It helps a lot to feel the action, to use the jack on your car. If you are a trusting sort, then just take our word for it on these recommendations:
- The Lincoln W95642 is a proven classic but at $200 + shipping its the most expensive in our test this side of the AC Hydraulics units. The Norco 71230A jack is a much more affordable knock-off at $147. The Central Hydraulics 47019 is about the same price and looks to also be a clone of the Lincoln design. After lusting for the Lincoln model for so many years, the MATCO and AC Hydraulics units have cured me.
- The MATCO 3.5 ton is a helluva good jack with a nice, flat, rubber padded saddle and a relatively low saddle height. At $193 + shipping, its a lot of jack for the money, but is one heavy mother. Look at the NAPA and Sunex clones of the Matco unit for excellent options under $150.
- The AC Hydraulics is an odd looking but functionally beautiful jack. Its Danish made, has a ridiculously low 3.1" minimum saddle height, the safest hydraulics, and many other features that make it very unique. They are somewhat pricey, and it seems you can get an equally low jack in the AFF 200T for substantially less money. The ultra-long $500 version, the DK13, is too pimp for words, and is the end-all-be-all floor jack model. This is the "mega jack". My floor jack collection (5 and counting), and my garage itself, will not be complete until I have one...
- The Craftsman 50240 is the best bang per buck jack, and is the first floor jack someone new to jacks should look to get. Easy to find (Sears) and a hell of a buy. For an even low minimum height, I'd go straight to the AFF 200T.
| Manufacturer |
Model |
Capacity |
Cost |
Weight |
Min Ht. |
Max Ht. |
Our Rating |
| Larin |
n/a |
2.5 Ton |
$80 |
78.5 lbs |
4.45" (3.95") |
17" |
 |
| Sam's |
n/a |
3 Ton |
$99 |
94.0 lbs |
5.0" (4.45") |
20-5/16" |
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| Craftsman |
50240 |
3000 pounds |
$89 |
58 lbs |
3.5" |
16-7/8" |
 |
| Lincoln |
W95642 |
2 Ton |
$199 |
[97 lbs] |
[3-3/4"] |
[20"] |
 |
| Norco |
71230A |
2.25 Ton |
$147 |
[97 lbs] |
[3-3/4"] |
[20"] |
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| AC Hydraulics |
DK20 |
4400 pounds |
$353 |
67.5 lbs |
3.15" |
19-1/4" |
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| AC Hydraulics |
DK13HLQ |
2900 pounds |
$497 |
[84.7 lbs] |
[3.15"] |
[29.2"] |
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| U.S. General |
47246 |
1.5 Ton |
$139 |
38.5 lbs |
3.4" |
17-5/8" |
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| U.S. General |
91039 |
1.5 Ton |
$79 |
23.7 lbs |
3.5" |
15" |
 |
| Matco |
MFJ35 |
7000 pounds |
$193 |
103 lbs |
4-3/8" |
19-3/4" |
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| AFF |
200T |
4000 pounds |
$165 |
[99 lbs] |
[2-3/4"] |
[20"] |
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| Central Hydraulics |
47019 |
3 tons |
$149.99 |
103 lbs |
3.5" |
19.5" |
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Notes: (x) numbers are with saddle removed. [x] numbers are manufacturer's published data.
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| © 2009 Vorshlag Motorsports, LLC |
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