68-70 Charger owners. Do you use your original jack?

[moparnation74]

Back in the day I remember useing two on the front bumper to get it high enough to pull the trans. Used blocks under the suspension for safty. I've also had them go sideways when not on stable ground. You have to use common sense when useing one.

How many times have you pinched your hand in one when letting it down? They're good for a blood blister!

A very nasty blister...in this day and age and a 20 dollar scissor jack...thats common sense versus the latter...

 

[GetX'd]

I wouldn’t use my bumper jack on a bet! I’ve had the one that came with the car stock and used to use it all the time back in the day. Let’s just say my brain has grown with age. I may just buy the one Rebel found at Pep Boys since they’re right across the street.

 

[dual fours]

Use to when I first got the '70 Charger, wood blocks at the front wheels when doing the rears, e brake on when doing the fronts. That was too slow so I got a rolling hydraulic floor jack from Montgomery Wards to keep in the trunk. Used that on the rear axel at the spring/axel location, except the tire, L60-15 did not drop and made it difficult to get them out from under the fender well. By that time I learned to place the floor jack at the front of the spring eye. Perfect.

 

[mopar 3 B]

What's interesting is the factory must have known that these were unstable and put people at risk. The scissor jack is more stable for side of the road use for flat tire fixes as no one carried a floor jack in their car.

I do

 

[Kern Dog]

Use the original jack? Even if I had one, I wouldn't have used it even when my car looked like this...

 

[Car Nut]

Jacks are overrated, a good 2x4 works great!

 

[The Rebel]

Good to see they put the rock behind the wheel to keep it from moving.....

Jacks are overrated, a good 2x4 works great!

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[GetX'd]

Dumb question for the day - As stated I would never any longer use my stock bumper jack to lift the GTX. The dumb question - is a 1.5 ton scissors jack sufficient to use on a 3400 lb car given you’re only lifting either the front end or the back and not the entire car? Pls don’t laugh I said it was dumb -but would like opinions....... Thx

 

[Dennis H]

Besides a purist looking for points at a show, who runs bias tires on a frequently driven car?
Come on. Rhetorical question right? How about dual point vacuum advance distributors? Most are on a shelf these days. I said most, spare me the pictures.

 

[GetX'd]

Besides a purist looking for points at a show, who runs bias tires on a frequently driven car?
Come on. Rhetorical question right? How about dual point vacuum advance distributors? Most are on a shelf these days. I said most, spare me the pictures.

I’m not a purist and I have the Goodyear polyglas tires from yesteryear - just liked the look of back in the day. Then again my car is not that frequently driven. What’s the opinion on the scissor jack though?

 

[mopar 3 B]

Dumb question for the day - As stated I would never any longer use my stock bumper jack to lift the GTX. The dumb question - is a 1.5 ton scissors jack sufficient to use on a 3400 lb car given you’re only lifting either the front end or the back and not the entire car? Pls don’t laugh I said it was dumb -but would like opinions....... Thx

1.5 US tons = 3000 lbs. If the jack could support the wt properly balance wise it is capable of lifting either end with no problems.

 

[PeteBell68]

Nope - I went to a junkyard many years ago and took a jack from a 1981 Cadillac it's a scissor jack with a large head and much safer .

 

[Dennis H]

I’m not a purist and I have the Goodyear polyglas tires from yesteryear - just liked the look of back in the day. Then again my car is not that frequently driven. What’s the opinion on the scissor jack though?

Wow. Now I can relate to the drive to Van Nuys. Don't advise a buck 10 in Nevada like some do. Not me. I got a scissors jack from a yard Years ago too. Plentiful and work well as we have plenty of good places to use them. Put them where you would place the jack stands.

 

[TOMRR]

Hit your local junkyard.

This is out of a '92 Dodge Dakota. Well made and I've used it for all kinds of things. The lug wrench part is somewhere around here.
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Same here for my 69 RR

 

[treblig]

Once I found that the Monte Carlo jack was the most stable (and easy to pack away) I'll never use any other jack on any of my classic cars. I have a Monte Carlo jack in my Barracuda, my son's '46 Chevy Coupe and my daughter's 59 Silver Hawk. Scissor jacks are hard to raise, the whole thing tries to spin when you crank on the handle when there's no weight on it and it takes forever. The Monte Carlo jack is fast and efficient.

I've managed to buy one at almost every swap meet I go to, even found one on ebay for $20. After cleaning and painting they look brand new because they were seldom used. I modify the pad to lock into a hole or spot on the frame of each car.
For my son and my daughter it was all about "stabililty" when it comes to changing a flat tire, don't want anyone to get hurt!!

Treblig

 

[Cava3r4]

Use to when I first got the '70 Charger, wood blocks at the front wheels when doing the rears, e brake on when doing the fronts. That was too slow so I got a rolling hydraulic floor jack from Montgomery Wards to keep in the trunk. Used that on the rear axel at the spring/axel location, except the tire, L60-15 did not drop and made it difficult to get them out from under the fender well. By that time I learned to place the floor jack at the front of the spring eye. Perfect.

like above, I used it a couple of times in the late 70's. Later I bought a nice hydraulic floor jack from JC Penney (a 1-1/2 ton 90 pounds of steel... what today they call 3 tons) and never looked back. You have to be EXTREMELY careful and be on level ground, not on soft earth, etc when using a bumper jack on any car. I once saw a lady get hit in the leg when a car "threw the jack" at her. Broke her leg. She was in SEVERE PAIN. I couldn't believe her DUMB boyfriend. Had the jack so crooked you KNEW it was going to fly.

 

[The Rebel]

Start at the 2:30 mark, LOL

 

[6PKRTSE]

Start at the 2:30 mark, LOL

I still have all of my original jack & hardware in the trunk of my red 70' Charger. I have never even taken it out to ever even try it. I just use a floor jack all of the time.

 

[SublimeSixpack]

I used a bumper jack once, it did the job. But with that said I don't like them. They can be dangerous to use.
But since I only carry bumper jacks in my classics, I would use one again if I had a flat and the vehicle was on level pavement.

 

[Ed Martin]

For most the jacks are restored....also, I think you know what they cost.....

Lastly, unstable is an understatement.....

Simple logic applied here, bodily harm or costly vehicle damage VS a cheaper safer alternative....

moparnation74: when you say jacks are restored, I wonder who restores them and can the ratcheting mechanism be fixed? I had been using my bumper jack on my 68 RR until the spring inside the mechanism that lets it ratchet up or down broke recently. But will be now be using a scissor jack from here on even if I can get mine fixed.