How much weight does a floor jack need to support a 1999 Tahoe?

[YukonRog]

I do the same thing, always when on stands. My girl is not happy if I would not do that.

Not how I'd like to go. Had a friend drop a cast iron 4 spd trans on his chest. Broken sternum is no fun. Neither is being crushed to death. I always have double redundancy where I'm at. Either another jack stand, the floor jack, or large dunnage like lumber.

 

[Roll On]

It’s nice to have the tools and equipment; But, for myself these days, I have to take it to the dealership to have them do any work.

 

[OR VietVet]

It’s nice to have the tools and equipment; But, for myself these days, I have to take it to the dealership to have them do any work.

Buy a little at a time. I was in the business, as a tech and then service manager, for 35+ years. Hell, I don't have what I used to have when I made my living but I have gathered a great assortment since then, a little at a time.

 

[drakon543]

used to lift my 97 4dr with a 2 ton Pittsburgh floor jack all the time until i got tired of its lack of height. a good floor jack will be rated below what its actual capacity actually is. not that i would ever try to lift the entire truck at a time but 2t is plenty for a corner of the truck at a time. most aftermarket wheels are rated for 2000 lbs so if that 1t rated wheel can hold up a corner 4000 lbs can easily lift it.

 

[OR VietVet]

It’s nice to have the tools and equipment; But, for myself these days, I have to take it to the dealership to have them do any work.

Formulate a plan for a tool collection. This is only if you have the desire to do so. First, get a box to store them in and lock them in. Whatever the best deal is, used or new. Start with basic sets and don't feel like you need to get Snap-On or Mac or Matco or....right off the bat. remember, you are not making your living with them. Harbor Freight is a great source and they run sales all the time and CL tools are great too. When I was building my latest set, I found a widow that was selling her deceased husbands tools and I could tell in the pics that some of them were great quality. I went and bought all she had, knowing I did not want some of them or need some of them but she wanted it all gone. I did her a solid on the price and sold some of what I bought and some of the tools are lesser quality duplicates of the better quality that I use all the time. Be ready to strike when the right set or tool pops up. Make sure to not over buy based on your abilities.

 

[Mean_Green]

I'd love to have a four post lift, but I don't have a place to put it without building another shed/garage ..... hmmmm...

I have a set of ramps for cars, but I've always had a problem with them scooting when trying to drive on. Then there's the risk of overshooting the stop.

Plan would be a mixture, lift with the floor jack, then set ramps under the wheels for jobs where you don't need to get the wheels off.

 

[OR VietVet]

It’s nice to have the tools and equipment; But, for myself these days, I have to take it to the dealership to have them do any work.

tools standard & metric - tools - by owner - sale

metric and standard,rolaway 2 side boxes 1 small black rollawaybox ,one home made roller

eugene.craigslist.org

I saw this yesterday and called him. He will not sell separate tools, only the full set up and would take $6k for the set. I would be all in at $5k and pick what I want and sell the rest.

 

[OR VietVet]

I'd love to have a four post lift, but I don't have a place to put it without building another shed/garage ..... hmmmm...

I have a set of ramps for cars, but I've always had a problem with them scooting when trying to drive on. Then there's the risk of overshooting the stop.

Plan would be a mixture, lift with the floor jack, then set ramps under the wheels for jobs where you don't need to get the wheels off.

When you set up the ramps, place right at front and kick the ramp tight under the front of tire, or rear of tire if backing on. If can't kick on, tap back with a larger hammer. Once the tire grips the ramp, it should not skid, unless you are doing it on a very smooth concrete surface, like in a shop on a shop floor. When driving on ramps, you gotta have a helper to SEE for you or be really good about power braking. I have done it so often, I can pull on 4 ramps at same time with no problem. If you want on ramps and have problems, just jack up the rig and set the ramps under the tires. Then you can back off the ramps with confidence.

 

[89Suburban]

Or make your own set of folding wood ramps rather cheap....

I like those. I made these. I can hang them on the wall out of the way.

 

[Roll On]

Buy a little at a time. I was in the business, as a tech and then service manager, for 35+ years. Hell, I don't have what I used to have when I made my living but I have gathered a great assortment since then, a little at a time.

I used to be a shaded tree mechanic, learned a lot and had fun. But, I don’t bend like I used too.