I was checking the prices on "toe jacks".All the ones I found on the Internet are way above my needs and budget.But I have two "bottle" jacks laying around,does anybody have any ideas how to make one without welding or machining?
What's left?
Hacksaw? Bolts? Rivets? Low-tech rulez :)
On Fri, 23 Mar 2007 22:34:33 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm, DennisJR quickly quoth:
Sure. Just take your little tack hammer and bend the nice 1/2" steel plate into a reverse S around a stump, curling the corners on the top portion so it stick on the jack ram.
------------------------------------------------------- Have you read the new book "What Would Machiavelli Do?" ----------------------------
Propane torch,hacksaw,drill,bolts and rivets how abour some ideas, you people have to realize something, not everybody has the room to keep all these tools especially in NY where space is at premium. I just want to see who has the tenacity and solution to this problem. BTW I have all the hammers I need.
Forging and.. ehh.. casting?
S.
Elevator shoes?
John
Rescue units use inflatable devices that look like flat square seat cushions. They are made out of TOUGH rubber, IIRC, and they are like 1/2" to a couple of inches thick when deflated. They can slide them under things that they want to lift only slightly, or, like a toe jack, something they want to lift up a little so they can get hold of it with some other type lifting device. (crane line, forklift tine, etc.) They work from air pressure, or maybe water.
Steve
Like the "recovery bags" that will raise and upright an upset transport truck using - the exhaust of the recovery truck - for pressure.
Drilling is machining. Hacksaw could be considered machining. Yes, I know I'm being anal retentive but I alway considered drilling, tapping, riviting etc. to be in the domain of machining so when you put a prohibition on these it left me a bit sails aback for ideas.
space is at premium.
I realize that as I was once tool poor also. Sorry if I backwinded your mains'l. I like Steve B's idea of inflatable bags.
Bud, course corrected, sails trimmed.
The cheapest way is to get a couple thin wedges and some shims. Put some grease between the shims and the wedges when you drive them in. Use two sets of wedges and shims and you will raise your load with almost no money but with a little effort. the higher you need to go, the more shims you will need.
John
Nice tip. I've always used a pinch bar and a stack of variously sized hardwood blocks, work it up in stages. I think I like your way better, I'll give it a try.
Adam Smith, Midland, Ontario, Canada
Ours use air pressure, driven by the SCBA tanks. Much more portable than a water source, and you don't need all that much volume for something like this. Handheld regulator/control valve with two different circuits, so we can use two indendent bags at once - useful for lifting in stages. Only a few inches of lift but, impressively strong.
Carpentry?
You don't say what you need the toe jacks for, so perhaps you could use something else, for instance the tool called a Johnson bar, pry truck or lever dolly, described in this article:
I came across this article by pure coincidence while searching the web for something else, and then I remembered your question.
S.
It isn't necessary to own all the large tools and equipment for just occasional use. You can do what you can, (like cutting and fitting) and hire out the part you can't do (like welding). It is much more cost effective to pay for a few inches of weld by someone who knows what they are doing that to buy and store big stuff. You may need to do some shopping around to find someone to do it at a reasonable price, or you may be lucky enough to hang around a shop and bring donuts a few times. Local vo-tech classes will usually jump at small work you might bring in. Plus, you get the expertise of the instructor to make sure it's reasonably done right.
Ron Thompson On the Beautiful Florida Space Coast, right beside the Kennedy Space Center, USA
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