Alternate Portable Jacks

[KAJ181]

The floor pans on my '73 were just replaced and the old support jacks could not be salvaged. Unfortunately, the pans that were installed did not have new ones built in. Hence I am now in need of getting a different type of jack that I can take on the road in the event of a flat. The obvious alternative seems to be a bumber jack but I dont know if the factory bumbers will get bent. Any thoughts?

Thanks,
KJ

[ztnoo]

Jack Receiver
http://www.thethingshop.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=181701475AS

[bciesq]

I have a OEM jack and my receivers are still in good shape, but I carry around a small bottle jack and a short piece of 2X4 to distribute the load. The last time I tried to use the OEM jack and receiver, the passenger side rocker panel ended up slightly deformed.

I'm not sure what happened, but it's just not worth it when you can pick up a bottle jack for $20.
_________________
'73 Thing -- making 45 mph exciting again.

[kubelmann]

I am with Ben on this one. I hate the factory jack. It goes toward the body or trys to bend the rocker or does some damage. I like to use a bottle jack and a 2x4 also. I put it under the pan where the support channel iron on the pan mount to the front beam support and in the rear on the torsion tube. Very strong and steady in both places and never leaves a mark on the car.

[thingthomas]

i always carry a shop style jack (4 wheel) in the car....but my thing is raised about 6 inch....got used to have it in my buggy because of clutch spring failure...took the engine out everywhere....now i got the habit of carring alot of spares and tools....saved my a!! many times..

regards thingthomas

[kubelmann]

I also have a small floor jack that fits right in the front bin. I take it on offroad trips where we could get in trouble. The bottle jack is in the Thing road car. Both are good but the small floor jack is better. With logs and a floor jack I can get a car way off the ground more safely than with a bottle jack. WE lost a trans by Mike's Sky High Ranch in the baja and a small floor jack and a bunch of logs made it possible to suffer for about 8 hours getting in a new trans.. That was a nasty job. Good thing it was a Baja and not an enclosed Thing. I want to make the cross member at the back of both my Things removeable. I do not enjoy swapping Thing motors. Too cramped

[Ferretkona]

[kubelmann]

I am about to pull the motor in my 79 bus and it too takes under an hour. Unlike the Thing motor I need to pul adn it will take hours just to pull all the parts off to clear the deck without breaking anything. Putting the new motor in on a Thing is even worse. I will be doing the modification rior to pulling this next Thing motor. I plan to drill and bolt the rear section first. Then grind off the welds and get the section free. I am even thinking about a paper thin saber saw blade or a jewelers saw. I plan to keep records to share.

[Ian Epperson]

The worst offender for me is that deck-lid latch stand. That @#$@# piece of metal always seems to hang up the alternator. The new T4 is a wee bit longer, and I beat up one of the tin mounts during a test fit while trying to maneuver the alt free of that latch stand.

So, I'll be grinding that sucker off and making it a bolt-on part here shortly. I don't really want to cut up the entire rear, but boy that would make an engine pull easy.

My friend in high school could pull his baja engine in 30 mins without trying hard. He'd unbolt the rear, jack up the engine, pull the bolts then just roll the car forward.

[kubelmann]

I have no intention of disfiguring my Thing(s) I plan to delete the welds that hold the rear offender and replace it with bolts. Since I have not done this yet, I am speaking in theory. I want to drop the back bumper, drop the rear offender and do a Baja style engine swap. I suspect I will find the perfect modern tool to cut the rear apron loose.

[Thingster]

I just use a scissor jack from a late model car. You can buy them at junkyards for $5 or 10 and if you get the "right" one the handle ratchets so you're not scraping your knuckles across the ground and with the correct lug insert you also have a rathcheting T handle lug wrench.

I can't tell you what i got the jack from, but it is a marvelous piece of equipment.

As for getting the motor out, i can get the motor out of my Thing faster than I could get it out of my 66 beetle. Once i found out the motor has to tilt back to clear the deck lid latch it goes as smooth as can be (but that was iincredibly frustrating the first time around ). I've had it out, a new clutch on, and the Thing running within an hour and a half.

Justin
_________________
"I like to take my Thing out and play with it."
1974 Thing (Play Toy)
1957 Sedan(Show Car)
1954 Sedan (On the back burner)

[Captain Spalding]

Many of the vintage Porsche guys favor the stock scissors jack from a Porsche 944. It could never substitute for a shop jack, but it's lightweight and seems more than adequate for changing a flat. This one has been modified by the addition of a hockey puck as a load spreader.

I've been trying to lay my hands on a hydraulic scissor jack - the KYB KJZ008. It is a favorite among the Japanese Rally crowd. It would fit perfectly under the back seat, opposite the battery. There's a nifty rubber pad available which would make it perfectly suited to the Thing. As yet, I have been unable to find a domestic supplier.

[kubelmann]

Very nice. KYB model. I will look around for a supplier.