Best jack stand for supporting a 911?

[PabloX]

Right now I have a couple of the typical cheap ones from Sears, like this:



The saddle design works well most of the time though the stability could be better. I'm thinking of getting a couple of these:



The question is will the saddle design work well with the 911?

Thanks.

[KTL]

Yes those will work fine. There are flat locations on the 911's tub that will accommodate the flat top. The corners of the tub behind the front wheels and below the torsion bar housing near the spring plate/bushing mounts (as far outboard as possible) are flat enough for those flat top stands.

That said, the Esco stands with the curved saddles will also work. You can put the curved saddles on the torsion bar housing itself, spring plate tubes and the forward connection of the front A-arms

[DRACO A5OG]

Long as they are rated 3 ton or more will be fine, just use common sense and check and double check to insure the car will sit correctly. Any jack stand will make a really nice hole in our tubs if done incorrectly.

[PabloX]

Originally Posted by KTL

Yes those will work fine. There are flat locations on the 911's tub that will accommodate the flat top. The corners of the tub behind the front wheels and below the torsion bar housing near the spring plate/bushing mounts (as far outboard as possible) are flat enough for those flat top stands.

That said, the Esco stands with the curved saddles will also work. You can put the curved saddles on the torsion bar housing itself, spring plate tubes and the forward connection of the front A-arms

Thanks. I figured it would be good to have another set with a different saddle type.

[mercury26]

Does anyone use the Esco "U-shaped" Saddle Jack stands on torsion bar covers?

Thanks,

Chuck

[KTL]

Edit: Forgot to mention nice choice of the Esco stands. Seem like nice solid quality stands and I hope to get a set for myself some day. I'm no jack stand expert. I just think they're a nicely designed product. I like the pin-fastened type saddles and the box section tubing for the bases is much more robust than the typical stamped steel frames (like the Ranger stands pictured).

For lifting the car really high (think engine removal), stands like those Ranger stands in the large sizes work really well when placed on the spring plate tubes. I've seen people use the extra large 6 ton stands on the tubes and they're perfect for this purpose. Large size = more stable footprint and better support than common 3 ton stands at high saddle heights. However being they're so large, you can't really use them in tight locations or jacking heights. I don't see any problem using the large Esco stands for this purpose either. The spring plate tubes or inboard torsion bar housing are one of the best places to support the rear IMO. I'm sorry to be switching to 935-style rear spring plates because I won't have the ability to put my stands on the spring plate tubes anymore........

[gamin]

PabloX - The red stands at the top of your post don't appear to have a safety pin or bar that locks the ratcheting teeth. Without such a pin it is easy to hit the handle and drop the extension instantly. Very dangerous. I've seen it happen. I would never use a jack stand without a safety pin.

[Flat Six]

Originally Posted by gamin

pablox - the red stands at the top of your post don't appear to have a safety pin or bar that locks the ratcheting teeth. Without such a pin it is easy to hit the handle and drop the extension instantly. Very dangerous. I've seen it happen. I would never use a jack stand without a safety pin.

+1

[Joe Bob]

The red ones have a tab that is bent in to keep them from falling out whem turned upsdie down.....but no safety pin to keep them from slipping while under pressure.

[PabloX]

Originally Posted by gamin

PabloX - The red stands at the top of your post don't appear to have a safety pin or bar that locks the ratcheting teeth. Without such a pin it is easy to hit the handle and drop the extension instantly. Very dangerous. I've seen it happen. I would never use a jack stand without a safety pin.

Yeah, that was just an example picture. The ones I have are the same basic design but do have a safety pin.

I appreciate the concern though.

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

We use the Esco three post jackstands here in the shop at Pelican. They are very well designed and constructed. I also use them at home.

[mercury26]

Originally Posted by Jared at Pelican Parts

We use the Esco three post jackstands here in the shop at Pelican. They are very well designed and constructed. I also use them at home.

Does the half moon (not the flat top) Esco jack stand work well under the rear torsion bar covers?

Thanks,

Chuck

[PabloX]

Thanks everyone for the input. I ordered the Escos with the flat platform from Pelican. I've never been so excited about jack stands.

Now a question on jacking up the car. I know this has been talked about before, but I want to make sure I don't do it wrong.

I'd like to use the method that uses the 2x4 under the front cross member. The question is, should this 2x4 be long enough to go under both torsion mounts or just between the two?

I'll be using the front torsion bar mounts as points for the jack stands, so having the 2x4 go just between the two seems to make more sense.

Thanks.

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

you should be fine in between the two torsion bar mounts. That crossmember is plenty strong.


As far as the halfmoon Esco pads go, I havent used them. I usually don't support the rear of a 911 from the rear torsion bar covers. I know plenty of people do and thats fine. Just personal preference.

[PabloX]

Originally Posted by Jared at Pelican Parts

you should be fine in between the two torsion bar mounts. That crossmember is plenty strong.


As far as the halfmoon Esco pads go, I havent used them. I usually don't support the rear of a 911 from the rear torsion bar covers. I know plenty of people do and thats fine. Just personal preference.

Excellent. Thanks Jared.

[AKA 930]

Time for a silly request... could someone post a series of pictures showing the proper way to lift and set on jacks the 911?

[billybek]

Originally Posted by AKA 930

Time for a silly request... could someone post a series of pictures showing the proper way to lift and set on jacks the 911?

This is a long debated and well covered topic.
Just go back to the tech forum page and look in the upper right corner for the Search This Forum feature.
Simply type in Jacking or Lifting and Jack Stands and a wealth of information will present itself!
Welcome to the forum by the way!

[PabloX]

Originally Posted by AKA 930

Time for a silly request... could someone post a series of pictures showing the proper way to lift and set on jacks the 911?

I'm going to have to jack mine up again next weekend. I'll try to take pics. However, here's what I ended up doing yesterday:

- jack up one side using the factory jack point in the middle of the car (the 1" square receiver with the plastic cover). I bought the jack pad from Pelican and used my floor jack. Then I put a piece of 6x6 pressure treat under the front tire and two pieces of 2x8 under the rear tire. I repeated this on the other side. My garage floor is flat. This may not work on an uneven surface.
- Once the tires are all sitting on the wood, I jacked up the front. To do this I made a 1.5" by 2" by 20" bar out of two pieces of oak I had lying around. This went right under the cross member that runs in back of the grill for the oil cooler and right between the two front torsion bar mounts. Once again I used my floor jack to lift the front.
- Once the front was up in the air, I put the jack stands under the two front torsion bar mounts.
- I had to take the front wheels off so, for safety, I put those under the body of the car and put the pieces of 6x6 on top of them. The car was high enough that it didn't touch them but they were just there as a failsafe.

I plan on getting a piece a long 2x8 and making some platforms for the wheels that will substitute for the wood pieces i used above. I'll also build in some tire chocks.