Don't Forget To Keep Your Hi-Lift In Shape!

Brian McVickers

Administrator
Staff member
So I guess the embarrassing stories are usually the funniest.
I have not used my Hi-Lift for a while.
The other day while a little bored I decided to test out some jacking points around the truck to see which jack placements would be best. Figured it would be easier to experiment with on a nice quiet street in front of my sister-in-laws-house. ;)

So snugged up under the left rear corner of the left rock slider, up she went till the rear left suspension dropped and up a little further to get the tire off the ground. Now that the truck is way up in the air lets bring her down. Flip the lever and start to pump. Okay try again, flip the lever back and forth and try to pump! :confused:

So now my truck is stuck tilted three feet in the air and my Hi-Lift is frozen with a couple of rusty pins!!
I tried to rescue the situation with my bottle jack but that only lifted the suspension! :eek:

WD-40 and some light tapping brought everything back to the ground. :victory:

The best part is I've had a pin rebuild kit sitting in the glove box for the past 4 weeks!

So the Hi-Lift has been disassembled, sanded and I'm waiting for the new paint to dry before rebuilding.
 

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Box Rocket

Well-known member
I'm looking for any additional pics or instructions on rebuilding a hi-lift. Mine is still is decent shape but has seen some good use. It's been mounted on my tire carrier for the last two winters and it's getting rusty. I'd like to pull it apart, clean it, repaint it and get it put back together.

Does anyone have a write-up or how-to how to take them apart and reassemble without ruining them?

Thanks
 

Stumpalump

Expedition Leader
Harbor freight sells a better jack. I have both and the operation, ease of use and reliability is great with the Harbor Freight jack. The Hi-Lift brand consistanty has disapointed and I have lost all trust in them.
 

Box Rocket

Well-known member
Harbor freight sells a better jack. I have both and the operation, ease of use and reliability is great with the Harbor Freight jack. The Hi-Lift brand consistanty has disapointed and I have lost all trust in them.


Any more details? Price? Size? Specs?

Anyone else using the HF jack?
 

James86004

Expedition Leader
I have had that happen before. I have gotten so bored at my sister-in-law's house (they can talk about the subtleties of family politics for hours) that I have gone out to do stuff to the truck and gotten myself in trouble.
--------------------------------------
Seriously, though, I have had a Hi-Lift get stuck, and it has came free with a shot of lubricant. I carry an aerosol can of lubricant with my Hi-Lift kit now, and lubricate it before every use. Never had a problem since I initiated that practice.

What did you have to rebuild it for? Did it get some rust in it? Mine seems fine, just gets dirt in it.
 

greentruck

Adventurer
The main thing to do for a reliable jack is to keep it clean and very lightly oiled. True grit is what usually is the problem, so in sand there can be problems. Too much oil is bad because it attracts and holds dirt and grit.

Never heard anything about an "outdated casting" on a Hi-Lift. Not so sure what could improve it, either.

However, as one of the few tools that there is a good US made version that is competitively priced, I'll leave my biz with Hi-Lift. Plus my kin folk live close enough to the factory to practically spit on it, so I'm a little biased on this.
 

cruiseroutfit

Supporting Sponsor: Cruiser Outfitters
My favorite Hi-Lift advice... leave it home. Or 'the safest Hi-Lift is the one in your garage' :D

Different strokes for different folks but my number one lifting resource is a factory Toyota bottle jack (they seriously rock), followed by an exhuast jack. In the 4 years I've now owned one, I've used my Hi-Lift twice. Once at a recovery class I was hosting in a winching setup and once in tandem to get my forklift un-stuck :D
 

Herbie

Rendezvous Conspirator
Harbor freight sells a better jack. I have both and the operation, ease of use and reliability is great with the Harbor Freight jack. The Hi-Lift brand consistanty has disapointed and I have lost all trust in them.

Wow, that's got to be a first, that HF sells a superior version of ANYTHING.

Still, since I'm in the market, I'll look into it.
 

BIGdaddy

Expedition Leader
Wow, that's got to be a first, that HF sells a superior version of ANYTHING.

Still, since I'm in the market, I'll look into it.

Tell me what you find, Mike. I'd be interested to hear your report...

My HF winch worked very well for the couple years I had it, and my floor jack worked well enough to put my lift kit on a couple weeks ago, so I, for one, can confirm that HF does sell some VERY good products.

You just have to know which ones to buy. :)
 

AndrewP

Explorer
Harbor Freight sells, at best, adequate products. Their Hi-lift is a joke, look at the workmanship carefully. It's junk. It's all stamped Chinese mystery metal. It works OK for the same reason an AK47 works OK. the tolerances are all so poor that it will work covered in mud or caked in sand. But when new, it's basically worn out.

Most Hi-Lifts don't get enough use to wear off the powder coat. They should paint them. Once you do, it's a far better beast. Keep it lubed up and it will last your entire life off-road. If you do happen to trash it, rebuild parts are easily available. Mine lives in the garage, but only goes on trips where I don't trust my wheeling partners to bring theirs.

Now honestly, though, the Toyota bottle jack is far more useful for almost any lifting need on a Land Cruiser. I have 2 in my trucks. They are really small, compact, powerful and adjustable jack stands. I especially like the earlier cast ones. It takes 10 minutes to take them apart, lubricate them and good for another 20 years.

I think the best Hi-Lift is the one on your buddy's truck. Every group needs 1, because very occasionally, nothing else will do.
 

sasaholic

Adventurer
i have a 60inch harbor freight "high lift" that i always have on my bedbar. last snow wheelin trip i blew a bead and my buddy had his real high lift out before i could get mine so we used it. it worked great to get the truck up, but wouldnt release nomatter how much stuff we sprayed on it or how hard be hit it with a hammer. we eventually used my "pos" harbor freight jack to raise my truck up enough to get his jack out. i lift the whole side of my truck up and it works just fine. i do only use it when i have to and would never use it with out having a jackstand under the rig.
 
I replaced my POS HF hi lift last fall when it failed to release and come down when I used it to level my deck at my rental house. I do keep my REAL Hi Lift under lock in key out of the weather in the bed of my truck. The prevention to corrosion on ANY tool is to keep it clean lubed and out of the weather.
 

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