Floor jack won't release under load, any ideas?

corvette8n

corvette8n

Well-known member
I have an old Larin Chinese floor jack that is at least 30 yrs old, pumps up and releases fine when not under load. When I jacked up my truck to change a tire it wouldn't release( I was unable to turn the handle). I even tried to pound the star wheel with a hammer and screwdriver, could not get it to move, I finally had to use another jack to get the load off this one, then I was able to turn the star wheel to release. Is it worth trying to fix?
 

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Corvette.....my 35 year old Bradbury jack recently started showing signs of old age. In its era it was the Rolls Royce of jacks but would cost a fortune to rebuild. I bit the bullet and bought a new one; this time a Snap-On....should see me out !
 
Did ya ever figure-out why it was so difficult to turn the little valve wheel? Have you ever considered that maybe there ain't nothin' wrong with the jack at all, and all you maybe need is to chow-down on a bowl or two of Wheaties? DD
 
corvette8n said:
I have an old Larin Chinese floor jack that is at least 30 yrs old, pumps up and releases fine when not under load. When I jacked up my truck to change a tire it wouldn't release( I was unable to turn the handle). I even tried to pound the star wheel with a hammer and screwdriver, could not get it to move, I finally had to use another jack to get the load off this one, then I was able to turn the star wheel to release. Is it worth trying to fix?
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I would clean it up , wash it down with gunk or kerosene, lube the handle and wheels ( star ) put it under pressure and see if it still happens . I've had them lock up like that when the frame was flexed on uneven surface . Turned out one wheel was seriously out of adjustment. The cleanup may have been just overdue .
 
Most jacks have a simple valve mechanism that won't be affected by the pressure of the load. It just depends on what kind of valve design it has. Older equipment of 3rd world design can be even more difficult to get parts for than older domestic designs and many of those are impossible to get parts for in this day and age. O-rings and seals can be sourced but hard parts may have to be fabricated if something similar can't be sourced.
 
Did you recently top off the fluid in the jack? I've had this happen to me if the jack was over-filled. Remove the fill plug without a load on the jack, jack it up and the excess fluid will get pushed out.


Glenn
 
The piston on a jack should be retracted all the way before filling. It would be hard to overfill one using this configuration. As soon as you start pumping the fluid to the piston, the reservoir level will decrease. Some jacks have a vent valve to prevent liquid locking in this instance.
 
I’d try to rotate the handle with it (handle) in different positions. If that didn’t work I’d replace it. They’re not that expensive. Not coming down is far better than it coming down when you don’t want it to..... Mark
 
corvette8n said:
Thanks for the info guys, I taking this jack to the recycling center as soon as it reopens.
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Save yourself a trip and put it out by the mailbox. It will "walk-off" all by itself soon enough. It'll probably walk-off even sooner if ya tape a card to it marked "FREE"! DD
 
V8COOPMAN said:
Save yourself a trip and put it out by the mailbox. It will "walk-off" all by itself soon enough. It'll probably walk-off even sooner if ya tape a card to it marked "FREE"! DD
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I've never been able to get rid of something with a "free" sign.
I learned that if you put a "for sale $10", then it will go overnight. ;>))
 
KGS said:
I've never been able to get rid of something with a "free" sign.
I learned that if you put a "for sale $10", then it will go overnight. ;>))
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Depends on just what you put that "free" sign on. I can imagine that if you put a "free" sign on a rusty, leaky water heater, it's gonna sit! Put that same sign on the back side of a good-lookin' woman that for whatever reason you're ready to recycle, and guys are likely to pass that one up too, just KNOWING that there HAS to be some underlying "free" baggage that goes along with the package. But what do I know? DD
 
I had the same jack, it finally bit the dust last summer. Went to harbor freight and got a nice steel replacement. I thought about spending more on something "better" but it seems they are all made in china. Hell, so was that old one I had.
 
chuckwp said:
I wasted a bunch of time trying to rebuild a failing Craftsman jack. I could not get the correct seals to make it work right. Saved the handle for a breaker bar and scrapped the rest.
I found this interesting.
http://ipwire.com/stories/snap-harbor-freight-settle-floor-jack-case/
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I had the same exp as you. Used the jack maybe 10 times before it took a dump and Sears would do nothing about it. I went to our local discount store and bought their 3 ton jack that I knew was a China job so that I wouldn't mind throwing it out. Sitting side by side except for the color the two jacks were identical. Last time I was in Sears..........10 yrs ago!!
 
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