Everyone needs a floor jack. Seriously. When our favorite cheapo floor jack in the shop went out recently, it was off to the races to find another before the stores closed. Had we checked we first — instead of just charging off to the closest stores — we would have found the Companion 2-ton floor jack from Sears.
It’s about what you’d expect from a 2-ton jack: small and no frills. It does fit the bill in the wallet department, though. A whopping $16 will get you a four thousand pound, 5.5″ lift with a swivel saddle.
Yeah, it’s not the heaviest duty or best looking jack we’ve seen. But at $16, who cares. Caution: do not stare directly into the blue for fear of retina damage. Learn from our shopping mistake: if you need an uber-cheap rig and Sears is close by (and open) take them up on it. We paid $30 for ours. Ouch!
Companion 2 ton Floor Jack [Sears]
Street Pricing [Froogle]
Via Amazon
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7 Responses to Cheap-Ass Tools: 2-Ton Floor Jack
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{ The hammer has not yet made it to their web site - but the new brake spring tool is listed for online purchase: http://www.mactools.com/shoponline/product/tabid/120/p-331257-dbst1058.aspx } – May 16, 8:00 PM
{ Too bad this only applies to Wilton vises, I have an ancient Massey Vise in the shop that was my grandfather's, reclaimed from the scrap... } – May 16, 6:29 PM
{ I grabbed one of these as soon as my tool guy showed it to me. "Kicks Ass" is not strong enough for how wonderful this... } – May 16, 6:00 PM
{ $$? } – May 16, 9:54 AM
{ would submmit idea on a gardening tool . i have not seen it anywhere } – May 16, 9:19 AM
Think about this. Do you really want to lift something that is worth as much as your car/truck with something that costs $16? This is one area where spending a few bucks can save a ton (on in this case 2 tons) of frustration.
What Abe said. Those little trolley jacks are scary. Had one fail on me when i was under a 3000 lb Corvette. Good thing I was using jackstands….
This would be ideal for a track day. Small and light and has a handle.
Just to point out, this isn’t a 5.5″ lift jack, that would suck. This is a jack that is 5.5″ tall when closed, and 14″ when the jack is fully extended.
Abe/Eschoendorff: Just as an aside, I would never consider getting under a vehicle supported by a jack alone — any jack. As you guys point out, this is good advice for anyone, regardless of the price of their jack.
That said, I’ve been through a couple of these “cheap” jacks without too much trouble. The one Sean mentioned failed in the classic way — simply refusing to lift — a failure probably due to degradation in the seals. I had another cheapie that lasted almost 17 years before finally failing in the same way.
It’s nice to have a $250 aluminum low-boy jack around the shop, but sometimes it pays to have a couple of ‘em — including one you won’t mind getting dirty or beating up a bit. That’s where these come in really handy.
A buddy of mine got one of these to use on his riding lawn mowers. Works great in that capacity.
Had one of these for about 5 years. It does exactly what a jack should do (raise a car to be set on jackstands) with no fuss. For $16, you can’t go wrong.