SEIZED HIGH-LIFT JACK

THERE’S not a lot that can go wrong with high-lift jacks. Knock-off imports can struggle with binding due to the standard (the spine) bending and binding on the runner. If that happens you’re generally out of luck. Short of that there’s very little to go wrong, so it makes for a simple bush repair.

In 90 per cent of situations binding in the up or down direction is a case of the two climbing pins being either clogged with contaminants from use or catching on rust. Cleaning before and after use with a fresh squirt of silicone spray will prevent this, but if it happens in the bush a squirt with degreaser is often enough to get things moving freely.

High-lift jacks can be overloaded and will fail. To prevent them from crashing down there’s a sheer pin in the handle that will fail before the climbing pins. They act as the fuse, so if that blows replace it and reconsider your loads. Using a stronger bolt will make the climbing pins the weak point, which could have deadly results.

High-lift jacks are simple. If the standard is straight, the pins cleaned and lubed, and the cross pins and springs working, it will work.