Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

[GA_Boater]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Then I'm an idiot. Do you have any stories of properly used jack stands that failed and killed or injured someone? In my original post, I said a hard, stable surface. Dirt or ground is not hard or stable.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Guess I am an idiot as well.

Funny that the person who says jack stands fail recommends cinder blocks! :facepalm:

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Only an idiot uses just jack stands.........they fail.. you dead.. blocks from the ground up too ALWAYS!,, the ground tends not to cave in...............

Every professional mechanic on the planet will tell you jack stands, if properly used, are completely safe! You should never have a single point of failure, ever, and jack stands generally don't fail. Been using them many, many years, and never once has one failed. Blocks on the other hand, you can never absolutely guarantee they won't fail. Cracked wood, or as people in this thread have shown, using cinderblocks for load bearing. (absolute worst idea ever!!)

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

+1 ^^^ but don't forget to completely loosen (but don't unscrew) the lugs on the rims before jacking it up and adding a little wd40 presoak on everything you have to remove goes a long way to making life easier.

Or buy an impact wrench! They don't care if the tire is on the ground or not, makes zero difference...

Also, wd40 doesn't do much, if anything. PBBlaster is one of the best products for stuck bolts. I've heard Deep Creep is just as good, haven't personally tried it though.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Only an idiot uses just jack stands.........they fail.. you dead.. blocks from the ground up too ALWAYS!,, the ground tends not to cave in...............

This is NOT iboats type of a post.
Insults are not welcome here..... Especially when you are wrong.

Every service manual that mentions jacking a vehicle up states to securely support it on jack stands before working under it.

There are lots of things in this world that we depend on which if they fail can kill us.... Brakes, seatbelts, elevators, airplanes, tires, etc. when quality jack stands are used correctly they are as safe as anything and safer than most other options.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

I rebuilt my trailer this past spring. New springs, hardware etc. Used a 3.5 ton floor jack and stacks of 6" x 6".Lived to tell the story.

 

[limitout]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

all this back and forth is silly since we all "should" know to never allow only one point of failure so wether you use blocks of wood or cinder blocks you still should have jack stands under it in case of movement or block failure.

the weight of the boat and trailer have a lot to do with material preference we like to use and those with big heavy boats should never use cinder blocks since that much weight increases the likely hood and risk of the cracked or broken block failure. lightweight boats there isn't enough weight to break cinder blocks even if used wrong but they are never a good choice IMO for any sized load because they are brittle and I just don't trust them.

part of the reason I am a firm believer in keeping the trailer hitched to the truck is because you only have to support the back of the trailer and not the front plus if you have to put any effort into breaking a bolt loose or beating out a stuck spring bolt the trailer WILL move around on you and if its hooked to the truck you are going to be a lot less likely to move that trailer as opposed to the 4 block method where the trailer can still shift and I have seen them twist off of all 4 blocks and drop if some idiot decides to use the wrong leverage.

we all agree (I think) that anyone with common sense shouldn't have any trouble using any of the methods described in this thread but whatever you use to hold it up with you should make sure it cant shift and have a backup system to support it if your primary support fails or slips

 

[Starcraft5834]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Kevin,, you familiar with 1st amendment? my opinion stands

 

[phillyg]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Attach the trailer to the tow vehicle, use the hydraulic jack to lift up one side at a time and use a combination of quality jack stands or 4x4 cribbing. Also, leave the jack under the side you're working on. Nothing short of an earthquake should affect you.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Kevin,, you familiar with 1st amendment? my opinion stands

Yes I am familiar with the 1st amendment.... it applies to behavior in PUBLIC ... the IBOATS forum is not public but rather private and the house rules trump the 1st amendment.....

Rule 1:1. This is a family site. The use of foul or insulting language or the posting of any material not judged suitable by the Moderator Team is forbidden. Disagreements on any topic must be conducted in a polite manner using courteous language.

 

[MRS]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

I am a idiot also

 

[limitout]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

I would definitely add something under the two front side hulls to support them not being able to tilt, just relying on the two in the back is risky if a kid comes along and grabs onto the hull. it could come down or shift causing the rear supports to lose their secure position.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Not needed .... The center of balance is nearly centered between the 3 points of contact

 

[limitout]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Not needed .... The center of balance is nearly centered between the 3 points of contact

well ok, but it looks "tippy" if a kid was to hang from the front corner as kids like to do

depth perception in photos being what it is, I guess the front support is more forward then it looks in the picture

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Here's how I did mine for a complete bunk replacement. When I do my axles, I'll use wood blocks at 4 points under the trailer.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Wow Rick! Nice workshop!

I like the girder setup for pulling engines.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Wow Rick! Nice workshop!

I like the girder setup for pulling engines.

AND lifting boats!!

 

[Starcraft5834]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Nice shop.. impressive

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Replacing Axle. Lifting Boat/Trailer up to work on it Safely....

Last time I changed the axle on my trailer, I used jack stands and a hydraulic floor jack. I blew out a bearing running down a farm road.

Fortunately, the house I broke down in front of had an air compressor. I came back a few days later with a new axle with spindles and all new hardware.

It was a 30 minute job to replace the axle with air tools. And I didn't even have to get under the trailer to do the job.