I am sorry about your loss.

I have to agree though, working with jacks and jackstands makes me a bit squirmy. I live in the rust belt, and there is nothing like when you go jacking up on a car and are just about to stop and crawl under and start hearing the sound of rust giving away as the jack is going through. Friggin scary.

I do the same thing Jig. I put a car on the lift at work and I lift it 6-8'' and I stop and rock the car to make sure it is stable. I've taken grief for that, and I always say ''yeah, and if it falls on me, you ain't gonna care because it wasn't you. I have to save my own ***.''

 

So sorry to hear of this tragedy and for your loss dlyter. Prayers towards PA...

 

That sucks to hear. I hope he didn leave any kids behind. Sorry for you an his families loss.

Lifts are a wonderful thing to work with if you do your safety checks. I learned the other day to retorque the mounting bolts every couple of weeks. I leaned up against one of the post and it moved and rocked. 4 of the nuts had worked their way loose by about 3/4". Make sure to check them, 80 ftlbs is wat we were told by the lift company that installed them.

 

Thanks everyone... I usually prefer a lift to work on also but I only have the ability to use one on the weekends if they shop isnt busy... i most likely wont completely give up wrenching but I think I will step away for a while.. Still all shook up from the whole thing

 

I have a friend with a lift like that in his Morton building that we use. He puts a socket in the safety catches and never uses the safety, when I use it I take the sockets out. I don't know why he does that, has for about 25 years now. Because it's broken you do need to stick the socket back in there to hold the safety out so you can let it down. He is 75, been a mechanic all his life and don't listen to me. In 1966 a friend of mine was missing and we didn't know where he was, he was found a few days later (in 100 + degree heat) under a car in the pasture we stored old cars. He was taking a rear end out and it fell on him, nothing but a bumper jack. Since then I am always extra careful, even if I just need to be under there for just a few seconds, take the time to insure safety.

 

indeed, safety is always good. dumb to not use the safely bars...if the hydraulic line ever broke, car is coming down with a quickness.

my lift is only about 5 years old, so nothing broken on it. I recon if the bar that operates the safety latches ever broke off (which I don't see how that would be possible without cutting it off) then I'd just weld a new one on.

 

My condolences, dlyter09.

My policy: I'm going to die, and if it's to be in an accident it's going to be because all of the proper safety devices, employed correctly, have failed. The world is out to get me, but I'm going to make it earn every bit of that win when it gets it.

Stay safe, friends and neighbors.

 

My grandfather started pushing his policy a lot more after his heart attack, and I told him "I don't even have a policy" His response: "Well you should get one"

 

Stewie, your grandfather needs to take the hint....TIME TO SLOW THE HECK DOWN!

 

"Death is natures way of telling us to slow down."

Don't know where that's from, but remember it from long ago.