Danny G Posted September 18, 2019 Share Posted September 18, 2019 That's yet another great idea. I have plenty of the plastic wrap, so can do that as well. As for luck, yes that's the way it usually happens. I'm reminded of the trip in 1969 or '70 when we took the VW van to Arkansas. Sunday morning, with a white shirt on for church, we had a flat. I wasn't very clean when the spare was on. We keep a military poncho (heavy material) in every vehicle. I have used it more as a ground cloth for roadside work then a poncho. actually they are these guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted September 18, 2019 Share Posted September 18, 2019 We keep a military poncho (heavy material) in every vehicle. I have used it more as a ground cloth for roadside work then a poncho. actually they are these guys. Good idea. But I'd expand the subject to include towing. When you get a vehicle on the trailer, as I did last Saturday, there is likely to be antifreeze, oil, or just dirt on the trailer. And laying down in that to put at least two chains on the rear and two ratchet straps on the front isn't pleasant. So I carry a roll of left-over marine carpet. Roll it out and scoot up cleanly under the vehicle. And, if you find that the vehicle is so low that the chains/boomers are going to be banging on the deck of the trailer, just cut off a strip of the carpet, roll it around the chain/boomer, and tie it with duct tape or a bungee cord. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve83 Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 On the rear I jack under the axle housings, as close to the wheel as I can get. On the front I jack on the swing arm/axle, again as close as I can get to the wheel with the jack. Granted it isn't exactly parallel with the ground, but I've never had a jack slip there. However, I always use jack stands before I get under the truck. Jacking that way doesn't require jack with a lot of lift as 1" of jacking gets you almost 1" of wheel lift. And you can use the factory jack in the same way. These are the factory-recommended jack points: https://supermotors.net/getfile/831119/thumbnail/jackpoints86fr.jpg An abbreviated version is on the core support of every '80-96 F-series/Bronco I've ever seen: https://supermotors.net/getfile/850907/thumbnail/13jack.jpg It's not apparent under the snatch block between the bottle jack & bolt cutters, but I keep a junk crosstie plate as an off-road jack base. https://supermotors.net/getfile/182678/thumbnail/bumper-junk.jpg They're easy to find loose by walking a few feet along a rural train track. Some are significantly larger & heavier than others, so don't settle for the first one you come across. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 These are the factory-recommended jack points: https://supermotors.net/getfile/831119/thumbnail/jackpoints86fr.jpg An abbreviated version is on the core support of every '80-96 F-series/Bronco I've ever seen: https://supermotors.net/getfile/850907/thumbnail/13jack.jpg It's not apparent under the snatch block between the bottle jack & bolt cutters, but I keep a junk crosstie plate as an off-road jack base. https://supermotors.net/getfile/182678/thumbnail/bumper-junk.jpg They're easy to find loose by walking a few feet along a rural train track. Some are significantly larger & heavier than others, so don't settle for the first one you come across. Much to my dismay I found the Ford under-hood jack will raise the axle enough to get a flat off, but will not let you get an inflated 235/85-R16 back on. I ended up driving up on a curb to swap the tire back then. I have since carried a chunk of 12/4x12 mahogany in the bed at all times. At 2 3/4" dressed it is tall enough to get the spare on and low enough to fit under the axle with a flat tire. The 12" square pad also makes the screw jack more stable and less prone to sinking is soft ground. If you have bigger than stock tires you may need more, but be sure to check the jacks range is more than the sidewall, or you'll be stuck for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 Much to my dismay I found the Ford under-hood jack will raise the axle enough to get a flat off, but will not let you get an inflated 235/85-R16 back on. I ended up driving up on a curb to swap the tire back then. I have since carried a chunk of 12/4x12 mahogany in the bed at all times. At 2 3/4" dressed it is tall enough to get the spare on and low enough to fit under the axle with a flat tire. The 12" square pad also makes the screw jack more stable and less prone to sinking is soft ground. If you have bigger than stock tires you may need more, but be sure to check the jacks range is more than the sidewall, or you'll be stuck for sure. That's a REALLY good tip! I haven't carried a slab of wood for that purpose, but I do have a 2x4 in that the spare tire sits on which could be used. However, I have a 6 ton bottle jack in the tool box, and hopefully its range is adequate. If not, surely with the that and the Ford jack I can get the job done. (I'm not going to mention the HighLift jack that I hope to be carrying, as most people won't have that as an option.) Anyway, I'll slip a good-size chunk of wood in the tool box. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 That's a REALLY good tip! I haven't carried a slab of wood for that purpose, but I do have a 2x4 in that the spare tire sits on which could be used. However, I have a 6 ton bottle jack in the tool box, and hopefully its range is adequate. If not, surely with the that and the Ford jack I can get the job done. (I'm not going to mention the HighLift jack that I hope to be carrying, as most people won't have that as an option.) Anyway, I'll slip a good-size chunk of wood in the tool box. Thanks. I used mahogany just because I had a bunch of thick offcuts laying around the shop. I'm sure you could screw 2 squares of pressure treated 2x12 together for similar effect. I'm not one to carry a high lift jack (though they are good for pulling fence posts) Neither will you see me rolling 20's with a light bar and shovel strapped to my hood or a snorkel on my A pillar. My truck works every day. It doesn't park on the curb at the mall or get to play off road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 I used mahogany just because I had a bunch of thick offcuts laying around the shop. I'm sure you could screw 2 squares of pressure treated 2x12 together for similar effect. I'm not one to carry a high lift jack (though they are good for pulling fence posts) Neither will you see me rolling 20's with a light bar and shovel strapped to my hood or a snorkel on my A pillar. My truck works every day. It doesn't park on the curb at the mall or get to play off road. Both Blue and Big Blue have done their share of work, if towing Chevrolets is work. (Maybe that's fun for a Ford? ) But not every day. Typically they sit and wait for another chance to shine as we have more efficient vehicles for the mundane stuff. But, hopefully Big Blue will get to do some long-distance trips next year, as well as some "off-roading", although that will be limited to going places rather than seriously testing the mettle of the vehicle and/or driver. In any event, places where the high lift jack might be useful. Light bar, not likely. However, I will say that lots of the ranchers around here, and there are a lot of ranches and ranchers, have light bars on trucks that are USED daily. But 20's with little rubber bands wrapped around them are a bent wheel or blown tire waiting to happen. No thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salans7 Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 I used mahogany just because I had a bunch of thick offcuts laying around the shop. I'm sure you could screw 2 squares of pressure treated 2x12 together for similar effect. I'm not one to carry a high lift jack (though they are good for pulling fence posts) Neither will you see me rolling 20's with a light bar and shovel strapped to my hood or a snorkel on my A pillar. My truck works every day. It doesn't park on the curb at the mall or get to play off road. I had issues with my Ranger due to the 4" suspension lift and 35's. None of my jacks would come close to touching it, and using wood blocks is sketchy for floor jacks. I found the below jack while walking around Rural King one day, and it works perfect for my Ranger. It extends out for taller trucks, so you're not wasting a significant portion of the ram just to reach your truck. Of course, I doubt this works on a fullsize that is lifted 4" or more, but for you stock height guys, it might be an option. https://www.amazon.com/Alltrade-640912-Black-All-Bottle/dp/B003ULZGFU/ref=asc_df_B003ULZGFU/?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid={creative}&hvpos={adposition}&hvnetw=o&hvrand={random}&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl={devicemodel}&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584138858682395&psc=1 As for Light Bars, I despise them. The lights on either side of my winch light up the night more than I could ever need, and that's coming from a part-time cattleman. Any rancher running a lightbar bigger than 12" is just following fads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve83 Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 That's a REALLY good tip! I haven't carried a slab of wood for that purpose, but I do have a 2x4 in that the spare tire sits on which could be used. However, I have a 6 ton bottle jack in the tool box, and hopefully its range is adequate. If not, surely with the that and the Ford jack I can get the job done. (I'm not going to mention the HighLift jack that I hope to be carrying, as most people won't have that as an option.) Anyway, I'll slip a good-size chunk of wood in the tool box. Thanks. https://supermotors.net/getfile/752012/thumbnail/jacklr.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny G Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 Both Blue and Big Blue have done their share of work, if towing Chevrolets is work. (Maybe that's fun for a Ford? ) But not every day. Typically they sit and wait for another chance to shine as we have more efficient vehicles for the mundane stuff. But, hopefully Big Blue will get to do some long-distance trips next year, as well as some "off-roading", although that will be limited to going places rather than seriously testing the mettle of the vehicle and/or driver. In any event, places where the high lift jack might be useful. Light bar, not likely. However, I will say that lots of the ranchers around here, and there are a lot of ranches and ranchers, have light bars on trucks that are USED daily. But 20's with little rubber bands wrapped around them are a bent wheel or blown tire waiting to happen. No thanks! I know more than a few guys who really like the remote control roof mounted spotlights for early morning or late night field work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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