Lifting jacks are tools that make lifting and moving heavy objects extremely convenient. So why not learn how to make a lifting jack and add this to your repertoire!
This may not sound like a DIY project you can just whip up in your backyard, but this is the ultimate guide that will make this daunting task seem rather effortless. This handy tool has many uses, including raising heavy machinery, cars, and even houses to be repaired.
Before we learn the process of making a lifting jack, we must know the mechanics behind it. It employs the very basic concept of a lever, discovered by Archimedes around 2000 years ago, just with a little twist. It is basically a force multiplier where a small amount of force is sufficient to lift heavy objects.
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Making a DIY-Wooden Lifting Jack
It is surely amazing how far two planks of wood and a few screws can go. This easy wooden lifting jack might put some electric ones at shame. Heavy-duty lifting can be done by employing the mechanical power of two slightly inclined planks just by the grace of simple physics.
Two planks should be cut, ensuring that the sum of their lengths adds up to the height you want to lift to. The longer plank should be nailed to another long piece of wood which will act as the base, ensuring that about an inch of the plank is left hanging from one end.
The smaller plank’s one end must be cut at an angle and attached in a slanted manner using a nail gun.
This rudimentary lever technique can lift incredible weights and make any repair work child’s play. However, it has its shortcomings. The hinge may come out or the wood may splinter. Regardless, it is still quite an impressive DIY.
Making a Simple Screw Lifting Jack
Hydraulic-powered jacks definitely provide great lifting power but when in a pinch, a simple screw lift might just do the job! The screw jack is the simplest weight-bracing device that can be easily made with materials often lying around your garage, like some rods and screws.
The supplies you will need:
- 2 3”x1” rectangular ½-inch steel plates
- An M20 threaded rod (bolt)
- Matching nuts
- A ¾-inch thick square rod
- cap plates
Start by drilling 4 holes in each corner of the steel plates. Cut the square rod and threaded rod into the desired length using an electric steel cutter. Remember, the threaded bolt should be a bit smaller than the square rod itself.
An average-sized screw lifting jack uses a 43 cm rod, and 25 cm threaded rod. Now, place a nut into the threaded rod, along with a bolt cap, ensuring that the nut and cap have a gap between them.
This might be getting a bit tedious already but hang in there! Weld one base plate onto the metal rod, and one to the bolt cap. The base plate at the bottom can be screwed into a thick metal plate to make the contraption sturdier. The last, but not the least, step is to paint a layer of red oxide paint to prevent rusting and warrant the longevity of your homemade screw lifting jack.
Now all you must do is attach the top plate below your machinery of choice and use a wrench to screw up the bolt. Voila! You have lifted your machine.
Making A DIY-Hydraulic Lifting Jack
If crafting your own screw lifting jack is beyond your level of expertise, you can opt for a simpler, however not as heavy-duty, lifting jack with just a few scraps of cardboard, two syringes, and a pipe. This hydraulic-powered scissor lifting jack will certainly amaze you with its power.
Some supplies you may need:
- Two plastic syringes
- A plastic flexible pipe
- Cardboard
- Metal wire
- Toothpicks and bamboo skewers
- Hot glue gun
First, color the water, which is going to be the primary source of power here. Secondly, cut 8 2-inch strips of cardboard with rounded edges, and make three tiny holes in them.
Now let us get a bit crafty! Insert a toothpick into one end of a strip and attach the opposite end of another cardboard to the same toothpick. Repeat this with two more cardboard strips.
Combine the two strips by inserting a toothpick into the center hole of both strips. The same should be repeated for the bottom strips to resemble a cross that can be folded. The toothpicks here act as the hinges to move our DIY lever. Replicate this with the remaining four strips.
Attach the two crisscross levers using a long bamboo skewer inside a plastic straw. The skewer should be going through the middle holes to imitate hinges.
Two long skewers should be put into either end of the contraption. You should have two makeshift scissor levers, with the straw-skewer in between. This may seem confusing but trust the process!
Glue a rectangle of cardboard below and on top of the lever. Attach the two syringes with a clear pipe in between the barrels of the syringes and secured them with glue.
Put the colored water into one syringe and secure the bottom with its plunger. The plunger of one syringe should be glued to the middle of the straw in between the levers. The final step is to glue the body of the other syringe to a cardboard base for stability.
There you go! A simple hydraulic lifting jack is made. This may not be as impressive as the others on this guide, but it surely is a handy one.
EndNote
This holistic guide will tell you how to make a lifting jack and get on with your project at hand. Whether it is an intricate metal screw lifting jack or the effortless wooden jack, you can master it all. A little bit of practice and dedication is all you need.
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