Looking for 411 on rebuilding hydraulic jacks.

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Does anybody have a good word to pass along? I am interested to know, basically, what does it take to rebuild various sorts of hydraulic jacks. I hate to keep piling up chicom models like so much cord wood. We have a few bottle jacks that leak and don't really put out anymore, plus a whole herd of floor jacks that have bled to death and essentially they are all Chinese made. I could start calling around to find a service if that's a better solution, but maybe that is not necessary... Perhaps I better just shop for better jacks. I could ask my Snap~On dealer and see what sort of chuckle I get out of him!   "Here's what you want!"  $$$$ (Yes, I am searching google as I post this.)Thanks for any help you can share.Better question, who made a good reliable jack? ....hmmm.... I found this site; http://www.hyjacks.com/ Oh wow, they're local!  I still welcome ideas!  Attached ImagesLast edited by tanglediver; 02-09-2012 at 12:35 AM.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:the few i have done just required new o rings. good luck trying to find a good jack anymore. all the old quality names are chi-com now.Last edited by jbmprods; 02-09-2012 at 12:42 AM.225NT bobcatAEAD200LEScott 125mm175, mm252 w 30A, PT225mm211, TA 181iHyper Therm 380, cut master 529100X & XX, Digital Elite6 Victor setssmith little torch, meco midget kalamazoo band sawsteel max saw evoulution circular saw
Reply:hein-warner still makes SOME jacks here in the USA.theres a shop near mine that specializes in hyd jack repair.   Don't know if they will mess with any of the Chinese junk though.Vantage 500's LN-25's, VI-400's, cobramatics, Miller migs, synch 350 LX, Powcon inverters, XMT's, 250 Ton Acurrpress 12' brake, 1/4" 10' Atlantic shear,Koikie plasma table W/ esab plasmas. marvel & hyd-mech saws, pirrana & metal muncher punches.
Reply:its tough to be competitive repairing equipment when a  3 ton flour jack from costco goes for 100.00Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Reply:One I worked on recently just needed to be cleaned out. It had metal particles in it, obviously was not cleaned out properly in the Chinese manufacturing process. I cleaned it, put fresh Hydraulic jack oil in it and it works nicely now.
Reply:I agree with the cleaning comment. Sometimes, the wrong fluid might have been put in and ruined the rubber seals or "O" rings, or rust build-up can score moving parts but dirt is frequently the only problem.  Anyway, if the jacks you have are no good now, what can be lost by pulling them apart and trying to fix them? I was looking for a 7/16" "U" cup for a Rugar portable jack (to seal the outside opening of a valve port) but would have had to buy a few hundred of them, so I made a lead seal and a new tapered plug instead; worked fine.  I have one old vertical jack that uses leather seals; the piston rod is the foot, and the pump lever sits atop the cylinder. Someday I'd like to retrofit its leather seals with modern ones, if I can find any with a small enough OD and a large enough ID. McMaster-Carr lists some hydraulic cylinder seals and more are available from Seal manufacturers/distributors. Go to it and have fun!
Reply:Rumor had it that there used to be a repair guy that came by the shop and picked them up. He has not been here since I started though. We use 5 ton floor jacks mainly and have some 10 ton models also. It seems a shame to throw away $800.00 a pop when they blow a gasket. I think if it were mine, I would shop for a better jack. There seem to be a few better built pieces if you dig deep enough. Ah, here we go... just what the doctor ordered.  [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64fUiH8W_Gc[/ame]City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:got 2 $400 napa 3.5 tons that are shot.  Looked like good stout pieces...lasted maybe 2 years.  Took them to a guy that specializes in jack repair...said they where chino...couldnt do anything to them.  what a joke.  Any good jacks out there?
Reply:Rebuilding jacks is about the easiest thing you have ever done.  I've got a local supplier who carries every seal ever made.  The Seal Connection in San Leandro, CA.  That covers everything in the normal pressure range.  I've bought seals through the manufacturer for our 10000psi range jacks.  The jack may cost $700+ for a 50 ton jack but the seal kit to rebuild one is usually around 25.  The 10,000 to 40,000 psi range gets more complicated due to special fittings.
Reply:Thanks GMC...going to call him today...fingers crossed, I've got 3 of these damn napa POS jacks... Originally Posted by 76GMC1500Rebuilding jacks is about the easiest thing you have ever done.  I've got a local supplier who carries every seal ever made.  The Seal Connection in San Leandro, CA.  That covers everything in the normal pressure range.  I've bought seals through the manufacturer for our 10000psi range jacks.  The jack may cost $700+ for a 50 ton jack but the seal kit to rebuild one is usually around 25.  The 10,000 to 40,000 psi range gets more complicated due to special fittings.
Reply:the phone number for the seal connection is 510-352-7325   They have come up with some REALLY REALLY funky obscure seals for me.   usually in less than a days time.Vantage 500's LN-25's, VI-400's, cobramatics, Miller migs, synch 350 LX, Powcon inverters, XMT's, 250 Ton Acurrpress 12' brake, 1/4" 10' Atlantic shear,Koikie plasma table W/ esab plasmas. marvel & hyd-mech saws, pirrana & metal muncher punches.
Reply:Contact Steve (info from Garage Journal)http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/member.php?u=34969His tutorial thread on rebuilding import jacks (with info and 'fixing' and so on)http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=51105  The best laid schemes ... Gang oft agley ...
Reply:Thanks for all the responses. Moonrise, that thread is about as thorough as I could have asked for. I really appreciate it. As soon as extra time starts growing on trees, I can tear into this growing herd of defunct floor jacks! I think I could start with my new cheap bottle jack which bled to death before ever being used. City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:I had a lift table jack (USA) and took it to a local Hydraulic repair shop.the shop wanted $50.00 just to look at it plus parts. I can buy a brand new one for $30.00 from Harbor Freight.Unless you have a Expensive jack it is not worth having them fixed excep for something simple like seals.
Reply:Most of the jacks that I have torn into had to have just 1 or 2 o-rings replaced where the old ones had torn.  They seem to accumulate moisture in the oil that caused pitting on the the shaft.  Polish with a little emmery cloth to ease the edges of the pitting and you can get several years out of a $5.00 fix.  My brother-in-law used to do it until all the chinese ones made it into the market.  He claimed from his point of view that he could pull 3 jacks apart that were the same size and brand and have 2 different kits needed for repairs,
Reply:Originally Posted by blackpowderMost of the jacks that I have torn into had to have just 1 or 2 o-rings replaced where the old ones had torn.  They seem to accumulate moisture in the oil that caused pitting on the the shaft.  Polish with a little emmery cloth to ease the edges of the pitting and you can get several years out of a $5.00 fix.  My brother-in-law used to do it until all the chinese ones made it into the market.  He claimed from his point of view that he could pull 3 jacks apart that were the same size and brand and have 2 different kits needed for repairs,
Reply:Get an old Hein-Werner or Blackhawk and rebuild it. There are rebuild kits available. Most of those have two-speed pumps so they lift fast. It's a nice luxury over the cheap stuff.
Reply:I have a beef with NAPA.....I will never buy anything from them rip offs,,,, mostly marked up china junk with there logo on it....that goes for snap-on also....I call them SNAP-OFF...there i fell better now...
Reply:Only one thing I can add to this thread.....those that can't fathom the workings of a mechanical device must pay tribute to those that can and do.Being a fitter and turner by trade, I don't think there is anything mechanical or electrical out there that I  can't fix, unless it's welded shut and is not designed to be fixed....like my office gas lift chair....the down lock stopped working......won't hold up.......so I fixed it with a spacer bush on the column......now it's fixed permanently at one height but still works as a chair...LOL.BTW, an O ring is not O shaped when it's compressed in a cylinder, but actually square with slightly rounded corners.....if it were to be O shaped in the cylinder the oil under pressure would compress it and leak past it.A better seal would be a totally square ring with a lip.O rings are used for convenience because they attain a seal once they are compressed and become square.....there is a definite tolerance for the size of the O ring groove to make it go square......you won't hold the pressure if the ring doesn't go square.As far as I can tell, and I've heard it said on a number of occasions, the O ring is not really designed for moving seals due to the fact that the ring has a tendency to twist in it's groove when a moving piston slides within it.An O ring must make contact on four sides....the three sides of it's sealing groove and the wall of the cylinder.or piston OD, whichever design the groove is in.It only takes a scratch on a piston OD or cylinder bore for the hydro oil to leak past and polishing the scratch out doesn't work.A cylinder that has worn barrel shape needs honing out to make it round, and a new piston with larger diam is also required to get the O ring seal to compress.Under high pressure the O ring can be extruded past the gap in the piston/bore clearance if the old piston is reused.Ian.Last edited by puddytat; 03-07-2012 at 07:26 PM.