Which axle stands

Post by **Roydini** » 16 Jul 2014, 13:12

I'm looking to buy a pair of axle stands for the bus but not sure exactly what weight and height ratings to go for? Can anyone recommend a good pair? (of axle stands that is).

Post by **scottbott** » 16 Jul 2014, 20:25

I got mine from machine mart,cannot remember the weight rating but they are way stronger than needed about 40 quid a pair I think

Post by **Roydini** » 16 Jul 2014, 20:33

Thanks for that Scottbott. In particular, what height are they? Are regular car axle stands suitable for our vans?

Post by **matt brighton** » 16 Jul 2014, 20:43

Hi

I believe the machine mart ones are the same as the halfords ratchet "advance" ones - but a different colour (black as opposed to machine mart red) and about £20 .

http://www.halfords.com/motoring/garage ... xle-stands" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Treated myself to the halfords 2 tonne ones when they were on special offer @£20 and I feel much safer working under the van than with my other cheaper ones.

Locally a few months ago a kid almost lost a leg when his dads jack collapsed and the front disc pinned his leg to the ground

Lucky to keep his leg

Post by **itchyfeet** » 16 Jul 2014, 20:53

Use large blocks of wood myself

Post by **pirate-pete** » 16 Jul 2014, 21:01

I usually use a set of cheap 2T Halfords car ones from about 10years ago (1T per stand). That gets by for most things on the van as I just live in small flat and hard to store too many tools for easy access. Use these every year when adjusting/changing brakes, suspension bits etc. Lift is from 27mm to 40mm approx.

Just saying this to confirm you can get by with these but I would recommend if you can, bigger ones would be more stable and can get the van higher (if your Jack can't reach use wood blocks to get the extra lift). They would also be more stable as the camber on the road where I park makes using the smaller ones quite risky. I used to have a set of much larger ones but somehow managed to lose one of the pair over the years.

The other thing to watch out for is the base of the stands. An even smaller set I used to have before the Halfords ones had just legs of angle iron and used to sink easily into hot tarmac. The ones I use now have a small plate welded to each leg which helps prevent this.

Post by **Roydini** » 16 Jul 2014, 22:06

Thanks very much for the feedback folks! Sounds like normal axle stands and a good array of stout wooden blocks are the way to go!

Cheers

Post by **clift_d** » 16 Jul 2014, 23:22

I've got some 3 tonnes ones from Toolstation i.e. 3t per stand, which cost just over £20 for the pair. They have a ratchet action so don't rely on you putting a pin in properly.

Don't forget to get some wheel chocks to stop your van rolling forward and pulling the stands over.

One other thing that some people do is put a spare wheel under the corner of the van so that if everything goes wrong at least there's one more thing to stop the van coming down completely.

Post by **Plasticman** » 17 Jul 2014, 23:57

these are decent
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... xle-stands" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
its not just about height and load capacity but the footprint, these are a good spread and so very stable and you dont need them fully extended so very safe when riving at stuff
these are also good
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... xle-stands" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
again chuck the spare under nearby,,
also take care when using blocks of wood to gain height, its not a very clever or safe way to do it
mm

Club 80-90 Forums