DIY Wooden Stands to safely work under my Slingshot

Back in 2019, I posted here - Raising the SS, Post # 63, about making wooden ramps and wood blocks to place under my Slingshot's wheels so I can work safely under my Slingshot. That post included plans for the ramps and the blocks. Surprisingly, I ended up never using the ramps and have just used the blocks.

Here is an update with a new how-to and pics of my latest effort.

Not having won the lottery, I still lack the funds and space to buy a 2-post lift, nor can I afford the next best option of a Quick Jack, but I still wanted to be able to work under my Slingshot while it was supported in a stable position. I recently had my Slingshot on the Wheel Blocks to change the transmission and angle drive lubes and thought I would also try to remove & treat some rust from bottoming out on traffic bumps on the frame, but I discovered that while I could move around underneath the Slingshot while it was on the Wheel Blocks, I didn't have enough room to safely use and control my drill with a rotary brush.

After thinking a bit, I decided to add some Riser Blocks that would sit on the Wheel Blocks to gain some extra working clearance. I use my Harbor Freight floor jack that has a lifting range of around 19.5" to get the Slingshot up on the Wheel Blocks, but would need to lift the Slingshot even higher to place the Riser Blocks on top of the Wheel Blocks. I realized I didn't want to use my floor jack on top of a platform since the motion of a floor jack's lifting arm is not vertical, but lifts along an arc with the floor jack sometimes shifting during the lift, so I considered using a bottle jack or scissor jack since both lift vertically. Bottle jacks can take multiple pumps to achieve any lift height or an air/hydraulic bottle jack can use a compressor to operate the bottle jack. I remembered seeing a YouTube video that recommended using a socket adapter in a power drill and a socket with universal joint fit to the to the turning nub of the scissor jack to operate the jack. Since I already had a couple of 15" lift scissor jacks from Northern Tool, I decided to try using the scissor jack on a 2x4 platform. I found I could raise the scissor jack to its maximum lifting height in around 20 seconds using my old cordless drill, but given how hot it got after placing the Slingshot on the Riser/Wheel Block combos, I think a heavier duty corded drill would perform better in the long run. This combination of Wheel & Riser Blocks give me around 27" working clearance under my Slingshot. I hope I don't find out I need to reduce the height of the Riser Blocks to keep from having to lift my arms too high when working under my Slingshot!

I have attached a PDF that lays out how I made the Wheel Blocks, Riser Blocks and the Jack Block. There are some variables that can affect how many 2x4s will be needed and I attempted to explain them in the PDF How-To. Feel free to post any questions that might arise and offer constructive criticisms about the process, materials I used, etc.

WheelBlocks+Risers.pdf

Unfortunately, when I took a pic of the Slingshot on the Riser/Wheel Block combos, I only a got a pic of the front end. Here's the same pic I used in the PDF.. 27" clearance between he concrete and the bottom of the Slingshot.

Update - In the PDF in my original post, I mentioned that of the two Northern Tool scissor jacks I had, one would accept a 7/8" socket on the turning nub and the other one needed a larger socket. I forgot to mention that the actual turning nub is not sized for a specific socket. I am considering replacing the scissor jack with one that uses a hex head designed to accept a hex head socket to make a better fit with a drill-driven socket that is much less likely to slip during operation. Using a socket on a scissor jack that is not a perfect fit may eventually allow the socket to slip enough to either deform the turning nub or damage the socket if the socket doesn't form a perfect fit. If you have a scissor jack that you want to use that doesn't have a hex head for a socket, several places sell bolt-on adapters that use a bolt thru the hole normally used by the scissor jack handle to secure a 1/2" socket adapter to the turning shaft. I found this ATD 2-Ton Scissor Jack on Amazon that accepts a 3/4" socket and appears to have a sturdy screw shaft and relatively broad base, too - https://smile.amazon.com/ATD-T…issor-Jack/dp/B00A7EOREO/. Here's a link to an example of a bolt-on 1/2" socket adapter - Scissor Jack Adaptor 1/2'' for Use with 1/2 Inch Drive or Impact Wrench Tools US | eBay.

I don't anticipate putting the Slingshot back up on the Riser/Wheel Blocks until cooler weather when I want to address the little frame rail rust I have, but if I do it sooner, I'll try to get some pics posted showing the entire Slingshot from the side. I ordered a bolt-on 1/2" socket adapter similar to what I referenced above from Amazon and it should get here Friday, so I may need to test it out.

Quick Update - Received the Scissor Jack Socket Adapter from Amazon (Amazon.com: Dr.Roc Scissor Jack Adapter for 1/2 Inch Drive Impact Wrench or 13/16 Inch Lug Wrench or Power Drills, Scissor Jack Drill Adapter for Impact Drills Socket Automotive Jack RV Trailer Leveling Jack: Automotive) and installed and tested it on the scissor jack. See pics -

As labeled, a 1/2" socket wrench stud can fit in the center or a 13/16" lug wrench or socket can be fit over the hex end.

Socket Adapter installed on Scissor jack.
SocketAdapterVideo.gifIt takes about 20 seconds to lower the Scissor Jack using the socket adapter and my Ryobi cordless drill.

Hopefully I'll post pics of the Slingshot on the Riser/Wheel Block this weekend.

I put the Slingshot up on the Wheel & Riser Blocks last night, but haven't taken any pics yet. I have around 27" of space between the frame and ground and did try sliding under the Slingshot to assess what it would feel like. I thought I might want to remove a layer or two from the Riser Blocks, but I feel I was able to comfortably reach the frame for work when on my creeper with adjustable headrest. It's been raining this afternoon and I haven't had a chance for pics, but still plan on posting some showing me reaching up to the frame from my creeper.

I have decided to remove at least one layer from my Jack Block to provide a little more room for maneuvering the Jack Block since it barely fits now. I also noticed a problem with my Northern Tool scissor jack in that the threaded rod that drives the lifting motion appears to have developed a damaged spot on the threads that causes some problem getting the drill to turn the rod past that point. The problem isn't really apparent when lowering the vehicle, but when under load during a lift, it sticks enough to cause the drill to want to rotate out of my hand. I tried putting some grease before and after the threaded fitting that lifts/lowers as the rod rotates inside the fitting and operated it up/down a couple times to try and spread the grease around and feel it made some difference, but can still occasionally hang when lifting at the damaged thread spot.Once it does pass that point, it operates smoothly and lift the Slingshot w/o problem, taking around 25 seconds to lift the Slingshot. As a result of the damaged thread, I'm considering trying a scissor jack with a heavier threaded rod which should provide more working strength (I hope). The ATD Tools 2-Ton Scissor jack I referenced in an earlier post is my current favorite, since it appears to have a 1/2" or threaded rod compared to the smaller rod on my Northern Tool scissor jack, but it only lifts from 5-13", so I'm not sure how I might need to modify the Jack Block height to work with that jack.

Here's a pic of me on a creeper holding one of my cordless drills with rotary brush held up against the frame. Everything felt comfortable, but I probably won't know for sure about the working height until I spend an extended period underneath my Slingshot trying to clean the frame.

I know I should be wearing eye protection, but I was mainly trying to check working height and clearance under the Slingshot.

CAUTION - Yesterday, while taking my Slingshot off the Riser/Wheel Block combos, I noticed a weakness regarding my scissor jack. I had removed the Left Front Riser Block and then went to remove the rear Riser Block. I had noticed that my scissor jack had some left-right play to it and this can allow a potentially UNSAFE situation to develop. While lifting the rear to remove the Riser Block, the scissor jack started leaning away from vertical, potentially allowing the scissor jack to possibly pull away from where I had it screwed into the wooden jack stand. When I noticed this, I had just removed the Riser Block, so I carefully raised the scissor jack and repositioned the rear wheel on the Riser Block. I believe this condition could cause problems under a combination of 2 circumstances. First, the rivets holding the lower arms of the scissor jack to the base-plate allowed the lower arms to rock back and forth, allowing the scissor jack to start leaning during the lift. Second, I probably should have removed each front Riser Block, one after the other before attempting the rear Riser Block or I should have removed the rear Riser Block before removing either of the front Riser Blocks. Given the heights of the Riser Blocks with each adding 6" or so of height, by removing one of the front Riser Blocks first, the Slingshot was left with a marked lean to the side with the front Riser Block removed. This marked lean in turn meant that the minor instability allowed by the scissor jack was directed towards the lower side of the Slingshot and encouraging the scissor jack to lean towards the lower side. By removing one front Riser Block and then the other front Riser Block, the scissor jack will not be as tempted to want to tilt if it has any loose fit in the how the scissor jack is assembled. Removing the rear Riser Block first will also lessen the chances of the scissor jack wanting to lean.

Use of a hydraulic jack will also minimize any tendency to want to lean since the bottle jack's lifting motion should be entirely vertical w/o any tendency to possibly rock from side-to-side. Personally, I still like the idea of using a scissor jack since it can be raised and lowered more easily at lower cost using a socket adapter and a drill to operate the scissor jack, BUT make sure the scissor jack used has as little side-to-side slop as possible to reduce the chance of any leaning. An air/hydraulic jack allows easier operation, but at considerably higher cost than a scissor jack. I'll try to post a short video showing the slop in the scissor jack that can present a problem.

Here's some animated GIFs that hopefully show what I was describing -

As can be seen, the small loose fit when the scissor jack is lowered becomes much more pronounced when the jack is lifted.

This means the user always needs to ensure the scissor jack has as little slop as possible in terms of any looseness between the joints of the jack, especially at the base and top plate, that might allow the jack to rock back and forth when the jack is extended during a lifting operation. Always monitor the scissor jack for any leaning during operation. If leaning is noted, replace the jack with one that has a tighter assembly

I use an HF floor jack to lift the Slingshot to put the wheeIs on each Wheel Block, but it has a max lift of around 19.5" and doesn't lift high enough to emplace the Riser Blocks. I originally bought an HF Air/Hydraulic 20-ton bottle jack, but returned it after I realized I had 2 scissor jacks from Northern Tool. TBH, my only complaint about using a bottle jack was that all of the bottle jacks I checked used the same size pump mechanism and would require a lot of pumps to get the heavier duty/higher-lift bottle jacks to rise up to their max lift height. The Air/Hydraulic units are supposed to be much faster since the air compressor does the work, but they're still expensive. If I decide to switch to a bottle jack, I'll pay the extra for an Air/Hydraulic bottle jack. The HF 12-ton unit sells for $80 while the 20-ton unit retails for $120. The one I returned was the 20-ton unit I paid around $96 after my 20% coupon.

I recently bought a new Daytona floor jack from Harbor Freight that offers a lifting capability of around 24.5" in hopes of being able to stack both wheel blocks in one lifting process under each wheel. HF occasionally offers a discount on the Daytona brand and I was able to get $20 off the normal $200 price. Unfortunately, the one time I tried using the new floor jack, the hard rubber (plastic?) pad on the jack's lifting arm had a tendency to move off the center of the Slingshot frame rail as I lifted higher and I didn't feel safe lifting high enough to stack both wheel blocks under the passenger front wheel. I had the jack positioned off the slide of the Slingshot behind the passenger front wheel which means the lifting arm moves in an arc and wanted to pull the lifting point to the side which I assume caused the lift pad to want to slide out from under it's original position under the frame rail. I still want to try again using the floor jack positioned under the frame rail from the front so the lift point hopefully stays in the same spot under the frame rail during the lift. Normally, the floor jack will slide on its wheels as the arm lifts and keep the lift point under the same spot on the frame and I haven't yet figured out exactly what happened when I encountered the lift pad not staying where it had been positioned.

If I can't get the floor jack to work as expected, then I guess I'll end up buying a 2-stage Air/Hydraulic bottle jack that uses a second tube inside the outer tube to reach a higher lifting and operates only in a vertical lift that doesn't use any complicated lifting arcs that can contribute to problems during the lift.

Quote from DJohnson

BKL Please be very careful till you get that thing blocked then make sure it is blocked real good. I lost a friend to a jack accident years ago and now it still scares be when it is on good jack stands. What kind of blocks are you using?

I only have use the floor jack long enough to place the wooden wheel blocks under each wheel and never rely on a jack when working underneath a vehicle. The wooden wheel blocks are roughly 12" x12" on the ground. Once on the blocks, the Slingshot is very stable as long as the blocks are properly centered under each wheel. I attached a pic showing the original wheel blocks I made along with the second set of blocks that provide more clearance, if needed. The shorter block provides enough room to slide under the Slingshot on a creeper, but doesn't leave any room above my chest to maneuver any tools above em. The second set of blocks increases the clearance to around 27" once the wheels are placed on top of the blocks.