How to set the jack stands?

[murick]

For my first wheel cleanup I got some jack stands locally without really thinking about them much, but then realized I probably should have.

The jack stands I got have the "fork" 2" 3/8 wide while my jacking rails (Steeda Full-Length jacking rails) are 2" wide. This would not be a problem if the fork did not have also a pretty wide round cut out in the center so if I place the stand so the rail is at one side of the fork, it barely touches the end of the cut out on the other.

The first question is, did I get the wrong stands (or forks)? Should I get some with narrower "claw"? Does something like that even exist? When looking at the jack stands in the shops, it seems no one is bothered by the fork dimensions, only the weight limit is specified, so I wonder if the rest is kind of standard.

The second question is about how to place the rails on the stands:
With the wider claw there are two possibilities (the visualization pics follow below):
1) Either placing the fork edge in between the pinch weld and the rail, but then basically letting all the weight rest on just on side of the fork, or
2) kind of catching both the weld and rail together, but then pushing the fork edge into the plastic trim, which covers the pinch weld from the side and is flush with it.

I chose the former as I mounted the rails as far as possible from the pinch weld, but I guess it would be possible to remount the rails a bit closer and hopefully fit both the weld and the rail into the fork. The rubber I put between the rail and the fork shows clearly that only one side of the fork was used.

Finally, even when trying to get the stands as far as possible from each other (while respecting the mount holes on Steeda rails), it looks like the rear stand is still suspiciously close to the center of the car. I guess there is still a bit of margin as the front should be heavier, nevertheless it looks like the majority of the weight rests on the rear stands. Is this normal?

EDIT: The car is lifted on the stands on one side only, the other one rests on wheels.

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[WD Pro]

Either way, I would be ‘very‘ careful with jack stands on grass …

WD

 

[Skye]

My stands have a similar appearance to yours, the ones in the photo which are the skinniest of the two.

I place mine as you described: the highest point of the mount, the edge of the "U", I place in-between the rail and the unibody structure. I then place a rag on top of the stand, before lowering the car. It works. As an additional measure, I leave the jack resting under the jacking rail. I've never encountered any movement whatsoever.

Regarding where to place the stands, I start by placing the jack under the referenced jacking point, the area with the arrow marking. I can then often place the stand closest to the front of the car, but there are times when it is to the right. Either way, it's never seemed unsettled or teetering.

The first photo highlights the stiffness of the chassis. The second, where placed during a recent wheel rotation, which looks very similar to yours.

 

[Johnny Rockit]

If I were to use a jack and stands on anything but concrete or asphalt I wouldn't put so much as a finger under the car unless the stands were resting on steel plates. Diamond plate perhaps.
Too many people get crushed to death doing stuff like that while crawling around under a setup such as this.

 

[murick]

Either way, I would be ‘very‘ careful with jack stands on grass …

I did not have a flat solid surface unfortunately, so had to go with the grass. Was sceptical at the beginning, but it turned out it worked quite well. The grass was not a problem, finding an even place where the car sit flat was. Once the body rests on the stands, their flat base pushes into the ground and makes pretty stable setup. I would not lift the full car that way, but for one half (while the other rests on wheels), this was perfectly fine.

I place mine as you described: the highest point of the mount, the edge of the "U", I place in-between the rail and the unibody structure. I then place a rag on top of the stand, before lowering the car. It works. As an additional measure, I leave the jack resting under the jacking rail.

Do you also have the Steeda rails? I believe they are deliberately shorter on the rear side to accommodate the other Steeda parts and it shows on both our setups.
For what concerns the placement, I would be fine with placing the fork edge between the pinchweld and the rail. It just looks like it would be better if the fork was a bit narrower to fully support both sides of the rail.

Could you measure your forks for comparison? Mine are basically:

 

[Nightmonkey]

Put at least a piece of a plank (thickness >1") from good wood under each stand, everything else is a gamble.
Same with the jack.

 

[murick]

If I were to use a jack and stands on anything but concrete or asphalt I wouldn't put so much as a finger under the car unless the stands were resting on steel plates. Diamond plate perhaps.
Too many people get crushed to death doing stuff like that while crawling around under a setup such as this.

I had just the one side lifted that way, the other was on wheels. I would not dare to lift the car on all four stands that way as the stands in the grass can tilt, nor do any serious work on the underbody. For the wheels though it worked surprisingly well (considering the circumstances).

 

[Skye]

Attached.

I use Steeda jacking rails. There's one long and one short, for different sides of the car.

 

[murick]

Put at least a piece of a plank (thickness >1") from good wood under each stand, everything else is a gamble.
Same with the jack.

I believe this would have to be a pretty big plank, to be sturdy enough to not chip or split under the weight, and to actually not increase the risk of the tilt, if the terrain under it was not perfectly flat.

 

[murick]

I use Steeda jacking rails. There's one long and one short, for different sides of the car.

Great, thanks . It looks like yours is even wider than mine (yours looks to be ~90 mm edge to edge, mine is 83 mm). Funny I did all quotes in inches since I thought no one would have an idea what is 83 mm .

 

[JOKER M1]

I’ve been using these, If you can get them they work great. I just center the jack under the rail best I can. Also the jacking rails are not horizontal to the ground (at least the BMR rails aren’t) so nothing will be perfect but once the weight of the car is lowered on the stands it’s not going anywhere

My jack stand plastic caps do touch/rest on the pinch weld and pushes the plastic up slightly. I am aware of this and do make sure I’m not damaging anything. I also always put my stands within an inch of the furthest ends of the rails, never considered putting them anywhere else

 

[murick]

I’ve been using these, If you can get them they work great. I just center the jack under the rail best I can. Also the jacking rails are not horizontal to the ground (at least the BMR rails aren’t) so nothing will be perfect but once the weight of the car is lowered on the stands it’s not going anywhere

My jack stand plastic caps do touch/rest on the pinch weld and pushes the plastic up slightly. I am aware of this and do make sure I’m not damaging anything. I also always put my stands within an inch of the furthest ends of the rails, never considered putting them anywhere else

I like that the edge of your fork is much thinner, so probably no problem fitting it in between the pinch weld and the rail. And you are right about the rail being rotated a bit (the Steeda rails are too, and it is because the underbody counterpart is slightly tilted), so a perfectly flat fork might not be an optimal solution either.

 

[Traffic22]

@JOKER M1 sorry for stealing your photo, but it was perfect for asking the question I’m about to ask……

Why isn’t anyone using the lower brace at the front of the car? I thought this was a prescribed jacking point from Ford?

This would resolve the issue listed by the OP, both in terms of the width of his jack stands, and the concern regarding weight balance.

If I’m wrong, please say so, cause the one time I put the front of my car up, I used the Steeda rails to lift the car, and placed the stands under that brace.

 

[WD Pro]

@JOKER M1 sorry for stealing your photo, but it was perfect for asking the question I’m about to ask……

Why isn’t anyone using the lower brace at the front of the car? I thought this was a prescribed jacking point from Ford?

This would resolve the issue listed by the OP, both in terms of the width of his jack stands, and the concern regarding weight balance.

If I’m wrong, please say so, cause the one time I put the front of my car up, I used the Steeda rails to lift the car, and placed the stands under that brace.

If I am doing a single corner, that is exactly where I lift

Under the two rear bolt heads at the front.

Under the rear lower control arm at the rear.

Even on a four post, that's where I have put the front arms :

WD

 

[murick]

Why isn’t anyone using the lower brace at the front of the car? I thought this was a prescribed jacking point from Ford?

In my situation, I had only the scissor jack to lift (the side of) the car and it was easier (and safer!) to adjust the stands for the rails.

When lifting the car on the scissor lift, I was using the place with bolts in the front and the pinch weld in the rear. Following pics shows the front and the rear - passenger side and also how the Steeda rails are shorter in both directions.

I do not have similar pics with the jack stands, but my original idea was to fit the fork edge of the stand into the space between the rail and the pinch weld.

This would resolve the issue listed by the OP, both in terms of the width of his jack stands, and the concern regarding weight balance.

My concern was about the rear jack being close to the center.

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