The International Cessna^® 170 Association

I was cheking out the auctions on flebay website and found this cheap home made (I believe) SPRING STEEL JACK PAD listed in $32 and made me wonder if this could be a good deal?, since the same jack pads (or at least they look alike) on aircraftspruce are listed at $69.25.

So I would like to know if any one else have think buying one of those $32 jack pads or have bought it in the past and if they really worked for you?

Really appreciate any comments about this matter.

Thanks

Juasiel

One nice part of ebay is there is a picture. And depending on your talents and/or resources you might be able to make one on you own copying what you see. That is what I did. Yes they come in handy.

What works just as well and maybe better in some aspects is tightly clamping a 2x4 piece of lumber on the top and bottom of the gear leg with two large C clamps.

The lumber can be scrap but you might have to buy the C clamps in which case you might pay as much as the jack pad for the C clamps.

The thing is the jack pad is just that and nothing more, a jack pad. The C clamps can be used for other projects when not holding up your aircraft.

I'm sorry I can't answer how well those specific jack pads work.

I purchases one this spring and seems to work fine. On one side it fit perfect but on the left side, it wanted to twist. Not sure why but is still worked out ok. And it mounted high enough for the clearance I needed to remove the skis which was a great plus - although the 2x4 trick with c-clamps would have worked as well.

My 2 cents worth anyway.

Paul

N9149A wrote:What works just as well and maybe better in some aspects is tightly clamping a 2x4 piece of lumber on the top and bottom of the gear leg with two large C clamps.

I use two bolts and large-area washers on a hole spacing an inch or two wider than the gear leg to clamp the 2x4's in place.

Miles

C-clamps sell for about $4-$5 each.





Safety tip: Don't jack an airplane outside a hangar. Even a small breeze may move your airplane off the jacks. (The tail has a long arm and even a small force can drop your plane.) Don't jack your airplane except on a firm surface. NO DIRT FLOORS! At the very least, have your jack placed on a large piece of thick plywood, if it's not on a concrete surface. Even asphalt can soften and let the jack sink.
Before jacking an airplane one wheel at a time, make certain the other wheels are chocked against movement. Also before actual jacking, walk around the airplane to determine there is nothing above or below your aircraft that will be contacted such as another airplane's wing. (Raising one wing will lower the opposite. And a jack that fails will drop your airplane. Don't jack your airplane if any portion of someone else's is above or below any portion of yours.)
Finally, do not trust a jack to hold an airplane up. Place one or more large blocks of wood (not concrete blocks which can shatter) beneath your axle while the wheel is removed, and let the axle down onto the wood such that the airplane is simultaneously supported by both jack and wood. That way the airplane is stabilized, and...if the jack should fail, the axle will not be damaged and your airplane will still be supported.

Made my own jack pad by reverse engineering a factory jack pad. Another add-on to George's statement. Don't weigh an aircraft outside if possible. Slight breezes can make large changes in weight.

I use Vice-Grips out of my tool box with light plywood padding. I never thought I needed anything else. After using them, throw them in the toolbox and you'll never wonder where you put those damn clamps.

OK, I was lazy and bought one off Ebay, it worked fine, I've used it three or four times now, no complaints. I forget how much though.

v/r,
Jud