dave1123

Oh, you don't know the half of it! I have a gravel driveway and I use 3/4 PT plywood under my floor jack and pieces of 2x12 under my jack stands. Over the years I've accumulated a bunch of short pieces of 4x4 and 2x4 PT that are oil soaked but still solid that I use all the time.

Right now, I'm working on designing a lift fitting for the front diff that fits on a floor jack and lifts at the point of balance. I have yet to get the time to find that "sweet spot" but when I do, I'll post drawings of how to make one with dimensions.

Jeepin'_Aint_EZ

I think that "sweet spot" you're looking for is direct to the right (passenger side) of the front diff. It seems to want to lift relatively level there.

ZacharyA7X

Well you'll all be happy to know the car crushed my leg...


I'm just kidding. The neighbor of where I was doing the work lent me his big *** jack and jack stands. The jack weighed about 100 pounds itself and the stands 25 pounds each. Needless to say,it not only made it easier,but I don't think I could've done the work without all of it. I'll be getting it aligned tomorrow.

DFlintstone

Good thing you had a spare. Make sure they give it a tad of toe-in, regardless of what the specs might say. Without a little bias, a wobble could happen.

cliffy

You don't have a location listed, is there a Harbor Freight near you? A decent Jack at a reasonable price can be found.there.

ZacharyA7X

I'm in Albuquerque,NM and I've got a Harbor Frieght. I found a nice jack there for around $90. I'd buy it now,but I literally have $22 in whole lol.

ZacharyA7X

Ok,have you ever had Midas do an alignment? I've never had one done cause my cars won't last long enough,so I don't know they're any good.

cliffy

Go in the store and get signed up for their monthly coupons, that Jack can usually be had cheaper.

NM-XJ

I'm in Abq as well - holler if you ever need anything. I might just have the tools or parts.

The Harbor Freight 3 ton floor jack can be had here in town for about $70 using coupons.

The Brake Masters on Alameda near Ellison is a good place to go for alignments. I've used their $40 alignment coupons a few times...

dave1123

I figured that part, but it's not a good idea to jack on a point. I've used a chunk of angle iron and it seems to balance there, but I'd like to make something that positions a floor jack on a least 2 points and spreads out the load. Sort of a "cradle" that locates in the same place every time. I just don't have the time to mess with it right now. When I do my oil changes, I just jack on the bottom of the diff, but that's just to get it high enough to get to the plug. The right tire is still on the ground at that point. BTW, someone has jacked on my oil pan before! Luckily, they stopped before it caved in too much.

DFlintstone

"Back in the Day", we could have our toe-in set for $10. I've done it myself since they went to "4 wheel bend-over mode". Camber is not adjustable. Castor, Idk, if it's modified maybe shims could be moved. Castor DOES matter. Toe -in is just that, a little towed in to keep things from setting up a wobble. I've seen Zero tow in specs, and a zillion posts on "death wobble". Idk. Mine have at least 1/8 inch in, at the tread...


Being that your castor likely is fine, CASTOR IS THE ANGLE FRONT BACK THAT YOUR STEERING KNUCKLE PIVOTS ON, MODS MIGHT CHANGE THAT. and your camber is not adjustable, you might look at Youtube about toe-in. You DO want that right, will grind away the tires if it's not.

dave1123

Camber CAN be changed with offset ball joints, should the need ever arise and you can grab up to 2* more caster the same way. With a high lift, that might be necessary. Most books state 7*+or- 0.5* for caster. I've set toe-in with a tape measure hooked into the tread at the axle centerline height and front and rear of the tire. My 89 Chevy truck was 3/8" difference, but I think Jeeps are less than that.

XJlimitedx99

I was also going to mention this. I have their HD truck jack and a set of the bigger jack stands. I set the stands on pieces of 3/4" plywood and call it a day. Has worked well for a couple years now and I feel safe under it.

Jeepin'_Aint_EZ

Definitely not a good spot to jack from lol. I'd say something that can reach from both control arms with a jacking spot to evenly lift the front end and two jack stand spots would be pretty killer. That would essentially be your "cradle".

Pff, who has to jack their jeep up to do an oil change

dave1123

A guy with a 54" waistline? Stock 2000 WJ. Don't judge me.