I found this at Harbor Freight:
Steel Floor Jack Cross Beam (harborfreight.com)
Has anyone here used one of these to jack up the rear axle on a T?
I’m interested to know if it will clear the differential housing as it seems more cost effective than buying materials to weld up a cross beam.
That one doesn’t get high enough on the ends. Harbor Freight sells one designed to fit rear axle housings. That one will work. It has a semi circle on each end with an elevated U section.
Thank you, sir!
I don’t see that one on HF’s website, so I guess it’s not in stock.
I agree with Royce, the pads on the HF one don’t go high enough, plus they don’t “cradle” the axle tubes. I made my own adapter out of some pressure treated 4x4 posts I had lying around the house and a piece of plumbing pipe in the center to fit into the hole in the jack pad, see pics.
The one Mark pictures looks like it would do the job on a T.
Thanks! I’ll give that a try—it looks good.
This entire post came at a perfect time. I was waiting for the HF cradle to go on sale. Would you mind sharing the dimensions of the cradle you made?
Thanks kindly in advance, Tom in Taylor Mill KY 41015
That looks great! Thanks for posting.
Regarding the dimensions of my wood cradle, it is 33 inches wide and the bottom of the “V” in each vertical post is 4 inches above its base.
Thanks! I’ve got a 4x4 that needs an honest job.
How did you attach the verticals?
Glue and long drywall screws. Don’t omit the short post section in the middle, it fits into the hole in the jack pad and keeps the cradle from tilting and falling off the jack.
I just noticed Mark has the same jack as the picture I posted!
Will do! It’s got to be easier on the axle than jacking up one side at a time
“Red Green” , thanks again for sharing the cradle dimensions as well as the way to attach the vertical pieces. The Fix comes through once again!
Tom in Taylor Mill KY 41015
I put together one, I used PC-6 epoxy instead of glue because that’s what I had on hand, and it worked beautifully!
What is it they say about imitation being the sincerest form of flattery? Here’s my near exact copy except I cut the vertical pieces a couple of inches longer. Plus I had some leftover polyurethane stain I brushed on. It’s almost too pretty to use. Only almost. The one pic is of a test run before permanently attaching the uprights and the other is of Crossbeam Beautiful.
Thanks again Mark and Ford Fix. Tom in Taylor Mill KY 41015
That’s a pretty slick job!
My '24 has been on jack stands for nearly a year! It occured to me hat I’d like a little more room for tracking the oil leak in the old gal’s nether regions so I brought out the rear axle cradle I’d put together with PC-6 Epoxy last year as described above. As I was finessing it into position on the floor jack, it fell before I could engage the pipe into the jack’s mounting pad—only a couple of inches—and one of the uprights got knocked off!
Lesson learned: Don’t use PC-6 epoxy for this job.
The other upright held on with a bit more vigor and splintered the cross beam when I knocked it off.
My plan is to make the repair by cleaning up the uprights, cutting 4" (or is it 3-1/2"?) off either end of the cross beam where the uprights have been epoxied and putting it back together with
Titebond and 5-1/2" lag screws.
I’ll report how it turns out.