Thread: Sears sure has changed, for the worse!

Tweet

Its definitely a safety issue as you have to reach under the car to put in or take out a jack stand

Originally Posted by cffisher

I agree that they should make good on the jack.... But to say it is a safety mater I'm a little slow on getting that. I for one would not work under a car with just a jack holding it up. To me it would be more a nuisance than a safety issue. I hope you get a new jack out of it as that is what should happen

It is common practice to raise a car on a floor jack, remove a wheel, say to repair a flat without using a jack stand. I would consider a floor jack that leaks down on its own to be a safety issue, as well as a big nuisance. Sears is wrong.

Originally Posted by cffisher

I agree that they should make good on the jack.... But to say it is a safety mater I'm a little slow on getting that. I for one would not work under a car with just a jack holding it up. To me it would be more a nuisance than a safety issue. I hope you get a new jack out of it as that is what should happen

True enough to a point, but both Jerry and Roger make good points as well. Where I'm coming from is we've moved to the point where it's necessary to use the tools at hand to get the attention of whomever it is that can make the most favorable decision. There's an expectation of reasonable performance whenever we buy something. If the product dosen't live up to a reasonable expectation then one or the other party needs to accept the outcome.

My suggestion is designed to make ignoring Pops a bigger problem than the alternative, and certain phrasing is more effective at conveying that.

there only out would be if it was overloaded---

I personally have 2 Napa quick lift jacks that will pump up to the load in only a couple of strokes and then they are 3 1/2 ton units

I personally will never (never say never) put myself under a car with just a jack holding it. I used to but quite a few years ago an acquaintance of mine was in his yard working on a trailer with just a jack under the axle when the jack popped out from under. They figure he was under the trailer for about an hour before the wife came out to call him for dinner. It was too late. You would think I would have learned that lesson before that accident. I was changing a front tire on a 55 Studie one afternoon with just a bumper jack, I got the old wheel and tire off and was sitting on the ground with my legs under the car putting the spare on when the jack popped off the bumper. I had just gotten the wheel on and had taken one turn on first the lug nut when it popped off. That was one of my many lucky days. Any way, never again.

Jack.

I agree totally with not using just a jack to hold up a car, that is pure suicide. I either use ramps under the tires or jackstands, or sometimes a combination of both. The thing I did like about this jack from Sears is that it is low enough to go under the 4 inch dropped axles on our hot rods. None of the other jacks we have will. So what we do now is use the Sears to get it high enough to put one of the other jacks under there and use it or both to raise it up.

The secondary problem with this Sears jack is that it is wobbly when up high. I had my Crown Vic up on it one day and it was leaning slightly to one side. I could take the car and push it back and forth a few inches and the jack would lean from one side to the other.

Oh, there is one other problem with it. The rear wheel is actually a roller about 6 inches long. The jack will roll forward and the wheel spins ok, but when you back it under a car the roller locks up and slides. What that does is it prevents the jack from rolling back as the car goes up to keep the swivel plate firmly under the frame or axle. You have to keep watching the plate on the frame to make sure it isn't working it's way off of it.

The jack is just junk, period.

Don

Many years ago (about 30) when I had the shop out in Iowa, I walked in one day I found my hired man under a Caddy with a floor jack under the front cross member & nothing else.
He and I had a discussion and he never did that again. As far as I know he's still alive to this very day......by no fault of his own.

Bad thing is that a lot of the Snap-on tools are made in China too these days. Might as well use the Harbor Freight stuff.

Wow Don what a hassle. When I was 16 years old I got the Craftsman 100 pc tool set from my Mom, as did all my brothers at the same age. We all bought our first cars, and had to fix them ourselves. I still have that set as my main tool set, most everything still works flawless with the exception of one of my 1/4 drive wrachets and a 3/8 inch drive wratchet, but I have two of each, so, I just don't use the ones that slip.
I remember my first battery was a diehard. We all knew they lasted the longest and everybody seems to go to Sears to buy them. Then Sears got in big trouble thru their service center for over charging for repairs. It seem that since that had happened they have steadily gone down hill to where they are at today. Two power tools I have are a belt sander, which works, but not well, and an old router I used at work which was a POS. Most of my power tools are brand specific to who makes a high end reliable one(Milwakee sawsall), Makita cordless drill, Skill wormdrive circular saw, Delta table saw, etc. But I think what is truely the down fall of a good quality tool is we the consumer. I will go to HF in a minute to save a 100 bucks on a tool I rarely use, but can't get by without. Most people do. As a result, USA made stuff is outsourced to China to compete with stores like HF. I imagine even Snapon has to cheapen their product to get people to buy it. It's sad that integrity and quality no longer go with American companies like Sears.
Don I was wondering if your son bought it with a crdit card. If he did he can get a copy of the reciept from them. It still upsets me that an unsafe tool still under warrenty, and they don't have the common sense to replace or refund it to you. At the very least give you an instore credit for something of equal value. I agree with Bob(I can't believe I'm saying that) It is time to Escalate, and it is a safety issue, you know some dumb kid, with a lowrider is going to buy this same jack, crawl under his car and get crushed! It's not acceptable to make a jack that doesn't stay up when used in the proper fashion. I like the attourney general/email idea. It's time to make them squirm!

Originally Posted by Corvette64

Bad thing is that a lot of the Snap-on tools are made in China too these days. Might as well use the Harbor Freight stuff.

Snap-On made in China???? Guess I haven't seen that on any of the tools with the Snap-On name on them... Maybe some of the odd ball other stuff in the truck, but the hand tools are still made in the good old USA....

High School buddy of mine works at Snap-On [Tool Box plant]. Still going strong the last time I talked to him.

China has been buying a lot of US property, maybe the bought Wisconsin!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by Dave Severson

China has been buying a lot of US property, maybe the bought Wisconsin!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well why not they purchase Washington DC on a half off sale

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

Well why not they purchase Washington DC on a half off sale

Hmmmm. I heard they had to throw in DC and the US Senate to get them to buy Wisconsin!!!!

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

Well why not they purchase Washington DC on a half off sale

Amen