ex-military Defender - "the Engineer's conversion". Jacking solutions.

[@naaaas]

Check out the weber ATDX3 jack. These are supplied with some g-class and seem to be one of the only quality compact telescoping jacks available.

[@marcusbell7703]

Hi mate, both the first jacks were showing symptoms of low oil level? Just a thought.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Nope, oil level was the first thing to check. I took one apart to try a repair but didn't know what I was doing so just made it worse. Since making the video I have found the best solution which should work with any beam axle 4x4. It's a 3t telescopic jack supplied with Sprinter vans. Ideal size, excellent quality and freely available on ebay.

[@janedoe6350]

I carry a wedge shaped piece of wood. The wood is the same height as the side wall of the tyre. If i have a flat, i drive the flat wheel onto the wedge. The wheel is now the same height as it would be if fully inflated. Now my jack only has to lift the axle one inch. I remove the flat tyre/wheel. Remove the wooden wedge and fit the spare. I now only need to drop the vehicle one inch and the job is done.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Clever.

[@janedoe6350]

@@defendermodsandtravels My grand father showed me years ago. I say wedge.... and i think you understood me... it's more like a mini car ramp (wedge one end and a flat on top) the height of the tyre side wall... but it will rise the vehicle to normal ride height once you drive up it even though the tyre is flat

[@Elsuntan]

Toyota spiral jack is pretty fantastic as the screw will not leak in car and is pretty compact

[@mylesmooney7505]

Absolutely agree …. Had the same issue.

[@highdownmartin]

If you’ve got a flat carry a large block of wood, drive onto that then jack up the axle from ontop of another decent square piece of timber Safer than having 12”” of ram showing I’ve got about five blocks in mine stashed around in spare corners and two wooden chocks as well. Get a skyhi jack. I’ve got about five now, brilliant jacks, all mine work and one needed a half pint of oil. Never had one fail or needed to rebuild it. The one in the 109 is a four ton 8” lift. And they have a good footprint. And I carry a sheet of 1/4” steel about 10” square for soft ground.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Interesting approach to drive onto a block of wood to the start the jacking up. I have looked online for Skyhi jacks and they seem to be incredibly rare supplied as OEM for prewar Lagondas. Is this what you mean?

[@highdownmartin]

@@defendermodsandtravels got one in the back of my Landy free when I bought it five years ago. Might have been military issue.

[@Predator27007]

Any thoughts on commercial inflatable jacks, Bill?

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Never used one though I believe they are quite effective. I think they are quite bulky and I have zero spare space in the Defender. I am still looking for the ideal telescopic jack. The 4t jack I have currently is a bit heavy and bulky and a 2t unit would be better.

[@royblackburn1163]

Just found you ,I'm binge watching to get up to date great content, my tip is to buy another matching jack one for each hand it makes lifting up an axle or a side easier. if you use them side by side with a selection of blocks you can jack up to any height if safe to do so.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

A telescopic jack with carefully selected height is the answer for me. I have had (highly experienced) viewers contacting me saying that they bought a jack but found that when they had a flat the jack wouldn't fit under the axle. Not good. The combination of a telescopic bottle jack and a high lift jack takes care of most situations - see my recent video, "Do what the locals do".

[@royblackburn1163]

@@defendermodsandtravels Actually I meant 2 telescopic.

[@midaslm8338]

1 bottle jack is sufficient for stock tires. 35inch tires mostly will need 2 bottle jack

[@Maedetto]

Thanks for the video. In regards the use of 2 bottle jacks it really depends from the vehicle. In the case of Ronny (I believe you referred to him) and my old Land Cruiser Troopcarrier, it was necessary. I have a telescopic small jack that is enough to fit under the u-bolts mounts but not enough to lift the wheel fully raised. Needless to say that I discovered this in moment of need... I then started to carry a double bottle jack setup, i wasnt happy but I didn't had other solutions at the time. I think the problem started by lifting the vehicle and increasing tyre sizes.

[@airone6697]

Thanks for this video. That's my spirit of Land Rover.

[@kneewall49]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge and skill. And thanks for the no frills, clear and explicit instructions and options. I’ve now subscribed and look forward to viewing your back list and new videos.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

You are very welcome.

[@kneewall49]

Defender mods and travels: could I ask you question. I’m purchasing a Land Rover Perentie (Australian army defender) . I’m not planning much off road touring and considering a second set of wheels and tyres for daily travel. I have a set of Wolfe rims fir this purpose and wonder what you would recommend as a comfortable (relatively) and quiet road tyre? Thank you.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

@@kneewall49 I am probably not the best person to answer this because I have only used a few tyre types myself, and all of them AT or MT tyres. You'll find a recent review on the Africa Sideways channel, "10 Best All Terrain Tyres". Although this is written in South Africa I am sure many of the tyres are available in Aus too. The best genereal purpose tyres I have used, which I will continue to use as long as they make them, are Goodyear Wrangler ATs. These are also favoured by Brett of the roamingtheoutback channel, "Goodyear Duratrac tyre review" (I don't think the Duratracs are quite identical to what we buy in the UK but they are very close). I find the Wranglers are well behaved on tarmac; I actually do most of my driving on tarmac since we usually have to drive a long way to get to off road trails but on occasions I must also handle quite demanding tracks too. I know the conventional wisdom in Aus is that one should only use BFG or Cooper tyres. Good luck with whatever you finally decide to buy.

[@rovytv4170]

I always have a block of wood on board as a base The old Mercedes jacks for the Unimogs are also very good and mechanical

[@highdownmartin]

Reskyhi Jack s, I’ve not paid more than twenty quid for any of them. One is a 4 ton double ram. Which has a hell of a reach on it. The good thing is the pump mechanism as the handle goes from horizontal to 15 degrees so there’s always room to pump. A lot of bottle jacks operate at 45 degrees. If you put your flat on a block of wood then you only need a j at ck that’ll take you up high enough to remove an inflated wheel in a carpark. You won’t need extra height.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Can you recommend the manufacturer please? I am not yet fully satisfied with my jack.

[@highdownmartin]

@@defendermodsandtravels skyhi. London made all mine are as old my 109 circa 1960. The crop up on eBay pretty often. Some at stupid money! But there was one very recently, four ton double ram and around twenty five quid. If I’m lifting one corner at 1/4 ton with a two ton or four ton jack ( working at a fraction of its capacity)that is old and works well, I’ll put faith in that over a new Chinese one. Keep looking!

[@Lightbulb42cd]

Thank you very much Bill from Suffolk, I like the video - very pragmatic, full of common sense. Good to watch, thank you for spending the time to make it. Kind regards, Andy from Essex.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Aha you are from the other side of the border. I guess I'll forgive you for that :-)

[@Lightbulb42cd]

@@defendermodsandtravels practically neighbours. I've been following your videos with interest, I'm off for a trip to the SE of Spain October, so some relevant stuff - thank you.,

[@nickboylen6873]

The 20 year old Corum Jack that came with my Range Rover Classic still works perfectly after much use, the one I bought for my 109 used at Billing has been faultless (though many on sale were faulty), and the unused one with my wife’s young 90 was perfect. I think you have been very unlucky in having two fail so prematurely unless they were stored in very damp conditions or were overstressed.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Maybe I have been unlucky with the Corum jacks. I have had three now all of which have gone wrong and I am not aware that they have been abused. In my Disco 1 I have the ex-military telescopic screw jack which works reliably but is oh so slow. I am looking out for something more efficient now. The 4t bottle jack I carry in the Defender works fine although it seeps oil if carrying a load for long periods so needs to be kept topped up.

[@nickboylen6873]

@@defendermodsandtravels, those screw jacks would be immensely strong and very reliable, hence the MoD preference for them. I saw plenty of dead hydraulic jacks in the second hand sales at various shows. They might just need a new O-ring on the depressurising screw. But there were more bad than good units in most piles or boxes. Get a good one and you’re set. But you can’t tell just by looking at them. I wonder if part of the problem is users over-tightening the screw or leaving it closed when not in use, compressing and deforming the O-ring. I have always left mine open about a turn and have never had to re-pump (or repair) a jack. Could be nothing, though.

[@cameronwood1994]

@@nickboylen6873 I've just had my second Coram bottle jack fail, this one from a P38 Range Rover that had never been used. I'm beginning to wonder if the seals inside are becoming perished with age? This one still worked, but it leaked if stored on its side, which is no good because it's designed to be stored like that. It's obviously a ticking time bomb. In any case, I've just bought a proper Genuine Land Rover NOS Series III screw jack, shaft and handle from PA Blanchard because I'm not taking any more chances with used jacks, not for my travels anyway!

[@nickboylen6873]

@@cameronwood1994, that is the most reliable option.

[@defendermodsandtravels]

@@cameronwood1994 I have now found what I consider to be the near ideal LR jack. A 3t telescopic jack made by Weber Hydraulik (I will confirm the name when I return from my travels) and supplied OE with Sprinter vans. Beautifully made and it ticks all of the boxes.

[@w2hx]

Hello! Love your channel. Do you have a model number for this 4T Omega jack? I looked on their website but could only find bottles that were either too tall to fit or too short to lift (defender 110 Tithonus). Thanks for the great content!

[@defendermodsandtravels]

Sorry for the late reply. I can't find the receipt so I don't know the model number. Try sending Omega an email telling them what you want. I have had the jack for 2-3 years now and it still works well - it lifts the vehicle (two wheels at a time) with ease.