Mojack MJ-48: an essential tool for the home mechanic
Written: Jun 23 '09 (Updated Sep 11 '09)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Provides ample clearance for working, easy to operate
Cons: Poor assembly instructions, requires about 3'x4' for storage
The Bottom Line: If you do your own lawn tractor repair, you need this jack. It will give you great access to the underside of your deck and tractor.
|
|
|
| harpitect's Full Review: Mojack Lawn Mower Lift - For Tractor-Style Mowers,... |
Over the past two years or so I had tried to find some way to jack up the front end of my nearly 500 lb. Toro Wheel Horse lawn tractor. The need to sharpen blades, clean the underside of the deck, change belts, and clear obstructions was getting harder to do. This was due to the weight of the tractor and my increasing age. The desire to save time and money over taking the tractor to the shop for work also motivated me to find an effective way to jack up the machine.
I had tried car ramps, but the ramps themselves got in the way of the access space I needed. Next I tried a regular mechanic's car jack, the type that rolls up under the car and is raised by pumping air pressure into a cylinder. Using that method along with jack stands worked pretty well, but height was limited by the 14" reach of the jack.
One day recently I received an email from Northern Tool, with an ad for the Mojack MJ-48 tractor jack. I clicked on the ad, read the specs on the jack, and then found some reviews online, all of them positive. I figured the $249 price with free shipping was worth it if the jack proved to be as effective as the ad and reviews promised. I was right.
The Mojack has two wheel cradles for grabbing the front wheels of the tractor for jacking. Just roll the tractor onto the wheel cradles, which can be adjusted horizontally to match the width of a variety of tractors. The wheel cradles consist of 1/2"-inch steel rod, bent to form two loops that cradle the wheels. A winch with a wide nylon strap is attached to a rolling horizontal jack member that lifts the wheel cradles, in turn lifting the wheels and the whole front end of the tractor along with them. The jack member rolls vertically along a 2" tube column at the rear of the jack, which is topped by the winch. At the upper limit of the vertical rise of the jack, hinged jack stands can be raised up from the base of the device to support the wheel cradle mechanism, taking the load off the lifting strap. A heavy steel rod inserts through the vertical jack column at the rear of the jacking mechanism to provide an extra measure of safety, also taking the weight off the strap and allowing it to be loosened. Lowering is equally simple: remove the steel rod, lower the pivoting jack stands, and lower the wheel cradles with the winch. Total clearance under the wheels at the top of the wheel cradle travel is about 19", and the front of the deck is about 17" above the floor, giving ample room to get to the blades, and even more room to get to belts with the deck removed.
I can't lift the front end of my lawn tractor; I'd hurt my back trying. The mechanical advantage provided by the winch on the Mojack, however, makes raising the front end of my tractor easy. Just a few turns of the winch and the tractor is elevated at what I estimate to be a 20º-30º angle. With gravity at work, lowering is even easier.
Though the jack is advertised as being designed for lawn tractors, the instructions-for-use sheet shows how to jack up a zero-turn mower too.
A word of caution is in order, however. Don't buy this jack if you're not good with assembling things. The jack comes unassembled in a big box that weighs about 75lb. The instructions are poor, leaving the assembler to figure out for himself an assembly order, and which bolts go where. Be sure to use the provided washers too, which are not mentioned in the assembly drawing. You'll need a couple of wrenches and a ratchet set to put this device together most efficiently, though two adjustable wrenches will do the job too.
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
harpitect
|
|
Reviews written: 33
Trusted by: 0 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2010 Shopping.com, Inc.