Old Hein Werner Floor Jack Repair

[terry_g]

I have an old Hein Werner 4 ton floor jack at work. It probably dates to the early sixties. I don't use
it a lot but it sure comes in handy on occasion.
The other day I had a bucket truck up on it's outriggers and when I tried to retract the outriggers
they would not move. So I slid the floor jack under the front axle and took some of the weight off the
front outriggers. When I pulled the outrigger lever the truck jerked as the outrigger lost it's grip on the concrete.
I knew right away that I put more than 4 tons on the jack. When I tried to lower the jack I could not turn
the knob to open the valve. I had to get bottle jack and lift the weight off the floor jack.
With the weight off I could open the valve but the jack would not go down.

Upon further inspection I discovered I had bent the rod that comes out of the hydraulic cylinder.
The rod below after straightening in the press so I could get it out.




The pin that holds the Hydraulic unit in place was bent badly too.
I had to cut one end off to get it out.
It was letting the Hydraulic unit move back against the gears that operate the valve causing them to bind.



The Jack with the Hydraulic unit removed.



The new rod and pin ready to install.


Cleaned up and ready to go back together.





The Hydraulic unit assembled and ready to be installed.



Getting it back together would have been easier with another pair of hands.



Back together and working again.


Good for another 50 years!


This jack was built to last forever I found that it had ten grease fittings on it. More than most of the trucks I work on.
I could have called my employer and requested a new jack and had one next week but I hate to see something like this go to the
salvage yard. Everything is disposable nowadays.

Terry

 

[hq308]

Great work Terry, nice to see old equipment being repaired instead of being discarded.

 

[Old Iron]

Nice job on the repair, But I mite have called for a new one and then fixed the old one for myself. I wonder if your boss appreciated how you saved him the money?

Paul

 

[burnrider]

Great work. Didn't know you could still get Heinz Warner parts.

Most jacks today are built you-know-where. I bought one, it was fair. I cut shims for the casters, they were sloppy. The two piece handle was indeed quite a piece. It got several holes and spot welded for rigidity. The gear drive needed a guide washer on the base of the handle.

Okay for home use, not comparable to the Heinz Warner pictured here.

 

[7HC]

Nice job, I hope your boss values you.

The good thing is being able to get seals, which unfortunately can't be made on a lathe or mill.

I have a couple of early import jacks; heavy, strong, over engineered for their lifting capacity, but both are rendered scrap because the piston seals have failed.

M

 

[rafe]

Just Great !! Now I have spent the last hour trying to see what kind of Jack I have...and where to get rebuild parts !!
Looks like it may be an old walker greyhound or Big-boy from the 40's I picked it up 15 years ago ($15)and put in a leather plunger seal and it works but I'd rather do it proper...if I can get the seals ...the only markings I found is the W on the handle relief valve wheel any way i'll post a photo soon lol .....

 

[12bolts]

Looks like you missed a bit when you were painting the shop floor:lmao:

Cheers Phil

 

[Philco]

Nice job, I hope your boss values you.

The good thing is being able to get seals, which unfortunately can't be made on a lathe or mill.

I have a couple of early import jacks; heavy, strong, over engineered for their lifting capacity, but both are rendered scrap because the piston seals have failed.

M

Check around your area for an industrial rubber & gasket co. I know we have a couple of these type business in Nashville TN. that can make most any kind of Hydraulic type seals.
Phil

 

[terry_g]

rafe
A local hydraulic shop told me they could supply any of the seals that I might need for this old Hein Werner jack.
Just bring them in and match them up.

Terry

 

[7HC]

Check around your area for an industrial rubber & gasket co. I know we have a couple of these type business in Nashville TN. that can make most any kind of Hydraulic type seals.
Phil

Even in the more densly populated areas here in FL, Tampa, Orlando, Miami etc., there is little industry compared to many other states.
The biggest business here is tourism and catering to the elderly.

I have tried really hard to locate new seals, and you'd think that there'd be a huge market for them given that piston seal failure seems to be the #1 cause of import jack failure, but even though my detective skills are pretty good for that kind of thing I've had no luck.

Apparently there are so many variations, even on the same model jacks, and the profit on a seal is so small, that it's not worthwhile.

I've tried hydraulic repair specialists (I actually found a few) who all said that they wouldn't bother keeping the seals even if they could get them because who would pay $50 to have a jack repaired when they could buy a new one for $60?

It's a different story with US made because of (a) the much higher replacement cost, and (b) due to the higher quality, the seal is likely to last a lot longer.

Generally, people using US made jacks are making money with them and see the value in fixing them; people using cheaper imports are usually private individuals using them at home.

M