Torin big red trolley jack (kit) - any opinions?

latercomer2

latercomer2

latercomer2

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I'm in need of a new trolley jack for some work on car in the next few days and much as I dislike Halfords they seem to have a good offer on a combined jack, stands etc kit from Torin but its not a brand I know so I thought I'd ask for opinions amongst you knowledgable lot first. My thinking is that a 2 ton trolley jack is going to be around £30 and the rest of it is worth £30 to me provided its not utter tat.

Halfords Big Red jack kit


I realise its not going to be top quality but is it worth buying?

Thanks
 
That's not much of a trolley jack, I have one, quite limited lift. Take a look at Machine Marts offerings.

Andi.

PS Only use a trolley jack for lifting a vehicle, NEVER get underneath without additional support.
 
That looks like it would be very tall in its lowered state.

Our jack is fairly low and it only just goes under my 106 on an uneven drive.

Once I lower it I'm going to have to drive on to planks of wood to get a jack under it, but that looks like it'd have no hope of going under a lot of slightly sporty cars.
 
Golf MK4 TDI - its not super low but thats a good call. I'll check tonight (OH has it today)

Only needs to lift high enough to get the stands underneath - these days I'm not going to be doing much more than servicing, brakes and putting the engine cover back on (repeatedly :D)

No intention of going underneath on a jack - seen the results of that before. I've got an old set of stands but thought a new set wouldn't go astray and hence the kit.
 
They quite often do that kit or a very similar one for £30 so I wouldn't buy it at £60. The main issues with the jack are entry height and lift height as above - Stands tend to be relatively cheap and tbh, if you've got older stands that are still in decent condition I would just continue to use them unless you can find ratcheting ones at a reasonable price.

Lifting high enough for stands can be more of an issue than you think depending on where you plan to put the stands. If you need to get underneath at all then you're not going to want the axle stand on its lowest rung.

Costco quite often have decent trolley jacks on offer too - that's where I got mine can't remember what price could have been £40

This looks a bit better - though I don't much like the cup on it

http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/p...ne-low-profile-trolley-j?da=1&TC=RV-020113065
 
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yeah got some old sealey folding axle stands so could probably just use those. I'll dig them out and see what height they are.

They do a kit which is jack and stands which is currently £40

Dont have a costco card so not sure thats a viable option
 
I've got that trolley jack, had it for a couple of years. It got underneath my old MX5 fine, so should be fine with a Golf :)
 
rodenal said:
Something like this perhaps:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Liftmaster-...RGXG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1334067404&sr=8-1

There are some ratcheting stands for £18 too though I have no idea how good bad or ugly they are

I'm sticking to around £30/40 for the jack not sure if you're willing to spend more. Again I don't like that cup but it's easily solved with a bit of timber if you're jacking anywhere near the sills
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Again delivery could be an issue - they say 3-5 days.

I dont want to spend a huge amount on the jack as its really not going to get used that often. OH has just got a new car with 4 years warranty and a servicing and MOT package to match so I'm not going to be touching it for at least 3.9 years :D
 
Where are you based? halfrauds tend to give a decent discount on any own brand tools etc with their trade card if you're pretty much set on buying from there.
 
Edinburgh - googled first and checked out various including the Halfords option as I can go past one pretty much on the way home. Kit seemed as good value as anything out there provided it isn't utter pish.

My days of full on car maintenance are long gone - would rather pay someone else than fight with a car for days on end :)
 
If you will be in Glasgow any time this week you can use my card - call them up first and check what the discount is though, it ranges from a couple of quid to about 30%. Obviously not worth it if you have to drive 40 miles just to use a discount card mind you.
 
rodenal said:
If you will be in Glasgow any time this week you can use my card - call them up first and check what the discount is though, it ranges from a couple of quid to about 30%. Obviously not worth it if you have to drive 40 miles just to use a discount card mind you.
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Thanks for the offer. I presume you would have to be present?

I will probably be heading through/past Glasgow either this weekend or next but would probably have family in tow etc so probably more hassle than its worth.
 
latercomer2 said:
Thanks for the offer. I presume you would have to be present?

I will probably be heading through/past Glasgow either this weekend or next but would probably have family in tow etc so probably more hassle than its worth.
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No problem, best case I could give you the card, but I would likely need to come meet you anyway to do that so would be as well just buying the stuff for you. Wouldn't be a problem but as before you would need to check the available discount to see if there would be any point - if it would be a hassle of a journey then I can't see it being worth the (likely) couple of quid.
 
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