What use for a bottle jack that works upside down?

etpm · Sep 24, 2023

About 30 years ago I modified a bottle jack so that it works upside down. I modified the jack by removing the cover, drilling out the oil intake in the bottom of the jack to accept a length of stainless tubing I had on hand, and pressing the tubing into the hole. Now the oil intake is at the top of the jack. The jack works very well upside down. But I can't for the life of me remember why I modified the jack. I know I didn't do it for fun, and I can even remember making the mod and how I did it. So, why would someone need a bottle jack that works upside down?
Thanks,
Eric

Torvy · Sep 24, 2023

Maybe had a bottle of Jack first?

alexpops · Sep 24, 2023

hydraulic press setup?

bmaverick · Sep 24, 2023

etpm said:
About 30 years ago I modified a bottle jack so that it works upside down. I modified the jack by removing the cover, drilling out the oil intake in the bottom of the jack to accept a length of stainless tubing I had on hand, and pressing the tubing into the hole. Now the oil intake is at the top of the jack. The jack works very well upside down. But I can't for the life of me remember why I modified the jack. I know I didn't do it for fun, and I can even remember making the mod and how I did it. So, why would someone need a bottle jack that works upside down?
Thanks,
Eric

I would agree with Alex. Some hydraulic press in any given direction. When working on suspension parts, I can use a jack to compress springs or a cross sway bar tied to the stabilizers and then to the springs. It's hand when removing FWD shafts on a vehicle without having to remove the struts !

Just do things slow and check for safety when doing sure a task. It a time saver and money saver. When removing struts, getting them back in requires another aligment.

jwmorris · Sep 24, 2023

If the handle was obstructed when normally positioned and you don’t have a porta power, and the pump handle had clearance if you inverted it, that would be one reason.

bcp · Sep 24, 2023

When you have a flat tire, it may sometimes be easier to push the Earth away from the axle instead of pushing the axle away from the Earth.

Bruce

dstig1 · Sep 25, 2023

Clearly you were thinking of moving to Australia at one point. You would need to have it work upside down then

WM75Guy · Sep 25, 2023

When I was on the fire department, we had 4-ton and 10-ton porta-power kits for extrication. Came in handy for working on firetrucks. The wife and I were at a pawn shop looking for a cheap stereo for the barn. I found a 4-ton NAPA porta-power kit on a shelf for $100. The ram in it comes in pretty handy since it doesn't care which way is up, same for the spreader.

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NLE7913575

etpm · Sep 26, 2023

Thanks everybody for their remarks sleuthing my use for the inverted jack. For sure it wasn't because of the consumption of Jack's because I really don't like the stuff. I really mostly drink gin. Anyway, back to the original question and the suggestions. alexpops suggested the jack would be used as a hydraulic press. An excellent suggestion in my opinion, but then I had thought about this years before just as a thought experiment. At the time of the jack mod I already had two hydraulic presses. One, the 60 ton, was an air over hydraulic commercial press. The other was a 20 ton Harbor Freight unit that used a jack that I modified just like the jack in question. And later gave to my son. I beat the crap out of that press. I was just gonna chuck it at the dump in the section for used steel. That press used and still uses the hydraulic jack I modified for inverted operation.

I still am not sure why I modified the jack in question since I can't remember why but I think jwmorris is correct. It must have been a clearance issue. I was so hoping that you all would provide the answers that would jog my memory. Oh well, that's on me and my lousy memory. But thanks a bunch anyway. This site is a great resource and is full of people who just want to help and expect no remuneration, though a heartfelt thank you certainly wouldn't go amiss. So I will say Thank You again for the help
Cheers,
Eric