slk55er

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A perfect solution for me at least. I've tried various methods of using my floor jack for frequent tire changes (track events) but none have been satisfactory until now. I was about go go to a metal fabrication shop to weld up a"T" piece to fit into the hole of my floor jack and the jack pads/receptacles under the vehicle, but I stopped at Home Depot to see if I could adapt a piece of off-the-shelf hardware.

Lo and behold I found the perfect piece -- a 1/2" Top Beam Clamp ($3.98), by Thomas & Betts, stock number Z503. This piece and the other pieces I've used are shown in the photos. I trimmed off a piece (shown) from the Beam Clamp and the remaining piece fits perfectly into both the front and rear jack receptacles. I used a hardened bolt of the correct length (110mm) to fit into the pipe pieces I used.

You can see that this does the job of jacking while avoiding contact with the side skirts. Hope this helps.

Attached Images

	jack1.jpg (39.7 KB, 132 views)
	jack3.jpg (42.3 KB, 126 views)
	jack2.jpg (36.9 KB, 128 views)

etyu

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Thank you SLK55er. What tool did you use to cut off the D-piece?

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Eddy

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Pewter/Beige, PIII package, Airscarf, Hands-Free Communication System, Lighting package
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dsb

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slk55er,

Thanks for the tutorial. I think I'm going to look into something like that too. Like Etyu, I'd like to know how you cut that piece out? Also, were the round disc and pipe necessary? Could you have simply used a shorter bolt and eliminate those pieces entirely?

I need to have a look at my floor jack and see if it can be modified.

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06 Mercedes Benz SLK55
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slk55er

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I used the cutting tool (22k rpm disc) with my air compressor, but a hack saw would work -- just take more time and elbow grease.

On my floor jack, the jack's original metal pad is removable and I am able to insert the pipe extension into that hole. (I also have a removable rubber pad that inserts into the hole.) Some floor jacks do not have a removable pad, and I am not sure if this Beam Clamp would work with these -- perhaps if the Beam Clamp were bolted directly to the pipe flange and resting on the rubber pad. But I did not want to rely on only friction between the jack's rubber pad and the Beam Clamp. So I used a pipe of suitable diameter to insert into the hole in the head of the jack.

I do have to drive the SLK onto a 2" high ramp to get the jack in position under the car. This may not be necessary with a low profile jack. And I trimmed off the excess length of the bolt to the height of the nut.

Duo-Art

slk55er, Thanks for sharing your fabrication with us. It looks very stable. Also thanks for the great pictures. They make the entire operation very easy to understand.

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Good job. Just curious, in your last pic, very little clearance between the jack and the side skirt. Is it actually that close or just the pic? I have problems when using the factory jack on the front of my SLK 55. I have to be extremely careful to keep the jack from damaging the side skirt.

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--------SLK 55 ///AMG---------
THE MON55TER ON THE BLOCK

V8SLK

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nicely done slk55er.

slk55er

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Yes, it is close, but does clear. But actually, the Beam Clamp piece that I modified could be rotated 180 degrees to eliminate any concerns.

One other note -- I did drill out and enlarge the original threaded hole in the Beam Clamp piece to allow for a larger bolt than otherwise would fit.

If one wanted to try using the Beam Clamp with a jack which has a pad with no hole, I would suggest using a 4-5 inch pipe flange similar to the one that I used, but inverting it so that the flat surface of the flange rests on the jack pad.

The Beam Clamp would then rest on a pedestal of sorts with a hardened bolt holding the pieces together. The bolt head or nut would have to fit into the tapered hole of the flange and be thin enough to be flush with the flat side of the flange resting against the jack's pad.

reallife

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I've been meaning to do something and this looks like the easiest solution. I'll stop by HD in the am and see what I can do. Thanks for the idea!!