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Need a Jack for my RV-8

Tom @ N269CP

Well Known Member
Taxiied out early this morning for a breakfast run down to Santa Fe. Got near the far south end of the one and only taxiway and my right tire went flat..there my plane sat for 3 hours blocking the taxiway. The airport has little equipment to deal with such a mundane problem. So...I have suddenly found myself in the market for "tire changin' stuff". First order of business is a jack, or adapter for an auto jack, so I can remove and replace tires on my RV-8. I've got Grove gear....I think.

I've searched and see a number of improvised jacks, and reference to some that can be bought...but the manufacturers site are no longer accessible. Aircraft Spruce sells one, but there's zero supporting documentation allowing me to confirm compatibility.

I'm not keen on wing jacks, and would prefer a jack...or an adapter for an auto jack.... that lifts close to the wheel.

I would be grateful for leads for a good compact wheel jack (or adapter) from an outfit still in business...I have no tools to make my own.

Many thanks!
 
There's this

http://www.wintermotorsports.com/jackpoints-rv8

which is a fairly new entry into the RV jack world. I'm thinking about getting a set for my -7A and trying it out.

I have wing jacks with the Bogert jack points for the bottle jack, and they work very well, but I sure don't leave them up on one of those jacks any longer than I have to.

Won't work on your 8, but I also have one of these:

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/rvjack.php

This works very well, indeed, but isn't convenient for travelling unless disassembled (and you travel with the horizontal part and a lightweight scissors jack).
 
The jackpoints from wintermotorsports work great on my -7. When traveling far from home, I carry an aluminum scissor jack I found on ebay. Only weighs 2 lbs. Search for "aluminum Porsche scissor jack".

I haven't weighed mine, but I have a lightweight aluminum Miata jack...probably the same thing, but Porsche probably charges a mint for a new one LOL! It does work with the steel insert part of the jack that goes into the gear leg, but it's kinda kludgy-looking, so the wintermotorsports jacks are appealing to me.
 
Tom,

I have this one:

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/pages/lg/jacks/rv8traveljack2.php

I do have the version for my grove gear.

When I placed it on my airplane a few years ago I told myself I would ?test? it out at the next condition inspection!

Well....I haven?t gotten around to it yet :eek: So I really can?t give you a good review, but it does fit very well in my front baggage compartment lower slot area.

I hope not to have to use it on the road, but I do carry the jack, tools and a spare tire and tube.

I just hope the thing works :D
 
There's this

http://www.wintermotorsports.com/jackpoints-rv8

which is a fairly new entry into the RV jack world. I'm thinking about getting a set for my -7A and trying it out.

I have wing jacks with the Bogert jack points for the bottle jack, and they work very well, but I sure don't leave them up on one of those jacks any longer than I have to.

Won't work on your 8, but I also have one of these:

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/rvjack.php

This works very well, indeed, but isn't convenient for travelling unless disassembled (and you travel with the horizontal part and a lightweight scissors jack).

The wintermotorsport jack points look interesting.

It's possible I don't have Grove gear..I'm not even sure what the distinguishing characteristics of the Grove gear are. The plane was built in 2000 and the gear legs have a rectangular cross-section. The gear legs in the photo on Wintermotorsport.com appear to have rounded leading and training edges.

I have a few concerns:

1. Will they work for my gear which has rectangular cross-section?

2. Will they fit inside my wheel pants? There doesn't appear to be much clearance between the inboard side of the legs and the wheel pants. Link to pic below.

7ebx4we8x1s/IMG_20180824_160847484.jpg?dl=0

3. Will the lift points and jack be capable of jacking the RV-8 with a flat tire?

It took all day to deal with the flat tire. Fortunately the A&P (from a nearby airport) had a new tire and tube, so the plane is airworthy again.
 
It took all day to deal with the flat tire. Fortunately the A&P (from a nearby airport) had a new tire and tube, so the plane is airworthy again.

OK, so it looks like this is no longer Urgently needed-------I am gonna remove that part of the title, and move this thread to the RV 8 forum.

Glad you got things taken care of.
 
In a pinch, I have used this on polished Grove style gear (not painted or faired):

Find a moderate sized (not the smallest) C-clamp and a couple of small pieces of 1X4 wood. Use the wood to between the clamp feet and the gear leg to clamp onto the gear, just so the clamp and handle will clear everything (no too high up). The jack (a bottle jack or even car scissors jack) will contact the low point of the C-clamp and side-load it holding it in place against the gear leg. This is sturdy enough to fix a flat. If you're gonna leave it up for an extended time, block the axle up with a block of wood.
 
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