Trolley jack problem

[vit6iw]

A while ago I bought a Lake & Elliot hydraulic trolley jack off a mate. When I pump the handle it won't go up. What is the most likely reason for this? Lack of fluid? Air in the system?

On the exposed end of the block is a hex head screw and the valve to lower the jack. I've removed the screw and can see oil, it won't take any more through here. There are no leaks as far as I can see.

Any pointers on getting it working would be much appreciated.

Cheers.
Denis

[Majicmark]

Three things spring to mind.Depending on what type of mechanism you have on the valve,some with cogs wear on the centre rivet area & dont actually close the valve but just turn drive instead. I have a large Bluepoint jack which has a UJ at base & this shears off where it enters the valve block around the oil seal.The internal seals also tend to fail & symptoms are the ram attempts to lift but drops back down immediately & if as you say there is oil in the jack & everything else seems ok check the valve itself (means partially stripping block end) mine has a ball bearing under the screw pin & an oil seal on the shaft,it did manage to get some grit past the seal once & jam the ball bearing. Just some ideas but maybe someone else out there knows your model better. cheers mark.

[Carfan]

Lake & Elliot suggest the following for the "Ton Up" trolley jack :- Open the release screw and pump rapidly 10 times, close the screw and try again. Hope this helps!

[vit6iw]

Just to let you know that I've got it working.

I removed the axle which retained the valve block to see if there was any other means of filling it up, there was'nt. I lifted the valve block up so that the hex head screw was at its highest point. I removed it and added some jack oil, about 5ml filled up the space left by the removal of the screw. I left it overnight and in the morning it had gone into the jack so I filled it again. This time I put the screw in and forced the oil in, apart from some which dribbled out. The lever now had some resistance when worked. Fitted it back together and I now have a working jack.

Thanks for your comments.

Denis