Just did the same on mine! I'm glad it was only rusty at the bottom :D I didn't disassemble it as much as you did (removing the handle and all that). Really great to see you going full restoration on this bad boy, always love your vids!
Nice work Steve. Maybe you can experiment with tin with areas like the bottom of the jack where you have heavy pitting I've seen some people use a flame torch to melt tin onto metal as opposed to using body filler then smoothing it down and then using a very thin layer of body filler or stop putty. Then the old magnet on the bodywork to check filler work on car bodies is a bit redundant in this case. Just an idea.
I restored a set of e21 seat rails, they were very rusted out, and when parts can be taken apart it makes it so easy to restore like you did here cutting parts of the jack and it gave the best result
man.. I've been following you since you did the engine cover restoration, and it was your channel that got me to binge watch every other restoration video on youtube hahahha. As you went along, you'd post other E30 parts, and I was wondering if you'd do an entire car, and BAM you did! I can't wait until the OG E30 work continues!! It's what we've all been waiting for!! XD. This is such a nice segway to the return of working on that car! NICE!
Love all your dedication for detail and perfection, and I also know you're keen on painting everything, but for this kind of equipment you should investigate powder coating, it gives you that super smooth finish that is baked onto the metal and is really durable. Just a suggestion! Keep up the videos really enjoy them!
Great work as always! I’d look to add some rubber padding permanently to the seat and bottom of the jack so there is no need to carry around the additional cloth and pad. I’m sure there would be a way to keep the oem look. I better add my jack to the list of restorations now
From an e30 owner, i can't stand that jack (😄). It's meant to sit on the lip of the seal at the bottom of the chassis, but on mine it's really sketchy. Basicaly digging into the bottom of the car before properly lifting the car. And i don't want to risk damaging the welded lip at all, seing all the previous attempt on the car that bent the lip. It's in the car in last resort but i always use a floor jack with a pad, lifting from the chassis point described in the manual.
I don’t believe there is a tool for removing that pinch on the rod. It’s permanent and not meant to be taken apart since these were only made for emergency situations. It’s cost effective but a pain in the butt for someone like you who makes everything look brand new. Correct me if I’m wrong and please share if there is in face some tool that works in this situation. Keep up the killer work man, you’re probably my favorite resto channel to watch at least in my top three. Can’t wait to see the car done, you’ve come a long way, I remember chatting it up a few years ago when you first started. Much love from Southern California.
don’t be too harsh on yourself - i was just thinking at the beginning I’d have probably welded the head back on without putting the lifting arm back in!
I "restored" mine several years ago. I have never used it and don't intend to 🙏. On my car, there is a wheel chock that goes with the jack - not sure if your car came so equipped? Great job and thank you for the videos! 😀
Haha, i did some "spot repair" on mine, too. Mine has a cap saying "Bilstein-Heber" on it, though and has a slightly different gear setup. Maybe Bilstein produced a different version of it, that BMW also used in their cars🤷♂️ Oh, and currently its the only jack i own that can lift a stock E30 with the extra-high standard suspension high enough to get the wheel off the ground🤣🤣
Sorry to say they did not look that good when they came out of the factory. most were only good enough to curse at, and you had to hope that if you wanted to use it that it would actually work, seeing as the factory seemingly had one tiny cup of grease they were using on the entire production run, and it had to last 20 years of production. They did however have plenty of rust though, plus painted them into a solid block.
Damn I have the original on in my E30 and I always found it easy to use and way better than any jack in any of my friends car ! I like the sound it make when you lift the car also it s real easy to lift the car !
Nice Job- Rather than weld the handle back I would of drilled a hole and used a split pin or a Circlip, mounting rubber on the bottom of the jack would ne a great idea also
Dont want to sound like a smartass but if you drill a hole like you suggest the handle would most probably break there while in use. The stress would concentrate at that place
The filler part is a bit much for but great work anyways some times u have to remember these cars are hand built and everythink isnt perfect from the factory
I was thinking this. I'll see how well the bottom holds up with the piece of rubber and if its not working i'll redo the bottom with the welder, or maybe even look into lead welding. Cheers!
I think, should not weld the gear handle, better to make a small grave then you can use spring clip, easy to remove in future, anyway there is no load on it, just to keep in place.
While the restoration was good, it was a waste of your time. There are a TON of these jacks available in like new conditions from any salvage yard. I personally have 5 or 6 of these bought from salvage yards over the years for like $5
