OT: but always on topic... secure raised vehicles!
 

I hate to be that guy, but... here we go again. It happens. Item from today's local paper.

Waterford — A 21-year-old man was killed Friday afternoon after the car he was working on in a home garage fell on top of him, according to police and emergency responders.
The injured person was extricated from under the car by firefighters from the...


http://theday.newspaperdirect.com/epaper/showlink.aspx?bookmarkid=JV0RQIJQUHW1&issue=199520 11031200000000001001&article=e295a1c6-9afc-44bc-bee9-d053389c46ce

Stay safe, fellas. Always, always use redundant safety systems whenever you are under the car. Please.

I always think about it everytime Iam under the car. I check and double check things, but still.........stuff happens. can`t be too safe.

I think about it when Iam under there, especially here in calif, because of the earthquakes. don`t happen often,(large one`s) but do happen. there are quakes every day, just too small to be detected.

the one that just happened in Japan, really gets you to thinking.

It would be interesting to see how the guy had his car raised and supported. there is more to it than to just read "car fell and killed mechanic". still too bad it happened.

there are some pictures floating around here of some Moron working on his truck tipped sideways with a 4x4 at an angle holding it up, and him sitting under it welding. so when Iam raising one of mine up, I repeat. "Iam not a Moron" three times :D so far it has worked. :rolleyes:

Charlie

"That's sad. I've had about half the weight of a 96 Intrepid on me before. The front jackstands went straight through the framerails(rusted-little did I know). I was doing bottom end work while my buddy Don was doing the rear wheel cylinders on our buddy's car. Don nearly had a heart attack when the car fell on me. Luckily the rear jackstands held and the car was high enough from them that I wasn't pinned. Scary, but I got out, finished my beer, jacked the car back up, and finished torquing the oil pan. It never did drive straight after that day. Just like gsum said, check, check, and double check that jackstands EVERY time, just in case."

This was a response from another forum to this news item. I guess I usually think of jacks, jackstands, etc. failing... I hadn't really thought about the jack stand going thru the rust. Sheesh. And we don't often have to worry about earthquakes in CT. Lots to think about.

In addition to multiple sturdy jack stands I like to put something under an upraised tire... A big block of wood Or a spare tire rim ... Something to give me that little escape route if all else fails. I don't know many guys who can bench press a car off their chest.... I know I can't, and I don't want to have to prove it.

Safety first.

Nothing wrong with throwing a wheel under there as a second or even third backup. Even when using jack stands, I keep a floor jack tensioned under at least one jacking point. Who knows.

Always a double safety catch. Triple if possible. Nobody ever got crushed under a car from being too careful. Many have bought the farm not being careful enough.

I know from experience it is possible to accidently kick a jackstand out from under a car. Thankfully, no one was injured, just scared as Hell.

Another story
 

I have been working on cars since age 14. I'm pushing 60 now. I have never been all that careful, but here's a scary story. I live in NorCal. I was at a yard out where all the yards are by Watsonville, getting parts off an old Jag that was supported only on loose rims under the body. They were NOT bolted to hubs. They were on the edge holding up the body like a jack. I worked all day getting the parts I needed. I drove home. Parked. The Loma-Prieta quake happened about 10 minutes later. I have no doubt I missed death by about 45 minutes. Am I any more careful? Naw, not really. Perhaps I do get out the jack stands now, if I think I'm going to be "down there" for a while.

When ever we have a car off the ground here I get the guy who is going to be under it to grab the side & then the front/back & shake it as hard as he can to see if he can make it fall.
When you are wrenching hard on a bolt it is easy to move a car sideways & off the stands if its not supported well.
I once saw a guy trying to undo a bolt on a pitman arm, The car started to topple over, he realized what he was doing & so started to wrench the other way until the car was back level on the stands. He was white & shaking when he got out from under it.

I heartily applaud you for that. I do the same thing... I shake it as hard as I can before I go under it.

Never trust a jack; use multiple sturdy jackstands; chock the wheels in both directions; check the jackstand points to make sure they are solid and not too rusty; put a spare rim or a solid block under the wheel nearest where you are working. A couple of inches can save your life.

This is a great hobby and it is loads of fun. I love it. But I really don't want to post an article like this again, so please, everyone, use your head and be safe.

Front page Followup Story
 

Today's paper had a front page article on the young man who was killed under his car.

Changing the oil on his BMW. Jack failed. Very sad.

Waterford man died doing what he loved most

maybe if more floor jacks came with ratcheting locks like the better models, this could be avoided... and the ones without ratcheting locks should NOT stay up! I have a floor jack that will lift 3 tons, and it works great, but you have to pump it to keep it at a certain height. it FORCES me to use a jackstand. believe me, it's annoying, but it's better than getting complacent with a jack that could drop at any time...

Ditto, I've had to do a couple of emergency parking lot replacements of a starter using a tire changing jack. A spare tire, placed in a critical spot, is a great backup that will at least keep you from getting crushed.

I definitely agree with the shake test, as well. Sometimes the eyeballing of jackstand placement is a little askew when you lower it in place.

Earthquake underneath the car?
 

It happened to me last year with the quake near Calexico. I felt the ground shaked and it took me a few seconds to realize it was an earthquake. I got the hell out of it immediately. Went into the garden and the water in my swimming pool was moving from side to side. It was quite a sight, like water shaking in a bowl, but on a much larger scale.

I always take precaution when I work on car, never work on car with jack alone, use axle stands or ramp.

Life is fragile. My motto is : Enjoy life as if there is no tomorrow but save and invest as if you are going to live to 100. Look at what happened to Japan. I made a donation to Red Cross for Japanese quake relief and hope they pull thru OK. The biggest risk now is the Nuclear meltdown.

I was stunned to receive this post today in a BMW forum from the father of the young man who was crushed by his car recently.... The subject of this thread. I present it in it's entirety.




"I am Christian Klorczyk's father
Good Day,


I feel that I must respond to this post for the sake of accuracy, the honor of my son and family name and also to attempt to save other lives.



Lynne and I are the parents of three sons, Frederick III, Christian, Parker and our "adopted sons", his twin brother Jordan, Dimitri and Dan - all "carguys".



As stated in the article....



"The 21-year-old died Friday after a BMW he was working on collapsed on him in the family garage. Fred Klorczyk said that a floor jack likely failed while his son (Christian) was under the car changing the oil."

Jeff Johnson did a great job on the article on our son, brother and friend and I thank him for that. Jeff was a true gentleman who talked to us for hours in our darkest times to get an accurate depiction of our son and family. However, and unfortunately we do not have it on tape, nor is Jeff a "gearhead" and doesn't really understand jacks, jackstands and multiple layers of safety. I never said, nor is it accurate to say "that a floor jack likely failed..."

Christian is an experienced mechanic who started working on cars and following Formula 1 when he was a small child. He and our whole family witnessed Ayrton "Magic" Senna die at Tamburello 15 years ago. Yes, Christian was only six at the time and he would wake all of us up at 6:30AM to watch the pre-race show in Italy on satellite.

Christian is a true car guy as are his brothers and friends. My business is in the most safety conscious market in the world - nuclear boats, nuclear ships and nuclear power plants. That mentality is my life - has been since I was a kid engineer out of school. Ask any of my employees how I feel about safety. They have the right to stop any job and call me at anytime as no one is to ever get injured on our jobsites. This naturally carried over to my homelife. By the way, my father was a large machine mechanic by trade and a "gearhead" by avocation. No one would use the wrong tools - we have them all and all are of quality. No one in my garage or driveway would ever go under a car with only a jack of any kind holding it up. The jack elevates the car, jackstands support at proper points while working underneath and the jack is removed to improve accessibility. Period. Block the wheels if necessary. Emergency brake on. Car in gear. A lift would be better but we just were not at that point in our lives yet.

Christian had the right front tire off so that he could shine his double halogen lights on the work area and see clearly. He also had that tire/wheel under the right front rotor as an extra measure of safety as is a habit of ours when possible. He had four ton Craftsman jackstands in use. Two were just bought at Christmas when I sent him to buy a new jack since ours is getting to be five years old. Hydraulic cylinders and seals degrade over time. He didn't buy the jack since he felt what Sears, etc., had were junk so he bought more four ton stands but without safety pins. I did not realize there were redundant safety stands until... it was too late.


Christian was using my father's creeper for the first time. He found the creeper when cleaning the garage over Christmas. When he applied torque to the ratchet handle to break the plug loose, he experienced the law of physics of "equal and opposite reaction". As the plug broke loose, the creeper did also in a direction opposite to the torque vector Christian applied. Some part of Christian's body, some part of the creeper, the mallet beside him, something - we have no video, just supposition and theory... tripped the right front jackstand lever inadvertantly from the underside and a ton of the BMW E46 3 series xi crushed his chest and his right cheekbone. He never took, or could even attempt to take a second breath. Death was immediate and painless. If I were beside him at the time this occurred I could have done nothing to save him. This has been verified by five friends of mine who are doctors. I used the floorjack Christian used to elevate the car to get the car off of him. It was parallel to the car just as he would place it when he removed it from the jackpoint. I had to engage the cylinder with clockwise rotation which tells me Christian removed it per proper procedure. I had the jack underneath and car off him in seconds. Jackstands were under before I crawled from under the valance while Lynne called 911. Lynne came under with me from the wheelwell and had a pulse on his neck. She said he it was strong. I was doing chest compressions and trying to get a verbal response until the EMTs got there. When I heard LIFESTAR waved off over the EMT radios I had a sick, sick feeling.


A critical factor, in my professional engineering opinion, is that the creeper raised his body 3.5" higher than it would have been if he would have been working on the concrete as he was used to. It also raised his head 4.5" higher as there is a foam pillow headrest. Both creeper caster wheels at the head position were sheared from the creeper. I can only wonder that if Christian did not use the creeper would he have had the jackstands that high, would the energy at 9.8 m/sec squared have been decreased to a minimum so that if the freak accident happened he would have been injured less, would the extra measure of the tire under the rotor have saved his life without the extra creeper height, would he be alive today? Only God knows.


Christian is a fine, fine man who was known for his smile, intelligence, passion and willingness to help anyone at anytime... just like all of his brothers and "adopted brothers". The five of them and myself were his pall bearers. He would have it no other way. We were that close.


Also, to my fellow "carguys" and "gearheads", please learn from this tragedy. Scrap your cheapo jackstands... do your research, find the best jackstands there are, use the secondary and tertiary safety factors, do not fall to the temptation of human nature and operator error - use the extra safety factors! It may save your life, or maybe the life of you son. Had I would have known such Christian would be with us today.


Lastly, if you want to drive fast please do not do it on the road. Racetracks are readily available for that adrenaline rush we all crave. Track days with instructors are cheap and you are protected far more than


Godspeed Christian! May you be driving God's Veyron for him.


Please feel free to cut and past this article anywhere you think it may prove valuable to fellow "carguys". I pray that none of you ever suffer such a tragedy. May God Bless you all.




Frederick J. Klorczyk, Jr.
Waterford, CT
fjk143@aol.com
Last edited by FJKII; Today at 05:17 PM.. Reason: typo"



This was my response to him:

Amen.


As the father of two grown sons, I can only imagine the sorrow and pain you and your family have experienced the past two weeks. Words fail to capture the depth of sadness we feel at your loss. Please accept my sincere and heartfelt condolences. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us in your beautiful letter.
I posted my original post in several other forums, and, based on some of the responses received, I know Christian's story has been read around the world. Many people now know what a great kid he was, and he may have even saved a life. I know that can in no way make up for his loss, but I hope it is some small consolation to you.
God be with you.

Tom
Niantic

Yikes! That really makes me question my jackstands. They're Kmart cheapos I bought about ten years ago. At least I leave the jack in place with a little load on it while I'm also using the stands.

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd205/TKDJimi/IMG_0529.jpg

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd205/TKDJimi/IMG_0533.jpg

Check these out.... Posted in in bimmerforums in response to the safety concerns about jack stands, jacks, etc, arising out of the tragic death of Christian Klorczyk in Waterford, CT recently.


I may make a couple of these myself. Great if you aren't doing anything that requires wheel removal, it appears.

I never work under a car unless someone is within earshot or weld for that matter. A buddy of mine almost died from welding galvanized sheet metal, he got galvanic poisoning and passed out in a warehouse.

In the interest of continuing the safety conversation, here is another post from the late Christian's K's Dad.... reposted from another forum.

Frankly, I like the pin type stands also.


"Jackstand suggestions...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

until I design my own sailor proof stand... of course, the chosen support point is equally important as well... take a look at these. Keep in mind, a single ratchet six ton stand killed my son, and he had two in place plus a tire/wheel assembly under the rotor on the side the stand dropped. Don't save money on safety!!!

Link: Amazon.com: jack stands: Automotive

See items 4, 7, 11, 50, (60, 63 - kinda like the bases on these and distribution of weight but need to see the steel specs), 67 and 103. Personally, I am liking the pin only stands now as human performance does not enter into the equation. You don't pin it, it doesn't work. The double safety ratchet/pin design requires human performance to put the pin in. Without it, what do you have? A ratchet stand.

Also, I was taught as an engineer that you do your calcs and multiply by seven for safety and certainty. Hence, my suggestion you look at high tonnage capacity stands.

It is a life afterall - maybe yours - put a price on it. To have my son back I'd liquidate all I have and move to a tent.

Frederick Klorczyk, Jr."

I inherited a set of steel ramps, but I have never used them. Those ramps, along with a set of 'potenza's" homemade wood wheel supports, and a set of sturdy jack stands with safety pins are looking pretty attractive at this point. Ratchet-type jack stands had always seemed pretty safe, but the potential for some sort of accidental contact with the release lever .... and its consequences .... never occurred to me as a possibility.

Now I can't get it out of my head. Which is probably a good thing. It could happen.

For example, I had usually positioned the release lever for my convenience when I was ready to remove the stand.... not thinking of positioning it to avoid any inadvertent contact. No more.

Link posted by Frederick Klorczyk Jr. tonight in another forum. American made. Worth a look.

https://www.grayusa.com/support_stand.asp

Another post from Frederick Klorcyzk, Jr:

"Lynne and I have driven on some of Christian's favorite roads these past weeks. We "claim" that we could better accept this if he missed the braking point, went in hot, he forgot he had winters on and the coefficient of friction was not the same as his performance tires, he missed a shift, anything... then there would be some modicum of sense. We'd have been pissed as we knew he was such a good driver and never was DUI but there was a more tangible cause such as driver error.


My description of the accident, which I reenacted last night, took all the planets and stars to align to take his life. NFW could you make that happen again. That is hard to grasp. If I had the guts (which I presently do not) I'd post the pics of the event as you could see how he protected himself to the degree to which any real mechanic was trained.


Once again, to teach yourself a lesson in safety, go out to your garage, extend your jackstand and trip the lever. Try to take a breath when it drops. You can't. Then imagine your chest as the jackstand. That is how brutal this is.


THERE IS NO SECOND CHANCE HERE GUYS. ASK CHRISTIAN. SPEND THE CASH AND GET AT LEAST A PINNED JACKSTAND IF NOT BETTER. EVEN THE PINS BOTHER ME AS WHO KNOWS WHERE THE PIN CAME FROM (CAN YOU SAY CHINA?) AND WAS IT DESIGNED, ENGINEERED, MADE AND EVEN TESTED PROPERLY BEFORE YOU TRUST YOUR LIFE TO IT. WHO KNOWS WHAT THE SHEAR STRENGTH IS UNTIL YOU DESTRUCTIVELY TEST IT IF IT EVER IS?




GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!!"


Shared in the interest of safety for all. This story is all over the internet now.

Stay safe, fellas.

I like the ramps but it can be hard to get the front wheels of RWD cars to climb them, if you have a smooth concrete floor. They want to slide along the concrete. On textured concrete or asphalt it's less of a problem. Of course, you should chock the wheels that are on the ground in both directions.

I put stands under the car as a safety even when I use ramps, just in case a ramp decides to fold up on me. (I live in an earthquake zone.) Don't forget to take the stands out from under the car before you back the car off the ramp, though...it's really embarrassing if you don't. :o

Here's a trick for ramps: Try placing the ramp on heavy rubber mat/s which is long enough that the front tires are on the mat before contacting the ramp itself.

Unfortunately it just happened again.
 

Thank you for posting this.


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...rfatality.html


March 27, 2011 Bremerton WA.

Post this everywhere. This poor guy evidently didn't get the message, and now he never will.

Sad.

Stay safe, fellas. It has happened again.

This was posted elsewhere.... are these available through any forum vendors?

http://www.creepex.com/Cr/Home.html



Be sure to check out the falling jack stands video. Scarey stuff.

Reading this topic reinforces my decision to buy a hydraulic lift. I do my work on a gravel driveway using jack stands sitting on 2x12s but the older I get, the more cautious I get. Plus it would be nicer (and faster) to raise and I like the idea of sliding around on a wheeled chair or creeper.

In researching lifts, I landed on a product called "MaxJax". It's a half-lift (48 inches or so), and is unique in that the posts are removable and the pump is on wheels so you can move everything out of the way when you are not using it. Uses 110v instead of 220v. It also has an optional attachment for motorcycles. Check it out:

http://www.maxjaxusa.com/features.html

Alot of discussion on the Garage Journal Forum:

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/index.php

Near as I can tell, the best prices are from Northern Tool (about $2,000 delivered). Costco also carries them. In my case, I will have to pour a concrete pad for another $400 or so.

I was considering a fixed, full-height lift for around $1500, but I like the removability and use of 110v (since I don't have 220 in my barn).

All this reinforces my belief that well, you never know the time or the day...
I use ratcheting jackstands, and have noticed that the hydraulic lifts at garages are also ratcheting stands (at least those that I've seen). With a car on it, the pressure on the ratchet is intense and I really don't see how it can be knocked loose (I try though, every time before sliding under).

Sorry it happened to that guy with the beemer...seems like he it was a freak accident, which again, reinforces my faith. Personally, I wish I had the Airjack that the W123 Expedition guy uses. Everytime I do something, its either the regular tire jack or the ramps.

As for changing oil, the W123 is high enough that I don't even need to raise the car.

Be safe folks. An ounce of prevention goes a long way....

only way I can see ratcheting stands failing is if they are the cheap style that has a roll pin holding the ratchet tooth onto the handle, and putting it in with the handle BARELY attached to the ratchet. I suppose swinging a really large wrench or hammer into the handle could knock it out...


is this better?
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_K...403_143657.jpg
yes, that is my 95TE being held up by the tow hitch with a engine hoist and supported by a stack of tires... notice I am NOT the one under the car...

what? nobody wants to comment on my safety methods?

Whats the load limit on your hoist?
Any reason why it wouldnt topple out from there?
Hope you have your front wheels well chocked.
Is the drink to give courage to get under it?
What are you trying to do under there?
What is the drum supporting?
Those piles of tires are way too unstable.

Happy now you have been commented on? ;)

yes, thanks. MUCH better.

limit is 3 tons in the position I've got the arm in.

the wheels are DEEP into the earth, so I don't see how it could slide or topple.

chocked is good.

the drink is because my little brother has sore throat, and he was thirsty.

the driveshaft has a chainlink fence wrapped around it... like 20' of chainlink fence... really tough stuff. gotta cut it all out. didn't want to work on it with only a few inches to swing the bolt cutters in.

I shoved the drum under there to catch the car a tad more incase the lift and tires started to topple... give just a hair more time to run out from under it. also note in the upper edge of the pic, there are jack stands there... not sure what they would do if that pizza pile decided to topple...

see previous answer. I also plan to attach 10,000lb ratchet straps to the tree behind the car, and to the 3/4 ton pickup beside the car, and to the SD beside the car... I do NOT want the car moving when I'm under there!


of course I could just shove a 2x4 under it...

This is why you shouldn't try to re-enact the airport scene from "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" in your Mercedes. ;)

A pit although illegal in new service stations can be engineered for some home applications. Designed to insert timbers to close it up makes it pretty safe. This is about as cheap and safe as it gets. More comforatable than working on a vehicle with jackstands or ramps as well.

Most domestic garages do not have headroom for a hoist anyways. Certainly there are safety concerns about gas fumes accumulating in a pit but other than that not much can go wrong.You do have to close it up or secure the building it is in to prevent someone walking into it.

all jiffy lubes have pits. heck, they have 2nd floor offices down there, with car on top...

what makes a pit illegal in new servicestations?

new jiffylubes have them.
wallyworld garages have them...

It may be regional. For example wally world does not have them here. I also am aware you cannot put one into a new service station here.

I have a good one in an old service station I own that was closed many years ago. Remember I live in Canada as well.

That building is slated for replacement. We will install a hoist as well when and if we do it. Since it is impractical to repair that building to the point of using almost no energy to heat. That is the driving reason to replace it.

When we want to work on something I do not have time to wait for a building to come up to temperature. Nor do I like the ideal of paying more than a thousand a month for fuel to heat it for part time use. We have a prolonged cold season this far north.

The existing pit is of the blast type. Basically a hole in a suspended concrete floor. This eliminates or minumises fumes collecting at a low point. A home type pit can get by without this type of design as long as care is exercised.

ah Canada... gotcha.

I have heard the fumes make them dangerous.
I'm trying to upload the pic of the fence on the driveshaft... stupid phone is uploading99% and failing...

Mounting a winch to drag a dead car in over the pit is a good cheap ideal if working alone as well. Anchoring a pully point outside lets you pull a dead car out as well if your winch has enough cable.

One thing I do recommend with a pit is wheel guides that fold down after the car is over the pit. Nothing like dropping a wheel in. Do not ask but it happened twice over the heavy use years.

Nice reply John !!!!;)

4" angle grinder would be better for the chainwire. I had a length of it get tangled up in the elevating chain of my scraper. A total PITA to get rid of. It stopped the elevator & pulled the chain of the sprockets. Felt like wrapping the wire around the land owners head!!
Good luck with your driveshaft. Hope nothing is bent.

meh, bent not a big deal, I don't need it. parts car and all.
it does look ok though. no way I'm getting an angle grinder in there, the diff is leaking oil all over everything, and the fuel tank is seeping gasoline out... no sparks!
slowly but surely it's all coming out. hurry means making mistakes, and it turns out I don't have as big of a hurry to get it torn down anyway... funds are short on my customer at the moment! I may have to slim down the list...

So you would not crawl under that car but you let your little brother be the guinea pig? Smart dude!:rolleyes:

Does anyone know the exact brand/ model of the jackstand that failed which caused death? A link or pic?

This is in reference to the Waterford CT incident, not the one in Bremerton WA.
I can't speak for the dad but.... this is his report of the incident that he posted in bimmerforums in response to my original post there. It appears that they think it was not so much a jack stand failure, as it was more likely that his son slid sideways on a creeper into the release lever as he applied force to the oil pan nut. The impact either tipped the jack stand or somehow released the lever, crushing him. It is all speculation, However, this was a reconstruction of the incident....there were no actual witnesses.

Here is a link to the entire original tread in E21 bimmerforums:
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1619552


Here is the dad's post (which appears in the thread) in its entirety:


"I am Christian Klorczyk's father
Good Day,


I feel that I must respond to this post for the sake of accuracy, the honor of my son and family name and also to attempt to save other lives.



Lynne and I are the parents of three sons, Frederick III, Christian, Parker and our "adopted sons", his twin brother Jordan, Dimitri and Dan - all "carguys".



As stated in the article....



"The 21-year-old died Friday after a BMW he was working on collapsed on him in the family garage. Fred Klorczyk said that a floor jack likely failed while his son (Christian) was under the car changing the oil."

Jeff Johnson did a great job on the article on our son, brother and friend and I thank him for that. Jeff was a true gentleman who talked to us for hours in our darkest times to get an accurate depiction of our son and family. However, and unfortunately we do not have it on tape, nor is Jeff a "gearhead" and doesn't really understand jacks, jackstands and multiple layers of safety. I never said, nor is it accurate to say "that a floor jack likely failed..."

Christian is an experienced mechanic who started working on cars and following Formula 1 when he was a small child. He and our whole family witnessed Ayrton "Magic" Senna die at Tamburello 15 years ago. Yes, Christian was only six at the time and he would wake all of us up at 6:30AM to watch the pre-race show in Italy on satellite.

Christian is a true car guy as are his brothers and friends. My business is in the most safety conscious market in the world - nuclear boats, nuclear ships and nuclear power plants. That mentality is my life - has been since I was a kid engineer out of school. Ask any of my employees how I feel about safety. They have the right to stop any job and call me at anytime as no one is to ever get injured on our jobsites. This naturally carried over to my homelife. By the way, my father was a large machine mechanic by trade and a "gearhead" by avocation. No one would use the wrong tools - we have them all and all are of quality. No one in my garage or driveway would ever go under a car with only a jack of any kind holding it up. The jack elevates the car, jackstands support at proper points while working underneath and the jack is removed to improve accessibility. Period. Block the wheels if necessary. Emergency brake on. Car in gear. A lift would be better but we just were not at that point in our lives yet.

Christian had the right front [COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]tire[/COLOR][/COLOR] off so that he could shine his double halogen lights on the work area and see clearly. He also had that tire/wheel under the right front rotor as an extra measure of safety as is a habit of ours when possible. He had four ton Craftsman jackstands in use. Two were just bought at Christmas when I sent him to buy a new jack since ours is getting to be five years old. Hydraulic cylinders and seals degrade over time. He didn't buy the jack since he felt what Sears, etc., had were junk so he bought more four ton stands but without safety pins. I did not realize there were redundant safety stands until... it was too late.


Christian was using my father's creeper for the first time. He found the creeper when cleaning the garage over Christmas. When he applied torque to the ratchet handle to break the plug loose, he experienced the law of physics of "equal and opposite reaction". As the plug broke loose, the creeper did also in a direction opposite to the torque vector Christian applied. Some part of Christian's body, some part of the creeper, the mallet beside him, something - we have no video, just supposition and theory... tripped the right front jackstand lever inadvertantly from the underside and a ton of the BMW E46 3 series xi crushed his chest and his right cheekbone. He never took, or could even attempt to take a second breath. Death was immediate and painless. If I were beside him at the time this occurred I could have done nothing to save him. This has been verified by five friends of mine who are doctors. I used the floorjack Christian used to elevate the car to get the car off of him. It was parallel to the car just as he would place it when he removed it from the jackpoint. I had to engage the cylinder with clockwise rotation which tells me Christian removed it per proper procedure. I had the jack underneath and car off him in seconds. Jackstands were under before I crawled from under the valance while Lynne called 911. Lynne came under with me from the wheelwell and had a pulse on his neck. She said he it was strong. I was doing chest compressions and trying to get a verbal response until the EMTs got there. When I heard LIFESTAR waved off over the EMT radios I had a sick, sick feeling.


A critical factor, in my professional engineering opinion, is that the creeper raised his body 3.5" higher than it would have been if he would have been working on the concrete as he was used to. It also raised his head 4.5" higher as there is a foam pillow headrest. Both creeper [COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]caster[/COLOR][/COLOR] wheels at the head position were sheared from the creeper. I can only wonder that if Christian did not use the creeper would he have had the jackstands that high, would the energy at 9.8 m/sec squared have been decreased to a minimum so that if the freak accident happened he would have been injured less, would the extra measure of the tire under the rotor have saved his life without the extra creeper height, would he be alive today? Only God knows.


Christian is a fine, fine man who was known for his smile, intelligence, passion and willingness to help anyone at anytime... just like all of his brothers and "adopted brothers". The five of them and myself were his pall bearers. He would have it no other way. We were that close.


Also, to my fellow "carguys" and "gearheads", please learn from this tragedy. Scrap your cheapo jackstands... do your research, find the best jackstands there are, use the secondary and tertiary safety factors, do not fall to the temptation of human nature and operator error - use the extra safety factors! It may save your life, or maybe the life of you son. Had I would have known such Christian would be with us today.


Lastly, if you want to drive fast please do not do it on the road. Racetracks are readily available for that adrenaline rush we all crave. Track days with instructors are cheap and you are protected far more than


Godspeed Christian! May you be driving God's Veyron for him.


Please feel free to cut and past this article anywhere you think it may prove valuable to fellow "carguys". I pray that none of you ever suffer such a tragedy. May God Bless you all.




Frederick J. Klorczyk, Jr.
Waterford, CT
fjk143@aol.com"

Here is a thread that was initiated by the young man's father in a different forum:
"Death of a Bimmer Lover" was the title he chose for it. Some info in there on jack stands (both homemade and commercially available).

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1625985

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...i/IMG_0529.jpg

Looks like this maybe the Craftsman jackstand that did him in (I happen to own the same set).

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00950163000P?sid=IDx20070921x00003a&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=00950163000P

I am going to take a closer look at mine for possible failure modes but if I understand how these ratcheting jackstands works, it is almost impossible for it to slip and drop if there is weight bearing on it, and nearly impossible to release the handle while sufficient weight is on it. Did the jack fail by dropping all the way to the bottom? (Which is not possible if sufficent weight is on it.) Were pictures taken?

Yes, having a pinned type jackstand such as this type

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_SPM187899963P?sid=IDx20101019x00001a&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=SPM187899963

is more positive and possibly could have saved his life, but sufficient weight must be on this type of jack also.

My opinion is that one jackstand was somehow incorrectly used.

I wonder if the family has a law suit pending against Sears?

I have similar jackstands and have always thought it would take considerable effort to dislodge the ratcheting mechanism when loaded. However, I have not experimented with them to verify that belief.

Probably a good idea to inspect the ratchet mechanism regularly, as well. The loads on the ratchet pawl are very high and I've heard of at least one case of one fracturing. That could really ruin your whole day.

I dug out my Craftsman ratcheting jack stand and gave it a close look and a quick test. Mine is the 3 ton and I assume the 4 ton is of simillar design. I raised it halfway, crouched, stood and balanced myself on it, reached down and yanked upward on the handle. To my surprise, it (and I) dropped all the way to the bottom! That was very sobering! Jack stand with pins will never do that! I was expecting it to catch on the next tooth on the rack but not so. The handle only needs to be raised upwards 3/4" to release the rack for it to drop. I'll try to find the owners manual and see what warnings/ instructions are provided.

With the car's weight (let's say 3000 lbs) on the jackstands, how much force is required to hit the handle at such an angle and cause it to go up 3/4"? Any mechanical engineers here want to take a stab at it? The jack release handle is 4.5" long.

I hope every one takes a close look at these stands. They are what we should all be using.
If you are good with a chain saw you can make them from a section of tree trunk, thats what I use. Once the car is on, it wont go any where!!
They probably will be cheaper than metal stands. Make sure they are no higher than 3/4 of their length or width.

funola,
the geometry (shape) of the locking mechanism will determine how much load is required to unlock it. If you have one that had the surface of the teeth smoothed off during manufacture, it may only need the force of your little finger, if it has an over center shape, it may need a force equivalent to the weight of the car. You could always do a little experiment. Just need a backup support 1/4" lower.

Very interesting post.... Thank you very much. I would like to post your results in other forums to continue to raise consciousness on the subject of safety... As well as productive discussion. Yours is a most interesting experiment, worth looking at some more, in my opinion.

Sure, please do. I would like others do this test on their ratcheting jack stands to see if it behaves the same, i.e. drop to the bottom. Use one hand against the wall to help your balance on the jack stand.

The fact that he was able to crash into the jack handle tells me he raised the car with a floor jack, then crawled under the car between the front wheels and placed the jack stand with the handle facing the opposite wheel. I wonder if the owners manual warn against such placements. When I place a jack stand, I always do it while crouching on the outside perimeter of the car after it's jacked up so the handle is naturally facing away from the car.

I have posted this in 3 different Bmw forums that I frequent (bimmerforums)
as well as my two blogs. I don't think we can ever talk too much about safety. We mourn two fellow gear heads, dead in the last two weeks, crushed by their cars. Enough is enough.

Stay safe, fellas. It can happen to you.

http://mercedesdieselrebuildingdiederich.blogspot.com/

http://baurspotting.blogspot.com/