I know trolley jack discussions must have been done here many times…
Just spotted this on eBay http://www.amazon.co.uk/Liftmaster-Aluminium-Profile-Racing-Trolley/dp/B002QO8E7E/ref=?ie=UTF8&m=A2HS2T450HFRX
Lifts from three inches high, so should get under the diff and subframes of an MX5?
Looks quite nice - does anyone have one of these?
Mazda-mender has one, drop him a PM 
I does have one of them there racing jacks Speedy, as you as used it mucka at Blyton 
Very Light and low and does the job well , what i will say is once you have lifted the roadster up, get her straight on a axle stands,( as you should do anyway) do not leave it with the weight on it as it will pop a seal.
Very good for the price, A1 for the home fettler, 3T version is even better, but not needed for home use, check out e-bay as they can be found cheaper if you search, but a big thumbs up from me…get one.
M-m
It looks identical to my Machine Mart one which fits under the MX5 ok and so far has worked fine. I did find some of the Allen screws that hold it together worked loose so now check them occasionally.
Yeah
They are all made by the same makers, with just the who evers Co stickers on.
M-m
I was considering one of these (below). Seems like same sort of thing but steel (so heavier). Mine will be for occasional use in garage (not planning to transport it anywhere) so at the price looks better than general offerings at halfrauds and the like. Any thoughts…?
I was looking at that one as well as the ally one. Ally one would be to take out to change rear wheels at Autotests.
I also looked at this one which is similar but slightly up market and IIRC has the facility for the handle to be used at an angle to the jack
This was before MX5 as my other car is if anything lower…
I’m sorry to report that mine from Machine Mart has a slight oil leak from the pump. It’s about 2 years old but only ever used on the MX5, about a dozen times.
I bought one of these about four years ago from Argos would you believe! I find it very useful although the price has shot up since I bought mine. I find the large flat lifting saddle a boon for jacking under the subframe or the diff. A lot of jacks have a small saddle with claws, these can inflict damage. I agree the allen screws do work loose, Perhaps they were never tightened correctly during manufacture. The two side rails are a nuisance, I removed mine. Lastly, as with any jack maintenance is neglected by many, oil all the pivots periodically.
Regards Geoff Peace.
The only down-side I have with these Liftmaster UK and Clarke 1.25T racing jacks is that the lift pump is a very simple but ultimately flawed design, it has no relief valve and as such it it very easy to over-pressurise the lift cylinder at full height + an extra half-pump, this results in the end of the hydraulc pump shearing and cracking off resulting in a £40 bill and an hours` labour to replace the cylinder 
in fairness, good service from Liftmaster UK though.
Dr. Eunos
I read your post with interest Taff . I went to my garage to test my jack and you are absolutely right, there is no relief valve the handle does resist any further pumping but I can see it could result in damage if someone was heavy handed. I wonder if you would be so kind as to give more details on the damage to your jack and who did you contact for spare parts?
Regards Geoff Peace.
The head of the main lift cylinder simply cracked and then a week later it totally fractured, they are only cast and not able to take a lot of operator abuse 
I think what happened to it was…the car had been lowered onto axle stands (and lightly resting on the jack also) and when it came to removing the stands I had pumped it up but it ran out of stroke on the cylinder while the handle was half way down and still being pushed.
Machine Mart wanted £65!! for the parts and were as good as useless so far as customer service were concerned.
Lift-Master UK are the actual manufacturer/ importer of the jack sold in Machine Mart and labelled as a Clarke 1.25T Aluminium Low Level Racing Jack and were far more helpful with regard to sending out the part to fix it, think it was about £40 delivered. I contacted them via here on Ebay
There are often a ready-supply of broken jacks of this type on Ebay for people to buy and cost-effectively repair rather than buying from Machine Mart.
Yep, I bought that one from eBay £40, great little jack, very low with similar lift range to alu one and same weight believe it or not (smaller but lifts nearly as high within 10mm) has 2 ton capacity and made of steel, easily fits under sills. Great for use under car as second jack when on ramps as well. Only real downside is the handle is of the separate type, bayonet out to use as a key on the lowering valve, rather than the fixed handle twist to open/close valve type.
thankyou for the information Taff.
Regards Geoff Peace.
I bought on a whim the steel Liftmaster £35 trolley jack.
When I received the jack, I was disappointed that it took 26 pumps to raise it to it’s maximum height but what do you expect for £35 when it has a minimum saddle height of 80mm and there was no mention of a quick lift facility on the ebay advert.
The other problem is that both the diff and the front cross member are approx. 900mm in from the back and front of the car. Therefore as the jack is only approx. 550mm long, you cannot use the supplied handle to raise the jack as the skirts are too low when the car is on the ground and my car is not lowered.
To get a long trolley jack at that length and with a low saddle is probably nearer £400 if you look at machine mart.
Therefore as all the jacks mentioned here are of a very similar length apart from using a short bar to get them started how do you guys use these jacks on an MX5.
Hi Eddie,
Yes you’ve hit the nail on the head there; what else is there, and even then you find you have to look at the height of the jack body, as well as the saddle, and the angle the handle will work from.
That’s a good little jack and will go in at the sides with room for a block of wood to protect and spread the load.
If you need the centre jacking points, ramp then jack, or jack at the sides and put stands in first,
I like the reversed ramps Rich. before I had a pit installed [back in the day in the UK] I used to drive onto a pair of ramps then lift the rear onto another pair, but facing the opposire way. The car was then on a very solid platform
So what we actally need is a two post ramp, let’s stop messing about here with trolley jacks!!!
Yes, a pit or a ramp, loverlee, but til the win comes in a jack and stands will do fine for most things 
Here’s mine in action today, room for wood under the jack to save the tarmac and on the saddle to save the car…
