hydros.biz Lowrider hydraulics information

I think one of the main things a Newbie can do is to learn about the dangers of hydraulics.

1) When I started out, I was using these old used aircraft cylinders. One day I had the car topped off in the parking lot of my favorite hydraulic store, Earls Industrial Supply. Well as I was walking to my car, bamm, I saw the car just drope to one side. The o-ring had poped out inside the cylinder, good thing I was not working under it at the time. The shaft head was so worn, that the fluid pushed the o-ring down and past the head.

2) Another time, I had a hose pop on me and then again bamm to the ground. Ever since then I use jack stands while working under any vehicle, hydros or not. If it can fall, sooner or later, it will.

3) It's another good thing I wear glasses, cause another time I was using the switches holding the trunk lid open. All of the sudden the block cracked. It sent fluid all in my face. Now when this shoots out it's like a nerrow stream of fluid, just like at the high-pressure washers at the car wash. Very deadly in the eyes. The glasses saved my eyes.

3) Then I had a battery pop, same thing, all in my face. I had just finished hopping and was looking around in the trunk. Somehow I caused a spark "POP" all this acid hit me in the face, hair and shirt. I had some water in the car and used that to try to rinse my face and shirt, but if it were not for the glasses I was wearing I could be screwed today.

4) I once had a cylinder shot out across the alley at less than a 100 PSI. I swear it would have put someone in the ER. It must have been going 50 MPH or more. I was just trying to get the shaft out the casing. The end cap was off and I was using compressed air in the fitting.

5) And yet, another time we were scraping and hit a small man hole. My partner jammed his knee up into the glove box when the car just stopped dead in it's tracks. Since no one was really ever hurt bad, it's just a part of the fun of having hydros. After that I never scraped in an area I never been before.


NONE HYDRO RELATED
Another deadly area is working with coils. I'll take some PICs and show how to remove coil springs using a floorjack and jack stands, Not fast, but really safe.

Also, when using the large screw bolt like spring compressors with fingers, these are really unsafe. They can pop loose and mess up your hand real bad.

I like to use another type, from the inside coil and have the coil tilt toward the inside, This make the job easier and a little safer when working on none lifted cars. --Just a little helpful hint.

If this make no sense, PICs always help.


Maybe others can give a few details on what to watch out for. One thing I can say is to buy new and the best.

I was adjusting pressure in my accumuators mounted under my front fenders.  Any way, no jack stands and as I was adjusting pressure I slipped and opened the valve too much letting pressure out.  The car started to  drop faster than I could get my arms out.  Thank god I got the valve close in time to stop the car dropping to the point of breaking my arms.  BUT I WAS STUCK and had to yell as load as I could until my wife came out of the house in a hurry and hit the switch up on my car to get my arms out....



AND AS A SIDE NOTE, I was reading Layitlow and read this one guy was using a piston pump and during dis-assembly, didn't realize pressure was still in the tank.  The unit blew apart and crushed his skull in.  He is alive and fine but was SEVERLY HURT AND NEARLY KILLED because of this....    I hope he can come here and tell his own story....



Editors note: Jack stands or large blocks of wood,  might have helped out. [/b]

Damn, scary stuff. Thanks for the tip. But you know, good thing she didn't drop it. I keep the slot on the switch to remind me which way is up.

I see your book in LRM!!
and
www.showtimehydraulics.com

2 things that happens to me.

Once I was doing something with the batties and had the battery tie down bar fall across a bank of 36v shorting out 36v.It shot a bunch of sparks,I went blind for a little, and the batties had a few too many holes in them.


other than that,I was messing with the switches, examining the movment of the rear end after we had installed some powerballs (prohopper) and flipped the car into a move like if I was going to 3-wheel using weight,but the trunk had hardly any weight in it, and the car was facing down hill as an angle.The back tire was so unweighted that it just skidded the pavement as the car started rolling down hill.luckily i got the the switches in time to get traction to all four before it rolled into the ditch.I put blocks under the front now when I'm trying stuff out

Good to hear nothing bad really happened. Good information too.  

Once I driving by and seen these guys working on their car. The car was facing down hill and they had jacked up the rear. The car started to roll over the jacks and was about to head down hill. I jumped out and helped them stop the car from rolling into traffic.

Hard lesson to learn. They should have turned the car around to face uphill and then jacked the rear up. Or better yet, used flat ground.
 

Jack stands or large blocks of wood can save your life or limbs. Don't use concrete blocks. Don't use would piled on each other for height. The best thing to use is tree stumps.

Don't use jack stands on soft ground. I once seen a tactor trailer sink into the pavement. The weight of the trailer forced the jack stand straight down and the trailer was tilting sideways.

What might help is to use 2x4 studs of wood uinder the stand. But remember, old or damaged wood can also crack on you.  

Anyone ever have that threaded cap on the bottom of the cylinder un-thread at a red light??? Freakin crazy, top half flys into the air and the only thing stopping it was the hose. Fluid EVERYWHERE.Nothing nice!    
 

I've seen photos of a leg of a guy who had a pinhole in his forklift hose.

A pinhole in his thigh -> the whole muscle had to be removed, b/c it was filled with oil. Looked disgusting.

That is sincerely messed up. Also, watch out for power washers and airless paint sprayers.  

Good place for a 1st post :D

early this year when i swapped out the bags with the juice i over tightened the rear JIC connections and i had two busted hoses in a week!
Funny part is i had to drive home with the car on a lean, grindin a rear arm and drippin oil.
1st time i was like 2 mins from home, but the second time i had a good 10 minutes road comin back from the supermarket.
Thank fuck i didnt cross any law enforcment squad as it would have been bigtrouble.
Some funny faces on the sidewalks thou :)

Yes that is an exploded and split open piston tank that shot out of the bottom of the trunk. Neighbors windows were broken, trunk sheet metal split, and the bomb squad made a visit.  A guy living 2 1/2 miles away said he might have heard it.

This could have killed, I was extremely lucky, I learned long ago, never be in front of a car or behind a car when someone is starting, never be in line with the radiator fan, and this time, if it's a unknown, position yourself to avoid injury if something goes very wrong.

I do have the video, my back was turned to it, and you can see the yellow blaze appear and fade looking at it frame by frame, there was no sound from the camera I was using. Too bad it was not a real video camera, it might have caught the sound of the BOOOOOOOM.

Holy ****!