Ever tried to jack your vehicle up with a bottle jack? It’s scary. Whether you’re on the axle tube or some form of protection like a rock slider. The flat surface of the jack resting on the round surface of your vehicle is just a disaster waiting to happen.
That’s why when I saw the SWAG Off Road Bottle Jack Axle Cradle I thought they were really on to something. They make quality stuff and so this post in no way is a reflection on them. But I was about to buy their adapter when I realized I had some scrap steel lying around and I could probably just make the entire thing myself.
Design
I didn’t take any pictures of the process but I think it’s pretty clear what I did. I measured my axle tubes and my rock sliders to determine the radii to put on each side of the adapter. I oversized all radii a little to make sure it wouldn’t be undersized. The sides are 1/4in wall 1018 steel.
I also decided I didn’t want to have to weld this to my jack. For starters that would make storing and carrying the jack more of a headache than it already is. Secondly there are times when you may just want a jack but without the adapter. For that reason I made a sleeve that would fit over the jack piston but be removable.
Being a Mechanical Engineer and that I had this idea at home I quickly CADed up my design which I’ve included below. Note this is designed for a Nissan Xterra with Hefty Fabworks Rock Sliders. However it should work equally well on any mid-size SUV or truck with Dana 44 or equivalent axles and similarly sized rock sliders.
Fabrication
I made the round cuts with a plasma cutter. Unfortunately I was unable to make the smaller round cutouts very smooth so they came out a little squarish. But I was pretty pleased with how the larger round cutouts looked.
I cut the tube down on a lathe to the drawing. I then stick welded it all together using some 1/8in E6011 rods.
I don’t claim to be a hardcore welder so I wasn’t too embarrassed to take the final assembly to the grinding wheel to break the corners and even out a few spots on the welds. The last step was a few coats of Rustoleum Professional Primer and Enamel Gloss Safety Yellow. In general I’ve been super impressed by the durability of these products. However the yellow seems to chip much more easily than the flat black I use much more often. I chose the yellow for visibility in use and don’t regret that decision, but it has chipped some.
Improvements
Overall the adapter has met or exceeded my expectations. My friends that have seen it in use on the trail have all been impressed. However there is one small issue and that is with the tube on the bottom. It is just long enough that on level ground I struggle to get it onto the jack and the jack under the axle. Normally I’m in soft ground and so can dig just a little with the bottle jack for some clearance. But this comes more into play when the tire is flat which is a common scenario for this jack.
If you’re considering doing this project I’d suggest evaluating the height of your jack and axle closely to determine if you should adjust the height of the corresponding parts of this design.
Great idea. Bottle Jack Buddy makes something similar. That’s the smart way to do it.
The Bottle Jack Buddy is perfect
The Bottle Jack Buddy is another good option. For me though I was able to make this for free from scrap I had lying around rather than pay $55 for the Bottle Jack Buddy. And on top of that I made the cutouts match my axle tube and my rock sliders tube so I have a nice custom fit for my vehicle which is something the Bottle Jack Buddy doesn’t do.
Yep, Bottle Jack Buddy is simple, USA made and powder coated. Free two day shipping and it was in my hands! It’s straight up and safe.