The high lift jack can be a very useful tool. It can also be very dangerous if not used properly. It has a ready capacity of almost 5,000 pounds and a testing capacity of 7,000 pounds. The high lift jack can be used for lifting, manual winching, clamping and spreading. But today we're going to focus on its most common use lifting. If you've increased your tire size, that little factory jack is not going to cut it anymore. However, the high lift jack is designed to work on sturdy bumpers or rock rails. It's not going to work on plastic bumpers or factory sheet metal. So before buying a high lift jack, make sure you've got a sturdy lifting point and you know what height to buy. The cast steel or off cast jacks are fine for most people's needs. While the extreme jack has a very useful top clamp for attachments and manual winching. High lift jacks come in several sizes from 3 to 5 feet. So give some thought to where you're going to mount it, outside or store it inside. Look at where others have mounted their jacks and look at the available mounts. There are several accessories available from the high lift jack company and other manufacturers. The off-road base offers a larger footprint and greater support for the jack and snow, mud or sand. The lift mate allows you to lift one tire off the ground so you can fill in under the tire. Just to increase your ground clearance so you can put dirt, rock, brush, even a floor mat underneath there to increase your traction so you can drive off. So let's look at how to safely use a high lift jack. Make sure you wear a pair of good leather work gloves. There's a lot of moving parts on a jack that can really cause injury. If you mount your jack outside your vehicle, rain will wash the lubricants away. So you want to make sure that you lubricate your jack and service it before you go off-road. Oftentimes a brand new jack won't work properly. The paint needs to wear off the bar first. So take it home and practice with it before you even mount it and go off-road. Carry a can of spray lubricant. That way you can spray the jack's lifting mechanism in bar. It'll free it up if it's not working properly. Place the jacks reversing latch in the up position before lifting the tongue beneath the bumper or rock slider and pull up on the handle to bring the tongue into the lifting position. Be sure to lean it back away from the vehicle so that it doesn't damage the door or other sheet metal as it lifts. Use one hand to hold the jack's bar. This will steady it as the vehicle goes up. High lift jacks can be wobbly if the ground is not firm and level. Make sure nothing is between the bar and the handle. Also be sure that the base plate is on firm flat ground. If you need a firmer support, you may want to get an off-road base. When you may find a jack made helpful, it replaces the flat base plate and it wedges in between your rocks. Once you begin to lift, you want to keep your fingers and your head out of this area. This is called the triangle of death for a reason. It can hurt you. Always push down on the jack handle from the top. Never pull from underneath. Once you've raised the vehicle high enough, make sure to snap the jack handle into a locking position. This is so the handle doesn't fall and start to ratchet on its own. It's safer to place a tire or a rock underneath the vehicle. This way it can't fall very far and you do not want to work underneath the vehicle. It's supported only by a jack. Once you've made your repair, make sure everyone's clear. Put the reversing latch in a downward position and start lowering your vehicle. You lower the vehicle by moving the jack handle up and down. Take full strokes and wait for the click at the bottom of each stroke. When the weight comes off the jack, the lifting mechanism will suddenly drop to the bottom of the bar. Place the reversing latch back into the up position before storing the jack. This will prevent the lifting mechanism from sliding up and down the bar.