A toe jack lifts from ground level. The toe slides under a machine base with as little as 25 mm of clearance, which is where a bottle jack cannot go, and lifts from there. This one also lifts from the head in the conventional way, and the housing revolves through 360 degrees so the pump handle can be positioned wherever there is room to work it. Overload protection is built in. Three capacities: 5, 10 and 25 tonnes.
Key Features
- Toe lift from 25 mm: The 5 tonne jack gets under a machine with 25 mm of clearance and lifts to 230 mm. That is the whole reason for a toe jack.
- Lifts from head or toe: Head range 368 mm to 573 mm on the 5 tonne, so one jack covers both ground-level and conventional lifting.
- 360° rotating housing: The body turns so the pump lever can be worked from any convenient position, which matters in confined spaces.
- Overload protection built in: Prevents the jack developing more force than it is rated for.
- Removable pump lever: Allows accurate adjustment and stores compactly.
- Modest operating effort: 25 kg of lever force for 5 tonnes, 102 kg for 25 tonnes.
- Fully marked: CE, capacity, height of lift, year of manufacture and traceability code.
Technical Specifications
| Product Code |
Part No. |
Capacity (kgs) |
Lifting Range of Foot (mm) |
Lifting Range of Head (mm) |
Max Lever Force (kgs) |
Weight (kgs) |
| GTHJ5 |
HM50 |
5,000 |
25 - 230 |
368 - 573 |
25 |
20 |
| GTHJ10 |
HM100 |
10,000 |
30 - 260 |
420 - 650 |
35 |
35 |
| GTHJ25 |
HM250 |
25,000 |
58 - 273 |
505 - 720 |
102 |
100 |
Toe lift range is the height of the toe above the ground at minimum and maximum extension. Note the 25 tonne weighs 100 kg and is a two-person lift to position.
CE Marked | Overload Protection | Capacity and Traceability Marked | PUWER
Marked with CE, capacity, height of lift, year of manufacture and traceability code. Overload protection built into each unit. Work equipment under PUWER 1998, requiring pre-use inspection and maintenance in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. Jacks are for lifting only and are not designed to support a load.
Suitable Applications
Toe jacks are standard equipment for machinery installation and moving, working alongside skates and roller crowbars. The toe gets under a machine base to raise it enough to place skates, and the head lift handles conventional jacking. Typical use covers machine tool installation, plant relocation, rail and track work, shipbuilding and heavy fabrication. The 360-degree housing earns its keep in confined plant rooms where there is only one position from which the lever can be operated.
More About This Product
Jacks are the most familiar lifting equipment on any site and the most casually used. Almost everyone has used one; almost nobody has read the instructions, and the failure modes are consistent enough that they are worth stating plainly.
The first is working under a load on a jack alone. The second is jacking on a floor that will not take the point load. Both are entirely predictable and both keep happening.
Point Loading and Why Floors Fail
A jack concentrates the entire load onto a base of a few square centimetres, and that is a fundamentally different loading case from the load sitting on its own feet.
A machine weighing four tonnes spread across a wide base plate imposes a manageable pressure on a slab. The same four tonnes on a bottle jack base is concentrated enough to punch through a thin slab, crack a screed, or find a void that nobody knew was there. Floors that carry a static load comfortably fail under jacks routinely, and it happens without warning because there is nothing to see beforehand.
The practical answers are a spreader plate under the jack to distribute the load, and knowing what is under the floor before you start. Expansion joints, service ducts, suspended slabs and basements all change the answer, and none of them is visible from above.
The same applies at the top. Bearing on a sheet panel, a cover plate or bodywork rather than a structural point transfers the whole load into something not designed to take it. Find the structural point, and use a saddle or block to spread the load onto it.
Then crib as you lift, and transfer the load to rated stands before anyone approaches. A jack is a lifting device. Stands are a supporting device. They are not interchangeable and the distinction is what keeps people alive.
How to Use the Hydraulic Toe Jack
- Check the clearance: The toe needs its minimum height to get under, 25 mm on the 5 tonne, 58 mm on the 25 tonne.
- Find a solid bearing point: The toe must bear on structural base metal, not cladding or a trim panel.
- Stand the jack on firm level ground: Use spreader plates on soft or uneven surfaces.
- Rotate the housing for access: Position the pump lever where it can be worked comfortably and safely.
- Lift in stages, cribbing as you go: A jack lifts; it does not support. Place blocking or stands as the load rises.
- Never work under a jacked load: Support the load on rated stands or cribbing before anyone goes near it.
- Lower under control: Release the valve slowly and watch the load throughout.
Warning: A jack is a lifting device, not a supporting device. Never work under a load supported only by a jack. Always crib or use rated stands. Never exceed the marked capacity or attempt to defeat the overload protection.
Safety Information
- Never exceed the marked capacity.
- Never work under a load supported only by a jack.
- Support the load on rated stands or cribbing before going near it.
- The toe must bear on solid structural metal.
- Stand the jack on firm level ground, using spreader plates where necessary.
- Do not attempt to defeat the overload protection.
- Use only the supplied lever; never extend it.
- Lower slowly and under control.
- Inspect for leaks, damage and correct operation before every use.
Inspection and Maintenance
Hydraulic equipment tells you when it is unwell through leaks and through feel. Check for oil weeping around the ram seal, the base and the release valve, since a jack that leaks under load is a jack that will settle under load. Test the lift and lower action through full travel, feeling for sponginess that indicates air in the system or a failing seal. Inspect the toe for wear, chipping and deformation, and the head saddle for damage. Check the ram surface for scoring or corrosion, which destroys seals. Confirm the housing still rotates freely and the lever socket is not worn. Keep oil topped to the correct level with the specified grade.
Downloads
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is a toe jack for?
Lifting from ground level. The toe slides under a machine base with very little clearance, 25 mm on the 5 tonne model, and lifts from there. A bottle jack needs far more room underneath, which a machine sitting flat on the floor does not offer.
Q: Why does the housing rotate?
So the pump lever can be worked from wherever there is room. In a plant room with a machine against a wall there may be only one accessible side, and a fixed-orientation jack might put the lever somewhere unusable.
Q: Can I leave a load standing on the jack?
No. A jack lifts; it does not support. Seals leak, valves creep, and a load left on a jack will eventually come down. Crib the load or use rated stands before anyone works near it, and treat that as absolute.
Q: Head lift or toe lift?
The toe is for getting under a load at ground level. The head is a conventional jacking pad for lifting from a higher bearing point. One jack does both, which is part of the appeal.
Q: What effort does it take to operate?
25 kg of lever force at 5 tonnes and 35 kg at 10 tonnes, both comfortably one-person. The 25 tonne needs 102 kg, which is a genuine effort and takes a fit operator or two people. Worth knowing before specifying the largest unit.
