DIY/Wood Car Stands(Cribbing)...Let's see them!

BruceMc · May 29, 2018

I had some old 4x6s that had twisted themselves enough that they weren't worth salvaging, so I cut them up into short lengths for cribbing. They're spiked at the corners, and are hell-to-stout for just about anything you'd want to put on them, very stable even on rough ground, and yet light enough to carry with one hand. With a couple of loose, single pieces on top you can fine tune them.

bigb56 · Mar 10, 2019

I have a big pile of 2x4s left over from some work on the garage and was thinking about building some of these, what do you guys think about using them on a 9,000 lb crew cab Superduty?

MotoCARR · Mar 10, 2019

I’m sure it would be fine. They make crazy cracking sounds when first putting weight on them but besides that, they work great. I wouldn’t be worried about the weight.

3rdgendslmech · Mar 10, 2019

I'll chime in on this, I've been a heavy equpment mechanic for 20+ years.
The only real "stands" we had were in the shop and could hold up 20-50 tons. On our service trucks we carried 8-12" oak blocks.
I've had a Cat D8K (weighs around 88 thousand lbs) up on blocks and have never seen a block fail. Obviously you dont want to use rotten or split blocks on something that heavy. Usually the transition from ground to block is what will kill your block.

I had the transmission out of my superduty back in January and worried I would need an engine hoist I put 8" pine blocks under the front wheels. Jack stands usually have a habit of getting in the way of the legs of the lift.

Try to avoid "bridging" ( when there are gaps under the center of the stands) when you are putting them under wheels. Over time they can settle or even break and collapse

touring1 · Jul 11, 2019

Re: DIY/Wood Car Stands(Cribbing)..Corner weighting racecar

Excellent, I'm going to be corner weighting my racecar, first time, and this is just the design idea I need cuz it needs to be on the wheels, and cross-levelled. Next how to figure the shimming to get it within a RCH of cross and fore-aft level.

Built out of 2x4 for a trans/clutch swap. Worked great. When done I put two side by side and made a flat top out of 2x4 and we use it as a sitting bench in the garage.[/QUOTE]

LS6 Tommy · Jul 12, 2019

Re: DIY/Wood Car Stands(Cribbing)..Corner weighting racecar

touring1 said:
Excellent, I'm going to be corner weighting my racecar, first time, and this is just the design idea I need cuz it needs to be on the wheels, and cross-levelled. Next how to figure the shimming to get it within a RCH of cross and fore-aft level.

Why not just use the pad at the track? Corner weighting is an hour job, tops.
We used to check corner weights at each different track and record everything in the setup log...

Tommy

Hacker-Pschorr · Jul 6, 2020

Figured better to bump this up than start a new thread.

This is a follow-up to this thread:
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=422049

I ended up with a pair of these, from the same guy I bought the lift from:
http://www.briansrepairables.com/#!/listing/Titan/592b8060e080fddd0a097461

I tested the idea using two of these on the rear of the car, worked great. To support the car while I'm working on it, I used a 6x6 piece of timber cut down to 10" lengths, one under each jack stand location.

The only problem is 6" isn't high enough, 10 - 12" would be perfect.

What would be safer.

Option 1: 10x10 piece of treated timber:
https://www.menards.com/main/buildi...rough-sawn-timber/1113039/p-1444422349635.htm

Option 2: Multiple pieces of 2x10 lumber screwed together

11" is the minimum to rest the car on the stand and still being able to get the wheel off. I figured when needed, could put a 2x10 under the piece of timber for a bit more lift.

bulletpruf · Nov 19, 2023

Going to build at least one pair of these today. I have seven 2x4x8's; if I cut them into 16" lengths, I think I will have enough for two stands, around 15" tall. I may add some blocks in between so the load is getting to the floor instead of just the corners. Something like these but with blocks in between -

I need them to swap a rebuilt TH400 in my '68 Lemans convt. I have four 6-ton jack stands, and a few larger jack stands (10 ton?) but jack stands lifted up that high always make me nervous, and I need to get it pretty high to slide the TH400 under, especially when it's sitting on trans jack.

Scott

bulletpruf · Nov 19, 2023

Floor jack that I'm using.

Tools of the trade.

First batch of 16" 2x4's.

Screwed together with 4" blocks on the sides where the tires will sit so it helps spread the load to the floor.

Mike65 · Nov 20, 2023

imagineer said:
It's not exactly cribbing, but it is made using dimensional lumber and some scrap plywood.

FWIW, I also made some 12" lumber 'cubes' that I position under cars when I'm using jack stands.

I call them "body blocks" and the idea is, should I knock the car off the stands while I'm under it, the body blocks will stop the car from crushing me, allowing an opportunity to escape. It only takes a few seconds to slide them under the car and affords me a little peace of mind.

I like the idea of the body blocks. I have some spare lumber & plywood leftover from some projects in my woodshop. I might have to make a couple since my Mustang is now up on jack stands while I am running new fuel lines.

bulletpruf · Nov 20, 2023

Mike65 said:
I like the idea of the body blocks. I have some spare lumber & plywood leftover from some projects in my woodshop. I might have to make a couple since my Mustang is now up on jack stands while I am running new fuel lines.

I'm a big fan of redundancy when it comes to jack stands and such.

4xdog · Nov 20, 2023

My dad taught me to use short wood beams for cribbing as a kid 55+ years ago. He learned it, almost certainly, from his father, who worked for years as a rigger of heavy machinery.

Here's my grandfather on some sort of steam shovel dismantling project in northeastern Ohio in (probably) the early-mid 1940s. No worries about the cribbing here.

bulletpruf · Nov 20, 2023

Awesome pics! Thanks for sharing!

bulletpruf · Nov 24, 2023

Got the cribbing built and was able to get the car on it without issues using a long reach HF Daytona 3 ton jack that lifts to 23". Car feels very sturdy and stable. I am still about 1" too short to get the trans underneath the car on the jack, so I'll use a 2 x 10 block on the jack saddle to get an extra 1 3/4".

larry4406 · Nov 24, 2023

@bulletpruf nice stands! I would be very comfortable working under the car with those.

Nice goat, even down to the black PMD caps!

bulletpruf · Nov 24, 2023

larry4406 said:
@bulletpruf nice stands! I would be very comfortable working under the car with those.

Nice goat, even down to the black PMD caps!

Thanks. Car has been frame-on restored. I built a strong pump gas 455 for it; runs pretty good.

bulletpruf · Nov 25, 2023

Ended up filming a video of the wheel cribbing construction and getting the car up on it. Link -

lakeroadster · Nov 25, 2023

I have two of each size, built from 2 x 6 Pressure treated and T1-11 siding. Built them right after we built our 1998 unattached garage and deck project. Use the drive up ramps (see Camaro photo), then lift the rear with a floor jack, then lift the front with the floor jack.

While they work great and I used them to build my '31 Ford and '27 Ford I finally caved and bought a Rotary Lift in 2007. Then moved it in 2016 to our new place up in the mountains.

Kail · Nov 25, 2023

I have worked in professional shops for 20 years, we always have these around, handy for keeping suspension loaded.
This is a set I have for my home shop. I do 2x4’s in the middle for top layer to help keep from digging in the tire, I also add a set of 2x4’s on the side on at least one block as a safety measure to keep the vehicle from rolling off.
I never added all the extra blocks in the middle layers, never noticed the need. That also makes them heavier to move around and harder to grab since not a lot of room get a handle on it. But whatever makes you feel better is fine by me.
Another alternative that I like is the race ramp blocks. They have always worked great.

Old Man Roger · Nov 25, 2023

I’m guessing this guy probably has a set.

no4njunk · Feb 24, 2026

Two 6x6 "x8' ($12. each) per crib, (Lowes) 24" long 12" wide ,6" nails 11" high will make wheel chocks when other ones are done

Old Man Roger · Feb 24, 2026

no4njunk said:
Two 6x6 "x8' ($12. each) per crib, (Lowes) 24" long 12" wide ,6" nails 11" high will make wheel chocks when other ones are done

Working on tanks? Lol

bulletpruf · Feb 24, 2026

Old Man Roger said:
Working on tanks? Lol

I think you could park a bulldozer on a set of those.

Oldsmobile · Feb 24, 2026

Would solid cribbing like shown in this thread be sufficient to support a bottle jack and a few-hundred-pound load? I have a possible need to unbolt a subframe on a W-body GM and support it while I replace a power steering line. I have Quickjacks but trying to figure out the way to support that subframe with minimum access issues.

Stuart in MN · Feb 24, 2026

For only a few hundred pounds, no problem.

bulletpruf · Feb 24, 2026

bulletpruf said:
Ended up filming a video of the wheel cribbing construction and getting the car up on it. Link -

What I find amusing - I have 60+ videos on my YouTube channel - rebuilding engines, transmissions, rescuing vintage bulldozers, etc. But the video of me sawing up 2x4's and screwing them together is by far my most popular, closing in on 400k views.

no4njunk · Feb 25, 2026

bulletpruf said:
I think you could park a bulldozer on a set of those.

no4njunk · Feb 25, 2026

exactly.

no4njunk · Feb 25, 2026

Old Man Roger said:
Working on tanks? Lol

$120 budget _uck cutting all those 2x4's Ps yes I like Budget Overkill EHH

logical · Feb 25, 2026

I snagged these modern lightweight interpretations by RaceRamps on Craigslist. Luckily the guy didn't know how expensive they are and I paid less than the cost of a dozen 2x4's.

NUTTSGT · Feb 25, 2026

Oldsmobile said:
Would solid cribbing like shown in this thread be sufficient to support a bottle jack and a few-hundred-pound load? I have a possible need to unbolt a subframe on a W-body GM and support it while I replace a power steering line. I have Quickjacks but trying to figure out the way to support that subframe with minimum access issues.

I wouldn't see why not. This technique is used and has been used for decades for lifting houses for foundation work.

ATC · Feb 25, 2026

I've got an old picture somewhere around here (pre-smartphone days) of some scraps I threw together when I needed the height for a rear axle swap:

logical · Feb 25, 2026

no4njunk said:
...

what?

gba2331 · Feb 25, 2026

I’m wondering how you get the vehicle jacked up so high to make clearance for the cribbing. Someone mentioned a high-lift jack but I assume most don’t have one. Do you place the jack in cribbing to get it up as you go higher? My truck is already high so my normal jack won’t get it too high.

Old Man Roger · Feb 25, 2026

A lot of cribbing can be stacked like jenga. Jack a little, stack a little, use a block to jack a little more, then stack a little more.

Ak Jim · Feb 25, 2026

Old Man Roger said:
A lot of cribbing can be stacked like jenga. Jack a little, stack a little, use a block to jack a little more, then stack a little more.

This is what I do. I do one corner at a time. I go around the car and go up 3” on each lift. Sure it takes a while but there are always 3 tires solidly resting on the cribbing. Maybe I should build a shop and get a lift but that’s a problem for a different day.

gba2331 · Feb 25, 2026

Old Man Roger said:
use a block to jack a little more

But at some point that block is kinda tall, which seems dangerous.

dscheidt · Feb 25, 2026

gba2331 said:
But at some point that block is kinda tall, which seems dangerous.

If your cribbing is stable, it is fine. You just have to do each corner a little bit, move to the next, and so on. Bottle jacks and other linear lifting jacks (screw, railroad ratchet, etc) are much better for this than a rolling floor jacks.

When Chicago raised the base grade of the city, thousands of buildings were lifted 10 feet using jacks and wooden cribs. That includes 4 and 5 story masonry buildings that were raised while they were occupied.

gba2331 · Feb 26, 2026

dscheidt said:
If your cribbing is stable, it is fine.

I’m not worried about the cribbing, I’m worried about the 6-12" block I have to put on top of my jack to get in the next level of cribbing.

dscheidt said:
When Chicago raised the base grade of the city, thousands of buildings were lifted 10 feet using jacks and wooden cribs

Where did they place the jacks? On top of other cribbing next to the corners? Apologies if I’m being dense.

cmandp · Feb 26, 2026

@gba2331 you're saying a tall block on the saddle of a rolling floor jack I believe. I would agree that that can get sketchy once you get more than a couple of pieces of wood stacked together. I have used several pieces of 2x4 and plywood flat on the saddle without harm but that was less than 6" total. Wood has the advantage of deforming and friction to keep it in place I wouldn't do the same with steel.

Typically I would try to crib under the jack but that doesn't really work with rolling floor jacks unless you can create a large enough pad so it can move a few inches as you lift, which is doable, but I don't have big enough scraps of wood lying around for that.

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