Our jack was sent to Jules’ office but for some reason she was too lazy to bring it home on the tube so we had to drive in to pick it up.

As it was second hand, I lovingly pulled it apart, cleaned the grime and oiled the bits that needed oil and following that a miracle occurred – I managed to put it back together.

As we don’t have jacking points on the car yet, I was unable to try it out – kind of like being good enough to get a present from Father Christmas, but not quite good enough to get batteries, knowing that the shops are also closed on Boxing day.  While Jules was lying in bed reading, I jacked up the bed, but after that bollocking I was relegated to the lounge to jack up the couch.

It is an amazing piece of kit, with a load capacity of over 2 tons.  It has a number of uses, from changing tyres, to vehicle recovery and even as a jaws of life.  One thing you quickly learn is that it is not a toy and can cause serious injury if not used correctly – something I can testify to, having painfully stubbed my toe.

This link was very useful in pulling the jack apart to clean it and put it back together again.