Japanese jack stands?
 

Has anyone else noticed that the service manual calls for "pinch weld preserving" jack stand tips, along with some rather unusual looking jack stands? I had never seen anything like them, and many hours scouring forums I never found the "rubber attachment" (pinch weld preserver) that was shown in the manual.

Sure you can get it for a jack itself, but not for jack stands. Well I happened across these and was shocked to see that they perfectly matched what I was seeing in the manual. Has anyone bought or used Japanese jack stands to help protect their pinch welds?

I believe the popular modern US jack stand design was developed to support body on frame trucks and cars, and has never evolved to accommodate current uni-body construction.

I've seen people use slotted hockey pucks and the like. I just say screw it.

I can come up with 10 reasons why I couldn't be buggered to do it right; but it just seems so janky and amateur hour. Are we really turning to new gearheads and saying "yeah if you want to lift your car there's no market development so you'll use tools designed from 1970's to life frame'd trucks. Alternatively here's a butter knife and some hockey pucks, maybe you can make something that works?"

I guess the rich people tell their kids to use JackPoint stands. But I feel like an 18 y/o buying his first real car should be able to buy safe, proper jackstands down at a local store that are cheap, extremely heavy, but work right and safely. Japan seems to have it down.

Most jack stands I have seen have a cut out in the middle of the supports to clear the pinch weld. I know the 3 pairs I have do. If you're worried about scratching you could purchase the urethane protectors that slip over the supports themselves. EBay has them for about $20 for a set of 4. I personally use the hockey puck method on my hydraulic lift. Works like a champ.

Yeah I think I'll go the hockey puck route. My whole research started because my HF rubber "tip protectors" still sliced the paint right off the welds, and that just annoyed me.