Originally Posted by eljefino
Do you know why it was recalled? If they had substandard material in the welds you'd never know by looking. Of course that swings both ways-- the "good" set may not have had its achilles heel discovered yet.
And it's not a brand or COO thing, they can all make a bad batch. Just be happy we're more litigious now than we were 40 years ago when we didn't think about such things, which makes recalls over "small things" more likely.
IIRC, supposedly worn tooling caused the teeth on the ratcheting load bar To be too shallow to completely engage the pawl. I think it affected the HF 6 ton stands made during a certain period of time.
As for a "safer" jack stand, I have the double pawl US Jack 6 ton stands which are nice. A decade ago, the 6 ton stands were rated PER stand. However, more recently, I think they have converted to national standards, and have now labeled the same stands as PER PAIR (US JACK D-41610 6 Ton Garage Stands Made In USA
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P248NYO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_VAhXEb92THC3D). Alternatively, I would consider the ratcheting jack stands with the secondary pin that can be inserted. (Something like this: Pro-LifT T-6906D Double Pin Jack Stand - 6 Ton, 1 Pack
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074R17GL4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_CuhXEbMWSBZC5 )There are multiple labels that do this now. Pin only engaged stands are usually beefier too. (Sunex 1210 10-Ton Low Height Pin Type Jack Stands, Pair
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0093NBQ7G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_szhXEb1WEQNHJ)
I'm any case, if I'm working under the car, there are usually 2 different sets of jack stands - the ones in use, and a backup pair (placed under say where the control arms join with the subframe just in case.