Floor Jack Question

[Bobcat]

Panavia ... the problem with using air for a jack is that air is very compressible . Another problem is that it is very hard to meter air so you get smooth operation ... unless you use an air over oil system . Also , you are limited to the pressure you can develop with air using your either "body power " or a shop air system . Shop air is around 125 psi or in some cases 250 psi . Compressed air is a bomb waiting to go off when the pressures get high . The basic formula is : F = P x A ( Force = Pressure x Area ) . Hydraulics has the advantage of smooth control and small size because of the higher pressures used .
However , I`m old enough to remember the old air jacks at Service stations .... but they were pretty good size and weight and not very portable .
However , if all you want to do is get the car up in the air and then down and don`t care about control and have a high pressure compressor , then air might work ok .... but hydraulics works better .... can you tell I spent 30 + years in the hydraulics industry ??