It took 7 full swings of the handle to go from the absolute lowest position to full height unloaded. I used the jack to lift my heaviest vehicle a 90s suburban and it did it with ease, as it should with a 3 ton rating.The jack has a set screw I was able to loosen by hand to install the handle. The jack arrived in great shape with no signs of damage from being shipped due to all of the padding in the box. I measured a 3 3/8ths as a low 19 13/16ths as a high, so the factory stated measurements seem accurate. The rubber pad included should help protect the paint and finish and took the weight of the suburban and still looks like its in good shape.