How I chose my 2 post lift (BendPak XPR-10ACX)

ghlkal · Apr 8, 2009

After months of research and indecision :headscrat

, I finally made a decision: I’m purchasing a BendPak XPR-10ACX 2 post lift for my shop.

I want to thank all of the garagejournal users who have posted their thoughts on lifts. I had been lurking on this site for several months before I joined. There are a lot of folks on here who have been very willing to answer my questions.

FWIW, I’ll share my thoughts and reasons … maybe it will help someone else.

Short Answer:
I chose BendPak because of the excellent pre-sales customer support. :thumbup:

Long Answer:
My parameters were: 1) good customer support, 2) certification, 3) about $3000, 4) ability to handle a wide range of vehicles (from my Corvette to my 1500 Silverado).

While I was researching lifts, I contacted a number of manufacturers. While I could find most information online, there was usually something specific I needed to find out, so I’d call or email. I reasoned that the level of response I received would be a pretty good indicator of the support I might receive after the sale.

A number of garagejournal members had positive comments about BendPak. My experience confirms that so far. I contacted Jeff Kritzer (Sr. V.P. of Sales & Marketing at BendPak and GJ member JSK) regarding several questions. He was always quick to respond and took the time to ensure his answers were accurate and thorough.

For Christmas, my wife surprised me with the 3-day Ron Fellows (Spring Mountain) HPDE in Nevada. While I was there, the Spring Mountain facility had a BendPak lift, so I took that as a positive omen too. :bounce:

Although there were two online retailers that sold the XPR-10ACX lift for less (one was fairly close to me), I decided to go with a local retailer (Wilkinson-Capstran in Milwaukee, WI). Unlike the other retailers I contacted, they were willing to come out and look at my garage (I was concerned about installation due to my floor drains). As it turns out, the salesperson was a former student of mine

What I like about the XPR-10ACX:
- the asymmetric (angled) posts which should provide more clearance for opening the doors
- it’s wide (ditto above)
- the arm and lift pad design

Yes, I know the XPR-10ACX is manufactured “off shore.” And, yes, I know not every GJ member is happy with BendPak.

I will post some more background information later. I will also document the installation process and my reactions to the lift once it’s operational.

Gary

ryno · Apr 9, 2009

i think you've made a great choice.
i have the same lift and absolutly love it.

OldCarGuy · Apr 9, 2009

Good choice ghlkal! :beer:

I own both the BendPak XPR-10ACX and a Mohawk System I two-post lifts. Comparing the two is like comparing a Chevrolet Aveo to a Cadillac Escalade. They are both cars and either will get you from point A to point B. The Mohawk is designed and manufactured in the United States and it is way over engineered. The BendPak is engineered in United States and manufactured in China. But will lift any vehicle within its' capacity just like a Mohawk. I would definitely recommend purchasing a BendPak to any home hobbyist. Remember for the price of a Mohawk,, you could easily purchase two Bendpak's lifts and have enough money left over for a few accessories like a transmission jack and stands...

But if demand to own the best. The lift that all the other's are compared to. Or use it everyday in running a business. I would then say spend the extra money and purchase a Mohawk....

ghlkal · Apr 9, 2009

Thanks ryno and OCG ... I appreciate the confirmation!

ghlkal · Apr 9, 2009

Backgroun

Background:

I’ve waited a long time to own a lift. Over the years only two things stood in the way: space and money

We moved out of the city to a small hobby farm 6 years ago. I started saving and planning my garage/shop right away (planning was easy; saving was hard.) My garage (aka Autobarn) is 30x50 with 9’ walls and scissor trusses yielding more than 12’ of height for the lift.

I’ve logically divided the Autobarn in half, with one side “clean” and the other “dirty.” Each side has two “bays.” The clean side houses my wife’s Corvette and my modded Grand Prix. The dirty side will hold the lift, my project, and my work truck.

I probably agonized over placement of the lift as much as what type of lift to purchase. I knew I wanted a 2 post lift because I want to work on my vehicles rather than a 4 post lift since I didn’t need to store anything (yet). Originally I was going to place the lift close to the North wall (within 2’), as I wanted an empty “bay” near the center for my truck. (We get a lot of snow in WI and I need to plow a lot in the winter. I have a 500’ drive and the snow drifts often reach 3’.) I finally decided (with some helpful suggestions) to put the lift near the center. I’m sure this will be better as I will have a lot of space on all sides for easy access. I also plan on parking my truck (plow ready) between the posts in the winter.

I was having a hard time envisioning the placement of the lift if it was just a sketch on paper. So, I purchased two 10” concrete tube forms (big cardboard tubes) and set them up in various locations in Autobarn to simulate the lift posts. While the forms are only 4’ high, it was an adequate “prototype” to allow me to work out the positioning for real, rather than just on paper.

Gary

ghlkal · Apr 9, 2009

Customer Service

My local retailer (Wilkinson-Capstran) called today; they will deliver the lift on Tuesday :bounce:

I decided I better get some 220 available. I didn’t want to assume three vs four wire or 20 vs 30 amps, so I thought I’d better find out! When I accessed the XPR-10ACX manual online (http://www.bendpak.com/files/216_1846640829.pdf), it stated:
"see wiring instructions affixed to motor" Hmm. I emailed Jeff my questions at 11am. He replied at 11:30am with .pdf files of the two motors used in the lift.

Now that, my friends, is customer service. I don’t know about you, but I get a lot of mail messages each day. I also have a lot of other things to do besides answer email. I’m just one small-time customer, and Jeff has treated me like I’m important. I continue to be impressed by BendPak’s customer service.

OldCarGuy · Apr 10, 2009

Re: Customer Service

ghlkal said:
Now that, my friends, is customer service. I don’t know about you, but I get a lot of mail messages each day. I also have a lot of other things to do besides answer email. I’m just one small-time customer, and Jeff has treated me like I’m important. I continue to be impressed by BendPak’s customer service.

Jeff Kritzer is truly an extraordinary hard working man. Whose dedication to his products is only surpassed by his knowledge and wisdom. You know someone is outstanding in their field. When the sales manager of one of their competitors praises his worth as well... :beer:

revlover · Apr 10, 2009

Re: Customer Service

OldCarGuy said:
Jeff Kritzer is truly an extraordinary hard working man. Whose dedication to his products is only surpassed by his knowledge and wisdom. You know someone is outstanding in their field. When the sales manager of one of their competitors praises his worth as well...

Those are some kind words there...

ghlkal · Apr 15, 2009

Lift installed (abbreviated)

The lift was installed yesterday (!) but I’m so busy at work that I haven’t had time to update this thread. I still want to discuss some more information on the placement of the lift, and then discuss the various lifts I considered, but that will have to wait.

I’m really pleased with my choice of lift placement. I have lots of room all around it for work, I can park my truck within it when not in use, and it still allows use of the right-most bay. :thumbup:

I can’t wait to use it, but I want to permanently wire it first. To test it, I had romex running across the floor. I’m afraid if I start using it with some “temporary” wiring, that I’ll never get it wired right, so I need to force myself to get it wired first.

Lift being delivered (nice to have a crane)

Lift installed – viewed from clean bays

Lift installed – viewed from outside dirty bays

I’ll post more and more pictures later.

russlaferrera · Apr 15, 2009

I think you made a great choice. You will be happy and wounder why you never did it sooner.

I went with Worth Equipment. Their warranty is questionable at best.

Do not send the warranty card within 30 days. Warranty void.

Do not have a licensed electrican hook up power. Warranty void.

All jacks, lift pads, turn plates carry a 30 day warranty Ok If you pour concrete it takes 30 days to cure so you can't use the lift. Warranty expired on the pallet.

dbird · Apr 15, 2009

I also have the same lift with no problems & very satisfied.

e-tek · Apr 15, 2009

I couldn't have said it better than OCG. Jeff has proven his committment toboth his business and his customers numerous times with many different people and in many situations. When someone like that runs a business the efforts filter down to everyone else working or associated with the company. Every time I hear of someone having an issue I hear it gets resolved satisfactorily.

As a matter of fact, the only person I've ever seen get burned in a Bendpak relationship was.....Jeff!!!! Most of us recall him bending over backwards (and many other ways) to help an (*******) of an ex-GJ member who could just not be satisfied - but try he did!

ghlkal · Apr 17, 2009

russlaferrera, dbird, e-tek,

Thanks for the positive, reinforcing feedback. More to come ...

ghlkal · Apr 18, 2009

The "issue"

The “issue”

My lift install was complicated by the fact that my garage floor is sloped for floor drains. During construction of my building, the only thing that went wrong was the garage slab. The short version of the story is: the drains were not placed where I wanted them and the floor wasn’t sloped how I wanted. In spite of the issues with the floor, I was able to place my lift almost exactly where I planned anyway. It turns out that the right column is ~1” low, so it is shimmed. Both Jeff at BendPak and Justin (the installer from Wilkinson-Capstran) provided good suggestions and alternatives in order to deal with the sloped floor.

Here’s my GTP on the “maiden voyage”

Lifted

I have the lift positioned such that I can leave the garage door open and lift all my cars without hitting it! Now, my truck might not make it …

I’m thankful to have the screw-up lift pads from BendPak. Even with the slope of the floor, I can position the arms under my cars (I haven’t put the Vette in yet, so we’ll see how that works) and then screw up the pads such that the car will be lifted level. :thumbup:

Next, I need to run the wire permanently. I will wire a shut-down switch also. I need to decide exactly where to place that on the lift. Even though it’s a good sized box (an AC cut-off switch), I may attach it to the wiring box on the motor.

stioc · Apr 18, 2009

Nice lift!

...and the NightHawk.

brownbagg · Apr 19, 2009

I know it shim, but you really need to grout those footprints.

22T · Apr 19, 2009

Looks GREAT!!! Did you have to pay extra for the screw up pads?

brad d · Apr 19, 2009

I have the same lift but not the X wider one.. .I love it and use it a few times a week.. I cant believe how much we use it.

brad d · Apr 19, 2009

22T said:
Looks GREAT!!! Did you have to pay extra for the screw up pads?

I dont think they screw up or down, you just have a short or tall spacer to pick from that comes with the lift. If thats the pads you are talking about..

ghlkal · Apr 19, 2009

Russell said:
Nice lift!
...and the NightHawk.

Thanks. It's a 1985 (bike, not the lift

) but I enjoy it.

brownbagg said:
I know it shim, but you really need to grout those footprints.

You are right ... I need to find some non-shrinking grout. Anybody want to recommend a brand?

brad d said:
I have the same lift but not the X wider one.. .I love it and use it a few times a week.. I cant believe how much we use it.

I know I'm going to be using it a lot :bounce:

ghlkal · Apr 19, 2009

22T said:
Looks GREAT!!! Did you have to pay extra for the screw up pads?

As brad d mentioned, the lift comes with "regular" pads that have several fixed size extensions. BendPak also has "screw up pad adapters" which I have. I couldn't find them on BendPak's site, but Jeff sent me a picture of them. I have to say that the "screw up" adapters (I'm laughing as I type this

) make things much easier. I recommend that if you have a BendPak lift, you get these.

ghlkal · Apr 21, 2009

Decision, decisons ...

When I first began my search for a lift, I didn’t know much about them. My first decision was the type of lift: 2 post versus 4. The conventional wisdom is: 2 post for working; 4 post for storage. Many folks will tell you they use their 4 post just fine for working on their cars, while some others will store a car using a 2 post. Well, I wanted a lift for working on my cars, and there seems to be more room and flexibility with a 2 post lift. (BendPak has a little blurb about this on their homepage: http://www.bendpak.com/)

2 post lifts come in several styles, including “clear floor” (with a connecting plate between the tops of the columns), and “floorplate” (with a connecting plate between the bottoms of the columns). I choose the “clear floor” style because I had more than 12’ of clearance and it seems as if that style will be easier to work with – not having the plate in the way.

Now, which brand of lift to investigate? My budget capped my decision at $3000, so some lifts were out of my reach. I did look at a number of lifts offered via eBay sellers (you’ll find lifts from ~$1500 on up there). I took a close look at Rotary lifts which seemed to be very good, although above my price point. The local distributer of Rotary was decidedly unhelpful however. They were the first folks I contacted once I was ready to buy. I explained that my garage floor was sloped. They said they couldn’t tell me whether they could install the lift or not, and they wouldn’t come out to look at my floor. Next. :wtf:

My decision came down to: Challenger VS10 or BendPak XPR-10ACX. Both of these lifts are great buys. The Challenger is a little more in price. Each has a feature or two the other doesn’t. The second biggest selling point for the BendPak is it’s wider than the Challenger. (The first is the excellent support by BendPak aka Jeff.)

I wanted the lift to be certified, also. (http://www.autolift.org/)

I was open to the possibility of a used lift, but I couldn’t find one I liked locally.

Finally, I wanted it professionally installed. Could I have installed it myself? Maybe. But for the price, and savings in time, it was worth it.

I had a good experience with both Challenger and BendPak when I contacted each company about questions and local installers. The installer for the Challenger lift didn’t want to sell me the VS10 (“cheap ****” according to him), and kept pushing a lift that was $2K more. Next. :wtf:

A number of folks at BendPak (Jeff, Dale, and Gary) have been very helpful during pre-sales and installation support. My local supplier/installer, Wilkinson-Capstran, was also very attentive. BTW, I paid about $200 more going with Wilkinson-Capstran, versus another supplier, but I had much better service.

I’ve been blessed to be able to have a building with a lift. When I was younger, I was jealous of those guys who had a setup like mine. I’m glad I waited, so I could afford to put my kids through school!

PCMusicGuy · Apr 23, 2009

How does the lift work with the Corvette? I have an 07 and have not found any two post lift that will easily work while using the jacking pucks. Only options are to recess the lift into the concrete or raise the car.

ghlkal · Apr 24, 2009

PCMusicGuy said:
How does the lift work with the Corvette?

Works well. :thumbup:

I have a C4 rather than a C6. I was concerned because the slope of the floor means I have a little less clearance, but I can swing the arms underneath and lift it just fine.

coasty · Apr 24, 2009

I use one of these at my work and they are great. If I had to get one for home it would be one of these also. The extended lift pads are great for 4 x 4's with running boards too. Very handy.

ghlkal · Apr 25, 2009

coasty said:
The extended lift pads are great for 4 x 4's with running boards too.

You're right coasty. As soon as I can get to it, I'll post some pics of the different pads I have ...

ghlkal · May 3, 2009

wiring

I finally had a chance to wire my lift permanently. I added a safety disconnect as you can see in the image. Although my panel is only 12 feet from the lift, I thought it wise to have a way to shut things down immediately if something went wrong :shocking:

I've heard stories of switches fusing and the lift continuing to rise and smashing the top of the car as the operator runs to the panel to shut the lift off.

jlbota · Sep 4, 2009

I am getting ready to purchase a lift and this model is in the running. I was curious if its true you can use this lift Assymetric and Symmetric. Its in Bend Paks specs under the "tru_metric" arm design that its like having two lifts in one? The reason I ask is I have a Dodge diesel quad cab that I will lift on occasion and I truly think a symmetric lift will be safer. But most of the time I will be lifting lighter vehicles and the assymetric would be great with these vehicles. Does Bendpaks design hold water or are they blowing sunshine? I want to be safe under there.
Has anyone had any experience with this? Opinions?

gto65lvr · Sep 25, 2009

I am trying to figure out the same thing I am on deck with a challenger E10 for my home like the Versalift arms. I have been a tech at shops and did run into the fact that some cars just did not want to load on certain racks.

The bendpak has nice heavy build for its price range and one piece towers.
Just wondering how much flex is really going to happen with a Challenger lift vs the Bendpak. Also I have the same question is the "'true metric" an assy and sem. type are system?

by the picks it does not look like it

Anyone??????

jlbota · Sep 25, 2009

I decided to go with the Bend Pak XPR-10CX. I wasn't sold on lifting my truck with the assymetric design. I think the price was good a $3060 installed and it will be a dream come true for me once its in.

I looked at the Challenger models as well and think they make a decent lift. But the extra price didn't seem worth it to me. Plus the Challenger does not come with truck adapters as that is another $200 extra.

FYI Challenger makes a lift called a Quality Lift model Q-10 and is supposed to be close to the E-10 in a Challenger line for less money.

I found good info here at this site. www.portagelift.com and had some decent comparisons of lift specs.

rburke65 · Sep 25, 2009

ghlkal, how tall are your side walls and to your peak? And how about the cost..Tax, installed, delivered,to your the door?

BendPak · Sep 30, 2010

Hey glhkal! Thanks man! We put you up on our testimonials page. Come take a look!

gnmras · Jun 19, 2013

I Picked a Bendpak 10ACX assymetric so I could mount the post farther fwd in respect to the vehicle. I am just getting around to installing the posts. I live in rural Alaska and doing it myself. I have a question to anybody out there. I am trying to determine minimum clearance from fwd side of the post (opposite entry side) to a wall. Also when lifting a 2006 Dodge Quad Cab 3500 Standard Bed, where should the truck be positioned in relation to the Axis between the posts.
Thanks, Greg

bigby · Jun 19, 2013

Thanks for posting this thread, I have been looking a lifts and this one will be the one I get. Looks great!!

larry1030 · Jul 23, 2013

I have been researching lifts for about 6 months and had all but decided on the Bendpak XPR-10A. In fact I was about to buy it as soon as I could reach an installer I know to ask him some details about where to ship it to so he could pick it up for me.

Then today I spoke to two OTHER installers. (I got these two installers' names from Autozone Commercial in North Carolina - I don't really know anything else about them.) But they both tried to steer me away from the Bendpak and toward a Challenger E10. They said the Challenger was better quality. But now I am hesitating - would like to hear from any of you who can confirm or refute the theory that the Challenger E10 is better built than the Bendpak XPR-10A. Thanks.

Notch1988 · Jul 23, 2013

Did they say better how?

larry1030 · Jul 23, 2013

Notch1988 said:
Did they say better how?

They said 'easier to install' (benefits them, not me) and 'fewer problems'.

larry1030 · Jul 23, 2013

gnmras said:
I Picked a Bendpak 10ACX assymetric so I could mount the post farther fwd in respect to the vehicle. I am just getting around to installing the posts. I live in rural Alaska and doing it myself. I have a question to anybody out there. I am trying to determine minimum clearance from fwd side of the post (opposite entry side) to a wall. Also when lifting a 2006 Dodge Quad Cab 3500 Standard Bed, where should the truck be positioned in relation to the Axis between the posts.
Thanks, Greg

If I recall correctly the general guideline is to have 12' from the lift centerline to the forward wall (for assymetric lift).

Ign · Jul 24, 2013

larry1030 said:
They said 'easier to install' (benefits them, not me) and 'fewer problems'.

I've not had any problems in 3 years with my XPR-10CX. It sees 99% fullsize trucks. They'd have to be more specific on what these problems are.

larry1030 · Jul 24, 2013

Ign said:
I've not had any problems in 3 years with my XPR-10CX. It sees 99% fullsize trucks. They'd have to be more specific on what these problems are.

The only specific problem he mentioned was needing to replace cables. He probably gets a deal from Challenger and was just blowing smoke up my **** but he got me worried.

How I chose my 2 post lift (BendPak XPR-10ACX)

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