Bendpak rbj-4500 Bridge Jack questions

[docwyte]

So I just got a Bendpak HD-7W lift with the rbj-4500 rolling bridge jack installed.

I was a little shocked to see how high the bridge jack sits above the lift decks. I was expecting no more than 2" and it's closer to 4". I have serious doubts as to whether the car I plan to store on the lift can clear the bridge jack.

#1 Is this stack height normal?
#2 If its supposed to sit lower, is there some sort of spacer or shipping lock I need to remove?
#3 Is there a way to make it sit lower if this really is the normal height?
#4 If this is the normal height, how are you guys getting your low cars over this thing?

It's not held up by the bridge jack safety lock and it does look like the bridge jack lift cylinder is all the way down. I'm just having a really hard time believing that Bendpak designed this thing to sit 3.75" above the height of the lift deck.

Any help would be appreciated!!

 

[jcthorne]

It does sit up above the deck but even my Vette Z06 clears it without diffeculty. Push the bridge jack all the way to the forward end to start and you may not have to drive over it at all. If you do, placing it at the end closest to the ramps will give you more clearance as the nose of the vehicle will be angled up as you drive on the lift.

The bridge jacks (we have 2) have been a great help on the lift and have never gotten in the way.

 

[docwyte]

Ok, I'll try, my front splitter is pretty low tho, pretty sure its lower than 3.75", which is the height of the bridge jack.

Kicking myself for not asking the question, I wouldn't have ordered this had I known it sat so high above the lift deck.

 

[milwaukeephil]

Silly question, but do you have it installed in the lower rail? I have the sliding version with two adjustable width contact sliders. For about ten minutes when I installed it, I had it sliding on the actual decks, not the inner flange of the deck which is about 4" lower. Hope this makes sense.

 

[docwyte]

Yes, it is installed on the lower rail, not on the lift deck itself.

 

[slowTA]

I was disappointed too, but that's the way it is. I know I've mentioned it here once or twice, not that it helps all the time.

I keep mine at the far end so the car doesn't drive over it and the only time it's an issue is when I have to lift the 'ramp' end of the car which you can obviously plan on and pull on to the lift instead of back on to it. But my car has some low hanging bit right in the middle, so keeping the jack at the ramp end of the lift would only make problems worse for me.

When I don't feel like or can't turn the car around I use the jack to lift 1 end of the car off the deck and put blocks of wood under the tires and then I have enough room under the car in the middle so the jack can slide under it. The jack only needs about 3/4" to clear the lowest part.

 

[vavet]

Seems like a shame to have to accommodate for such a situation.
A low tech solution would be to drive the car up on 1x6 material or possibly two of them stacked with a bevel cut on the ends to make a ramp. It would raise the car 3/4 or 1-1/2 inch.

 

[pbon]

I am looking at the HD-9XW and was going to buy one of these $1175 bridge jacks but this has me worried. My cars are lower also. Should I just use four HF $59 aluminum 1.5 ton floor jacks on the runners instead? On a unibody car, the jack points are outboard along the rockers.

 

[slowTA]

As annoying as it may be to work around, it's still more convenient than messing around with bottle jacks and jack stands.

 

[docwyte]

As annoying as it may be to work around, it's still more convenient than messing around with bottle jacks and jack stands.

Definitely! I suppose the easy button solution here is to back the car onto the lift. I have clearance everywhere but my front splitter

 

[pbon]

Or put 2x12 planks on the lift runners.

 

[docwyte]

Measured the front splitter height, looks like I'll clear the bridge jack by 1/2". Will know for sure when I get the car onto the lift in a few days

 

[docwyte]

Got the car home and tried to get it onto the lift over the bridge jack. That's a negative Ghost Rider. Didn't clear it. Right now I have the bridge jack pushed to the front of the lift so I don't have to drive over it.

However, that means having to drive the car onto 2x12's in order to get it high enough to use the bridge jack.

Seriously, WTF! I have a '98 M3, not a Ferrari. BendPak must realize that their market is car enthusiasts. What type of car do most enthusiasts have? Sports Cars! Sports Cars are low! They needed to make this thing sit no more than 2" off the deck.

This is F'ed up. So I spent $1200 on a jack that the only way I can use it is to get lumber from Home Depot to drive my car on top of.

 

[Jazzman442]

I have a direct lift 4 post with there biggest rolling jacks. My sons Mustang has a lower front spoiler that hits everything even speed bumps. I push all the rolling jacks forward and we we back in the car. when the lift it up we move the rolling jacks into position. Works great.

 

[docwyte]

I'll try backing the car onto the lift and see if I clear it. PITA backing onto the lift. Not that I can use my brand new lift anyways, as its currently FUBAR'd. Waiting to hear back from BendPak on how they intend to fix it.

 

[baba louey]

That's bad luck docwyte. I have the same lift and the jack is a RJ45. I bought them in Nov. 2015. The top of my jack is 2 1/8" above the deck. I have a 2012 M3 with competition suspension (ie lowered) and I clear the jack. Maybe the jack design changed recently.

Baba Louey

 

[docwyte]

I was told that when they went to the RBJ-4500, since it's now ALI certified they had to "beef" it up, that's why it sits higher. Email straight from the VP of Bendpak saying that.

However, I think that's a load of ****. You know your target market, you know you've had plenty of complaints about the ~4" height that the RJ45 used to be. ALI certification is a good thing, BUT they needed to make sure that they didn't increase the stack height of the jack in order to get the certification.

 

[baba louey]

What other problem do you have with your lift?

 

[slowTA]

I find backing onto the lift easier. Your mirrors can work pretty well or I open the door to see where the tire is on the runway. Otherwise I have to get out to see!

Also, I bought my lift and rolling jack in 2009. It sits about 4" above the deck.

 

[docwyte]

I find backing onto the lift easier. Your mirrors can work pretty well or I open the door to see where the tire is on the runway. Otherwise I have to get out to see!

Also, I bought my lift and rolling jack in 2009. It sits about 4" above the deck.

That means you have the older RJ45. You can call Bendpak and they can send you new "weldments" and a new top bar and that'll lower your bridge jack almost 2".

Unfortunately that stuff can't be used on the new RBJ4500 like I have.

 

[slowTA]

docwyte, thanks for the info! That could make my life a bit easier... if I ever get my new garage built!

 

[baba louey]

docwyte.

I'm confused now. My 2015 RJ45 is 2 1/8" above the deck. It seems slowTA has a 2009 RJ45 that sticks up about 4" about the deck. Has there been several versions of this jack over time? This is the first time I've heard of a retrofit for an older version of the jack.

Baba Louey

 

[slowTA]

I re-measured my RJ-45, but since it's in storage the math between the height from the plastic runner to the top minus the distance from the rail to the top of the runway is just under 4".

Here are some pictures.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/6dGh3SXd2ltQ8Atp1
https://photos.app.goo.gl/cYeAHNzePMw8kyvB3

Does anyone have pictures of the newer RJ-45, not the RBJ4500.

 

[docwyte]

docwyte.

I'm confused now. My 2015 RJ45 is 2 1/8" above the deck. It seems slowTA has a 2009 RJ45 that sticks up about 4" about the deck. Has there been several versions of this jack over time? This is the first time I've heard of a retrofit for an older version of the jack.

Baba Louey

So the older versions of the RJ45 sat about 4" above the lift decks. People complained to BendPak about it and BendPak was able to send these people some parts that allowed the RJ45 to sit about 2" above the lift deck.

Bendpak then decided to just put those parts on *all* the RJ45's, so then they all sat 2" above the lift deck. I'm not quite sure when in time they decided to do that, but it seems like after 2009 and before 2015.

Bendpak now has the RBJ4500, which I have. It's ALI certified, but in doing so, they had to make changes which again make it sit 4" above the lift decks.

So, take away message here is, if you have an older RJ45 and it sits ~4" above your lift decks, you can call BendPak and ask them to send you a new top bar and new "weldments", which apparently are an easy 15 minute swap and you can make your RJ45 sit 2" above the lift decks.

If you have an new RBJ4500 like me, you're just boned and get to make a trip to the lumber yard for 2x12's to drive onto so your car will clear the bridge jack. Thanks Bendpak!

 

[baba louey]

Thanks for clarifying. I'm glad I have the low protruding version but now I wonder about the strength of the jack. I've used it many times and it always seemed to handle the load well.

baba Louey

 

[docwyte]

They're all rated at the same 4500lb load, it's just that the new RBJ4500 is ALI certified

 

[docwyte]

Ok, so if I back my M3 onto the lift, it clears the RBJ-4500. If I put the RBJ-4500 at the front of the lift I can pull forward onto the lift, but then can't slide the jack backwards to use it.

I don't like backing onto the lift. The M3 is the narrowest of my cars, so I have the lift decks far apart, which means I need to get the M3 perfectly lined up to be square on the decks.

So, redneck engineering then. I added 2*12's, one for each deck. That lifted the M3 1.5" and gave me 1" of clearance to the lowest part of the car, which is the front subframe brace.

Not a particularly elegant solution however and I still think it's crazy that this is the way the bridge jack was designed...

 

[baba louey]

Nice M3 (E36?) docwyte. Thanks for updating the thread with your "solution" and the results. Looking at the numbers on your car, do you rally, auto-X, or track your car?

 

[docwyte]

I do Time Trials and track days with it. It's a fun ride but I've been debating getting rid of it in favor of a 911 that I can use on a more daily basis and put my kids in

 

[baba louey]

Funny that you should mention getting a 911 for practical reasons. In 2012 when I bought my M3, I decided on not getting a 911 for the exact reasons you stated for getting a 911. In hindsight, my M3 is very practical space-wise but in winter it's not very good. I think a 911 in winter would be better especially a Carrera 4. Now I'm in Canada so winter is an issue.

 

[docwyte]

Well, my M3 is track prepped. So it has a rollbar, race seats, 6 point harnesses, no back seat, etc, etc. I suppose I could convert it back to a street car but I'd rather sell it as is and get a 911 instead.

The 911 wouldn't be my winter vehicle, I have an SUV for that, so it'd purely be my nice 3 season car and occasional track ride.

 

[tom86951]

I got a new RBJ4500 from Benpak today (Feb 2020) and thought I'd report in on the clearance -- since this thread had me worried. If you remove the pads, my jack is about 3.25" above the runways. The pads sit about 1/2" higher when installed. The pads they give you aren't going to work for a very low cars if there is anything lower than the lift points (like exhaust) running down the middle of the car, since the jack body will hit it. I've ordered rubber lifting pads off Amazon (Rotary FJ2440), which are made for this purpose and should do the trick though.

If you are unsure about your car clearing, slide a 2x4 under your car, on its edge, and see if it hits anywhere. If the 2x4 clears, then the car will clear the jack (with the pads removed).

 

[pbon]

The RJ45 is lower. It is still available if you ask.

 

[mlabouff]

Thanks Tom. It looks like the exhaust just clears the body of the RBJ4500. Are you able to reach the car's factory jack points? If not, the SVI International 9" extensions should help. They are part number BH-7474-81. I am not yet able to post a link, but you can find them on their website.

 

[mlabouff]

pbon, I tried to order the RJ45s from Bendpak about a week ago. The sales rep I spoke with was aware that they were shipping for some time after the RBJ4500 came out, but she said that the parts are not longer in stock to make them. She mentions a that a lower profile model was in development, but did not know when it wold come to market nor any other information about it.

 

[tom86951]

Thanks Tom. It looks like the exhaust just clears the body of the RBJ4500. Are you able to reach the car's factory jack points? If not, the SVI International 9" extensions should help. They are part number BH-7474-81. I am not yet able to post a link, but you can find them on their website.

Thanks, the arms do reach the factory jack points (and pinch welds), but those points are notoriously weak on this car (Porsche 944), so I always jack at the unibody rails that are further inboard. I ordered 3" inch tall rubber lifting blocks that I will set right on the body of the jack under the rails. Bendpak sells a kit for doing something similar, but their system isn't tall enough to reach the rails without having the body of the jack hit the exhaust.


Thanks for the info about the RJ45. I'd be a little irked if that was available and I didn't think to ask...

 

[pbon]

You are probably right. I remember BP saying they would make the rj45 as long as they had the old frames left and I also remember someone else saying they would continue making the rj45.

 

[tom86951]

Just a follow-up for fellow low-car people. I ordered the 3" rubber lifting blocks made by Rotary and they are perfect for my car. They sit on the body of the lift like the Bendpak accessory kit, but at 3" they are just the right height to hit the unibody rails and leave enough space to clear the exhaust. Easy on the undercarriage too.

 

[lovebohn]

Where has everyone been finding the best deals on the RBJ4500's? I'm debating on going new vs finding a used one. Any problems with hoses breaking or seals going bad?

 

[pbon]

There are not any good deals. Someone found a jack from another lift, perhaps advantage, that fits and is much cheaper.