Car service ramps

[alan camby]

Spent a lot of time looking for a car ramp that met what I wanted out of a ramp. Car lift is out of the question. I have a small 23x23' garage with low ceilings.

Wanted
-as safe as possible.
-decent amount of lift. ideally over 8"
-low ramp angle. For both ease of climb and to allow access of modern low vehicles.
-Nice if it was a 2 piece design to allow jack access if needed.

Looked at making these. http://www.tim-yvonne.com/mikemercury/ramp.htm
But the possibility of the wood cracking concerned me.

If you spend a lot of time looking you will find all kinds of wood designs,
have not found a thread anywhere of someone building some out of steel.
So, this will be that thread.

Warning: please do not build ramps if you question your welding or fab skills. Always use jack stands as a backup safety. Chock the tires.
I am not a engineer and i did not have a engineer sign off on this build. I copied a design, i have no affiliation with the designer.
Use any information here at your own risk

Looked all over the net and found nothing available. Finally found a design from a shop in the UK called ramps4cars http://www.ramps4cars.co.uk/ . Here are some pictures of their ramps. There is a lite version 2000kg (4409 lbs), and a heavy duty version 3000kg (6614 lbs) rating per pair.

Edit: 12-21-12
Ramps4cars has updated their website. I changed the pictures below to reflect examples of what they currently sell. Some of the pictures I had up before were older designs and are no longer available.

 

[alan camby]

Contacted ramps4cars (contact info) http://www.ramps4cars.co.uk/contact.htm and talked to the owner Andy. Tried to buy the ramps from him. He informed me that they were to large and heavy to ship to the USA. He does make a lighter version that is able to be shipped overseas but it was not what i was looking for. This shippable version bolts together and looses the quick disconnect 2 piece design. He did say that a distributor for the USA was a possibility in the near future. I am sure that he would want to know if there is a interest in them here in the States.


So decided to start building. Spent a bunch of time figuring out what materials to use and how much to use. I am not going to list the size of the metal, obviously you will all see that it is angle steel. I am not listing the size because I am copying a design that does not belong to me. I will also not be showing any of the drawings/specs I made of the project. I am coping it without any intent to sell the ramps. They are for my personal use only. Hope everyone can see that i am trying to respect the designer and not have a step by step here on how to build his ramp.

I wish i could have just bought them from Andy, this looks easy but takes a lot of time, at least for me.

Next post will be some pictures of my build.

 

[alan camby]

I am adding pictures in the next 2 posts as the ramps progress. Note that the pictures have dates and some of the pictures were posted after the comments that were made in posts 5,6,7, and beyond.



I did customize the width to my own taste. The width i chose for the ladder section was 12".

Andy sells these ramps in 300mm tall and 350mm tall versions. I am building mine at 11.5" (292mm) tall.
This puts my ramp angle at slightly less then 10 degrees.

Could not resist driving the truck on the ramp.

Built 2 of these platform tops. They will be used on the stands i will build next.

Not much progress today 12-14-12

More pictures to follow

 

[alan camby]

almost done

Out of the blast cabinet and ready for paint.

2 coats of KBS gloss black rust seal

Finished

More pictures throughout the thread

 

[muibubbles]

looking good!

 

[500sks]

Do you have any trouble with them wanting to slide as you put the tire against the first piece of angle as you start up the ramp?

 

[burgie]

Looks awesome Alan!!! I built a pair very similar in design to those years ago...like junior year in high school (1980) and they still work fine.

Your welds are impressive!!!

Keep us posted!!!

 

[alan camby]

Do you have any trouble with them wanting to slide as you put the tire against the first piece of angle as you start up the ramp?

Great question

I tried to do as much research as possible on ramps and know about the sliding problems.
I read on one UK forum from a customer who was concerned with the ramps sliding. This customer was assured by Andy that this would not be a problem. He did have a custom plate fabricated on the front edge of the ramps. The idea is for the car to be on top of this plate before the tire made contact with the ramp. These were a cool set of ramp. They were also customized with diamond tread plate instead of the angle iron tire contact area.

Edit: Here is a link to the custom ramps I am talking about. They are a one piece design.
http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=277156 "end of Edit."

I have not been able to test mine much yet. I climbed up and down the ramp at least 5 times and it never budged. Even hit it once going 2-3mph just to see if it would slide. Still need to do some testing on the smoother concrete when they are finished. The truck was in 2wd.

I am one of those people who like to go the extreme on projects. Planning to Herculiner (truck bed coating) the the base of the angle to add some extra grip with the floor.
This is probably not needed, but I have tested this stuff before and liked it. I have the top of my bolt bins coated with it. I also coated a 2x4 wood block to do some grip testing. It grips the floor much better then steel, wood, or plastic. Keep this stuff out of the sun and it ages well.

Another trick that could be done to the ramp. Drill and tap 2-3 holes on the first rung. Attach a piece of mudflap or rubber to this rung with bolts and fender washers. This would be a tongue for the tire to make first contact with.

I don't expect any problems though, the herculiner is just added insurance.

I think that the ramp angle will help a lot. I am at less then 10 degrees slope

Thanks

Edit: Today I received a email from Andy assuring me that slipping will not be a problem.
Andy wrote, "With such a low angle of 10 and 12 we have never had problems with slipping"
The 10 and 12 are the ramp angle in degrees.

 

[alan camby]

Looks awesome Alan!!! I built a pair very similar in design to those years ago...like junior year in high school (1980) and they still work fine.

Your welds are impressive!!!

Keep us posted!!!

Thanks

 

[bad_idea]

Do you have a material list handy? Looks good so far. I have thought of building something similar but would want it collapsible as I don't do a lot of under car work, but enough.

 

[kc-steve]

Great idea Alan! I have a production set but they don't fit under my low front bumper of my 2002 Park Avenue. I too would like to see a materials list, especially since I haven't built anything in years due to high steel prices. Just a wild guess, that angle iron is probably a dollar a foot or more.

Steve

 

[yucholian]

Do you think there is any downside to having the bottom angle flange inward instead of outward like yours and Ramps4cars?

 

[alan camby]

Do you think there is any downside to having the bottom angle flange inward instead of outward like yours and Ramps4cars?

Flange out helps keep the ramp from tipping. More stable IMO

 

[Ray-CA]

Try to find these http://www.racingjunk.com/Other/2665440/KWIK-LIFT-FOR-SALE.html

Company is now out of business but they are available used all over the country. I have this lift and it's great for small shops. If I don't feel like breaking it down, I just leave it set up as ramps and park on it.

Ray

 

[alan camby]

Try to find these http://www.racingjunk.com/Other/2665440/KWIK-LIFT-FOR-SALE.html

Company is now out of business but they are available used all over the country. I have this lift and it's great for small shops. If I don't feel like breaking it down, I just leave it set up as ramps and park on it.

Ray

I read a thread were the owner of the kwik lift company was commenting about the price he was charging for the lift. He was paying some crazy amount for liability insurance. The thread was very old and not on this forum.
If i have time i will dig it up. I am on my phone right now.
It is a neat setup. Just takes up to much room for me.
Most nights i don't park in the garage due to some project taking up space.

 

[Krokodil]

Nice job!

 

[alan camby]

Try to find these http://www.racingjunk.com/Other/2665440/KWIK-LIFT-FOR-SALE.html

Company is now out of business but they are available used all over the country. I have this lift and it's great for small shops. If I don't feel like breaking it down, I just leave it set up as ramps and park on it.

Ray

Here is the thread I was talking about with Kwik-lifts operation expenses. Amazing that over 10,000 were sold by 2005 and now they are out of business.
http://www.hobartwelders.com/weldtalk/archive/index.php/t-17026.html

 

[alan camby]

Do you have a material list handy? Looks good so far. I have thought of building something similar but would want it collapsible as I don't do a lot of under car work, but enough.

Great idea Alan! I have a production set but they don't fit under my low front bumper of my 2002 Park Avenue. I too would like to see a materials list, especially since I haven't built anything in years due to high steel prices. Just a wild guess, that angle iron is probably a dollar a foot or more.

Steve

Besides the fabrication tools, all you really need is angle iron and a foot or so of flat metal for the tab that connects the ramps to the stand. I added up all lengths needed in my drawings. My estimate was a foot or two short of 60 feet per ramp/stand assembly. So somewhere really close to 120 feet total.

 

[JerryC]

I'm not an engineer... To me I'd be more comfortable with a couple of X braces in the stand. OTOH, I'm more paranoid than most because I have had a car fall on me.

 

[Jack Burton]

Guessing from the photos, the main runners look like 1.5 x 1.5 x .125 angle but it's hard to tell. Maybe it's .1875 thick. If either is true this thing is not right. You'd want at least 2.5 x 2.5 x .25 angle or a hell of a lot more posts.

The part that would bother me the most is the flat portion with the post angles in the corners.

PM me if you want with the dimensions and material of the flat portion and I'll explain. The calcs are very simple. FWIW, I am an engineer.

 

[IHI]

next problem, portability and storage.

Often thought about a rig like this, but man that is a space eater and PITA to move around with any normal consistency

 

[deere2210]

I don't mean to be a downer, but just a word of caution.. Make sure you chock and double chock the wheels so it won't roll. When I was a senior in high school, I had a 77 Camaro.. Put it up on a set of similar ramps in my parents garage to work on a stripped shifter shaft.. I was underneath it on a creaper and it came out of gear and rolled down on me.. Frame of car was pinned directly against my head. My dad heard it and came down and had to take a floor jack and jack the car up off of me to get out from underneath it.. I ended up with 17 stiches, knicked artery in front of my right ear, bruised ribs.. ER doc said .25 inch lower and it would have been over.. Now that I'm older, I try to do redudant safety on everything.. In my mind it is always worth the extra time..

 

[alan camby]

I am still going to add more bracing, Like Ramps4cars red ramps (with the van) in the original post.

I trust them a lot more then these options.

http://www.stanfred.com.au/product-list.php?m=10


these only weigh 14-15 lbs each and are what i am currently using. The sheet metal on mine is .067" thick
http://www.ruralking.com/car-ramps-...&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CNnThYPinLQCFao7MgodOhAAdg


http://www.discountramps.com/truck-service-ramps.htm

http://www.tooled-up.com/Product.as...oductlisting&gclid=CLqwu--bnLQCFePHtAodEm8AFQ



Like I said in the first post, Always use jack stands and chock the tires.

 

[king nero]

Been using these for years, without problems...
I did add bracing though.

in use:

 

[Jack Burton]

Like I said in the first post, Always use jack stands and chock the tires.

And take the 10 minutes to learn something worthwhile that just might save your life one day

 

[AffableCurmudgeon]

This looks dangerous to me. I would not go anywhere near it withot chocking those rear wheels first.

 

[RBailey]

I've got a set (2 ramps) of these on there way to me in a container at the moment.
(Another UK only sale I'm afraid.)

http://www.cjautos.eu/product_p/cr012.htm

I will post up a full review once I get them and give them a work out.

 

[alan camby]

I've got a set (2 ramps) of these on there way to me in a container at the moment.
(Another UK only sale I'm afraid.)

http://www.cjautos.eu/product_p/cr012.htm

I will post up a full review once I get them and give them a work out.

Those are slick. They have a video on their website of them lifting a heavy 3/4 ton ford truck, which is impressive. The music choice is kind of odd.

I have seen similar products advertised here (US).

I would be real careful with the hydraulic release knob. Notice in the video how the guy lifts the truck, sets the safety, then slowly lowers the platform on the safety. If someone not familiar with the jack opened the release quickly the platform could fall quickly and cause a tremendous shock load on the structure.

just my observation.

 

[alan camby]

Did some testing today before I add my additional bracing to the platform. Drove my truck up on the platform and put a jack stand under the frame. The J stand is not holding any of the weight.

I don't know the weight of the vehicle but would estimate it to be around 5500lbs. And yes, I realize that when you put a vehicle on ramps you are only supporting about half of the weight.
This would mean that each stand holds somewhere around 1/4 of the vehicle weight.
Don't know for sure but my brain is telling me that the setup in the pictures below is holding over 1/4 of the weight but could be wrong. Also thinking that trucks like mine have more weight in the front then the rear, not a 50/50 weight split.

The truck is a 2011 Silverado 1500, 4wd, regular cab, short bed, with the 5.3 V8 and 6speed auto. Threw that out there if someone has a better guess on the weight.

This is not a scientific test, just something for my curiosity of how the platforms will handle the weight with no other bracing.


Ok, don't make fun of the cable ties. They are a temporary setup to keep things from scooting. Finished product will have steel connectors.
The jack stands are for safety, not holding any weight.

Here is my curiosity. How much will the metal deflect without the braces I will be adding later. I could see nothing by eye.

Here is a rung directly under the tire.

Planning to brace the stand like the red ramps in the original post (with the van). I am like a earlier poster and like a "X" or some angles in the design. This design has triangles and helps support at the same time.

Thanks for stopping by.

 

[Keyblazer]

Kwik-lift ramp.
I love mine!
Used... $300.
This one is rated to 7000lb and adjustable for length... stores flat on the floor if you want and I picked it up for the PO in a Buick Roadmaster wagon..

 

[alan camby]

Kwik-lift ramp.
I love mine!
Used... $300.
This one is rated to 7000lb and adjustable for length... stores flat on the floor if you want and I picked it up for the PO in a Buick Roadmaster wagon..

That is nice. Assume that you just leave it setup and park on it at night.

 

[pfarber]

If you do the math you'll see that on a vehicle weighing 10,000, the most you could have on a single tire is 3,000 (most vehicles are front heavy by a little).

Some quick and dirty math:

3000lbs x 4 (corners of a support) 750 lbs

1/8th steel is EASILY going to support this weight. Keep it a square to all sides are seeing equal weight.

 

[bad_idea]

Two things to consider: Factor in shock loads for when sh!t happens. If the truck weighs 2k lbs on the front ramps, I would say build them for 4k lbs in case sh!t happens.

Next thing: You may be surprised to find there isn't that much weight on the front wheels. My Nissan Frontier crosses the scales at the land fill at 3600 about empty for a vehicle weight of about 3400 (less my 200 lbs). I hung a dynamometer from the I beam in my garage and picked the front of the truck up to weight test the beam. The (recently calibrated) dynamometer registered right at 1400 lbs picking the front end of the truck up off of the ground.

Either way, the ramps are looking pretty good. I like them. Do you have a vehicle with a manual? I am curious how much of a PITA it would be to climb those with a manual. I almost went over a set of regular ramps in a manual once. That was fun...

 

[alan camby]

Two things to consider: Factor in shock loads for when sh!t happens. If the truck weighs 2k lbs on the front ramps, I would say build them for 4k lbs in case sh!t happens.

Next thing: You may be surprised to find there isn't that much weight on the front wheels. My Nissan Frontier crosses the scales at the land fill at 3600 about empty for a vehicle weight of about 3400 (less my 200 lbs). I hung a dynamometer from the I beam in my garage and picked the front of the truck up to weight test the beam. The (recently calibrated) dynamometer registered right at 1400 lbs picking the front end of the truck up off of the ground.

Either way, the ramps are looking pretty good. I like them. Do you have a vehicle with a manual? I am curious how much of a PITA it would be to climb those with a manual. I almost went over a set of regular ramps in a manual once. That was fun...

I wish i could still get a full size truck with a manual. My last 2 trucks and my 2008 JK Jeep were all manuals. Think manuals are done in this country for 1/2 ton trucks

These ramps are very easy to climb due to the low ramp angle. My dads Race Ramps are about the same. I thought the rungs would feel weird but you really don't notice them that much. Sure some of the ramps out there that have rungs with a wide spacing would be a real challenge.

Could you imagine climbing the ones in the picture.

 

[alan camby]

I am out of Argon/co2, so no welding today.

Yesterday i tacked together the other platform. Today I cut most of the remaining pieces for the final ramp.


This is my plan to finish out the bracing. One diagonal per end and 2 per side, picture does not have the far side bracing. This puts my final weight at 31 lbs for the stand, sure that the welding will add a pound or so to that.

 

[[email protected]]

Also checkout www.raceramps.com

They make great products!!

 

[neonnblack]

Maybe its just me, but i would have felt perfectly fine under them as they are, they look very well built to me.

 

[dieselman321]

That is a pretty good deal for ramps. I didn't realize ramps were anything other than the standard wheel ramps lol.

 

[pfarber]

Two things to consider: Factor in shock loads for when sh!t happens. If the truck weighs 2k lbs on the front ramps, I would say build them for 4k lbs in case sh!t happens.

Next thing: You may be surprised to find there isn't that much weight on the front wheels. My Nissan Frontier crosses the scales at the land fill at 3600 about empty for a vehicle weight of about 3400 (less my 200 lbs). I hung a dynamometer from the I beam in my garage and picked the front of the truck up to weight test the beam. The (recently calibrated) dynamometer registered right at 1400 lbs picking the front end of the truck up off of the ground.

Either way, the ramps are looking pretty good. I like them. Do you have a vehicle with a manual? I am curious how much of a PITA it would be to climb those with a manual. I almost went over a set of regular ramps in a manual once. That was fun...

No.

For stability reasons all cars are going to have AT LEAST 51% of the weight up front. Otherwise the car will be (at best) neutral when braking or (most likely) incur HUGE OVERSTEER (aka the *** end will want to come around) and be impossible to control under hard breaking.

You didn't measure the full weight on the front axle, but only a portion because the car was, in fact, acting as a class II lever, and the rear axle was still supporting the weight of the car.

A rough and easy way to see how much weight is up front (although not 100% accurate) is to look at the load rating of the tire. Each tire has to support (approx) 25% of the load, so if your two front tires are rated at 1250 @ 32PSI than you can safely say that your front end is supporting LESS than 2500lbs.

Its a rough and dirty number, but will get you close.

 

[JerryC]

I am out of Argon/co2, so no welding today.

Yesterday i tacked together the other platform. Today I cut most of the remaining pieces for the final ramp.


This is my plan to finish out the bracing. One diagonal per end and 2 per side, picture does not have the far side bracing. This puts my final weight at 31 lbs for the stand, sure that the welding will add a pound or so to that.

I'd feel much better using them after the bracing, looks good!

When the car fell on me it was a jackstand under the rear that bent, and the car rolled own the ramps. One of the legs folded, thinking of it I can still hear the sound of metal groaning.