HF engine hoist gonna buy

[rfpowerdude]

Gonna go buy this engine hoist in the morning from HF. Anyone feel like chiming in on whether this is a good purchase or should I stay away or buy something else or ???

https://www.harborfreight.com/2-ton-capacity-foldable-shop-crane-69514.html

With the 20% discount, it's $192 + tax.

I'm pulling the 455 Olds out of the silver car in my sig to put into the 1970 Cutlass I just got from a friend. The silver car will get a different 455 I am having built for it. My 20 year old POS hoist has become unusable.

Any thoughts?

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Only issue I've ever had with mine from a functionality standpoint is that on some cars bumper removal is required to get sufficient reach to lift the motor up. Bought mine off a friend used, after maybe 20 engines it sags down a little after each pump. I'm planning on looking into a rebuild or replacement cylinder at some point.


How much does a 455olds weigh? Remember as the boom arm is extended, weight capactiy drops.

 

[rfpowerdude]

I still have the original cylinder on my POS falling apart hoist. It doesn't leak, but the rest of the hoist is falling apart around it. Maybe if I get this HF one and I have problems with the cylinder too much, I can re-purpose the old cylinder...

 

[speed bump]

I've had mine for 8 years and it's been great every time I have used it. Next engine I do I am going to replace the cylinder with an air over hydraulic one because it seems like I spend forever pumping it up.

 

[txvwnut]

Mines coming up on twenty years old, sits outside the shop with a bucket over it. It works every time I need it to with no issues. I can’t believe I’ve had something from HF that long and it still works as good as the day I got it.

 

[rfpowerdude]

The air over hydraulic ram sounds interesting. I have plenty of compressed air available. Maybe I will go this route once I get this hoist...

EDIT: Like this one?
https://www.harborfreight.com/8-ton-long-ram-airhydraulic-jack-56215.html

 

[turnthewrench 2.0]

I've had mine for a few months now, it hasn't leaked yet. They're plenty powerful for most home users. If you can, get the load leveler too.

https://www.harborfreight.com/2-ton-capacity-heavy-duty-load-leveler-60659.html

 

[brownbagg]

i got the orange one but same model. had it 19 years, no problem. still use it everyday. I wish the ram was faster but its ok, nothing wrong with it, it even stay outside for five years. still good

oh when you put it together and it doesnt set right, the wheels are wrong. they are two different sizes. took me ten years to figure that out

 

[radio2000]

I’ve had mine for about 10yrs, no issues


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[rfpowerdude]

Thx for all the replies so far guys, I appreciate it. I noticed the wheels are a little different on the middle ones. I watched the owner/user video and noticed that while it had a load on it, the middle wheels weren’t turning (not touching the floor) while rolling across the floor. Thx for the heads up.

I had that exact load leveler before and hated it. Threw it in with a scrap run years ago. Now, I have pulled enough engines and engine/trans combos that I use a single chain for engine/trans and know what link to hook to make it relatively easy. Engine by itself gets pulled with a carb plate. These two 455’s will be the same.

 

[vssjim]

Make sure you lube the wheels and casters before putting on the ground so they pivot easy and roll easy

 

[1 Tooth Ratchet]

That's the same one I've got at home and guess what. Used it once and the cylinder leaks.

 

[Jagmandave]

I have the 1 ton version, as the engines I pull weigh about 300lbs. One of the things I liked about the orange 2 ton I had before was that it had a T handle across the back post that you could use to push it in and pull it out from under the car, and to steer it with. The silver ones don't have that.

The cylinder on my orange one dripped, but didn't drop overnight. The one on my silver 1 ton doesn't drip, but it sags overnight, with or without a load on it. It's very slow, but it does come down.

 

[Desertskyy]

I have the same one. Have not had an issue with the one I purchased. Buy extra ram fluid for it as it comes only half full I think. I bought 2 bottles along with the hoist. Used one full bottle and a little out of the 2nd bottle. Looks like they redesigned the handle holder as I think I only have one ring to hold it when it is not in the ram

 

[whateg01]

Don't make the existing casters into fixed ones and then move a 2000# welding bench with it! Lol. Seriously, the only issue I've had with either of mine is that the swivel casters ****. They don't want to swivel with a load and they don't want to roll over anything bigger than a grain of sand. My non-folding worked great after I made the front casters not swivel. After the broken caster I put pallet jack wheels on my other folding one and it rolls easily and I am not worried about them breaking. Of course, swivel can be handy when stuffing engines into cars. A friend put kingpinless casters on his and it rolls around much better.

 

[matt_i]

On some of those the hardware (nuts and bolts) might as well be made of a fine grade of cheese. My info is 20 years old now, but if the hardware that holds it together is suspect.....I just went to Grade 5 and life got easier and I sleep better.

 

[59 wagon man]

+1 on the air over hydraulic. while I haven't used my lift in yrs if I had to I would upgraded before I did. I know on my little bottle jacks it is way easier than pumping the handle and the engine hoist travels a lot more

 

[emeraldcoupe]

I've had one for 15 years, the cylinder just started to weep last time I used it. it's pulled big and small block fords, rear ends, blah blah..... money well spent

 

[clubairth]

Boy another vote for air over hydraulics if you can! Just way to much pumping without it!

Best thing I ever added to my HF 20 Ton press too. Just makes them a lot more usable.
.
.
.

 

[Slednut]

Have had one for years, I did make a couple changes. I made a steerable pneumatic wheel setup so I could use it off road and made a lock on one of the front swivels. As whateg01 said be careful of the weak cast iron wheels.

I've used it for removing heavy hoods, installing car doors and lifting stuff into my truck bed.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

I have the mate to that one; only in a different color from a different vendor. It is the favored and most used of My three engine hoists. There will likely be some negative replies about the swivel casters on the legs. These swivel casters are one of the reasons I favor this particular hoist in tight quarters.. However, the legs need over 7 1/2" clearance under suspension components.. I have a folding Arcan hoist with stronger fixed wheels on the legs that will clear at 5 3/8". If you buy the HF 2 ton hoist, I would strongly recommend buying a 8' 2x8 and cut it into 16" sections for placement under the wheels for added clearance. There are a half dozen variations of "these 2 ton hoists", and they all seem to have their good points and fanfare.

 

[gte718p]

i got the orange one but same model. had it 19 years, no problem. still use it everyday. I wish the ram was faster but its ok, nothing wrong with it, it even stay outside for five years. still good

oh when you put it together and it doesnt set right, the wheels are wrong. they are two different sizes. took me ten years to figure that out

Holy ****, I've had mine for 12 year, (never once pulled a motor with it) but I never noticed that. That explains why the stupid thing always rocked. While I have never pulled a motor, it is one of the most useful tools I own.


Also pick up some HF quick pins. https://www.harborfreight.com/58-in-Easy-Grip-Hitch-Pin-63671.html So muuch better then messing with their cheap bolts.

 

[ChevyEFI]

Also pick up some HF quick pins. https://www.harborfreight.com/58-in-Easy-Grip-Hitch-Pin-63671.html So muuch better then messing with their cheap bolts.

That's for holding the legs to be held straight when they're not folded up?

 

[American Locomotive]

We pretty much exclusively use the HF engine hoists. We never had a major problem with any of them between the 3 or 4 people I know who own them. The cylinders do start to leak internally after a while, which gets annoying.