Identify this car lift

[matthew b]

Just bought a house and this is in the garage. Its a retrofit from some time ago and therefore was put in after the garage was built. Its a semihydraulic single post lift. The hydraulic tank is above ground and it all appears to be in ok shape. I havent put any weight on it but it goes up and down just fine. It appears the gland ring that is usually used to identify these things is under the concrete maybe or simple missing completely?? Ive been told that it looks like a Gilbarco/Manitowoc or a Globe manufacturer. Any ideas on what it is?

Id like to find out what it is so I can get some parts for it as well as a user manual or something to show its weight capacity.

 

[cm2677]

Show more pics. Can you clean off some of the dirt from the tags on the lift to see the name? It looks similar to the one in my uncles shop.

 

[ehegwer]

is there any marking on the underside?

 

[gsport]

looks like an old service station lift....

 

[matthew b]

Show more pics. Can you clean off some of the dirt from the tags on the lift to see the name? It looks similar to the one in my uncles shop.

Here are some more pics that I already had taken. Im not in the house yet so Ill have to take a trip over to get some more. I had tried to clean the tags up by hand and it just wasnt working. They are pretty scratched up and it looks like someone powedercoated overtop of them as as well. I may be able to get a wire brush to it but that will probably be in a few days.

Check out the bolt pattern on the top plate with the off center center cap? Does that ring any bells to a manufacturer or are they all like that?

 

[scott37300]

Any info of the hydralic unit above ground?

 

[jdf]

Back in 1969-70 I worked at a Gulf gas station after school. We had two
lifts like this. I beleive they were Joyce. Google brings up all kinds of hits.I hope this helps - Jeff

 

[matthew b]

Any info of the hydralic unit above ground?

http://www.panzittasales.com/PDFs/M...GROUND/A_1AA1A__A_1AA3A__A_1AN1A__A_1AN3A.pdf

Check out this link. Ive been hunting down parts diagrams and this is the closest Ive found to what I have. This also shows the exact above ground hydraulic setup that I have on page 3 I believe.

When I go back over, Ill start getting measurements of bolts and anything else I can to see if they match up with this diagram.

 

[scott37300]

http://www.panzittasales.com/PDFs/M...GROUND/A_1AA1A__A_1AA3A__A_1AN1A__A_1AN3A.pdf

Check out this link. Ive been hunting down parts diagrams and this is the closest Ive found to what I have. This also shows the exact above ground hydraulic setup that I have on page 3 I believe.

When I go back over, Ill start getting measurements of bolts and anything else I can to see if they match up with this diagram.

Page two of that page shows a lift plate just like yours with the offset center cap. I don't know much about these lifts so maybe all brands have that offset center cap.

 

[Jack Olsen]

I can't help with the ID, but I've got to give props to the homeowner who was ambitious enough to install that thing.

 

[matthew b]

Ok guys. I cleaned up the tags as best I could. I was able to see "GL" and the rest of the tag was tore to pieces. I feel like an idiot though because all 4 of the movable arms are stamped GLOBE. So at least Ive confirmed the manufacturer is Globe and not gilbarco/manitowoc as I had originally thought. I also uncovered the 8000 capacity tag. That may be enough for an email to the manufacturer to help me out as far as a model number. More pics to follow.

 

[Milton Shaw]

Make you a frame with table top and you have a heavy duty any height you want it work bench. I have one with a 2x3 steel frame with 1/4 top for welding and then a piece of 1/4 masonite for woodworking. Great for matching height of pickup bed and sliding material off truck without having to lift it up. That in ground lift should be rock steady and great for car/truck work. I tilt the bench up on one side and have removable caster frames to roll the top out of the way in the shop. I use a jib crane to pick the top up.

 

[matthew b]

Make you a frame with table top and you have a heavy duty any height you want it work bench. I have one with a 2x3 steel frame with 1/4 top for welding and then a piece of 1/4 masonite for woodworking. Great for matching height of pickup bed and sliding material off truck without having to lift it up. That in ground lift should be rock steady and great for car/truck work. I tilt the bench up on one side and have removable caster frames to roll the top out of the way in the shop. I use a jib crane to pick the top up.

You know, I had already had this in the back of my mind. I wanted to make a platform so it would double as a motorcycle table. I hadnt thought about loading/unloading the truck. Great ideas.

 

[RickP330]

You know I have one of these under my deck. Pm me if you need spre parts.
Rickp

 

[matthew b]

Here are a few more pictures I promised showing the tags, hydraulic setup as well as the compressor. You can see in the concrete where they dug it up for the hydraulic pipes.

Also, what does the hydraulic valve do? Obviously, it shuts off hydraulic fluid, but what is the purpose? Does it act as a extra safety for the lift? Here the previous guy has it bolted in place with a piece of all-thread from the wall.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

Can't help ya, but damm, that's nice to have at hone.
Tony

 

[KrisKustomPaint]

Center post lifts are the coolest.

 

[Stephenw]

That type of lift had a safety in the full up position. It was a steel arm that would pop out of the tube on the right. Yours appears to be missing or jammed. You would use tall jack stands for safety stops at positions other than full up. Those lifts would often bleed down all the way to the floor overnight.

Even with an above ground resevoir, those lifts can leak fluid into the ground and contaminate the soil. Those are an environmental liability.

 

[matthew b]

Can't help ya, but damm, that's nice to have at hone.
Tony

Haha I know. The garage is a big part of why I bought this place. Its actually worth more than the house. The garage itself started as a 2.5 car garage but has 2 more additions on it, tripling its size. The previous guy was running some illegal entertainment in one of the rooms.

 

[matthew b]

That type of lift had a safety in the full up position. It was a steel arm that would pop out of the tube on the right. Yours appears to be missing or jammed. You would use tall jack stands for safety stops at positions other than full up. Those lifts would often bleed down all the way to the floor overnight.

Even with an above ground resevoir, those lifts can leak fluid into the ground and contaminate the soil. Those are an environmental liability.

Yeah that is a safety in that leg. I didnt have any tools with my when I took that picture so I couldnt get it to come out but I think some persuasion with a hammer could change that. Ive seen other legs you can buy that have these all the way down the leg so you dont have to raise it up to full height to use them.

As far as the environmental liability, I keep hearing this on the net. This property has been vacant for about 18 months and theres still plenty of fluid in the tank. Not to say that using it wont hasten any leaks that exist. Ill test that theory by leaving it up and seeing how long it takes to come down on its own, if at all.

 

[Stephenw]

It probably will need the weight of a car on it to bleed down.

 

[c39er]

That type of lift had a safety in the full up position. It was a steel arm that would pop out of the tube on the right. Yours appears to be missing or jammed. You would use tall jack stands for safety stops at positions other than full up. Those lifts would often bleed down all the way to the floor overnight.

Even with an above ground resevoir, those lifts can leak fluid into the ground and contaminate the soil. Those are an environmental liability.

I've seen heavy equipment leak way more oil in 10 minutes blowing a hydraulic hose than any of these in ground hoists leak in 10 years!

 

[matthew b]

I've seen heavy equipment leak way more oil in 10 minutes blowing a hydraulic hose than any of these in ground hoists leak in 10 years!

Yeah the brochure says that the EPA specifically exempted inground lifts like these from the regulations involving underground storage tanks due to the relatively small amount of hydraulic fluid involved. Some other sites Ive seen try to blow the environmental impact of these things way out of proportion.

Ive even come across one particular brand, cant remember the manufacturer name, but it specifically stated it was not designed to be 100% leak proof. It said that the seals were designed to permit just a slight amount of fluid through to act as a lubricant.

Dont get me wrong, Im not going to simply ignore a major leak somewhere and just let the fluid leak out into the ground, but Im also not going to decommission the lift because of a slight loss of fluid.

 

[csargents1546]

We had inground lifts, two post fore and aft that were just removed at work. I don't think it had any oil added to it in five to six years. Right before they tore them out, had to put in five gallons. Not bad for several years. Big rigs leak more oil than that.

 

[Stephenw]

I worked in a dealership that had about 20 of these exact lifts. Four or five of them leaked. When they jack hammered out the floor and removed them, they also had to haul out a dump truck full of dirt from around each lift. The dirt was hazardous waste.

 

[lh4x4]

It looks just like the lift that my dad had in his Sinclair Station service garage built in 1952. It was pneumatic powered not hydraulic. It worked great until the state bought him out in the 70's to put in a road.

When at full lift, it had a steel arm that you pivoted down as a safety stop it an air line burst. Seems that that would be a good idea for a hydraulic lift also.

 

[matthew b]

Just thought Id update this. I finally closed on this place and had to replace my clutch in my truck immediately. After checking over everything and and testing it we loaded up the truck and checked and tested some more. No leaks or any problems at all actually. I even left it a foot off the ground over night and no drop at all the next day. Im pretty excited at this find.

 

[oilslick]

I love that lift. good luck we had one at work I used for 7yrs until all of the sudden it used 10 gallons of oil with no visible leak so we quit using it, but man you have to love the lack of space it takes up!!!

 

[KrisKustomPaint]

I thought I saw some environmentally safe oil for in ground lifts, but I may be wrong.

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

Haha I know. The garage is a big part of why I bought this place. Its actually worth more than the house. The garage itself started as a 2.5 car garage but has 2 more additions on it, tripling its size. The previous guy was running some illegal entertainment in one of the rooms.

He was showing tool **** to the guys??

 

[jdaallen]

that type of lift had a safety in the full up position. It was a steel arm that would pop out of the tube on the right. Yours appears to be missing or jammed. You would use tall jack stands for safety stops at positions other than full up. Those lifts would often bleed down all the way to the floor overnight.

Even with an above ground resevoir, those lifts can leak fluid into the ground and contaminate the soil. Those are an environmental liability.

+1 +1

 

[bazzateer]

The dirt was hazardous waste.

Nah, just a bit of oily dirt.

That lift is the dogs ********, I'd love one.

 

[Lou's Garage]

Also, what does the hydraulic valve do? Obviously, it shuts off hydraulic fluid, but what is the purpose? Does it act as a extra safety for the lift? Here the previous guy has it bolted in place with a piece of all-thread from the wall.

That valve is actually the lift control and what you should be using to raise and lower the lift. The air control valve (on top of the tank) applies (to raise) or removes (to lower) air pressure to the lift. The control valve along the wall is to control the fluid going to or from the lift itself. As it's by-passed now, if an air line fails and you suddenly lose air pressure your lift will come down unless the safety holds. With that valve in a functioning position, you remove the air pressure then use it to lower the car. It also makes it easier to control a mid-height adjustment if you don't want the vehicle all the way up (e.g. brake work).

Lou

 

[matthew b]

That valve is actually the lift control and what you should be using to raise and lower the lift. The air control valve (on top of the tank) applies (to raise) or removes (to lower) air pressure to the lift. The control valve along the wall is to control the fluid going to or from the lift itself. As it's by-passed now, if an air line fails and you suddenly lose air pressure your lift will come down unless the safety holds. With that valve in a functioning position, you remove the air pressure then use it to lower the car. It also makes it easier to control a mid-height adjustment if you don't want the vehicle all the way up (e.g. brake work).

Lou

That is helpful. After a bit of investigation, I did figure out some of that but not all. I did discover that the hydraulic valve is not bolted in place as I had thought. The piece of all-thread was used to hold the valve in the open position by pressing into the wall. But you can easily open and close it.

So the correct procedure for this is to build up air pressure in the hydraulic tank by using the air valve then once the pressure is high, use the hydraulic valve to raise the lift? Any ideas on what is an appropriate pressure for the tank to raise the lift on a single fill?

 

[LWW]

I'm generally not a big fan of those old center post lifts due to the interference with under chassis work but you definitely got it for the right price. The effort it took to install that had to have been impressive.

All you need to do is put down some 3/4" plywood and then some RaceDeck and that lift is suddenly "level" with your floor!

 

[matthew b]

I'm generally not a big fan of those old center post lifts due to the interference with under chassis work but you definitely got it for the right price. The effort it took to install that had to have been impressive.

All you need to do is put down some 3/4" plywood and then some RaceDeck and that lift is suddenly "level" with your floor!

I actually didnt have any trouble with the interference with the center post. We had to pull off driveshafts, t-case and ******. It actually helped out since we could rest the parts on it after removing them since I didnt have a tall ****** jack yet. I can definitely see where exhaust work would be hindered though.

 

[Big Rick]

WE use veg oil if it leaks it's ok will not mess up the ground. PS most hyd oil is veg base now for that reason.

 

[plips_2002]

Hi all, I'm new to the site so bear with me. I have a center post lift similar to this one that I am having trouble figuring out the brand and model. I will post pics soon to show you. I have no visible hydro. tank but there is 1/2 inch copper stubbing up out of the concrete and going to a valve body which has the control handle, hook an air line from the compressor to this and it's running. I need to remount/replace the valve body, can I assume since I have no oil tank that I can unhook this from the copper line without opening up a damm of oil? Like I said I will post pictures of the lift and the valve body as soon as I can so you can see what I'm talking about, more to follow.....

Thanks all.

 

[bgott]

Also, what does the hydraulic valve do? Obviously, it shuts off hydraulic fluid, but what is the purpose? Does it act as a extra safety for the lift? Here the previous guy has it bolted in place with a piece of all-thread from the wall.

That is your lifting valve. Make sure it is shut off, pressurize the tank with the air valve then use the hydraulic valve to control your lift. It isn't real fast, you have to blow out the air to let it down.

 

[Murphy4570]

I actually didnt have any trouble with the interference with the center post. We had to pull off driveshafts, t-case and ******. It actually helped out since we could rest the parts on it after removing them since I didnt have a tall ****** jack yet. I can definitely see where exhaust work would be hindered though.

That really looks like a giant PITA to work around when pulling transmissions. Some transmissions are big and heavy, can't just manhandle them in and out without a trans jack holding it up.

I'm not a fan of inground lifts for that reason. They would make great lifts for light duty work like tire and brake work though.

I'm used to 4 post and 2 post assymetric lifts myself. Used to use a 2 post symmetric, that was a PITA.