lift choice logic?

[millsjq]

I am getting close to pulling the trigger on a left and want to throw out my logic to see if anyone has additional ideas.

I have a three car garage (double door and single), my height is limited to 9" 2", to low for a lift to be really effective but I would rather duck or work on a stool than on my back. A 4 post would allow me to park two cars (they are relatively low), and I can perform maintenance with a rolling bridge jack.

I would like to have to lift have a 6' 2" clearance (my height) to bottom of the ramp so when I do not have a car on it, I can park under it and not hit my head on the ramps. A number of lifts have the extended height, Pro Park 8 plus, bendpak HD-9STX and complete hydraulics SL hydraulics 10,000 CSP .

However, I am think on occasion I would be want to be able to roll the lift out on the garage on the pad so I could lift the car to any height to work on it. My garage door entrance is 93", which is less than the column height for the bendpak HD-9STX( 100" column) or Pro Park 8+ (95") roll out of the garage, which reduces my choice to the complete hydraulics SL 10,000 CSP.

That lift is not ETL approved but as my heaviest car is about 3,500 pds I should have a reasonable safety margin. Are there other lift that meet my criteria that I am unaware of? Any other ideas?

 

[Steevo]

You mean they make 4-post lifts that can be rolled around?
That is way cool. I have never seen on that does that.

 

[BigDawgDavao]

You mean they make 4-post lifts that can be rolled around?
That is way cool. I have never seen on that does that.

http://www.metro-lifts.com/caster_kit.htm

and go to the video. It show's it being put up on the wheels and moved around

 

[Matti]

Doesn't Bendpak have a narrow lift that would fit? I will say that my Bendpak will roll with some effort with no car on it. However it won't budge with a car on it unlike the video that shows a guy easily pushing the lift around with his Camaro on it.

 

[mikeceli]

WOW! I have a 2 plus 1 garage, w/ 9'3" max cieling. I installed a Complete Hyraulic's SL10000BP, in the single bay(rest of garage is 8'3").

I'm 5' 07" and yes, it's better than rolling around on the floor. With my sedans and trucks, of course, there less lift.

The quality of the lift is GOOD. CE has distributors in several areas, so I was able to pick it up, in N. Cali.

The roll out would be nice, yet 2 post is the way to go, for REAL work.

 

[BigDawgDavao]

The Bendpak I ordered (HD9-ST-B) is supposed to be 103 3/4" and change at the widest, so I'm guessing that if you were to kind of angle it out you could get 1 post out, move it over close to the rails to get the other out.

I haven't been able to get an overhead schematic of the lift, but I think it would probably work with a 93" door. My doors are about 12' wide so I could have gone with the wider model, but didn't want it taking up so much space in an already crowded shop.

Here's some handy info on it.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-...ift-question-is-hd9-st-wide-enough-for-z.html

Aaron

 

[HIRISC]

I think he meant that his garage door height is 93".

The thing to remember about any lift is the you can add about 5" of under-car clearance to the stated lift height maximum because of the ramp height. Doesn't help you not hit your head - and I've done that many times, but something to be aware of for working on the car.

Basically, you're at 75" at the wheels with a 70" lift height. Add another 4" minimum for the ground clearance of just about any car.

With my HD-9 (bought the wide one) on the top lock, I've got about 78" of under-car (not under-ramp) clearance.

BTW - don't listen to that HIRISC fella on the Corvette Forum - he's out of it.

 

[millsjq]

Big Dawg, The garage width on the double bay is wide enough, but I was looking at the bend Pak HD-9STX to get a higher lift (so I do not hit my head) when it is up high without a car on it and I am parking under it, but it has a 100" column height that will not fit through by 93" garage door opening height. My choices are to accept an ocassional wack in the head with the bendpak or ProPark, or buy the non_ETL certified complete hydraulics hydraulics SL10,000 CSP, that will lift high enough and has colums that are short enough to fit out my door.
,

 

[mad57]

Could you remove a truss and get more height? i did that in my pole barn which has 9.5 wall height, now i have just enough to raise my van in that spot, i bought the byb and really love the 4 post. good luck

 

[mechamunch]

I think that there is probably an engineering reason for why post height must be increased to accommodate a taller max lifting height...which is probably why the ETL certified lifts have 100" posts and the non-certified doesn't.

If I were you, I would just determine which I want to deal with less: hitting my head or not bringing the lift out of the garage.

For me, I'd rather just not hit my head, so I'd go with the BPK HD-9STX

Oh and it says right in the top description, "This model is available with optional casters, dip-trays, jack platform and more."

http://www.bendpak.com/bendpak-products/four-post-lifts/HD-9STX.aspx

 

[mikeyr]

Nothing wrong with a 9ft. ceiling

I purchased this lift specifically because its columns would fit under the garage door header so I could roll the lift outside on the driveway when I worked on real cars. But I found that I left it in place and lifted my truck about 3ft. off the ground, I could sit comfortably under the truck and work on it. Its worked out great because I could work in the driveway or the garage.

I have since moved and now have plenty of height

 

[BigDawgDavao]

My mistake about the height / width confusion. It's just I was bit confused at my info states the height of most of the lifts as 88" so I was thinking it was the width that was the problem getting the lift out the door. I'm kinda short myself so ultimate height of a lift isn't so much an issue. My bad!

 

[tyrell2004]

Re: Rolling a round a 4-post with a car; I sure other manufactures perform similarly, on a smooth concrete floor. Only with lift lowered.

 

[e-tek]

You mean they make 4-post lifts that can be rolled around?
That is way cool. I have never seen on that does that.

I think they all have caster systems.

Doesn't Bendpak have a narrow lift that would fit? I will say that my Bendpak will roll with some effort with no car on it. However it won't budge with a car on it unlike the video that shows a guy easily pushing the lift around with his Camaro on it.

Ha Ha ! Ya - I tried it too - no go....easy without a car though.

 

[gsport]

heck... just cut off 6" from the top of each post, drill your holes and put the top plate back on.....

 

[must8657]

i don't know what measurements they use for the lift post heights, but two things to keep in mind (i have the pro-park 9+):
1. There are threaded rods sticking out the top. adds 1-2 inches depending on how you adjust it.
2. The posts end up a couple of inches higher when the wheels are on.
jason