Storing casters for your 4 post lift

[Jazzman442]

Please post your ideas and pictures of where you store your casters for your 4 post lifts.

I just had mine installed and these casters are not only heavy but are very big.

Where do you all store your ramps.

Lot's to learn I love this site.

 

[Stuart in MN]

What brand lift do you have? Chances are they have a rack for storing the caster kits available. Here's one example from Stinger: http://www.stingerlifts.com/optionrack.html

 

[Jazzman442]

I have a Direct Lift. It is the Pro Park 9 Plus. They are big and heavy.

 

[Want2race]

I have mine hidden in the corner. Would love to see a good solution!

 

[Jazzman442]

Me Too. There has to be some cool and ingenuous ways to store them. I just have not had this lift long enough to figure it out. LOL

 

[kabinenroller]

I built a set of casters for my BendPak four post lift. I hate stuff laying around and being that I will only move the lift a few times I fabricated a pair of hooks to hang the wheels. Simple square tubing and some plate. They are anchored to the studs of a 2x6 wall so they are not going to fall.
Pictures attached.

 

[carsandcapp]

Yeah, so I spent about 30 minutes trying to figure this out yesterday. Just got my DirectLift installed on Friday. These casters are awkward, heavy and sort of slippery when you try to stack and hang them. Now this won't work for someone who moves their lift a lot, but check this out.

Step 1: Buy 100 lbs "L" hooks.
Step 2: Attach "L" hooks to garage wall, preferably in an out-of-the-way spot.
Step 3: Remove caster wheels and place them at bottom of arm, using pin.
Step 4" Hang on wall.

These things hang more securely now and make it much less likely I will bump into them. Works for me. YMMV.

 

[tdkkart]

I've got 4 of those big screw-in bicycle hooks screwed into the wall and hang the arms on those.
The other things I've seen done is to hang them from the tops of the posts. Watch this video closely and you'll see how this guy has his hung on his Direct Lift:

(I take NO responsibility for the hours you will lose watching his other videos)

 

[carsandcapp]

Thought about doing that too. But my garage door is so close to the lift, it would clip the 2 rear casters.

 

[scotty t]

About ten buck for the hooks and ten minutes installing them

 

[Jazzman442]

The wall hanging is a great idea. My garage is all block construction and I was looking to not drill into the concrete block. What hooks has anyone used to have them from the columns on the lift.

 

[bobabuee]

putting them on lift columns would be pain *** I ould be running into the casters all the time.

it not like your using them everyday. so hide them in a unused corner or on top of something out of the way.

 

[Jazzman442]

I built a set of casters for my BendPak four post lift. I hate stuff laying around and being that I will only move the lift a few times I fabricated a pair of hooks to hang the wheels. Simple square tubing and some plate. They are anchored to the studs of a 2x6 wall so they are not going to fall.
Pictures attached.

Your idea is why I need to start welding. Great Job. I need to do this.

 

[tatra]

Design a bench to utilize them daily. When need be use floor jack and some kind of jack stands or blocking to remove and use on lift. I hate occasional use items taking up space [ like my brain] . Im sure there are other repurposing ideas that can be had from others here. Maybe a dolly arrangement for table saw , pool table etc? The load capacity of these casters should be earning their keep. Of course if they are used fairly often then back to the storage idea. good luck.

 

[Jazzman442]

Design a bench to utilize them daily. When need be use floor jack and some kind of jack stands or blocking to remove and use on lift. I hate occasional use items taking up space [ like my brain] . Im sure there are other repurposing ideas that can be had from others here. Maybe a dolly arrangement for table saw , pool table etc? The load capacity of these casters should be earning their keep. Of course if they are used fairly often then back to the storage idea. good luck.

Now this is why I am here on this Forum. I like thinking like this. I have found so many ideas on this forum but these casters are crazy heavy.

Great Idea.

 

[Ross/Kzoo]

Now this is why I am here on this Forum. I like thinking like this. I have found so many ideas on this forum but these casters are crazy heavy.

Great Idea.

X 2 Great idea!

 

[ezzzzzzz]

I'm going to fab up some 'J' brackets to hang them off the posts from the top plate. They'll be high enough not to walk into but available when I might need them (rarity).

 

[jgorm]

I stuck mine in the rafters of my last shop. I would stand on the table saw and cram them up there.

 

[Want2race]

Anyone have a picture of a bench or other similar uses?

 

[Jazzman442]

ezzzzzzz Show some pictures when you make them. I am thinking I will be using them till i get the lift just right. I have several cars and trucks to make sure they fit on the lift with out touching anything. After that I am sure i will use them maybe once a year.

 

[domer911]

Used the large, rubber wrapped hooks on what was otherwise dead space at the end of the garage wall.

 

[Jazzman442]

I'm going to fab up some 'J' brackets to hang them off the posts from the top plate. They'll be high enough not to walk into but available when I might need them (rarity).

Did you ever make the hangers?

 

[TonyG]

I'm going to fab up some 'J' brackets to hang them off the posts from the top plate. They'll be high enough not to walk into but available when I might need them (rarity).

I thought of this as well, makes perfect sense. I just don't want a head/face knocker to worry about. Still mulling it over...

 

[shopnut]

I store them out of the way on the wall behind my roll-out island workbench. The full story can be found here: Link

Here are some pictures. They came in the matching black color of my HD-9XW. Little white patches on caster arms are magnetic sheet material that protects the lift columns from scratches.

 

[reeseleblanc]

Thread resurrection...LOL

I just got my lift in the garage and was trying to figure out the solution to what to do with the casters. My 14 year old was out there with me and we were going through a bunch of ideas when he said, "What about magnets?". Light bulb moment.

I had a couple of the Harbor Freight magnet bars so we screwed them into the wall side by side at the height of one of the cross bars on the caster. Since the caster rests on the floor the magnet only needs to secure it from falling over. We used a hook to hang the pins from. It works great and would only cost about $10 to do if I didn't already have the magnets.

 

[Glemon]

I am getting a kick out of reading this. I had mine leaning against a side wall of my garage for a few years. They came with the lift, I don't think I will ever use them, my garage is too small to really move the lift anywhere else. Wall hanging space is also at a premium, I thought about putting them in the basement, but it seemed silly to carry a big heavy thing down to the basement that would never be used down there. I stuck them up in the rafters.

 

[racecougar]

You can see mine hanging from a pallet rack shelf in the background here:

 

[hubbleboy]

just tripped over them for 5th time. came here and got some ideas. looked all over for hooks, started trying to figure if i had enough metal to make new ones, then it came to me.......

i've got them hanging to the outside but since my posts are square i can hang them inside (facing front to back toware the far post, not toward the runways and the nearer post)

hope it helps

 

[pbon]

I have never used mine. They are up stairs in the garage attic.

 

[finn]

I have two sets of four each. My shop came with open shelving, maybe 16” deep, and about 6’ huge in two corners .

One set stays tucked under the bottom shelf, out of the way, along the wall. I normally refrain from keeping regularly used items there anyway.

The second set is stored on their nose on top of an upper shelf, restrained high a rope and carabiner to keep them from falling on my head. There’s also a 2x2 snubber screwed to the shelf to keep the wheel assembly from kicking out from the storage position.

Total cost is whatever a carabiner and screw in eyelet goes for these days.

 

[onewheat]

I seem to use mine all the time. I have them lying on the floor near the lift so I can get to them quickly. I must be moving my lift a lot more often than most of you guys do. It depends on whether I'm using the lift or moving a trailer out of the garage. I still have some organizing to do, but the garage is pretty crowded. My 20' enclosed trailer is the main culprit, though.

 

[racecougar]

Once I settled on my lift location (moved it around a little til I was happy), I didn't move the thing again for four years. Even then, it was just to provide room to stand the cudgels up in the corners; the lift went right back to where it belonged once they were up.

 

[Mikes61]

Another vote for storing them in the attic. Ive only used them once in 5 years and that’s when I had the garage floor painted.

 

[gregs]

Once I settled on my lift location (moved it around a little til I was happy), I didn't move the thing again for four years. Even then, it was just to provide room to stand the cudgels up in the corners; the lift went right back to where it belonged once they were up.

I'm not very good at recognizing people... Who's the cardboard cutout? Whats the "tree" display?

 

[racecougar]

I'm not very good at recognizing people... Who's the cardboard cutout? Whats the "tree" display?

Bobby Duvall. One of the aforementioned cudgels. They're a big deal around St. Pats at University of Missouri - Rolla.

 

[gregs]

Bobby Duvall. One of the aforementioned cudgels. They're a big deal around St. Pats at University of Missouri - Rolla.

Learn something new all the time. Did you carry the cudgel?

 

[gregs]

You can see mine hanging from a pallet rack shelf in the background here:

Looking at the picture I see you have the lift against the side wall. Do you have enough room to work on that side of the car? It looks like the runways are about 24” from the wall.

 

[930dreamer]

Any regrets buying a four post lift? My shop was built in the 1950's so the floor isn't super smooth. My main reason for a four post is to be able to move it. I'm always rearranging the inside. I have a dually F350 diesel.

 

[racecougar]

Learn something new all the time. Did you carry the cudgel?

One of my guys did, for a very short distance.

Looking at the picture I see you have the lift against the side wall. Do you have enough room to work on that side of the car? It looks like the runways are about 24” from the wall.

Yes, there is enough room to pull axles.

 

[Smilodon]

You can see mine hanging from a pallet rack shelf in the background here:

Sorry, I started to look for them and then was distracted by the go-cart....