I am trying to decide which garage lift to go with for my new shop. I have read all the post about 2-post vs. 4-post and the different brands. I have decided to go with a 4-post lift, but have a question for some of you that have a 4-post. How often do you use the casters to move the lift? I'm trying to decide if I should get a 12,000 lb. lift that can't be put on coasters vs. a ligher duty lift that can be put on casters and moved around. It will be used to work on the chevelle and general maintenance on everything from my daughter's Civic, to my wife's Yukon, to my crew cab dodge pickup, and maybe even my farm tractor (New Holland 5610 with loader). From what I have been reading, the heavier 4-post lifts require bolting to the floor. Any input would be appreciated. FWIW, the size of the bay that will contain the lift is 14 x 30.

dwayne, i have a 4 poster and i bought the caster kit.
i have moved the lift once in the last year.
i have 3 bay garage and originally put it off to the side of the 3 bay. let's call it bay 1.
stored a car on it and one under it last winter.
i moved it 2 months ago to the center. bay 2.
caster kit made it REAL easy. by myself.
i moved it so i could work on the brakes,pull the tranny and get all the way around the car.
when in bay 1, it is right up against the wall.
i'm contemplating a second lift to put in bay 3.
then i will be able to store 4 cars in bays 1 and 3, and still get my truck in bay 2.
i'm very glad i got the caster kit and 4 poster.
i didn't want to be stuck with a 2 poster fastened to the floor.
i recommend the sliding jack platform, also.
i have used it numerous times. real convenient.
david

p.s. my ceilings are 12 1/2 feet high.
garage is 27' wide x 24' deep.
check wheelbase on your crewcab. make sure it will fit on platform.

I have a 4 post lift,, it's manufactured by Superior Lift..I have the caster kit and have used it three times in the 4 years that I have had the lift... I do not have my lift bolted down.. there is the capability to do that through the floor plats. But my floor is vary level and the post are solid in the up or down position.. SO I never pursued that option. according to a few guys it REALLY stablizes the lift with a Heavy High load on.

Would I spend the extra for the casters ??? mine were a package deal.. one thing I would opt for is the lighter Alu. entrance ramps

I purchased an AutoLifters M80 4-post lift, and it's awesome. I too have not bolted it to the floor, due to smooth cement and no movement that I could tell. If you're considering this lift, check out pictures on my website taken during the installation. They're HERE (http://www.71protouringchevelle.com/autolifters.htm) so click away & enjoy. I'd be happy to answer any questions if you want to e-mail me directly. Good luck!

I have an Eagle 4 post lift with the caster wheels, sliding jack platform, aluminum ramps and the center aluminum deckplates. I have moved mine alot since I used it to install and insulate the ceiling in my shop. It is kinda handy to be able to move the lift if you want to reconfigure the shop layout although when I figure out where I want it permanently, I will probably bolt it down. It is a little wobbley with a heavy vehicle on it. The aluminum deck plates that fill the center section are a PITA and I would probably not buy them again. Hard to store and they are not strong enough to put anything on them like a 4wheeler without putting some kind of supports under them. Eagle makes a longer version, which I bought for my Suburban. You may want to consider for your crew cab.
Cheers
Steve

I have the Autolifters 4 post also. I like the way the locks are engaged compared to alot of other lifts. Mine is the 9000 lbs lift. Have the casters for it, but rarely move it.

riskyvt,

I sent you a PM

Thanks,

Gaz

if you have the room to move it around, get the casters. What's another 100 bucks or you'll always wish you did. I have a 20x30 concrete pad outside my barn. I move the whole lift outside an wash the underside of the car in the summer. Never seen a reason to "bolt" it down.

Another thing to consider: I have a Backyard Buddy 4-post, 6000lb. capacity. While I am extremely happy with it while working on my old cars and two minivans, my 4x4 Chevy extended cab pickup will not fit on it. Weight would be another concern. If you want to work on the truck (and maybe even the Yukon), I would verify the dimensions and weight capacity of whatever you are looking at.

Rich

I've had my Bendpak HD-9 for over a month now and I'm very happy with it. I wonder why I didn't get one sooner.

I had to purchase the wider HD-9 to fit my 2003 Ram between the runner supports. Also, my father's 2003 Ram Quadcab just fits by length, which I believe is a 141" wheelbase. So you may need to verify a crew cab truck will fit on whatever lift you decide.

Here are some links to some pics in my shop. Feel free to ask any questions. graemlins/thumbsup.gif

http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift01.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift02.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift03.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift04.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift05.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift06.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift07.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift08.jpg
http://www.72chevelle.com/bendpak/lift09.jpg

btw....putting a lift in my shop was the worst thing I ever did. My heat and electric bill went through the roof. My friends will never go home and there is never any beer left in my fridge when I get there.

You lucky Guys, I want one so bad but my layout won't allow it. So back to the Jack stands. graemlins/sad.gif

Thanks for all the replies. I have decided on the Bend Pak HD9. It is the only moveable lift wide enough to fit my truck on. This company also seems to have a good reputation. I will be getting the 4500 rolling jack and the 6000 jacking platform; hopefully this will allow me to do 4 tire rotations if I use two jackstands on the jacking platform. I will also be getting the caster kit. Thanks to all for the good advice. The only bad thing is that the lift will be bought with some of the money I had put away to restore the chevelle. Oh well, it should at least make working on the car a little more enjoyable. After talking to several of the manufacturers, all of them expect a large price increase after the first of the year; around 8%. This is due to the price of steel and fuel surcharges. I felt like the time was right to go ahead and buy the lift.

Dwayne...you'll never regret it. they really make working on them so much more enjoyable. Once you have one you wonder how you lived without it.

Dwayne.. once you got one.. you'll find many other things it can do... Lifting & supporting for painting or welding or Lifting or lowering bodys off frames.. You do seem to get the occoasional " HELP" a freiend with a trans or clutch R & R But.. The truth be know you would have helped B-4 but the job is now a peice of Cake...

First weekend after I got mine assembled, I did some overdue maintinence on my truck and my father's truck. Probably saved about $350 in labor costs alone. It will eventually pay for itself.

Hope you have an engine hoist/chain hoists or a bunch of friends to help with assembly. The runners are the heaviest pieces. Probably around 500 lbs each. Everything else is movable by hand.

Ditto to all the above....I graemlins/thumbsup.gif graemlins/thumbsup.gif my Superior lift. Got mine this summer at one of the Good Guys car shows. Mine came as a paackage with the casters... I've used mine twice to move the car outside and wash underneth. Mine is one of the import 4 post type they sell. Got,castors,drip pans, 2 jack bridges, rolling oil drain, air bottle jack and shipping for $2250. To do it over I'd forget the air bottle jack (junk).My 66 is on it right now as I do the body work on it b4 I paint it.
I looked at ALOT of the lifts and chose the Superior one because of the width. It's 98" wide while alot of others are only 92". I can roll my 92 Suburban on it without having to bend in the mirrors :D
Alot of guys get them to just store another car under them and thats fine.But I wanted to USE mine. And it has been these past few months.

One thing I did do to mine is,I took one of the antiroll plates they give you (flat plate that sticks on the rear to keep car from rolling off) and heated and bent the ends down,making it a u shape and bolted it above the hyd.lines on the side. The lines are positioned right where you want to stand on the drivers side to lean over the fender. This way I'm not standing on the lines. Really helps...

Get the castors.Wanting to move it ONE time makes them worth it....

graemlins/waving.gif
Rick

I have a 2 post, had my lawnmower on it to change the oil and sharpen the blade. My neighbor just looked and shook his head..... smile.gif

Yeah, I realize these things are heavy. Luckily, I have a good size tractor with a front end loader and a set of pallet forks to go on it. I also have a cherry picker. So hopefully, All I need is a few friends and a free saturday to set it up. The lawn mower comment is pretty funny, but I can relate. I'll probaly use mine for the lawn mower and the 4-wheeler. I guess once you get used to working at a comfortable level, it's hard to work on anything on the floor. It makes your wonder where your wants/needs end. I used to be happy working on a peice of cardboard in the yard and thought: "I'll never want/need anything else once I get my shop built". I guess it's just human nature to want to continually improve things.

You guys are killing me- Iwould love to have a lift ! go for it before your wife says no!

Flywheel ( rick) you said you have one of the
" IMPORT Lifts they Sell " I got mine in 2000. and mine was made in Tex... the steel was fabed and powered coated there. shiped to KS and to me in PA .....How I found out all the details, ,they shipped mt 4 LH side top post plates.. I spoke to Jim at Superior. He gave me the tell # in Texas. I spoke to an Rep at the manufacturing plant he went too the shop floor got a top plate we conferd on the phone to make sure it was the side I needed.. It was not powder coated yet.. but they sent a qt of touch paint along with it. They OVER NIGHTED Them UPS Red..
I also opted for that Lift because of the extra width, length and lifting hight , I am 6'3" tall. I need all the hight I can get.

Originally posted by WayneK:
or lowering bodys off frames.. Can you describe how you use the lift to remove/reinstall the body to the frame? This seems like a great use for a lift.
Thanks,
Jeff

Originally posted by Stingray74:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by WayneK:
or lowering bodys off frames.. Can you describe how you use the lift to remove/reinstall the body to the frame? This seems like a great use for a lift.
Thanks,
Jeff </font>[/QUOTE]I would love to hear if anybody has done this with a 4 post lift also. I will have to do this within the next year and I think about how to do it but I haven't come up with it yet.

Ok here go's . To lift a body off a frame, I position the liftfull Up... roll in the chassis/body under the lift... I have two 2X6 vertial and one 2x8 a a bottom plate. making an upside down T.. these are layed across the tire ramp.. I position one ast the firwall and one at the trunk opening..( no trunk lid on car)
to takethem off both times my rear cross member mounting bolts were spinning so I did the can opener three side to gain access to the cage nut.
I remover drill out the cage and used these two points to insert long eye bolts, nutting them up from the bottom.. this is the rear attachement point.. in the front I used two j hooks in the out side body bushing holes at the fire wall.. I have webbed slings I hook to theJ bolts and the eye bolts in the rear. lowere the lifs as low as I can make it ( keep you tires Low on air. and in my case I back in the car so the engine dose not have to have the body lifted over it...
I position the T's across the rails,, use a come along on each end and make tight the slings.. I break loose thhe body with a LARGE pry bar. making sure it's loose.. then Lift away..
My conv was easy to put back on the frame with no top . I just eye bolts inserted into the rear seat belt bolt holes ( Eye and fish plate) and again the sling come along. and the front at the firw wall same as removal.

My HT I removed the trunk lid and did the rear mount eye bolt mount lift. .The only thing wrong is that you must finish installing the cage nuts and re welding the trunk pan after it's back on the frame...
This is just my simple way of rigging ,, I look forward to other ways ?

Dwayne, did you get my reply to your questions? The first reply I send bounced back, so I tried sending a private message here.

Jeff,
I did not get your email, but I did read the PM (we are having email problems). Thanks in part to your response, I have a Bend Pak HD9 on the way. I also purchased from ASEDEALS. According to the manufacturer and distributor, this is a very popular lift right now. I really appreciate the help.