HF scissors lift, dumb question

[MotoSook]

Ed, my HF lift cost me less than $1000 delivered into my garage. It came with the pads you see in the pictures I posted. I've never needed more than the pads that came with my lift.

I am not trying to talk anyone into an HF lift. Although I wish I got a commission from HF for talking about their lift, I don't

The search button on the upper right hand corner is a wonderful tool... The alternatives and user feedback for a number of lifts can be found with that wonderful little button

[wachuko]

Originally posted by scottbooth
I just ordered the Harbor Freight scissors lift that has been mentioned in several threads on this forum.

How difficult is it to move the lift around to get it set up? Can it be done by one person? Two? Or does it require equipment that the delivery guy will have, but I don't?

My car is currently on jack stands in the garage. I'm trying to figure out if the lift could be pushed under the car as it sits, or whether I need build ramps, put the wheels back on the car, and roll it out into the driveway before the lift shows up.

Those that ordered from HF - did they contact you to set up a delivery time or did the truck just show up?

Thanks
Scott

edited to remove 80's era characterization of this forum as a "BBS"...

1200lbs delivery weight... needs a truck with a lift to be able to unload the lift.. You get a call to coordinate delivery.

the funny thing is that they sell it as something you can move from bay to bay, HA!! I do not think so... the wheels in the cart are not that strong... I will end up replacing them with something more in line with the load they need to handle IF I am to move this thing around... doubt it...

Anyway, I managed to move it around. Placed some barel belt under it and some flat 1/8"x3"steel with barel belt under the flats where the metal wheels are... I only got 36" flat metal.... I used 2 2x12 for the ramps and cover them with high traffic carpet... I will need to add a few more inches to the ramps for the cars that have a wider track (996TT and for when the '83 is done).

Here are a few photos:

Here how it comes (btw this came in an 18 wheeler... that guy was a pro driving in our subdivision)












For those new looking if you have the ceiling height I would recommend a two post asy lift... only a couple of hundreds more and soooooo much better (nothing in between or under the car which makes it even better to work under our cars). I did not have the luxury of a higher ceiling... so this is the best alternative for now.

[efhughes3]

Originally posted by Souk
Ed, my HF lift cost me less than $1000 delivered into my garage. It came with the pads you see in the pictures I posted. I've never needed more than the pads that came with my lift.

I guess my question stems from the fact I've read more than a few posts about problems or defects with the HF units. If I'm spending $1000, I don't have a problem with an extra $400 to make sure I'm getting quality. That as well as a higher lift height and the pad selection convinced me. I've found that I've needed the low and the mid pads on mine.

But, it sounds like you've had good luck with yours, so all is well.

[MotoSook]

It's a good arguement one way or the other, Ed. I wouldn't blink at $400 if it meant a safer product, but I haven't heard of any failures of the HF lift. I haven't been online much of late, so I could have missed it.

At the end of the end of the day, anyone who spends $1400 or more for a lift will not regret the purchase. I'll be installing a 2-post in my second garage...and I'm sure as hell won't regret that! My back and knees are work more than any lift

[Tim Hancock]

I use my Bend Pak scissors lift at least once a week and can't imagine life without it (They are a pretty much a dead ringer for the HF lift, which I would have bought had they not been backordered at the time). My 911, 951 and lowered BMW 325 are fine with the low pads, but I use the mid height pads for my 924s and Audi A6, and I use the tall pads for my Toyota Tacoma 4x4. The low pads would work for all, but you would waste a bit of lift. The riser pads also make the occasional repair in the middle of the car easy to get at (complete exhaust systems and drivelines on front engine cars).

I have easily replaced clutches on 924s and 944 turbos, so obviously the scissors lifts do not get in the way some might think (the centers of the HF and Bend Pak scissors lifts are pretty open once the lift is raised).

Two posters are nice, but I have to be able to move my lift to other rooms on rare occasions and on top of that, the fixed posts would get in the way when I need extra space for airplane wings etc in my paint shop.

The Bend Pak has nicer wheels on the dolly/pump stand and it is pretty easy to drag it, but pushing it forward is kind of tough, I usually hook a strap to the opposite end and simply drag it (by hand) when I need to move in that direction.

[TWork]

I just ordered a 4 post from Greg Smith Equipment. Waiting for it to arrive any day now. I'll let you know how it goes.

[scottbooth]

Long overdue followup - Harbor Freight informed me a couple of weeks after my order that the lift was backordered and had no ship date.

So I dropped the engine and trans the old school way, with jacks and stands and hope and then, finally, beer. I had some friends help out, we watched Sebring and then F1, and that was all good. (A long time ago.)

If the lift bug strikes again (when...) I will probably look into a Bend-Pak or Snap-On next time, just so I can get a lift that may actually show up here and be of some use.

Thanks...
Scott

[stealthn]

That one from Greg Smith looks cool, I just had one question regarding an engine drop with the lift; what do you put the engine on so it's not resting on the exhaust/HE's? Thanks

[efhughes3]

Originally Posted by stealthn

That one from Greg Smith looks cool, I just had one question regarding an engine drop with the lift; what do you put the engine on so it's not resting on the exhaust/HE's? Thanks

It does rest on the exhaust. Mine goes onto 4 X 4's that span across my ATV jack.

[stealthn]

Originally Posted by efhughes3

It does rest on the exhaust. Mine goes onto 4 X 4's that span across my ATV jack.

And that won't "hurt" SSI's? What's the engine weigh?

[efhughes3]

Originally Posted by stealthn

And that won't "hurt" SSI's? What's the engine weigh?

Doesn't hurt my B&B headers, I'm sure there've been a bunch done the same way on SSI's and stock manifolds. Engine's about 400-450lbs, I believe

[scottb]

Is this the HF lift people have bought? http://tinyurl.com/32otpe

If not, which is the one everyone is discussing?

Thanks.

[jmshepard]

Yep, that's the one that I have. It was delivered with an inop electric motor. HF does not know that DHL can deliver freight from China to the US. I waited over 6 months for a replacement to be ordered and shipped from China. I believe that HF uses galleys rowed by Chinese prisoners to make the cross Pacific transit.

It works okay. When raising a car on the lift, the 20 amp service in the garage will pop the circuit breaker on occasion. Given all the problems and circuit breaker issues, I wouldn’t want to do without the capability.
Jim S.

[shbop]

For those with two post lifts: Please post your ceiling height. I'm curious what the lowest functional ceiling height is.

[scottb]

I've been toying with the idea of getting a lift, but since the HF one is $1400 plus shipping, I think that if I do end up buying one, it'll be a Bend Pak, or something similar. I just can't see trusting my safety and my car to HF and it's generally mediocre quality stuff.

[1985coupe]

Like a lot of members on this forum, I have been considering doing myself a big favor and invest in a scissor lift.

I have come across a nice used (late-model) snap-on scissor lift, but different from the one like RolinB's (older model) which is open in the middle. The late model snap-on uses a solid deck (about 30" by 80") and my concern is about restrained accessibility both in the middle (OK) and front/rear (not so OK) -that would nonetheless come handy for working on bikes, lawn mower, etc... I have seen at least one member on this forum with this solid-deck snap-on (Bill Verburg?) and I'd be very interested in hearing whether that configuration is somewhat limiting the accessibility of some components such as suspension, transmission, exhaust, etc...

I have attempted to post a different thread on this but I did not get any answer:
snap-on solid deck mid-rise scissor lift

This is kind of a timely issue since the used snap-on I could get might not stick around for much longer

Any snap-on solid deck scissor lift users out there? Thanks guys,