New HF lift... yay me! Whoo-hoo!

[us385south]

As a guy with two aging bikes... and two aging knees, fracturing my right femur while on the west Texas spring break ride in March has finally pushed me off the fence.

Taa-daa!  I am now the proud new owner of a Harbour Freight 1000 lb lift.  I know, I know... there are better and flashier (and more expensive) ones out there... but this is a dang sight lot better than the one I had before.

Which was nuttin' honey!

Also... pay no attention to the fact the Culley Cave is cluttered with uninstalled building materials.  As a teacher, I start stock piling materials around Christmas and once summer hits I open a home improvement "can-o-whup-ass" on my house, full time... for about a month.  This year... new exterior doors and a full, to-the-studs, remodel of the main bath... complete with a walk in shower.  Can't wait to take the saws-all to that nasty old 1978 one-piece fiberglass unit.  That... will be a good day!

I'm blatherng again... time to shut up and post the pics...

[jimnvalk]

nice, i have been hankering to get me one of those

[mario]

nice t!   

i've been asking for one for mother's day....

[us385south]

nice t!   

i've been asking for one for mother's day....

Thanks Mary!

Anniversary gift for me... $339.00!

[RainMaker]

If I got one, it would have clown sh.... stuff piled on it within a week. 

[wlgrice]

I have one, or should I say 3, They or the 3 I have had leaked, after buying the warranty which really didnt do me any good, they all have leaked fluid, I still have number 3 ya, it leaks a little , just fill it up every now and then, and all is good. I use it all the time. I use it for the valk and my dirt bikes, You will like it. Its a lot cheeper than the other's out their. Would I do it again sure I just wouldnt have taken it back twice. Its to heavy to do it much. maybe you will have better luck, but at least you dont have to get down on the floor, I'm getting to old for that. Walt.....

[hotglue #43]

Having a lift to work from is GREAT!!!!!!....  Enjoy!!!!!

[Tx Bohemian]

I agree with everyone here, these, or any bikelift, are great to work from.

As a suggestion, and this is strickly my opinion, I didn't like the way the little front wheel clamp worked, seems like if I shoved my bike hard enough sideways it would come out of the clamp.  Therefore I bought the clamp that comes on the 1200# air/hydraulic lift ("L" shaped one).  Much more stable clamping IMO (maybe overkill but I like it this way).

Also be careful rolling the bike on or off with the kickstand down.  I dropped my bike once and almost a second time due to the kickstand catching the "high" part at the table/ramp connection.
I was standing on the left side of the bike rolling it back off, using the front brake to slow it.  All was going really well when the kickstand bumped the table, tilted the bike to the right (away from me) a bit past the balance point and that was all she wrote - over it went.
I just put a set of National hard bags on, hence the reason for being on the table, and I thought I crushed the right bag because the bike fell on it. But to my amazement (and joy) it only scratched it.

[us385south]

I have to admit that It seems a bit of a strain to lift the wing or the Valk... but that could just be me freaking out.

I think It sets better if I put in the safety bar and let the pressure off the hydraulics.

Also... it wants to "creep" on me while I am loading the bike on the lift.  I'm figuring some sort of rubber mats under the wheels might help.  Any suggestions there...

Also... does the bike have to be on the center stand or can I left it on the side stand?

T

[Tx Bohemian]

I have to admit that It seems a bit of a strain to lift the wing or the Valk... but that could just be me freaking out.

If I remember correctly the valks weigh 850# or so, so your right there but I know what you mean.

I think It sets better if I put in the safety bar and let the pressure off the hydraulics.

This is what I do if only for a saftey measure. (makes me feel better)

Also... it wants to "creep" on me while I am loading the bike on the lift.  I'm figuring some sort of rubber mats under the wheels might help.  Any suggestions there...

Doesn't yours have the two "screw things" next to the front wheels? If you screw these down to get the front wheels off the ground it shouldn't creep anywhere.

Also... does the bike have to be on the center stand or can I left it on the side stand?

Maybe yours is different because my side stand extends over the edge and is useless on the lift.(except to make me lose balance and drop the bike, see previous post) But looking at the picture in your initial post it looks the same as mine, and I see the "two screw" things I mentioned.

[BeeSharp]

I keep looking at those too, just haven't pulled the trigger yet.

There are coupons "out there" for $299 in most of the Cycle Magazines. I almost always have coupon(s) handy in case the mood strikes, so if anyone wants a coupon let me know and I'll send you one.

[Tx Bohemian]

I keep looking at those too, just haven't pulled the trigger yet.

There are coupons "out there" for $299 in most of the Cycle Magazines. I almost always have coupon(s) handy in case the mood strikes, so if anyone wants a coupon let me know and I'll send you one.

Hey 385, Look at this.
I know you said $339, is that with tax or before?
If it's before get one of these coupons and take it to HF, it's worth a shot, all they can tell you is no.

I got my table a couple of years ago after drooling for one for a time.  They went from $299 to $350 to $399 when I finally had a place for it.  One member here talked about the coupons in bike mags, I found one and was able to get mine for $279 pretax.

Even the cashier took a double take at the coupon!

[us385south]

I keep looking at those too, just haven't pulled the trigger yet.

There are coupons "out there" for $299 in most of the Cycle Magazines. I almost always have coupon(s) handy in case the mood strikes, so if anyone wants a coupon let me know and I'll send you one.

Hey 385, Look at this.
I know you said $339, is that with tax or before?
If it's before get one of these coupons and take it to HF, it's worth a shot, all they can tell you is no.

I got my table a couple of years ago after drooling for one for a time.  They went from $299 to $350 to $399 when I finally had a place for it.  One member here talked about the coupons in bike mags, I found one and was able to get mine for $279 pretax.

Even the cashier took a double take at the coupon!

Thanks Bohemian...

I do have the little floor levelers down, It's just that my garage floor is finished and the thing just wants to scoot as i try to get the bike onto the stand.  I'm thinking a mat is likely to be the best bet.

[Tx Bohemian]

Thanks Bohemian...

I do have the little floor levelers down, It's just that my garage floor is finished and the thing just wants to scoot as i try to get the bike onto the stand.  I'm thinking a mat is likely to be the best bet.

No problem.

After I posted about the levelers I was thinking if you didn't put them down the table wouldn't just scoot, it would probably roll away! And trying to load a 800# bike on a moving table doesn't sound fun.

The mat thing sounds like a good idea. How about putting the mat under the levelers?
The reason I suggest that is because at times I roll my table when I have the bike on it, probably not a good idea and I'm sure it's not recomended by the manufacturer,  but if it's going to be a long repair, over a day or two, I get it out of the way so I can put my truck in the shop overnight. I don't roll it much, maybe 6-7 feet forward and then back the next day.

If your ever going to attempt to do this the mat may prevent you from rolling the table. If it's under the levelers you can just screw them up, get the wheels on the ground and roll away.