If you like our site, please consider joining our club!
By joining you will help ensure that we can continue to provide this service
JOIN HERE!

motorcycle lift

65slashtwo
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Feb 12, 2012 1:37 pm

Rhino lining on HF lift

Post by 65slashtwo »

I just bought one Friday for the $299 price and set it up in my garage. The only negative so far is the diamond plate doesn't give much traction. So I'm thinking of spraying some Rino bed liner on it.
That sounds like a good option. I ride my /2 onto the lift with enough momentum to
hit the stop; never try to power it up the ramp -I know it's slick. Klaus sleeps there.
If I work on my GSA, I always push it up as I'll surely lose footing & drop it someday.
I have scrap carpet remnants which goes under the motor area and centerstand,
giving my centerstands traction to lever the bikes up.

SlashTwo

Viteye
Posts: 12
Joined: Wed May 13, 2015 1:27 pm

I have had the lift for a

Post by Viteye »

I have had the lift for a short time. I can't believe how much pleasure I get from working on a motorcycle, since removing all the kneeling.
Why didn't I get one years ago, I hope there is a bit of wisdom mixed in there somewhere.






Attachments
8241888097_c77d4b214f.jpg
8241888097_c77d4b214f.jpg (140.45 KiB) Viewed 7948 times

sbbloom69
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Aug 18, 2015 6:02 pm

Harbor Freight Lift

Post by sbbloom69 »

I've had my red HF lift for 2 years now. Best $299 I've spent at HF. I added the $39 roll-in front wheel clamp. Having the bike at waist height to do simple maintenance is wonderful. I've even serviced my 750 lb Kawasaki KZ1300 and 550 lb CBX with NO weight or stability problems.

Things to consider:
1. It takes up A LOT of floor space. I hope you have the shop/garage real-estate. It does have casters.
2. The stock wheel clamp is almost useless. Drill the holes and use the $39 roll-in wheel clamp. Works great.
3. USE the lift stop/locks. Don't rely on the hydraulics.
4. Check the jack fluid. Mine was a little low.
5. Make sure you don't let anything roll under the table, or you may tip the bike (don't ask me how I know, luckily I caught it).
6. I looked for a used, heavy duty lift but never found one. I'll bet it would host much more than $300 to build one unless you had all of the steel for free.

Stu
Stuart Bloom
Los Alamos, NM
CBX; KZ1300; Alazzurra; R75/5; SR500

User avatar
TimStevens
Posts: 23
Joined: Wed Oct 28, 2020 2:10 pm
Location: New York
Contact:

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by TimStevens »

Hey there, apologies, bumping an old thread. Wondering whether there's a way to use the HF lift and support the bike with the wheels off? I have a R69S FWIW and I don't see an easy way to support it. I need to get some new tires mounted and also do some brake work so was hoping to get both wheels off.

Would something like this work? I worry about the oil pan:
81NoT0XA-tL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
Thanks!

User avatar
schrader7032
Posts: 9016
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 3:00 am
Location: San Antonio, TX
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 29 times

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by schrader7032 »

I wouldn't use it because as you say you're worried about the oil pan. When I've worked on my R69S, I do one wheel at a time which I suppose slows things down. I notice that your rear wheel is very close to the ground when on the center stand. That suggests that the center stand stops are worn a bit. My tire is higher and I find that when on the center stand, I can open up the rear fender hinge and remove the rear tire out the back. When doing the front tire, I use a floor jack and put a little up pressure on the loop of the engine case guards...I guess that's a benefit of having them. That let's me get the front tire off and provides a little stability.
Kurt in S.A.
'78 R100/7 '69 R69S '52 R25/2
Fast. Neat. Average. Friendly. Good. Good.

User avatar
TimStevens
Posts: 23
Joined: Wed Oct 28, 2020 2:10 pm
Location: New York
Contact:

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by TimStevens »

schrader7032 wrote:
Thu Nov 12, 2020 9:28 am
I wouldn't use it because as you say you're worried about the oil pan. When I've worked on my R69S, I do one wheel at a time which I suppose slows things down. I notice that your rear wheel is very close to the ground when on the center stand. That suggests that the center stand stops are worn a bit. My tire is higher and I find that when on the center stand, I can open up the rear fender hinge and remove the rear tire out the back. When doing the front tire, I use a floor jack and put a little up pressure on the loop of the engine case guards...I guess that's a benefit of having them. That let's me get the front tire off and provides a little stability.
Good spot on the center stand, thanks. Will add those to the long list of things to replace...

strichzwei
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Sep 20, 2012 11:37 am

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by strichzwei »

I have a jack like picture above from K&L, I lift all my bikes with cast oil pan, do not think it is a problem, I am a bit more careful with the pre 70 stamped oil pans.

If you want to see a really nice bike lift, check out K&L, it is what most of the pro shops use around central texas.

Scott

strichzwei
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Sep 20, 2012 11:37 am

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by strichzwei »

...just to add to above. When considering a lift think about lift height, while the handy lifts are very nice, some of the older versions only go to about 30" which is not high enough for me. Their newer models can lift much higher.
Just something to consider.
Scott

BigWally
Posts: 65
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 5:44 pm
Has thanked: 2 times

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by BigWally »

Fwiw I bought a lightly used Kendon lift for $600. Like their open trailers it folds up and stands up for storage against the garage wall. Has 3 solid stops and is either air or hand pump hydraulic. Stable enough for my R1200RT down to my 500 EXCF dual sport. Space limitations were the primary consideration in my selection. Recommended.
'73 R75/5; ‘84 R100S Last Edition (California version); ‘84 R100RS; ‘08 R1200RT

User avatar
jeffrey
Posts: 75
Joined: Mon Jan 13, 2020 8:04 pm
Location: San Geronimo CA
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: motorcycle lift

Post by jeffrey »

Second on the Kendon folding lift. I found one a couple of hours away for $500. Owner used it twice. It's heavy - 185 lbs, but once you stand it up it's easy to move around. It's only 2 ft wide, so it fits against the wall in my garage without taking up a lot of room.

Two features I like: 1) the front wheel chock. It's a "roll-on" type of chock which will hold the bike up by the front wheel so you can secure straps to the rear. It allows you to put a bike on the lift by yourself. 2) the removable rear wheel shelf. The last 1/3rd of the lift is a removable shelf that when removed - allows the back wheel to hang over the end of the lift provided you have supported the center of the bike (I have a scissor-lift block jack)

The u-shaped brace that captures the front tire is a bit wide for any of my bikes, but it works fine. I may modify that brace to fit my wheels more snugly but not too snug because it might make it harder to pull the bike out of the wheel chock when it's time to take the bike off the lift.The only thing I added to the lift were stick-on traction strips. Happy with this lift.

Post Reply