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#1 Shaggy33

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 08:30 PM

Hi All

I've searched the forum and seen a few posts regarding lifts. I am just about to move into a small unit which is primalry for my mail order business but as it's got some height I am thinking of getting a mobile lift to make working on my mini easier. Question is which one and how good are they???

As I haven't substantial enough concrete on the floor it will have to be a mobile lift for example a scissor lift or a single post lift. The down side of the single post is that the arm that goes across the width of the car gets in the way of any exhaust/body in the centre of the car.

Scissor lifts half solve this as at least the car is held up down the length of each sill so you have some access to the middle that's if you can negotiate the lift mechanism!

 

Does anyone have particular recommendations???

 

 



#2 Curley

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 08:57 PM

Having been through a similar exercise I found three options you could consider

 

1) Two post hoist. This was my preferred option as nothing beats working on a car while standing up. I found companies who could supply and fit one that worked on single phase electrics for less than £1200. However the load rating of the concrete under the mountings became the deciding factor. If you're unsure of the strength of the floor then a four post may be your only option. 

2) QuickJacks. These scissor lift have the advantage of being mobile and can be stored away flat when not in use. Available for similar money to a two post they do not require anything special for the floor. However they only lifted the car a couple of feet of the floor. This, for £1K+, was a deal breaker to still be on my back on the floor.

3) Race Ramps. This was the option I ended up going with. They are a high-density expanded polystyrene that is coated with a hybrid polyurea which makes makes them the lightest drive on ramps I've ever used. They lift the vehicle almost as high as the quick jacks but for a fraction of the cost & have the benefit of being easy to transport. They have become a staple 'tool' in my race trailer.



#3 GraemeC

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 09:12 PM

Don’t underestimate the floor strength required for a mobile scissor lift - it doesn’t have much surface area in contact with the floor given the weight sat on it, and two of its contact points are just 3” wide rollers that obviously need to move.

#4 Shaggy33

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 09:15 PM

Thanks Curley, very useful. I'm told that I need 6inches of concrete for either 2 post of 4 post but I think you are saying that 4 post typically dont need the concrete to be as strong? My ideal was a 2 post, 2nd was 4 post and last was single post of scissor.

I hear what you're saying about the height of scissor lift however I have seen some which cliam 1.4 m height which is pretty high albeit you'd be bent under the car whilst working on it or sitting on a little stool if working on the brakes.

 

I've never thought of ramps and just taken a look. I can see why you'd compromise lying under car as they are very econimcal, the thing for me however is I really want the wheels suspended as that where most of tinkering is!

 

Will continue to weigh up options and thanks again



#5 Shaggy33

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 09:24 PM

seen this which looks good

https://youtu.be/E3N....be/E3Nra3iDOHI



#6 paulrockliffe

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 08:32 AM

I'd be wary of  a 2 post lift in 6" of concrete, it might be OK in theory, but that's assuming there are no issues with the concrete at the two relatively small points that they're installed and that the smaller number of anchors have been installed perfectly.  Neither assumption you can really test and once you've a car up in the air some of the loads that may be created are going to be fairly large.

 

A 4 post lift will load the concrete completely differently, there'll be no leverage effect front to back as the opposing posts will effectively cancel each other out.  For a four post lift the concrete is taking 4 point loads to stop the lift sinking into the ground and (I presume) tying the four posts together.  If the car tries to tip in any direction it'll largely create larger point loads on different posts.  With a 2-post any tipping will try to pull one of the posts out.  The difference is that the four post lift will pretty much always resist the load by putting the concrete in compression, whereas the 2 post can load the concrete in tension.  Concrete is much stronger in compression.

 

That's not to say a 2 post can't work fine, it obviously can, you just need to be a bit more cautious about it's installation and be mindful of how well you can check that the conditions on the ground match what's required.  It wouldn't be a huge job to cut out some of the floor and replace with deeper and reinforced concrete for example.  You might want to do that anyway if the base of the posts are larger than the post as getting that recessed into the floor will make working on a small car a little easier.

 

Personally, considering the number of jobs that you can do on a mini under the floor is fairly small I wouldn't bother with a lift unless you want to be able to lift the car up to create a space that allows you to buy another car to keep underneath.  Ditto the ramps, I like the look of them, but you need to be able to suspend a wheel for most jobs.  I don't know if you can buy them, but I've seen bespoke ply boxes and ramps made up that are in sections, so you can drive the car on then remove the boxes between the wheels and access most of the car.  You could then jack and put the corner you're working on on a stand to allow that box to be removed s well.  Ply is strong enough generally, but will collapse if the glue fails so I would probably use steel for the boxes that go under the wheels at least.  Actually with steel you could use drop-in bridge sections between the wheel boxes which would be easier to transport and store away.

 

That said, if you're not going to get the benefit of being able to lift the wheel up to chest height and to be able to easily lower it if you need to get more leverage on something etc, and you want something a bit quicker than messing about with jacks and stands then I'd look at getting a couple of bars made up that go left to right on the front and rear subframes, protrude out from the car a bit and have sit-in bits added for a jack at each end and an axle stand set a bit further in, so you can very quickly lift the car and get it on stands without having to lift a bit each side, find somewhere for the stand that doesn't interfere with the jack etc.  Ideally if you could find a jack setup that runs a pair of jacks from one pump that would be even simpler.



#7 Bat

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 10:09 AM

Hi,
There's extension arms that fit on the bottom of 2 post ramps that go fore and back for floors of unsure quality. I've seen them on the website of a ramp manufacturer just can't remember who.
Wouldn't take much to make a pair, length of box section with some 1/4 plate tabs welded on the bottom. They bolt over the top of the original foot and then into the floor along the length.
Cheers ☺

#8 Curley

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 11:34 PM

Ramps like this? RR-56-2-1968-Camaro-2.jpg



#9 gazza82

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Posted 14 June 2018 - 08:42 AM

seen this which looks good

https://youtu.be/E3N....be/E3Nra3iDOHI

 

You might want to double check that link! Seems to be a toy 'copter!






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