Motorcycle lift ?

mike996 · Mar 17, 2015

I'm searching for a workable motorcycle lift for the Norton (and my wife's BMW). I'd love to have one but I do not have space for one of the large "table types" like these: http://www.harborfreight.com/1000-lb-ca ... -8495.html

I have seen others that lift from the frame that, if they would fit the commando, might be OK. Does anyone have any experience/recommendation for something that would work but take less floor space than the type posted above? I'm getting tired of laying on the floor next to the bike to do work!

texasSlick · Mar 17, 2015

like you, I would like a table lift, but do not have the room to store it when not in use.

http://t.harborfreight.com/1500-lb-capa ... 60636.html

I have one of the above ... it works well on my Atlas. It takes a few tries to find the balance point, and it turned out one of the mounts is under the sump plug at the balance point. I had to fab up some 2 x 4 's with a sump plug relief, so one cannot drain the oil with this lift. The 2 x 4's also provide clearance for the header pipes as well.

It is lightweight, so I can easily move it to store when not in use. It also functions as a trailer jack, either for the axle to change a tire, or for the tongue to use as a wheeled dolly.

One has to be careful ... removing either wheel when on balance, upsets the balance and the bike will tip unless the the other wheel is propped.

The lift is well made and I would recommend it to anyone with a shortage of storage space.

Slick

swooshdave · Mar 17, 2015

With the lift you can either store a bike on it or if you have the clearance, park a vehicle over it.

freefly103 · Mar 17, 2015

I have one of these I use for both my bikes, 70 Commando and 77 BMW R100s. I dont know how I used to work on them before I had this lift. Highly reccommended.

tomspro · Mar 17, 2015

I got the red MC lift from HF on sale a few months ago. Generally happy with it.
The forks are a bit too wide apart when center stand is down or detached, so it is difficult to find the right insertion point - but doable.
With center stand in 'up' position, one fork is on it and things line up much better.
I use four straps to stabilize it when lifted.

mike996 · Mar 17, 2015

Tomspro, that looks workable for my limited space - none of the table-types are feasible due to my limited worship space - the tables are just not possible.

Where do you attache the tie downs on that stand? got any pics of the bike up with tiedowns?

tomspro · Mar 17, 2015

mike996 said:
Tomspro, that looks workable for my limited space - none of the table-types are feasible due to my limited worship space - the tables are just not possible.

Where do you attache the tie downs on that stand? got any pics of the bike up with tiedowns?

Mike - I have wooden beams in my garage ceiling so I attach heavy hooks to them and string the straps two per side, front and rear attached to the bike frame.
You can see two in the first pic. Have since upgraded to four for safety.

finishthat · Mar 17, 2015

You could look at an eazyrizer research on web - takes almost no space - but you would need to invest the time in having a system for each bike

rick in seattle · Mar 17, 2015

Mike,

I've got the same space problem, about 100 square feet of free space in my shop, and can't use a table lift. I use a VERY heavy lift, 80 lbs, rated for 2000 lbs. It folds flat for easy (well, as easy as an 80 lb lift can be) storage on one of my walls.

Lifting the bike is a one-man job, and the whole thing is stable and easily rotated. I built simple wooden caddies specific to the Commando and Victor frames; the Commando caddy is shown below and supports the frame while the exhaust pipes clear by a half-inch or so.

As others have mentioned, removing a wheel requires some foresight, using a pair of straps to hold down either the handlebars or rear frame loop to the lift structure (I added some eye-bolts to make this an easy job). If you're not removing a wheel, the bike is quite stable when elevated without hold-down straps.

mike996 · Mar 19, 2015

Good Info, thanks!

I'm tending toward the JS lift but still looking at other options..

http://www.jsjacks.com/motorcycle-lift/motorcycle-lift/

concours · Mar 19, 2015

Get the table, make room. You can park many vehicles (clearance) over it, no worries.

mike996 · Mar 19, 2015

There is just no way. I do not have a garage. I have a 12ft diameter (yes, round) workshop. The shop is for everything I do, not just bikes. I can move a bike into it to do work but there is no space for bikes to remain in there and, also, no floor space for a table lift.

concours · Mar 19, 2015

Ohhh. I have M/C frame jack as well, the ONLY THING it get's used for it two tires at once on moderns.

rick in seattle · Mar 19, 2015

Mike,

Whatever lift you pick, the one feature that I would strongly recommend is the presence of 4 independent freely rotating casters that support the lift. When space is tight (for example, in your shop and mine), you will want to be able to freely translate and rotate the lifted bike to get to the other side when working on it. The JS stand you show only allows translation along one axis, and will rotate only around the fixed wheels. It sounds trivial, but this will be a frustrating limitation in a tight space. The caster wheels can always be locked, although in the 5 years I've used my lift, I've never locked the wheels.

porterg · Mar 19, 2015

rick in seattle said:
Mike,

I've got the same space problem, about 100 square feet of free space in my shop, and can't use a table lift. I use a VERY heavy lift, 80 lbs, rated for 2000 lbs. It folds flat for easy (well, as easy as an 80 lb lift can be) storage on one of my walls.

Lifting the bike is a one-man job, and the whole thing is stable and easily rotated. I built simple wooden caddies specific to the Commando and Victor frames; the Commando caddy is shown below and supports the frame while the exhaust pipes clear by a half-inch or so.

Rick, what brand lift is that, I am thinking of selling my Harbor
Freight table and buying one like that, it is getting tough for me to get the bike stabilized with arthritis in my shoulders. Thanks

As others have mentioned, removing a wheel requires some foresight, using a pair of straps to hold down either the handlebars or rear frame loop to the lift structure (I added some eye-bolts to make this an easy job). If you're not removing a wheel, the bike is quite stable when elevated without hold-down straps.

tomspro · Mar 19, 2015

rick in seattle said:
Mike,

Whatever lift you pick, the one feature that I would strongly recommend is the presence of 4 independent freely rotating casters that support the lift. When space is tight (for example, in your shop and mine), you will want to be able to freely translate and rotate the lifted bike to get to the other side when working on it. The JS stand you show only allows translation along one axis, and will rotate only around the fixed wheels. It sounds trivial, but this will be a frustrating limitation in a tight space. The caster wheels can always be locked, although in the 5 years I've used my lift, I've never locked the wheels.

Good point about the casters.
The HF lift is a PITA to move around. Only two wheels and you need to tilt it substantially for them to engage.
May not be a good choice in limited spaces.

JimNH · Mar 19, 2015

tomspro said:
I got the red MC lift from HF on sale a few months ago. Generally happy with it.
The forks are a bit too wide apart when center stand is down or detached, so it is difficult to find the right insertion point - but doable.
With center stand in 'up' position, one fork is on it and things line up much better.
I use four straps to stabilize it when lifted.

I have the exact same lift but I made a smaller cradle to fit my Commando. I'm on the road but will attempt to post a picture in a week or so.

Besides making the replacement smaller I made cradles for the tubes out of larger diameter tubing, cut in half, welded to 3/8ths bolts that fit in appropriately spaced holes. That lets it clear the stands. I lined them with inner tube rubber.

Even though I strap everything down I find that I have to counterweight if I take too much off one end of the bike or the other.

tomspro · Mar 19, 2015

JimNH said:
I have the exact same lift but I made a smaller cradle to fit my Commando. I'm on the road but will attempt to post a picture in a week or so.

Besides making the replacement smaller I made cradles for the tubes out of larger diameter tubing, cut in half, welded to 3/8ths bolts that fit in appropriately spaced holes. That lets it clear the stands. I lined them with inner tube rubber.

Even though I strap everything down I find that I have to counterweight if I take too much off one end of the bike or the other.

Would love to see that cradle Jim. Have thought about doing something like that.

rick in seattle · Mar 19, 2015

Sorry, but my ass is in Austin for the winter and the lift is in Mercer Island, so I can't get to it now, and I don't remember the vendor. When I bought it several years ago, I just googled motorcycle lifts and bought it online. I picked the heaviest lift I could find with 4 casters.

hankmarx · Mar 19, 2015

And are any of your motorcycles in Austin? Sure is nice the next couple of months here.

Motorcycle lift ?

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