HF lift

[Psychopasta]

Malwarebytes complains about thumb.ibb.co. No idea what that is.

[jumpmaster]

Look at this way. If you park the bike on your lift it really takes up no more real estate than the bike itself. When your out riding who care how much floor space  takes because you cant be at two places at once. The Kenda fold up may actually cost you more real estate. When its folded up and tucked away against the wall and the bike parked on the floor in front of it the overall combined length is longer than the HF lift.

Also the HF lift does have wheels and move around on concrete pretty easily (unloaded). Its your money spend it how you will but IMHO its hard to beat a FF lift w/ a Baxley wheel chock for 1/2 the money.

Your observations are true enough, in general.  However, I've got a corner storage spot just ready for something like the Kendon lift.  Other considerations are that I don't relish having to load/unload a bike off the lift every time I want to ride it, or play musical chairs when I want to work on one of the bikes not currently on the lift. Last, but not least, 146 lbs vs 350+ lbs (unloaded) is a big consideration for someone like me who has chronic back issues.

Thus, my interest in hearing from Kendon lift owners, since owners' experiences may tip the balance one way or the other.  HF lift owners on other forums have reported a long list of issues that they had to deal with in order to make their HF lifts durable - having a practical, durable, reliable product right out of the box is of some value, at least to me.  Is it worth 3 X the price?  That's the question I have to answer for myself.

[Lannis]

If I had felt like I could spend a few extra bucks (and maybe I should have, although my HF has given me no problems and is perfectly steady) I'd like to have bought one of these:





But oh well.   Maybe next time.

Lannis

[WP2]

u




Yep they will fall over, I had a Centauro strapped on mine, I turned around to grab a tool and the whole damn thing fell over as soon as my back was turned. So there it is laying on the ground with the Centauro safely tied down to it. What a mess! In its defense I had loosened the pads that screw down so I could move it slightly.

Same thing happened to me with my '02 Stone. Luckily I had the big Cal II crash bars on it and the only damage was pride, bent crash bar and bent brake lever - all an easy fix.

After alot of head scratching I figured out that I did not have the screw down pads firmly set which allowed a bit of tippy movement that went too far. My bad. Anal about them now with no tippy issues.

As far as the chock goes - difficult to pull the bike out. I use two of them side by side for parking the bikes in the garage (saves room) and find it takes a bit of tug to get the bike out. Would be difficult for me to back the bike off the lift by my self if that were my lift chock.

Walt

[Dukedesmo]

Quote from: Gusable on Today at 02:02:20 AM

>It just now "leaks down" if I leave it up and use it as a workbench. It will drop a foot over a week I think.  I haven't looked into it. 

I've got a 'Clarke' lift which looks to be the same (probably just a UK version), although mine also has a pneumatic lift to make it easier/quicker to get the bike up.

Anyway, mine developed an oil leak which made it progressively harder to lift and then would drop, until eventually it wouldn't lift at all. I bought a seal kit containing various 'O' rings, gaskets etc. which cured it. Can't remember how much the kit was but it wasn't much.   

[Chuck in Indiana]

I was going to make a screw type vise for mine.. had the pictures and everything.. but found an ok one for 100 bones. It would have cost me 50 to buy the material.
For those that want to work on the front wheel.. just back the bike on the lift and clamp the rear in the vise. Works for me. <shrug>

[Dukedesmo]

Mine had a large vice type chock supplied that clamps both the bottom and the front of the wheel which works very well, I had to re drill the mounting holes to get a 180 rear wheel in though.


If working at height with the front wheel in the chock I use a rear paddock stand, or centre stand on the Guzzi to stop the bike twisting around the steering and falling over.


 

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

For those that want to work on the front wheel.. just back the bike on the lift and clamp the rear in the vise. Works for me. <shrug>

Struggling to push a customer's police Eldo (or something even heavier) up a ramp onto a lift is not my idea of fun. Did it once with a Breva 750 and nearly dropped it.  It's bad enough pushing the heavy metal on forward! Really no big deal not having a chock, just the stop plate, since everything gets tied down any way. <shrug>

[Zinfan]

If I had felt like I could spend a few extra bucks (and maybe I should have, although my HF has given me no problems and is perfectly steady) I'd like to have bought one of these:





But oh well.   Maybe next time.

Lannis

I found a used one on craigslist but even then it was twice the price of a new HF lift.  It is nice of course.

[jazzamoto]

Yes, it's rough getting the bike out of that chock for sure. That's why I cut the chock in half. Much easier.

[/quote]

Damn, didn't notice that. Great idea! 

[Tom H]

Luap,

After reading the posts on this lift. May I suggest:

Make sure all parts are there and properly installed. WITH HELP, put bike on lift and strap down. Lift maybe a 1/4 of the way and see how stable it feels.

It it feels wobbly with your bike, maybe consider adding some bars to make the base wider and more stable. Maybe retractable for easier storage.

HF stuff can be good stuff, or not so good stuff. I bought their fancy wheel chock for when I needed to work on a bike without a center stand. The reviews mentioned adding shims/washers to make the parts fit better. Assembled without shims and was wobbly. Added shims and not it holds bikes rock solid.

Just my dos centavos.
Tom

[pehayes]

Lift maybe a 1/4 of the way and see how stable it feels.

I have a clone version of the HF stand.  because of the parallelogram nature of the undercarriage, I find that the system is least stable when partly raised.  Get it to full height and it becomes far more rigid and stable.  I am reluctant to use it in partially raised circumstance.  Perfectly happy at full height.

Patrick Hayes
Fremont CA

[ken farr]

I built up these boxes out of 2x4's and plywood.  Handles and wheels at each end, to make moving easy.
I store my tire changing stuff and misc. seldom used stuff in them.
I can ride up the ramp and park with confidence, since I have somewhere to put my feet.
Park with the side stand or put it up on the center stand without any problem.
Real nice addition to the lift.

kjf

[Luap McKeever]

I built up these boxes out of 2x4's and plywood.  Handles and wheels at each end, to make moving easy.
I store my tire changing stuff and misc. seldom used stuff in them.
I can ride up the ramp and park with confidence, since I have somewhere to put my feet.
Park with the side stand or put it up on the center stand without any problem.
Real nice addition to the lift.

kjf

Great idea.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Tom H]

 :1: :1:

Tom

[Pop]

Sounds like our fold up treadmill. Takes up less room when folded, but holds just as many articles of clothing as the old rigid one. HA HA I made a funny.
But, I did have my Yamaha up on the table but forgot to reset the wheel bar on the condor for the larger tire. I loaded her, raised the table and turned my back to get some tools. I heard the tires squeak, turned to see the bike sagging, but being a condor it didn't worry me. The next second, she was over. Completely upside down. I have had worse days, but this was darn close.
Pop

[Robert]

 I fired up my angle grinder and rounded every sharp corner that I might encounter, with my body parts or feet or whatever.

Then smoothed them up with a file.

Saves on bleeding and Band-Aids and the like.

[Rusnak_322]

I finally got one this weekend. I had been using a table I made with two coffee tables as a base for 20+ years. I never had any issues using a ramp to get a bike up on it, so pushing a bike onto a 7" tall table is no big deal.

Now that we have 4 street bikes, I needed to make room and be able to store a bike on the lift is nice. But I am losing a lot of storage space under it, and the heavy wood table was nice as I could mount a vice to it and it withstood a lot of bashing.

[Lannis]

One thing I've always noticed ...

Both in the adverts for the HF lifts, and in photos of people's shops, the ramp is shown still hanging on to the lift platform even when the lift is raised.

Me, as soon as the bike is on the lift, I take the ramp off and put it out of the way.   My (perhaps misplaced) sense of mechanical sympathy makes me believe that hanging that ramp with that sort of bending force on those two little pins can't be the right thing to do.    They're obviously under a strain that it doesn't look like they were designed for, and I can just see one or both of them bending into uselessness or popping the weld, besides which the ramp is in my way when it's hanging there.

Anyone else have my same torqueophobia?   Or have people been hanging that ramp there for 10 years and it's been fine?

Lannis

[Chuck in Indiana]

Anyone else have my same torqueophobia?

That would be me. Besides being really hard on those pins, the ramp does nothing while the bike is in the air, and is in the way to boot. 

[Mike Crenshaw]

After reading this thread and a few others that endorse the HF lift, I finally pulled the trigger this weekend.  Picked it up yesterday and  set up in the garage. I'm not too keen on the stock wheel chock as it's an inadequate design.  I didn't care for the choices at HF either, so this morning I ordered a wheel chock from the Derek Weaver Company.  https://www.derekweaver.com/bikers-garage/motorcycle-lift-parts-accessories/w-vise-motorcycle-vise-tire-clamp/  Fortunately the warehouse is only about ten miles from my house so I can pick it up this afternoon.  Looks like I'll need to drill some mounting holes in the lift but I don't anticipate much problem with mounting.  So far I'm pleased that it doesn't take up any additional room and I can store a bike on the lift.  And like Lannis, I can't see leaving the ramp just hanging there.

[Rusnak_322]

there is a 17 page thread on advrider on these lifts and there have been people with them for years. No one had mentioned any issues with the ramp.

My pic above, I JUST got it assembled and was putting bikes on and off. If I was using it for maintenance, I would remove it as it is just that much farther to walk around. I was also thinking of a way to support to make the table longer and give me a place to put the seat and tank on when working on the bike.

[Rusnak_322]

After reading this thread and a few others that endorse the HF lift, I finally pulled the trigger this weekend.  Picked it up yesterday and  set up in the garage. I'm not too keen on the stock wheel chock as it's an inadequate design.  I didn't care for the choices at HF either, so this morning I ordered a wheel chock from the Derek Weaver Company.  https://www.derekweaver.com/bikers-garage/motorcycle-lift-parts-accessories/w-vise-motorcycle-vise-tire-clamp/  Fortunately the warehouse is only about ten miles from my house so I can pick it up this afternoon.  Looks like I'll need to drill some mounting holes in the lift but I don't anticipate much problem with mounting.  So far I'm pleased that it doesn't take up any additional room and I can store a bike on the lift.  And like Lannis, I can't see leaving the ramp just hanging there.

I bought the $57 (plus 20% off) wheel chock at HF for my table. I have never used, or seen the need for, one of those chocks that supports the bike like the Condor. I am very surprised how well they work. I don't see any benefit to the vise that you are buying. You have to put the bike on the kick stand, strap the bike down so it is upright and then crank the wheel vise tight?? The condor style chock allows you to have the bike held upright while you put on the tie downs.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

I bought the $57 (plus 20% off) wheel chock at HF for my table. I have never used, or seen the need for, one of those chocks that supports the bike like the Condor. I am very surprised how well they work. I don't see any benefit to the vise that you are buying. You have to put the bike on the kick stand, strap the bike down so it is upright and then crank the wheel vise tight?? The condor style chock allows you to have the bike held upright while you put on the tie downs.

My first/oldest HF lift came with the same type wheel vise that Mike has bought. It works pretty well - just roll the wheel into the vise, crank it down and it sort of holds it upright until I can strap it down. No kickstand use necessary. Still not really capable of securely holding the bike up by itself. Opens up wide enough that a Guzzi wheel with dual-discs can pass through.

[kirb]

If I had felt like I could spend a few extra bucks (and maybe I should have, although my HF has given me no problems and is perfectly steady) I'd like to have bought one of these:



But oh well.   Maybe next time.
Lannis

That lift is the single best motorcycle investment I have ever made, including the actual motorcycles. I've had it 13+ years and it has never let me down. I use the wheel clamp that Handy sells and the scissor lift/rear stand depending on application.

They make well made products and the lift was very reasonable delivered... they have increased in price over the years, but they are worth it. Try to find a used one- no one gets rid of 'em. They are the first things to go when a bike shop closes down.

[sign216]

It's a big box. At least 6' long. It's heavy too. My son in law and I managed to unload and set it up pretty quick.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

How did only two people unload and set it up?  Specs are 272 lbs.

I can't imagine lifting out of the truck and moving it.  The weight issue has been holding me back on this.  My workshop is in the backyard, so it would be a carry of over 20 yds of lawn. 

[Lannis]

How did only two people unload and set it up?  Specs are 272 lbs.

I can't imagine lifting out of the truck and moving it.  The weight issue has been holding me back on this.  My workshop is in the backyard, so it would be a carry of over 20 yds of lawn.

I could never have picked mine up except with a pallet jack.

A semi-trailer delivered it to my house, and backed it up to my garage door.   I put a big old ratty 10 x 12 piece of carpet on the ground, tied the box to the garage post, and he drove the truck out from under it.   Then I skidded the box to where I was setting it up, cut the box away from around it, and I was off.   Once it's up, you can wheel it around anywhere ....

Lannis

[Rusnak_322]

My neighbor helped me get it out of the SUV. It didn't want to slide on the carpet, but it isn't that bad.

I assembled it in the drive where it came out of the truck. Put the wheels on it and rolled it into the garage

[Ted N]

I built a  2 foot by 4 foot 7 inch tall (probably longer would be better but heavier to move) wooden step that sets on the left side of the lift when loading and unloading bikes. It gives much you better control when you step up on it and allows a place safe to open side stand while you attach straps to the right side when working by yourself. Then you flip it up on its side and and you have a seat when working on the low areas of the bike. Similar idea to the boxes in another post. I have been doing it this way problem free for about 10 years. Paid $199 new for my HF lift back then! Best would be to cut the floor and recess it 7 inches though.

[Lannis]

I built a  2 foot by 4 foot 7 inch tall (probably longer would be better but heavier to move) wooden step that sets on the left side of the lift when loading and unloading bikes. It gives much you better control when you step up on it and allows a place safe to open side stand while you attach straps to the right side when working by yourself. Then you flip it up on its side and and you have a seat when working on the low areas of the bike. Similar idea to the boxes in another post. I have been doing it this way problem free for about 10 years. Paid $199 new for my HF lift back then! Best would be to cut the floor and recess it 7 inches though.

Good description of the "catwalk" and good pics above.   If I'd thought about that before installing the "Condor" chock I might have been out in the shop building one.

However, with the Condor, there's no deploying the side stand, no bending over holding the bike with one hand while you grope for the tie downs with the other ... you just roll the bike into the chock, ca-CHUNK, and you can walk away, fetch the tie downs you forget, whatever ....

Lannis