Motorcycle Lift?

Mongler07 said:

Do you have room for a 2 post lift? If you do and you could pull a car in some times it would be worth the 800 to find a used screw type lift. You can lift a motorcycle easily as it's not dependant on a equal load. I love mine. All the other under the engine lifts are junk especially for the rocket and it's 3 drain plugs

Click to expand...

Most definitely no room for a 2 post lift which is one of the reasons I like the big blue as it can be stored up against a wall. Also no way to suspend a bike from above without adding all kinds of support to the structure. I'm not crazy about the price but for my situation that's what it is.

I have seen some really small 2 post lifts non hydraulic. Like 4 to 5 foot tall. Each post is like 8x8. It's good up to like 5000lbs and is just enough to take the car or bike 4 feet high.
You would be amazed how cheap you can get them.
I would never use those crap jacks. Way to unstable.
The best option is to modify the rear end to accept a axle stand

And that's exactly why I will be getting the big blue, it's minimal with no modifications necessary.

Protonhound said:

And that's exactly why I will be getting the big blue, it's minimal with no modifications necessary.

Click to expand...

Yup, I'm with ya on the minimal....when I win Lotto tonight I will only have to dial and get a workshop pickup for complete services at their workshop.

Protonhound said:

And that's exactly why I will be getting the big blue, it's minimal with no modifications necessary.

Click to expand...

You will enjoy using the Big Blue. I love using mine and setting the bike at different heights depending on what work I'm doing. I looked at another domestic brand that is a similar style and with shipping would have been over 1200.

Just a FYI, J&S jacks went out of business if you were thinking of going that route, though there are plenty of knock offs.

vsteel said:

Just a FYI, J&S jacks went out of business if you were thinking of going that route, though there are plenty of knock offs.

Click to expand...

Yes, J&S owe a lot of people a lot of money.

I would never put or work on any motorcycle that was not on an actual lift that was either bolted the the concrete floor or was a large lift platform. I have seen and personally been around bikes falling off bs stands that look similar. As someone who has had enough experience with big engines on engine stands and other things similar to that level of structure. No way I'm doing that to anything over 300 lbs. Especially with a 30k motorcycle.
You have to be either never experienced such a disaster or ignorant of danger to use one of those. Yea they work. But it's easy to not do anything abnormal and then not work.
Get a knee pad and some axle stands. Don't waste $ and the risk

But that's just my experience. I've done enough dumb S to know when I see a bad idea that I already learned from.

OK, agreed- a Big Blue (or similar) is safer than an ATV jack, but with minimal common sense you can make that a perfectly safe option, as well. Almost all of the old-timers on this site are using inexpensive means to lift their bikes and they are, I assure you, not "ignorant of danger." You can do things like use safety straps supported from above and/or wooden blocks on ground level to backup the jack. Kinda like backing up your car jack with jack stands before crawling under the car- just common sense and easy to do. But, a huge hydraulic stand like a certified car mechanic has in his garage IS safer, if you have space and can afford to go that route in your own shed.

Side note - I wear an air vest when I ride, yet most riders do not. Mine employed recently and I was **** glad that I had it on. It's interesting to me that some of the same people that would spend $850 (on sale) to jack their bike, because anything else would be completely dangerous, wouldn't dream of spending less than that to protect their vital organs in the event of a crash. If you don't I would encourage you to consider it, but if not I'm not going to judge your intelligence. Spend our money however you see fit.....

I also wear an airbag vest/jacket past dozen years. I agree safety first! I am frugal like most but have easily made up the cost of a good jack working on my bikes myself. And feel good with my investment.