Harbor Freight lift with mods

After much consideration, I chose the fork-style Harbor Freight lift as a Christmas gift . It took about 20 minutes to bolt it together and it was ready for use.





I wanted this type of lift so I could easily remove wheels or forks.

But I also had looked at the table type of lifts so I could work on the underside of motors (exhaust, oil changes, frame mods, etc) and this style of lift is not really good for accessing the underside of the bike. So..I decided to tweak it! (insert Tool Man grunt here).

I purchased an 8' section of 6" steel channel.





This piece would be long enough to park my bikes on and still have some length left over. I had some round stock, 3/8" I think, and heated and bent it into a 'U' shape for a front tire holder.









Then I tried to heat the other end of the steel to bend a section down for a ramp, but I found it easier to just cut off a 1' section and weld it back on at an angle. I used chunks of 4x4 under the channel . This way the channel sits 4" off the floor at all times and that allows me to slide the 'forks' of the lift under the channel and lift everything up together. The 4x4 at the front end is longer and serves as a stabilizing leg to help keep the bike upright until I get the lift placed at the center of weight distribution and get straps on the bike and secure it to the lift.









What a difference it makes when doing most anything to the bikes! I used to sit on a milk crate to work on carbs or cables. Now I can stand beside the bike and see clearly what I am doing. I replaced the exhaust system the other day on this KZ and it was so easy to see and install everything. No more aching backs or laying on the floor beside the bike to work on frame rails.

I can use the lift either way, obviously. Using the forks under the frame still requires using 2x4 'spacers' laid perpendicular across the lifting arms so I am not lifting against exhaust tubes. but that works great, is stable and allows for free access to both wheels. Using the channel gives me plenty of room for welding frames or doing anything under the center of the bike.







I hope this helps someone trying to decide what kind of lift to purchase for your home shop.

great idea

Do you have a part number for that lift?

Whats the weight limit of that lift,could you use a wider piece of channel that you could put the center stand down on if bike had one?
I just get worried anytime I see somebody relying on ratchet tie downs to support a bike,especially on a piece of channel not directly attached to the lift.
Maybe Im just chicken. :blush: :laugh:

If you can find smaller diameter wheels, and fab up a "L" for the side stand to rest on, the channel could act like a place to move bikes around in the garage. I think there's a similar set up for a Harley, or other big bikes sold.

Item #99887.
weight rating is 1000#.

You could easily Fab a landing pad for a side stand or modify it to work with a center stand. Anything that works for your situation.

Oh, and wireman, the two straps that are included and the two I added aren't ratchet. They are the simple pull-tight kind. But I am sure mine are in good working order. She may only be an old kaw but she's still my baby.

Pretty cool idea... I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for a section of channel now.

I was thinking about doing this very same thing the other day! I want he HF table, but don't have the room in my garage. This would be easier to store, but get almost the same thing done. Instead of a single channel, I was going to make a table top, that pinned into the lift, that could have the pins pulled and table removed for easier storage. Thanks for the inspiration!

Cory

Hi fivestring,

Good job on the lift modifications.

I also modified a lift several years ago to boost my toys. My goal was to achieve a more stable base.

Please tell me how I did.































Being a carpenter, I worked with what I had at hand.

Bill

A friend gave me a table lift for always helping wrench on his bikes. I find it handy for all kinds of projects. If I have a bike on it there is room under it for a lot of parts. I almost always have a bike on it and it does not take much more room then a bike. If I don't have a bike on it I use it as an extra bench or table. I can also move it around fairly easy.
Wayne

NakedFun wrote: I was thinking about doing this very same thing the other day! I want he HF table, but don't have the room in my garage. This would be easier to store, but get almost the same thing done. Instead of a single channel, I was going to make a table top, that pinned into the lift, that could have the pins pulled and table removed for easier storage. Thanks for the inspiration!

Cory

NakedFun, looks like you did a good job of getting wood to lift and support a bike. Good ol' Tim-the-Tool-Man ingenuity.

I also have found a few other uses for my lift since original post. I will get some pics and an explanation soon...