QuickJack

[sincilite]

I've never been a huge fan of using a trolley jack to lift cars up in order to get them on to axle stands (I expect no one really enjoys it) so I've had my eye on a portable lift from www.quickjacklift.co.uk/. 

The price is pretty hefty so before jumping in I'm wondering if anyone has experience of them?  Specifically how useful they've been, what maintenance you have to do to them, how safe they feel and what you've been lifting.

It's more than likely I'd be going for the smallest (BL-3500SLX) which has a lifting capacity 1588kg which I think would be capable of lifting my 06 plate Mazda 3 and Civic along with my MX5 (not at the same time  ). 

Thanks

[accord83]

I don't have a problem with using my trolley jacks, I know they are good and safe, but I just treat them with respect and never get under a car without it being blocked up with timber or axle stands. Axle stands actually worry more, that's why I like lumps of railway sleeper. The Quickjack lifts seem very expensive but useful if you haven't got anything else to spend a grand on. (or £75 as I would tell my wife)

[sincilite]

I think one of the biggest plus points must be the speed of lifting - It takes forever to manually lift four corners and really puts me off doing those quick jobs.

[welshpug]

doing something wrong if it really takes that long, 3 ton low jack and youll get one end up and on stands in no time.

however i never like using 4 stands, though i do have use of a 2 poster which is what I wouls get if you were looking to spenda grand.

[sincilite]

2 poster would be the ideal however space is at a premium so these win on space saving.

[slater]

Theres numerous variations on the theme with these things. I don't have much first hand experience but it pays to have a look around at some other designs first I'd say!

[nomad]

A mate has a bigger version of this in his workshop (240 volt, side entry, hyraulic and lifts all 4 wheels off the ground - almost like a mini forklift on castors).
It's big to store and takes up a lot of floorspace, it's heavy, needs a double garage to slide it into place, and I've only seen him use it twice - his 2 & 4 poster lifts are in constant use.
A great idea but fairly impractical. This ebay link is also cheaper at $450 USD if you can find one in the UK.
www.ebay.com/itm/Champ-Hydraulic-Side-End-Car-Lift-3000-lb-Capacity-Lifts-from-7-36-4501-/131273887706

[discostew38]

Just had a look at the website
And to be fair I'm quite impressed
I don't have a problem with jacks and axle stands but all my cars are low and if I'm doing something like a clutch or exhaust
It's a pain in the arss getting it as high as I can to grovel around underneath it
It would be a process like this:
1) Drive car in garage and onto low raise ramps (5" ish to to get the jack under)
2) get jack under the front and raise it to get axle stands under (short stands lowest setting because you won't be able to get the jack under the rear otherwise)
3) do the same with the rear
4) then in stages continue to raise each end a bit at a time till the jack is maxed out
5) do the same again with blocks of wood Inbetween the car and jack until the axle stands are maxed out (I have a long set just for doing stuff when I need good height clearance as I'm old and fat)

So this would be a much better way of doing things
A lot of these tend to have cross members joining the two side together and therefore no good for any work where access to the centre of the car is needed

Three issues I have are
1) cost it's not cheap enough for me to think I need it
2) space if not in use I would have no where to store it
3) height it don't look like it goes very high

One bodyshop I worked at had one of these

Once fitted it's flush with the floor so no need to store it and it's full height
Lots of different versions of this type about with different prices
Unfortunately I don't have the height in my garage to use it so I'm currently looking into a pit

[alecf]

Dec 22, 2017 6:33:24 GMT discostew38 said:

Just had a look at the website
And to be fair I'm quite impressed
I don't have a problem with jacks and axle stands but all my cars are low and if I'm doing something like a clutch or exhaust
It's a pain in the arss getting it as high as I can to grovel around underneath it
It would be a process like this:
1) Drive car in garage and onto low raise ramps (5" ish to to get the jack under)
2) get jack under the front and raise it to get axle stands under (short stands lowest setting because you won't be able to get the jack under the rear otherwise)
3) do the same with the rear
4) then in stages continue to raise each end a bit at a time till the jack is maxed out
5) do the same again with blocks of wood Inbetween the car and jack until the axle stands are maxed out (I have a long set just for doing stuff when I need good height clearance as I'm old and fat)

So this would be a much better way of doing things
A lot of these tend to have cross members joining the two side together and therefore no good for any work where access to the centre of the car is needed

Three issues I have are
1) cost it's not cheap enough for me to think I need it
2) space if not in use I would have no where to store it
3) height it don't look like it goes very high

One bodyshop I worked at had one of these

Once fitted it's flush with the floor so no need to store it and it's full height
Lots of different versions of this type about with different prices
Unfortunately I don't have the height in my garage to use it so I'm currently looking into a pit

I'm just on the process of purchasing and fitting one of them into my home garage. Had a 2 post at the unit but find it in the way quite a bit and end up walking around it. In the home garage I Wont have the space for the 2 post so opted for the scissor lift. Best of both worlds.

[Deleted]

Have you looked at these guys, well known in the classic car field......
www.cjautosheywood.co.uk/

[14500rpm]

I've had a QuickJack for a while now and to be honest I think it is great, although somewhat expensive. In an ideal world I'd have a two post lift but my garage simply isn't big enough and I think this is the next best thing. You can't lift the car really high but it's enough to get underneath it, and do most things, I changed the differential in my MX-5 with it, you could do gearboxes and so on. Another benefit is how quickly you can get the car in the air - you just slide the two jacks in on either side, line it up and press a button and the car is lifted to full height in 20-30 seconds.

[Kelvinator]

Why does the car twist at about 28sec in the video?

[14500rpm]

Possibly because one reached it's max height very slightly before the other one.

[sincilite]

Thanks for the info 14500rpm - Really helpful