it's up to you- the $400 jacks are probably nice but my $69 sams club jack has lifted dozens of bikes, hundreds of times in the 15 or so years since i bought it ( maybe 20 years?).
here are the important things:
you lift the bike ONLY when you have to- and only as high as you need.
you use the straps and outriggers
you keep in mind that pulling a part off the bike may change the balance ( rear wheel removed, bike nosedives)
and you don;t let kids or dogs play in the garage when the bike is on the lift
these last 2 have been the causes for me to have to go over to a Pal's house and help lift the bike off the floor.
a jack is not needed for simple services like oil and fluid changes
mike
$69 is a great deal. I won't spend $549 for a lift as I would only use it 1-2 times a year.
I have a 2004 Craftsman. I wish it was 2-4" longer. Many times I get it on there, and the frame is on the edge and I have to start over. Low enough that I could slide under easily would be nice. I took the casters off and that helped alot. But again if it was longer I wouldn't care about height as much cause I would just shove it under when I got it tilted up.
My J&S jack is amazing. I'd buy it again 10 times. Can you get by with less? Sure - lots of people do. Is the J&S wonderful and worth every dime? Yes.
What he said 1000 times, especially if you have a bigger touring bike. With a smaller one you could probably be pretty stable with one of the cheaper ones but if you have an 800+ lb bike and want to be sure it won't fall, J&S is the way to go.
if you have an 800+ lb bike and want to be sure it won't fall, J&S is the way to go.
If you have an 800+ lb bike and you want to be sure it won`t fall, Handy Lift is the way to go...
I tell all my riding friends, before you spend a nickel on any mods to the bike, get a table lift and get off the floor, once you own one you will wish you bought it 20 years ago...
If you have an 800+ lb bike and you want to be sure it won`t fall, Handy Lift is the way to go...
I tell all my riding friends, before you spend a nickel on any mods to the bike, get a table lift and get off the floor, once you own one you will wish you bought it 20 years ago...
what model table is that and are you happy with it? I am struggling with what model to get, sam, sam 2 or rear drop out.
I have a pitbull lift and it is very nice. I got the extra rails for it when I ordered so I can use it to lift dynas if needed. only need to swap the rails and it works. I like the pitbull cause I can fit a large pan under the center to catch fluids. I have had the front end apart with the bike on the jack and no straps or anything. I bought my dad the J&S jack and he loves it. we started using a yellow jack, sears I believe. yeah it worked for maintenance, but was not ideal and kind of scary at times. the cheap jack was hard to release pressure slowly and I didn't need an ultra limited falling on my dad. if he was in his 60's maybe he could still deal with it but he isn't.
THe pit bull is huge, meaning has a wide footprint. and takes up a TON of space. for that reason only I would get a J&S if I were to replace the Pitbull. I am getting a table lift now.
If you have an 800+ lb bike and you want to be sure it won`t fall, Handy Lift is the way to go...
I tell all my riding friends, before you spend a nickel on any mods to the bike, get a table lift and get off the floor, once you own one you will wish you bought it 20 years ago...
Truer words have never been spoken..... regardless of the type of table lift you buy, as long as it's a quality lift, you will wish you had done it years earlier...!!!
With that said, I used a J&S jack on my heritage and Bagger before I bought a lift table..... I still have the J&S, still use the J&S on somethings, but a lift table is awesome!
I’d have a lift table but I don’t have room for it. A J&S jack is nice but I still spend a lot of time sitting on the floor to work on our bikes. Oh to have a lift table.
08-17-2019, 05:47 AM
