Very true.....

Here I used my motorcycle lift to re-power my Gopher Killer machine... It was a lot easier at chest level than bending over to the floor...!

 

I've had a Handy Lift since the mid 90s and love it. Here are a few notes.
1st mod - I put a scrap piece of 2x4 (maybe 4-5") in the front of the wheel vise to stop the tire from going all the way forward as when it does the brake discs would contact the vise on my dresser. Not all mods have to be complicated (I'm not an engineer). The wheel vise is on an extension because of the length of a chopper I work on.


2nd mod - I tied a cord to the locking bar with a loop on the end held open with a piece of scrap rubber hose so when I raise the lift I can drop the locking bar with my foot and don't have to bend over. Simple is good.



3rd mod- I bolted the foot pedal/valve to the lift so it's not in the way on the floor and so the lift wheels won't roll on the hose and pinch it, stopping the flow of air so it won't raise or lower.



I added the side extensions to the lift so I could have a place to put my feet down when riding the bike up. The sides are held on with a bar that slides through the whole thing and secures with a pin & clip. I cut two pieces of heavy conduit I had as scrap, welded on and end and drilled it so the original pins would hold it when inserted in the original bar. Now I have a good location for additional tie downs.



Here's two things I learned the hard way.
1. I was jacking up the rear of my dresser on the lift using a scissors jack to remove the rear wheel. As I almost had it high enough I starting hearing an odd creaking noise but couldn't identify it. I kept jacking (mistake) then bam! Glass fragments everywhere! Every time I rode the bike onto the lift it moved forward a few inches. When raising the rear of the bike the windshield tilted forward contacting a fluorescent light tube. That creaking noise I heard was the windshield having pressure put against it from the light. The light tube gave out before the windshield did!
2. Unintentional mod - I had the dresser strapped down and finished work and was lowering the bike. I was standing at the right front by the valve I had bolted to the lift table. All of a sudden the lift and bike start tilting over toward me and had gotten to a scary angle before I was able to react. I realized the left side of the table had lowered onto my mechanics stool, stopping it from lowering while the right side was still coming on down. Fortunately the air hose was still attached so I could quickly raise the lift. I left the now deformed left side as it is as a reminder to always check that everything is clear before lowering!


I hope this will be helpful to those with a Handy Lift or at least give them a good laugh.

 

I get the excitement about getting a motorcycle lift table. It's such a game-changer for working on your bike. I remember when I first got mine; it felt like I had a whole new level of access to my ride.