IMPORTANT NOTE: When using these lifting frames one end of the lifting frame must always be resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted, as shown in the video. SOME PEOPLE IN THEIR COMMENTS have suggested lifting both ends of the frame at the same time, THIS WOULD BE VERY DANGEROUS because If both ends of the frame were lifted off the floor at the same time there would then be nothing to stop the car wheels rotating, the rotating wheels coupled with the weight of the car could kick the frame and jack from under the car which would then come crashing down, this is why one end of the frame must always be resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted. A lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for ease of use with safety in mind.
Couldn't you weld a lift point in the middle of the frame and lift both ends at the same time. I know normally you need to lift each side for jacks etc. But with your system would it be possible to lift the back up part way then move to the front and do that part of way and so on if you had a lift point in the middle of the frame. Assuming you built two units. Front and back of course which you did.
@@johnbower I've just stumbled on your video and I appreciate the project and the inspiration it gives me to make my own project based on your idea. Thank you and greetings from Portugal.
Those comments are from people that have no skills and mad they can't build anything. They just say things like death trap but give no solution or better options because they can't do anything but complain
I just started to watch this video and I have to write a comment before I forget. It is nice to see that there are still some of us around that can do a job with bare hands. I bet John Bower is "old school".
I was quite surprised by the 'bare hands' whilst John was welding. Looking at the quality of his welds i would guess he is experienced enough to know he should protect bare skin on his hands from uv light or 'arc burn', not to mention the hot metal.
@@mefirst4266then offer a solution or reason why it's wrong but you can't do anything but complain. Legos don't count for building things all your life
John, I trust you are still at the shop making something!!! I am a female welder, 25yrs and LOVE to fabricate new stuff that is functional, sturdy and aesthetically well done. You sir, have made a beautiful, simple design. Again, bravo!! God Bless. SUBBED
Not done much in the shop lately, been busy doing jobs around my property. It,s nice to know you like my car lift and understand the design, thanks for your comments.
That’s a nice design! I like that you saved material and footprint space by making that cantilevered jack plate removable. Well done, and thanks for sharing.
Elliot Bickle, Yes main reason for having the removable jacking arm is to keep the main frames compact, then when frames are not in use they can be stood up on their ends in corner of garage, thanks for the comment.
What a remarkable design and quality workmanship! Thank you for sharing, I'm glad I saw this today. I'm always lifting my cars in my workshop with jackstands; they're a bit of a pain lining them up just right all the time. Something like this would be very useful for me.
Well done... as a former mecahanic approaching my 70s thistle is a great innovative idea, which no doubt other DIYer home innovators (self included) have already made specific modifications to the overall concept and build tailored to suit personal budget, space and needs includind the use of hydraulics and airbags. No doubt the issue some have seen with immobilizing any initial forward or reverse movement of the vehicle during the initial part of the lift can easily be addressed if one was prepared to have anchor pins that would slot into pre installed holes in the floor that a suitable size pin could easily be dropped and extracted in an out of to.prevent any forward or reverse inertia during that and any other part of the lift. The only other issue l would personally address with this system is finding a way to have suitable metal plates for the 8 vertical pipes to rest on. No doubt others like myself have already addressed how to go about this too. Thank you very much sir. Your workmanship and idea is much appreciated and valued. Have a great day.
One word "WOW". Most stable platform I've seen. Next project, a carriage that can interface your lift to the frame or jack points so you can remove all your tires.
Michael Dovorak, I have made plans to build four oversize sturdy stands that will fit under the four dedicated jacking points below the car sills, then if wheels need to be removed the stands can be positioned under car sills and the lifting frames can be removed. thank you for your comment
@@debeerizI disagree. The connected stands make the system a lot more robust. With single stands the risk of dropping it, when someone falls towards the car would be significantly higher. The design is extremely thought through.
Lifting a vehicle for underside service is a problem for everyone without a lift. Jacks and jackstands can be sketchy. I have a project car that needed a torque converter replacement, which means dropping the transmission, as well as running a complete new exhaust system, which required a bunch of cutting and fitting before welding it all together. I knew I'd be spending a lot of time under my vehicle and wasn't going to constantly raise and lower it and setup jacks and jackstands. I had a set of 10" wide truck wheels and tires and some 2x12 lumber, so I raised each corner of the project vehicle enough to slide a truck wheel under it and rest a section of 2x12 across the truck wheel. This got my vehicle roughly one foot off the ground on a stable platform and granted me enough room to work comfortably and safely for the duration i needed to complete my tasks. John, i appreciate your ingenuity in trying to solve a problem we all deal with.
My lift would have been ideal for the work you have done, the lift only takes a few minutes to raise a car to varying heights and gives clear access to the entire underside, and when the lift is not in use the frames stand on their ends in corner of the garage taking up little space. Thanks for your comment.
Thank you for sharing this. As DIY-er myself, I've been thinking about some sort of homemade stand, to help me with a sort of rust repair/restoration project. My idea was to have the stand connected to the wheel hubs, so I can have the wheels removed and have access to the wheel arches. After seeing this, I think it might be possible to use your design as a base and add the HUB mount "extension" to it. I doubt most of the negative comments have ever made or even thought about fabricating anything. There are a lot of things to consider even for a simple task like this and you have done a great job. Thank you again for sharing.
Thank you for the detailed video. I think its a great setup. To anyone who disagrees, i invite you to design, fabricate, build and document the building process of creating something "better". Oh, i almost forgot that you then have share it for free online. Thanks John
@@johnbower My dad was a machinist and then became a mechanical engineer in the early days of the aerospace programs....i recognize and appreciate true quality!
Hello Mr Bower , I skipped through the build process because i knew exactly where you were going , Now then iv also read all the comments and there are a lot of negative comments people just dont the grab the simplicity of your idea , I see this as a very good frame for lifting a car of any size from a fiat to a landrover and once up to the height you want put four heavy duty axle stands in then you can remove all four wheels and work away quiet happily . Now then for a seasoned home mechanic who cant afford a car ramp this is brilliant and with 2 / or 4 air hydraulic bottle jacks this could be lifted with ease , BUT a good compressor would be a requirement then air tools come in to play , naysayers have no vision Stan .
Honestly not hating, and it works for you which is all that matters. I do want to say thank you for sharing. For me, that much of a build, should have something that's quicker and more flexible. I'd like access to the wheels, brakes, under the engine. It shows me the options and idea's you have. The strength is amazing. As I think about it, the cross beam frames, set up with in the wheel base, and with padded blocks to the frame, might still have what I would want to see in my own set up. Thank you, once again.
@@johnbower Can you lift the car and leave the wheels free to remove them or for that matter an engine? I didn't see that in the video and I did watch to the end. Is there a second? Thank you
@JamesDoylesGarage. Because the frames lift from under the car tyres there is plenty of working space above the frames to the under side of the car and it's engine etc, and the frames are easy to work around. Note: once the car is raised on the frames it is so easy to put jack stands under the sills and move the frames away if wheels need to be removed, I do show this in the video towards the end.
I worked many years in the lift industry and what I can say is that your welds are much nicer that what I seen. the major inconvenient of your design is that most of the time you lift a vehicule is to work on the wheels so the application is limited very good video.
It not really a Jack, it a car stand. You can't take a wheel off if you find you have a problem. It just seems ita lot of work to get the car up in the air. It would be easier to use Jack stands
Peter Edwards .(a) You did not watch the complete video. (b) Anyone with any common sense would be able to see the car can easily be lowered onto jack stands if wheels need to be removed.
@@albertcassler8763 (a) You won,t get all four wheels 500mm off the floor by jacking under the control arms. (b) if you tried jacking my car up from under the control arms you would be in serious trouble.
I just started watching your videos and you have shared wonderful ideas that I would like to apply at some point. thanks to the experience you have acquired over the years. The most important thing of all is that you should ignore the rude, uneducated people who only make hateful comments. Greetings from Mexico.👋🏽🇲🇽
I think that it is an outstanding design and build. Thank you I for allowing us to see it. There are many times that you need to lift a car in the air to work on a mechanical part that’s does not involve the wheels. I never feel safe being under a car while it is on jack stands. I always block up the wheels if I am going to work on it from underneath.
As an engineer I think this is absolutely OUTSTANDING! I have always maintained my own vehicles struggling for HOURS to jack a whole vehicle up enough to only SQUEEZE under! I had a turbo change to do TWICE on one vehicle (don't ask I was sent a duff turbo first off) and you pretty much nee to sit up UNDER it. The turbo is in a place that can barely be reached from under the bonnet, necessitating it being jacked HIGH to be able to work easily. May I suggest adding 'spreader feet' to the uprights (square foot plates) - as I have no garage only a gravel drive , to stop them sinking into soft ground? I have to use 'jacking boards' (thick plywood boards) to stop my axle stands and jacks just sinking into the ground. You need to patent this and sell them PLEASE!!👍👏👏👏👏
@scopex2749, When designing this car lift I did consider welding plates to the bottom of the legs for use on soft ground, but this would have made it difficult to slide fit the legs into the frames, also by not having plates welded to the legs means less storage space needed when not in use, So I decided that if the lift was to be used on soft ground metal plates could simply be placed under the legs when needed. Thank you for your comment.
thardyryll, This car lift is designed for occasional use by the home mechanic, It's able to completely lift their car up with 700mm ( 28") of clearance beneath the car if needed, "most" people have common sense and can do this in a few minutes using this system. thank you for watching.
@@patagualianmostly7437I realize that your frame of reference for how long it takes to write those 18 words is your own faculty with the English language, but in my case it took seconds. As for posting videos, of what? Screwball gizmoids like the stands in this vid, which make virtually every under-vehicle repair or maintenance procedure difficult or impossible?
I would love to see if you could incorporate some two ton bottle jacks connected with possibly a hydraulic line from one to lift simultaneously, wow what a great build outstanding
YMA. Note: the advantage of lifting from underneath the car wheels, weight is kept on all four wheels even when one corner of the car is being lifted due to articulation in the suspension, this keeps things safe when lifting a car using my lifting frames, providing one end of the frame is resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted. The disadvantage of lifting from under the wheels is if you try to lift both rear wheels or front wheels at the same time then there is nothing stopping the wheels rotating and kicking the frame and jack from under the car, that is the reason why one end of the frame must always be resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted. Thank you for your comment.
Thank you for the great and detailed video. Highly appreciate the skill and what you have done, and some of the explanations in the comments. I stumbled onto your video, while looking to build something similar myself. If you have a minute please bear with me - I would highly appreciate your opinion. My idea is to do something similar to what you are doing. The biggest difference is that instead of lifting the car "by the wheels", my design would lift the car by the factory jack points on the rocker panels. I would make the transverse square tubes narrower (e.g. 180mm wide overall - 2x60mm with a 60mm gap for most of the width). I would install thick solid rubber blocks (cca 180x60x30mm is available locally, meant for the 4 post lifts) that would be, from below, rested on the 3x60mm square tube (a third piece of 60mm square tube would be welded where rubber rests), and the car/rocker panel/jack points would rest on the rubber from the top. Obviously the frame would not "start" from the ground, but from rocker panel height from ground minus (60mm tube + 30mm rubber thickness). The "other side" from the first lift, would need to rest on something, maybe initial hole in the "legs". The rubber blocks could be mounted on a sliding rectangular piece (e.g. made out of 3mm sheet metal, into a hollow box with 182mmx62x60mm dimensions, so it wraps around 2x60mm + gap), so that they can slide left/right for different rocker panel widths, and rubber pads can not fall off (screwed in with short 12mm wood screws into the 3mm box). Obviously once the pressure is applied, they would no longer be able to move as the friction should be sufficient, or one side could be fixed. The rest would be very similar to what you have done. (obviously I would retain the wider leg spacing similar to yours for stability. The biggest advantage of my proposed design is that you can leave the car on the device while working on it, you can remove all 4 wheels immediately (without the additional jack stands), there is no wheel spin problem that you mentioned in the post 11 months ago, there is no suspension travel effects.. Only original rocker/sill jack points are used, and car weight is spread over the point and wider over the rocker panel - all 180mm (I hate jack stands as they are metal-metal contact with the rocker/jack point). One other (radical) idea is to have a longitudinal frame as well (adjustable/sliding through the transverse frame, with different fixation holes for different wheelbase dimensions), and to have only 4 feet instead of 8. Assuming flat surface, entire front/back of the car could be lifted at once (at the front/rear center of the car).. That one I have not thought through yet though. Since you have already built this, and you skills and thinking process are admirable, I would really appreciate your opinion. Do you see any significant downsides? I can see/understand the need for a higher lifting jack for the purpose, as the base of the frame would start from higher point. (maybe some additional attachment could be added although somewhat problematic as it creates instability...)
@bjov76 My first idea was a frame across the underside of the car that lifted under the four dedicated sill jacking points, this does then allow the wheels to be removed without adding additional jack stands, but this would have created many problems, (a) the adjustable legs on the frame would restrict opening the car doors, (b) the frame would need to be adjustable to fit different lifting points on different cars, (c) the frame across would be very close to the underside of the car restricting access to things like exhaust removal etc, (d) to get the same height clearance as I do you would need a taller jack and taller frame legs, (e) the frame would need to be quite big to line up with all four sill jacking points. (f) when replacing car suspension arms, the suspension should be compressed by the weight of the car on it's wheels before tightening the pivot bolts passing through rubber bushes, and you still need clearance to do this. The above problems is the reason I opted for making frames that lift from under the car wheels, I made the frames to fit a wide car this enables it to fit all cars, it gives clear access to the entire underside, only drawback is you need to place a couple of axle stands if wheels need to be removed, but this is an easy task when the car is already raised. Thanks for your comments and thanks for watching.
@@johnbower Thank you for the detailed response. I did not think of some of the points you made. Obviously it is a tradeoff. I was also considering car ramps, with the inclination ramp part removable so that something can be inserted below, however still do not have a good idea on how to do rear end, and how to raise it a bit further, and then lower it back onto the stand. I have seen the chinese ramps with a bottle jack in the flat section of the ramp, but have also seen problems with it... Will keep pondering before I take on something. May end up being exactly what you did...Please keep posting the good ideas and work! :)
Hey John this is an Absolutely Brilliant concept !!! simple and modular, and to the person who says you cant get at the wheels , simply provide two more tubes that are shorter and use the clever double supported design to replace the long ones on the side that needs the wheel removed by simply lifting that side and replacing which shorter support tubes , thus unblocking access to the wheels , they should come out ok Top Marks , this world needs people like you who are not afraid to break ground with fresh ideas . Dont listen to the haters, keep up the good work. and i feel that you have already got half of a towing dolly or car transporter right there, if you just add a couple of struts wheels and a towbar Good on Ya !!!!
A wonderful concept. Great idea. Here in the US I'm going to have to beef up the design to HD. My vehicles weigh in the 4000 lbs to 6600 lbs range. 1800kg to 3000kg
Thanks for the comment, Just for your interest the main frame of the lift is made from 60mm square box section with a 3mm wall, the legs are made from galvanized tube 48,7mm diameter with a 4mm wall, it comfortably supports my Volvo XC40 which weighs close to 1800kg.
Look safe for working under a car, as mentioned wouldn’t be difficult to have additional parts to lift the frame if working on the wheels or suspension. Nice work
Well done! Simple design for a useful lift. I like the toe jack adapter, too. But, it seems like a lot of labor just to get floor space in order to roll around on your sled.😀
Well done! Have you thought of adding a cross beam and jack pad in the middle of each section? Then once you go right side to left side the first time, you can then slide the jack under the middle and can lift both sides together. (like lifting with a jack under the rear diff, or front crossmember. Would save you about 4 to 6 times going back and forth in both front and back. Might need the spacing a tad larger so the tire can not roll off when lifting.
What you have suggested was ruled out in early stages of design due to danger issues. READ MY IMPORTANT NOTE pinned at the top of the comments section.
Nice job. Tow trucks use a similar system where they put a bar in front and behind the wheels and chain them together then lift by the wheels. if you made one bar fixed and the other free to slide under the car and then attach to the frame with a pin or bolt, then you wouldn’t have to back over the bars to get the wheels between them. You could place the jacks under front and back wheels at the same time.
I like this design. It is simple, elegant, and actually compact. I would like to improve on the design by having the feet pulled down by a spring and a one way sprag clutch system so that they will automatically push down and keep the device firmly planted on the tires when you jack it up. That would solve the single corner lift as it is now. Then you can jack up both sides at a time from the center section. Either that or add hydraulic cylinders to the end corners, but then you lose the light weight design. Either way, it's an awesome design and your welding is unreal! Thanks!
@demomoss, I do have a hydraulic car lift made for the home user, but due to it taking up space, and hydraulic hoses trailing across the floor, it takes time to set it up, and does not give clear access you are having to work around it, because of these problems I decided to design and build a lift that was simple to use, giving clear access when in use, and when not in use it stands on end in corner of garage taking up little space, thank you for your comment.
Great idea! Awesome there are some that think outside the box…. and outside the cheap import stores. Craftsmanship and innovation aren’t dead quite yet! And remember, it’s not greed that runs the world, it’s envy.
Érdekes konstrukció, igényesen elkészítve! Én is gondolkodom valami emelő elkészítésén ,de nekem nagyobb magasságú emelő kapacitásra van szükségem. Gratulálok!😊
This is a very nice design and very nice work. Going along with what some others have said , if you place bottles jack in the middle of your frames( that hold the posts, build a frame around the bottle jack you then could use them. If i could post a pic i would. I also like the fact when your not using them they dont take up much space, also they would work with lowered cars.
Neat idea, but more of a pain than its really all worth I think. Just use the Jack at each corner, and use an axle stands for stabilisation to actually work on things
Just brilliant well designed and manufactured. If there was some way to henge the end support frames to allow them to flold down to allow one to slide into place with some roller would speed up setup. Also a electric hydralic pump bottle jack would be less work jacking up.
Glad you like my car lift thank you for your comments, trouble with adding extra mechanical parts to the lift such as powered hydraulics etc, the lift then becomes more complicated to build and will have cables and hydraulic hoses trailing across the floor to work the lift, it will take up more space and time to set it up, it will also need more space to store when not in use. My design is aimed at the home mechanic, this keeps it simple to build and simple to use, also easy to store when not in use, the frames stand up on their end in corner of garage.
@johnbower I've just stumbled on your video and I appreciate the project and the inspiration it gives me to make my own project based on your idea. Thank you and greetings from Portugal.
Love the lift, and the owl! Respectfully, I do have a possible suggestions/questions. 1. Why not lift and lower from the center? 2. With the addition of a couple pucks the jack could be placed under the lift points of the vehicle.
@veritas6466, To your suggestion no 1. That would be dangerous, one end of frame must be firmly on the floor while other end is being lifted in case wheels rotate. To your suggestion no 2. If these frames where positioned under the sill jacking points you would have problems, I will name a few (a) you would not get the car as high without having longer frame legs and a higher jack, (b) jacking point centers are not all the same on all car sills, so different frames would be needed for different cars. (c) lifting at four different points under the car sills would cause the car to wobble, where as when lifting under the wheels you get the advantage of articulation from the car suspension which prevents any wobbling. (d) If these frames went across under the sills they would obstruct the car doors from opening, there would also be very little clearance between the frames and the underside of the car for changing things such as the exhaust pipe etc. Note: a lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for simplicity with safety in mind.
Excellent design & well engineered; regarding the comments about it being a slow process to get the car fully jacked up, maybe a high-lift jack or even an air jack would help speed things up.
Hello n a great lifting device. Your welding looked very neat n nice also a Kangaroo Jack either side may make lifting easier unless you wanted to go air , yes a good idea n simple 👍
Howdy! This a great idea for home use. I do have a question, would it be possible to box in a bit in the middle and use a floor jack to raise and lower the vehicle at that reinforced point? And I must mention, your welding is brilliant and you should build one out of stainless to show off those stacked dimes!
Dave Radke, As for your suggestion of welding a central jacking point in the frames this would be dangerous, If you attempted to lift two wheels off the floor at the same time then none of the frame legs would have any weight on them, there would be nothing to stop the car wheels rotating, this rotating action coupled with the weight of the vehicle could then kick the frame and jack from under the car as it came crashing down. You need to be careful when using a trolley jack at the best of times, if trolley jack wheels are prevented from rolling forward (due to a small ridge or stone under it's wheels) the jack arm will pull backwards from under what it is trying to lift, that is the reason I have designed the frames to be jacked one side at a time, (a) you can clearly see if the jack saddle is slipping out of position, (b) when any one side of the frame is being jacked up the other side will always be resting on the floor. Thank you for your comment.
Great idea, but... If you want to replace something in suspension it'll be difficult to do. I know, that that you use jacks stands but if you use scissor jack you can put jack stand too. It's only good for servicing I think
Piotr W. Thanks for the comment. Note : scissor jacks are not designed for regular use, they are only designed for occasional use such as a road side wheel change, they also have limited safe lifting height. With my jack frames any job under the car can be tackled, wheels can safely be lifted off the floor 500mm if needed. When wheels or suspension need to be worked on, the car can be lowered onto 2 or 4 jack stands positioned beneath the vehicle's designed jacking points.
@@johnbower yeah you have right, but better option will be lift up for car sills jacking points. You can connect your idea with this from this video. ruclips.net/video/rQojAnd7xkI/видео.html And that will be the best option. Best regards.
On my Corolla E110, i got one point center front and center rear to lift the entire front or rear of the car, super easy, sad that many cars don't have that.
@@brianb-p6586 (a) Jack stands do not lift a car they only support the car. (b) No standard jack will completely lift a car 700mm (28") off the floor as my lifting frames do, (c) I do also have high jack stands that will support a car at 700mm (28") off the floor, I will be showing how I made these stands in another video.
Bu insan iyi yada kötü bir iş yapmış internete oturup kötü yorum yapanlar arabanın yağ seviyesini kontrol etmeyi bilmiyor güzel bir çalışma olmuş eksik tarafları düzeltilebilir
I would have welded an access/mating point for your hydraulic jack at the back of the car. To keep from going from side to side. You would have needed a cross-member
Doing what you have suggested would be very dangerous, Read my important note clearly pinned at the top of the comments section. A lot of thought has gone into designing this lift both for ease of use with safety in mind, unfortunately I can not make it fool proof.
couple of suggestions,should have 8 plates with 1/2 inch flat on bottom of main frame to keep from going thru concrete small pieces welded to keep square (not welded to bottom just placed under), second strap tie the wheels to frame to keep from rolling off, one more is frame could be made slide side to side adjustable by inner and outer square so to slide and holes to lock with pins,would make more compact to store too. good design simple. if your concrete is good and thick ok but might give way with just those pipes pushing down if thin.
Yes if being used on a soft surface or thin concrete floor metal plates must be placed under the legs to spread the load. There is no danger of a car with average size wheels rolling off the frames especially a car with small wheels. When the frames are not in use they stand up on their ends in corner of garage taking up little space, Thanks for watching.
Yes ceiling height is something to keep an eye on, when first testing the lift ( as in the video) I did not think about the ceiling as I was concentrating on how the lift was performing, but luckily the ceiling was high enough. thanks for the comment.
I like the jack you made for the car. I am pondering make me one. What I would like to make is one from aluminum. Do not know what reason for the metal choice other than the look. Have yourself a wonderful day John. I look forward to see more great videos from you Sir. Peace too. vf
Victory First, thank you for your comment. Note: steel has more tensile strength than aluminum, if aluminum is used then larger sections will be required.
@@victoryfirst2878 Carefully fabricated stainless steel with good clean tig welded joints would be excellent, but the cost of materials would make it impractical. Best solution in my opinion is tig welded mild steel frame coated in red oxide paint, with legs made from galvanized steel tube.
@@johnbower The reason I asked you John is that I have access to all kinds of alloys at super reasonable prices. I live near a surplus metal outlet and know the owner. That is why I said what I said. Would you care to give your thoughts on alloy types Sir ??? Thank you for you time too...
P N. Note: My Volvo XC40 is quite a wide vehicle so most other cars do fit on the frames as they are narrower, but for wider vehicles I think best solution here just have two sets of frames with one set of legs, the legs would would be interchangeable between the frames. Thanks for the comment.
Maybe if You use it in front of rear wheels and behind front wheels it could be a great idea. A lot of home-made mechanic job is in wheels, suspension, breaks, and so on Great job, awesome idea
My first idea was to lift under the sills, but after a lot of thought I decided it was best in many ways to lift under the wheels, and if I need to remove wheels I place jack stands under the sills and remove the frames away from under wheels. thanks for the comment.
I use air bag jacks which go up in 2 seconds, slide in my double stacked track sleepers that are 12” high combined which takes about 2 minutes in total to raise the whole car, and even less if I’m using a axle stands to remove wheels from front or rear… Complicated arrangements of jacking a vehicle is exhaustive alone especially wasting 20 mins pre/post work lifting/lowering, besides storage of this system, ever wondered why no one else has done this?? There’s colonies who have designed single wheel lifting already, or use a scissor system that’s air over hydraulic or even the manual lifting version that you can use your shop jack to do the work…
@@johnbower Of course, that old adage of common sense…. So how many have you sold.?? What’s the company called you sell through?? Thanks for watching… so you have a nice day now.
John, I did not suggest lifting both ends together . I suggested one end (left and right wheels) at a time sequentially . Lift rear centrally (both rear wheels) to a safe level,then peg off, then do same to front end . End for end . Still incrementally lifting BUT half the operation.
@arcboutant, A lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for ease of use with safety in mind. What you have suggested would be very dangerous, please read my IMPORTANT NOTE pinned at the top of the comments.
Can each lift points be modified by using 1.5 ton bottle jacks (priced at low as $15 each) provide at least 2 rest points to compensate for Jack's low lift stroke . Your design would be useful when doing brakes and tire rotations if your units are positioned under factory lift points using , if needed spacers can be added at factory lift point to your dual bars. These 2 maintenance procedures would make very useful with your design.
Jorge Watanabe. trying to use bottle jacks would cause problems. For stability you need a three ton trolley jack available for £90 to £150. As for your suggestion of placing the frames under the factory lifting points this again would cause problems, (a) due to the frames being closer to the centre of the car more weight would be placed on the frame being lifted. (b) you would not be able to open the car doors as the frame legs would be in the way. (c) the frames would be close to the underside of the car restricting access to exhaust pipe etc. (d) The car would not be stable during lifting as not all lift points would be bearing weight (car would be rocking) Lifting under the wheels as I do is best, if you need to remove wheels just lower car onto jack stands placed under factory lift points.
That's a great idea... and it works. at 30:00 I was wondering... if you could incorporate the mechanism of a pump truck, ones they use in warehouses, maybe you can get an even lift by only having to jack up from one side..? Might not work or be as stable as you'd probably need wheels on one side. I don't know... the thought just popped in my head, thought I'd share. Great job!
Thats very nice design and I like that idea. But I do not need to do this because I dont work on any cars so I don't need to do this. I would suggest people who are going to work on it to think more carefully because if anything goes wrong, it will collapse and it will crush you to death. Here is what you need to do to make sure that you know what to do before you go ahead. Make sure that you weld it correctly using with gas NOT with electricity because electricity weld do not do very good. It will not hold metal to metal in place as I have tried on my car and it didnt do very good. You are better off to go with gas welding. Make sure that the metal are holding together in place and make sure they are very strong for your safety. Before you jack up make sure you have something to support under the jack for support and backup as you don't want the car to go crush under you when you work under your car. Good luck, be careful and be safe guys.
@@johnbower Thank you for your answer. Sure, you can buy something like that. Just like lifts for cars. But doing it myself would be an interesting tonic for me.
@@cheeseymccheese7249 Thank you. However, I was more interested in the general dimensions of the construction. He already stated in one of the comments that he used "Box section 60mm x 3mm wall" ... Since he is using an SUV and I'm probably going to utilize it with smaller cars it'll be great to have some sort of reference to go by. That way I can still use it with bigger cars if I need to. So @John Bower: How long are the horizontal beams, left to right? How far apart are the beams, front to back? How far did you space the "guide pipes", up and down? Taking the Volvo's width of about 1,9m into consideration I would guess about 2,1m left to right maybe? Thanks :D
MrMrBanana, The main frames are made from 60mm box section with 3mm wall. Legs are made from 48.5mm O.D. galvanized tube with 4mm wall. Inside width of main frame is 1970mm. 250mm between bottom frame rails (where wheels sit). 250mm vertical measurement between top and bottom leg guides plates. 420mm I.D. between legs on each side. The cantilever bracket for jacking is made from 50mm box section with 3mm wall. When my Volvo XC40 is on the frames there is approx 50mm clearance between the outside of each rear wheel and the frame on each side, "this clearance needs to be kept to a minimum" to keep the weight of the vehicle close to the legs, when lifting smaller cars which are narrower this clearance does become greater, but smaller cars with less weight will not be a problem. Note: high quality welds are needed on all frame joints, "a weld is NOT a weld" if it has not been carried out correctly with proper preparation.
A lot of work to lift the car a little at a time. That would probably be very good for times when the car has to be lifted for extended periods of time, not for a oil change or other minor maintennce. This appears to be much safer than jack stands.
@Hugo-Fust, To answer your question and anyone else who's not mechanically minded, this car lift is actually simple and safe to use, and in a few minutes can lift any car to a comfortable height in order carry out any type of repair or maintenance needed to the underside, also any repairs to outer bodywork is made easier when the car is higher off the ground, it is also very useful for car restoration projects. Thanks for the comment.
John: Brilliant design: I looked through the description and comments and did not see a materials list. Would you mind providing the outer dimensions and wall thickness of the square pipe as well as the diameter and wall thickness of the round pipe? I'd appreciate it a lot as I'm planning to build a set. Also: Any reason why you used round tubing for the legs rather than square tubing?
Main frame 60mm box section with 3mm wall thickness, legs 48.5mm outside diameter galvanized tube with 4mm wall thickness, leg pins 12mm diameter 8.8 grade high tensile steel bolts, cantilever bracket for jacking made from 50mm box section with 3mm wall. Reason for not using square legs, I was unable to find a snug fitting size to slide inside the uprights, also if a snug fitting size was available it would bind against the internal weld seam of the section it slides into, other reason for using round legs, guide plates with snug fitting round holes can easily be made for the legs to slide through. thanks for the comment
IMPORTANT NOTE: When using these lifting frames one end of the lifting frame must always be resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted, as shown in the video. SOME PEOPLE IN THEIR COMMENTS have suggested lifting both ends of the frame at the same time, THIS WOULD BE VERY DANGEROUS because If both ends of the frame were lifted off the floor at the same time there would then be nothing to stop the car wheels rotating, the rotating wheels coupled with the weight of the car could kick the frame and jack from under the car which would then come crashing down, this is why one end of the frame must always be resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted. A lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for ease of use with safety in mind.
Couldn't you weld a lift point in the middle of the frame and lift both ends at the same time. I know normally you need to lift each side for jacks etc. But with your system would it be possible to lift the back up part way then move to the front and do that part of way and so on if you had a lift point in the middle of the frame. Assuming you built two units. Front and back of course which you did.
@@xray364 READ MY IMPORTANT NOTE AGAIN.
This would beat a damp inspection pit any day.
Não seria possível colocar as medidas para referência. Obrigado
Obrigado por partilhar o seu fantástico projecto. Perfeito
É possível partilhar as suas medidas para referência. Obrigado
John, I feel bad you got all these hate comments. You made something, and it works well. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for the comment, it is nice to know that most people can see the benefits it has.
@@johnbower I've just stumbled on your video and I appreciate the project and the inspiration it gives me to make my own project based on your idea.
Thank you and greetings from Portugal.
@@VitorMadeira Glad you like it, thanks for the comment
Death trap !!!!
Those comments are from people that have no skills and mad they can't build anything. They just say things like death trap but give no solution or better options because they can't do anything but complain
So bloody creative, Well done.
Thanks for having No annoying back ground music, Cheers..
Glad you liked it!
This is by far the best and safest lift I've ever seen. No matter who says what. Thank you for sharing
Glad you like it! thanks for the comment
I just started to watch this video and I have to write a comment before I forget. It is nice to see that there are still some of us around that can do a job with bare hands. I bet John Bower is "old school".
Thanks for the comment
I was quite surprised by the 'bare hands' whilst John was welding. Looking at the quality of his welds i would guess he is experienced enough to know he should protect bare skin on his hands from uv light or 'arc burn', not to mention the hot metal.
Handy bit of kit...
He drive a Volvo, he's a man of safety, trust this man guys 👍👍👍
thanks for the comment
John Bower, Thankyou for sharing this DIY quality piece of garage equiptment. Your generosity and expertise are much appreciated.
Ron Hateley, Glad you like it, thank you for your comment.
Ignore the people that have never built anything in their lives. Very cool invention
Glad you like it, thanks for the comment.
What about the ones of us who have built things all our lives and trying to save his life.
@@mefirst4266then offer a solution or reason why it's wrong but you can't do anything but complain. Legos don't count for building things all your life
John, I trust you are still at the shop making something!!! I am a female welder, 25yrs and LOVE to fabricate new stuff that is functional, sturdy and aesthetically well done. You sir, have made a beautiful, simple design. Again, bravo!! God Bless. SUBBED
Not done much in the shop lately, been busy doing jobs around my property. It,s nice to know you like my car lift and understand the design, thanks for your comments.
That’s a nice design! I like that you saved material and footprint space by making that cantilevered jack plate removable. Well done, and thanks for sharing.
Elliot Bickle, Yes main reason for having the removable jacking arm is to keep the main frames compact, then when frames are not in use they can be stood up on their ends in corner of garage, thanks for the comment.
What a remarkable design and quality workmanship! Thank you for sharing, I'm glad I saw this today. I'm always lifting my cars in my workshop with jackstands; they're a bit of a pain lining them up just right all the time. Something like this would be very useful for me.
Glad you like it,Thanks for the comment
Well done... as a former mecahanic approaching my 70s thistle is a great innovative idea, which no doubt other DIYer home innovators (self included) have already made specific modifications to the overall concept and build tailored to suit personal budget, space and needs includind the use of hydraulics and airbags.
No doubt the issue some have seen with immobilizing any initial forward or reverse movement of the vehicle during the initial part of the lift can easily be addressed if one was prepared to have anchor pins that would slot into pre installed holes in the floor that a suitable size pin could easily be dropped and extracted in an out of to.prevent any forward or reverse inertia during that and any other part of the lift.
The only other issue l would personally address with this system is finding a way to have suitable metal plates for the 8 vertical pipes to rest on.
No doubt others like myself have already addressed how to go about this too.
Thank you very much sir. Your workmanship and idea is much appreciated and valued.
Have a great day.
Glad you like it thanks for the comment
One word "WOW". Most stable platform I've seen. Next project, a carriage that can interface your lift to the frame or jack points so you can remove all your tires.
Michael Dovorak, I have made plans to build four oversize sturdy stands that will fit under the four dedicated jacking points below the car sills, then if wheels need to be removed the stands can be positioned under car sills and the lifting frames can be removed. thank you for your comment
@@johnbower I can't wait to see it. Thank you for sharing.
I just put myself in your shoes and at 72, I must say that is alot of work for an old man. Nice engineering though.
Cool, thanks!
Great job. This is the best DIY home jack I've seen.
Glad you like it, thanks for the comment
a $200 motorcycle jack and 4 axle stands would do the same job in half the time
@@debeerizI disagree.
The connected stands make the system a lot more robust.
With single stands the risk of dropping it, when someone falls towards the car would be significantly higher.
The design is extremely thought through.
A lot of work has gone into this super-strong jacking system. I do like it.
glad you like it thanks for the comment
All these people who think they know all. Great job John. I think a lot of people are going to make the same thing.
glad you like it, thanks for the comment.
I know that I'm thinking about it as I watched this video. 😊
Nicely done. Savings from one trip to a auto repair shop would buy the raw materials.
Glad you like it thanks for the comment
Lifting a vehicle for underside service is a problem for everyone without a lift. Jacks and jackstands can be sketchy. I have a project car that needed a torque converter replacement, which means dropping the transmission, as well as running a complete new exhaust system, which required a bunch of cutting and fitting before welding it all together. I knew I'd be spending a lot of time under my vehicle and wasn't going to constantly raise and lower it and setup jacks and jackstands. I had a set of 10" wide truck wheels and tires and some 2x12 lumber, so I raised each corner of the project vehicle enough to slide a truck wheel under it and rest a section of 2x12 across the truck wheel. This got my vehicle roughly one foot off the ground on a stable platform and granted me enough room to work comfortably and safely for the duration i needed to complete my tasks. John, i appreciate your ingenuity in trying to solve a problem we all deal with.
My lift would have been ideal for the work you have done, the lift only takes a few minutes to raise a car to varying heights and gives clear access to the entire underside, and when the lift is not in use the frames stand on their ends in corner of the garage taking up little space. Thanks for your comment.
Thank you for sharing this. As DIY-er myself, I've been thinking about some sort of homemade stand, to help me with a sort of rust repair/restoration project. My idea was to have the stand connected to the wheel hubs, so I can have the wheels removed and have access to the wheel arches. After seeing this, I think it might be possible to use your design as a base and add the HUB mount "extension" to it. I doubt most of the negative comments have ever made or even thought about fabricating anything. There are a lot of things to consider even for a simple task like this and you have done a great job. Thank you again for sharing.
Glad you like it thanks for the comment
SUPER! Well done sir John!!!
Thanks for the comment.
Good way to secure a car when on long holidays. Awesome video.
Glad you like it thanks for the comment
Very nice solution in my opinion. Thank you for sharing and for sharing the dimensions of the stock. Best to you and yours.
John Proctor, thank you for your comment
Thank you for the detailed video. I think its a great setup. To anyone who disagrees, i invite you to design, fabricate, build and document the building process of creating something "better". Oh, i almost forgot that you then have share it for free online.
Thanks John
Glad you like it and thanks for your comments
An excellent design John!!!!!! Simple in the approach yet very stable adressing all horizontal and vertical stability issues!!!!
Glad you like it! thanks for the comment.
@@johnbower My dad was a machinist and then became a mechanical engineer in the early days of the aerospace programs....i recognize and appreciate true quality!
Hello Mr Bower , I skipped through the build process because i knew exactly where you were going , Now then iv also read all the comments and there are a lot of negative comments people just dont the grab the simplicity of your idea , I see this as a very good frame for lifting a car of any size from a fiat to a landrover and once up to the height you want put four heavy duty axle stands in then you can remove all four wheels and work away quiet happily . Now then for a seasoned home mechanic who cant afford a car ramp this is brilliant and with 2 / or 4 air hydraulic bottle jacks this could be lifted with ease , BUT a good compressor would be a requirement then air tools come in to play , naysayers have no vision Stan .
Glad you like the idea, thank you for your comment.
This was a nice build and very well executed ! My hat is off to you sir! I like it!
Thank you very much!
Great idea AND fantastic craftsmanship
Glad you like it, thanks for the comment
Honestly not hating, and it works for you which is all that matters. I do want to say thank you for sharing. For me, that much of a build, should have something that's quicker and more flexible. I'd like access to the wheels, brakes, under the engine. It shows me the options and idea's you have. The strength is amazing. As I think about it, the cross beam frames, set up with in the wheel base, and with padded blocks to the frame, might still have what I would want to see in my own set up. Thank you, once again.
watch the whole video and you will see any type of repair can be done, thanks for watching
@@johnbower Can you lift the car and leave the wheels free to remove them or for that matter an engine? I didn't see that in the video and I did watch to the end. Is there a second? Thank you
@JamesDoylesGarage. Because the frames lift from under the car tyres there is plenty of working space above the frames to the under side of the car and it's engine etc, and the frames are easy to work around. Note: once the car is raised on the frames it is so easy to put jack stands under the sills and move the frames away if wheels need to be removed, I do show this in the video towards the end.
Very nice, John. Thank you for taking the time to film, edit, and upload.
glad you like it thanks for the comment
I worked many years in the lift industry and what I can say is that your welds are much nicer that what I seen.
the major inconvenient of your design is that most of the time you lift a vehicule is to work on the wheels so the application is limited
very good video.
If you watch the complete video you will see that wheels can be removed if needed, Thanks for the comment
It not really a Jack, it a car stand. You can't take a wheel off if you find you have a problem. It just seems ita lot of work to get the car up in the air. It would be easier to use Jack stands
Peter Edwards .(a) You did not watch the complete video. (b) Anyone with any common sense would be able to see the car can easily be lowered onto jack stands if wheels need to be removed.
You know as well as I do, it hard work the way you lifted the car.
Hydraulic jack may be used to lift the control arms or frame without lowering his contraption to remove the tires.
@@albertcassler8763 you would need a tall Jack to do that, wouldn't be very stable.
@@albertcassler8763 (a) You won,t get all four wheels 500mm off the floor by jacking under the control arms. (b) if you tried jacking my car up from under the control arms you would be in serious trouble.
Hat off to you sir, methodical, neat, patient work and no annoying back ground music much appreciated.
glad you like it thanks for the comment
I just started watching your videos and you have shared wonderful ideas that I would like to apply at some point. thanks to the experience you have acquired over the years. The most important thing of all is that you should ignore the rude, uneducated people who only make hateful comments. Greetings from Mexico.👋🏽🇲🇽
Thank you for your comments
I think that it is an outstanding design and build. Thank you I for allowing us to see it. There are many times that you need to lift a car in the air to work on a mechanical part that’s does not involve the wheels. I never feel safe being under a car while it is on jack stands. I always block up the wheels if I am going to work on it from underneath.
Glad you like it thanks for the comment
As an engineer I think this is absolutely OUTSTANDING! I have always maintained my own vehicles struggling for HOURS to jack a whole vehicle up enough to only SQUEEZE under! I had a turbo change to do TWICE on one vehicle (don't ask I was sent a duff turbo first off) and you pretty much nee to sit up UNDER it. The turbo is in a place that can barely be reached from under the bonnet, necessitating it being jacked HIGH to be able to work easily. May I suggest adding 'spreader feet' to the uprights (square foot plates) - as I have no garage only a gravel drive , to stop them sinking into soft ground? I have to use 'jacking boards' (thick plywood boards) to stop my axle stands and jacks just sinking into the ground. You need to patent this and sell them PLEASE!!👍👏👏👏👏
@scopex2749, When designing this car lift I did consider welding plates to the bottom of the legs for use on soft ground, but this would have made it difficult to slide fit the legs into the frames, also by not having plates welded to the legs means less storage space needed when not in use, So I decided that if the lift was to be used on soft ground metal plates could simply be placed under the legs when needed. Thank you for your comment.
Excellent for retired folks with a vast amount of time on their hands to jack up the vehicle.
thardyryll, This car lift is designed for occasional use by the home mechanic, It's able to completely lift their car up with 700mm ( 28") of clearance beneath the car if needed, "most" people have common sense and can do this in a few minutes using this system. thank you for watching.
LOL
.....Or for folk with a vast amount of time on their hands to write negative comments.
Please provide a link to your video(s)....Mmm?
@@patagualianmostly7437I realize that your frame of reference for how long it takes to write those 18 words is your own faculty with the English language, but in my case it took seconds. As for posting videos, of what? Screwball gizmoids like the stands in this vid, which make virtually every under-vehicle repair or maintenance procedure difficult or impossible?
@@thardyryll I am sure you will understand one day
I would love to see if you could incorporate some two ton bottle jacks connected with possibly a hydraulic line from one to lift simultaneously, wow what a great build outstanding
YMA. Note: the advantage of lifting from underneath the car wheels, weight is kept on all four wheels even when one corner of the car is being lifted due to articulation in the suspension, this keeps things safe when lifting a car using my lifting frames, providing one end of the frame is resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted.
The disadvantage of lifting from under the wheels is if you try to lift both rear wheels or front wheels at the same time then there is nothing stopping the wheels rotating and kicking the frame and jack from under the car, that is the reason why one end of the frame must always be resting on the floor when the other end is being lifted. Thank you for your comment.
John, how much to make me a set? I'm serious, this is a great idea, excellent welds, turned out Great!!!
Sorry I made this lift for my own use, I don't make them to sell, thank you for your comments and thanks for watching.
Thank you for the great and detailed video. Highly appreciate the skill and what you have done, and some of the explanations in the comments.
I stumbled onto your video, while looking to build something similar myself. If you have a minute please bear with me - I would highly appreciate your opinion.
My idea is to do something similar to what you are doing. The biggest difference is that instead of lifting the car "by the wheels", my design would lift the car by the factory jack points on the rocker panels.
I would make the transverse square tubes narrower (e.g. 180mm wide overall - 2x60mm with a 60mm gap for most of the width). I would install thick solid rubber blocks (cca 180x60x30mm is available locally, meant for the 4 post lifts) that would be, from below, rested on the 3x60mm square tube (a third piece of 60mm square tube would be welded where rubber rests), and the car/rocker panel/jack points would rest on the rubber from the top. Obviously the frame would not "start" from the ground, but from rocker panel height from ground minus (60mm tube + 30mm rubber thickness). The "other side" from the first lift, would need to rest on something, maybe initial hole in the "legs". The rubber blocks could be mounted on a sliding rectangular piece (e.g. made out of 3mm sheet metal, into a hollow box with 182mmx62x60mm dimensions, so it wraps around 2x60mm + gap), so that they can slide left/right for different rocker panel widths, and rubber pads can not fall off (screwed in with short 12mm wood screws into the 3mm box). Obviously once the pressure is applied, they would no longer be able to move as the friction should be sufficient, or one side could be fixed. The rest would be very similar to what you have done. (obviously I would retain the wider leg spacing similar to yours for stability.
The biggest advantage of my proposed design is that you can leave the car on the device while working on it, you can remove all 4 wheels immediately (without the additional jack stands), there is no wheel spin problem that you mentioned in the post 11 months ago, there is no suspension travel effects.. Only original rocker/sill jack points are used, and car weight is spread over the point and wider over the rocker panel - all 180mm (I hate jack stands as they are metal-metal contact with the rocker/jack point).
One other (radical) idea is to have a longitudinal frame as well (adjustable/sliding through the transverse frame, with different fixation holes for different wheelbase dimensions), and to have only 4 feet instead of 8. Assuming flat surface, entire front/back of the car could be lifted at once (at the front/rear center of the car).. That one I have not thought through yet though.
Since you have already built this, and you skills and thinking process are admirable, I would really appreciate your opinion. Do you see any significant downsides? I can see/understand the need for a higher lifting jack for the purpose, as the base of the frame would start from higher point. (maybe some additional attachment could be added although somewhat problematic as it creates instability...)
@bjov76 My first idea was a frame across the underside of the car that lifted under the four dedicated sill jacking points, this does then allow the wheels to be removed without adding additional jack stands, but this would have created many problems, (a) the adjustable legs on the frame would restrict opening the car doors, (b) the frame would need to be adjustable to fit different lifting points on different cars, (c) the frame across would be very close to the underside of the car restricting access to things like exhaust removal etc, (d) to get the same height clearance as I do you would need a taller jack and taller frame legs, (e) the frame would need to be quite big to line up with all four sill jacking points. (f) when replacing car suspension arms, the suspension should be compressed by the weight of the car on it's wheels before tightening the pivot bolts passing through rubber bushes, and you still need clearance to do this.
The above problems is the reason I opted for making frames that lift from under the car wheels, I made the frames to fit a wide car this enables it to fit all cars, it gives clear access to the entire underside, only drawback is you need to place a couple of axle stands if wheels need to be removed, but this is an easy task when the car is already raised.
Thanks for your comments and thanks for watching.
@@johnbower Thank you for the detailed response. I did not think of some of the points you made. Obviously it is a tradeoff. I was also considering car ramps, with the inclination ramp part removable so that something can be inserted below, however still do not have a good idea on how to do rear end, and how to raise it a bit further, and then lower it back onto the stand. I have seen the chinese ramps with a bottle jack in the flat section of the ramp, but have also seen problems with it... Will keep pondering before I take on something. May end up being exactly what you did...Please keep posting the good ideas and work! :)
Hey John this is an Absolutely Brilliant concept !!! simple and modular, and to the person who says you cant get at the wheels , simply provide two more tubes that are shorter and use the clever double supported design to replace the long ones on the side that needs the wheel removed by simply lifting that side and replacing which shorter support tubes , thus unblocking access to the wheels , they should come out ok Top Marks , this world needs people like you who are not afraid to break ground with fresh ideas . Dont listen to the haters, keep up the good work. and i feel that you have already got half of a towing dolly or car transporter right there, if you just add a couple of struts wheels and a towbar Good on Ya !!!!
Glad you like it, thanks for the comment
Well done sir. I'm seriously considering building some. 😊
glad you like it thanks for the comment
A wonderful concept. Great idea. Here in the US I'm going to have to beef up the design to HD. My vehicles weigh in the 4000 lbs to 6600 lbs range. 1800kg to 3000kg
Thanks for the comment, Just for your interest the main frame of the lift is made from 60mm square box section with a 3mm wall, the legs are made from galvanized tube 48,7mm diameter with a 4mm wall, it comfortably supports my Volvo XC40 which weighs close to 1800kg.
Look safe for working under a car, as mentioned wouldn’t be difficult to have additional parts to lift the frame if working on the wheels or suspension. Nice work
Thanks for the comment
@@johnbower its a very interesting idea as are some of your other projects on RUclips
fantastic idea for the car DIY guy a simple yet very effective solution that saves pounds on the pocket
Glad you liked it, thanks for the comment
Well done! Simple design for a useful lift. I like the toe jack adapter, too. But, it seems like a lot of labor just to get floor space in order to roll around on your sled.😀
Thanks! 👍
Well done! Have you thought of adding a cross beam and jack pad in the middle of each section? Then once you go right side to left side the first time, you can then slide the jack under the middle and can lift both sides together. (like lifting with a jack under the rear diff, or front crossmember. Would save you about 4 to 6 times going back and forth in both front and back. Might need the spacing a tad larger so the tire can not roll off when lifting.
What you have suggested was ruled out in early stages of design due to danger issues. READ MY IMPORTANT NOTE pinned at the top of the comments section.
Nice job. Tow trucks use a similar system where they put a bar in front and behind the wheels and chain them together then lift by the wheels. if you made one bar fixed and the other free to slide under the car and then attach to the frame with a pin or bolt, then you wouldn’t have to back over the bars to get the wheels between them. You could place the jacks under front and back wheels at the same time.
Thanks for watching
I like this design. It is simple, elegant, and actually compact. I would like to improve on the design by having the feet pulled down by a spring and a one way sprag clutch system so that they will automatically push down and keep the device firmly planted on the tires when you jack it up. That would solve the single corner lift as it is now. Then you can jack up both sides at a time from the center section. Either that or add hydraulic cylinders to the end corners, but then you lose the light weight design. Either way, it's an awesome design and your welding is unreal! Thanks!
@demomoss, I do have a hydraulic car lift made for the home user, but due to it taking up space, and hydraulic hoses trailing across the floor, it takes time to set it up, and does not give clear access you are having to work around it, because of these problems I decided to design and build a lift that was simple to use, giving clear access when in use, and when not in use it stands on end in corner of garage taking up little space, thank you for your comment.
Great idea! Awesome there are some that think outside the box…. and outside the cheap import stores. Craftsmanship and innovation aren’t dead quite yet!
And remember, it’s not greed that runs the world, it’s envy.
glad you like it, thank you for your comments
Érdekes konstrukció, igényesen elkészítve! Én is gondolkodom valami emelő elkészítésén ,de nekem nagyobb magasságú emelő kapacitásra van szükségem. Gratulálok!😊
glad you like it thanks for the comment
Beautiful welds. Very creative.
Thanks for the comment.
This is a very nice design and very nice work. Going along with what some others have said , if you place bottles jack in the middle of your frames( that hold the posts, build a frame around the bottle jack you then could use them.
If i could post a pic i would.
I also like the fact when your not using them they dont take up much space, also they would work with lowered cars.
thanks for the comment
Great setup ! !
Glad you like it thanks for the comment
Neat idea, but more of a pain than its really all worth I think. Just use the Jack at each corner, and use an axle stands for stabilisation to actually work on things
thanks for watching
Just brilliant well designed and manufactured. If there was some way to henge the end support frames to allow them to flold down to allow one to slide into place with some roller would speed up setup. Also a electric hydralic pump bottle jack would be less work jacking up.
Glad you like my car lift thank you for your comments, trouble with adding extra mechanical parts to the lift such as powered hydraulics etc, the lift then becomes more complicated to build and will have cables and hydraulic hoses trailing across the floor to work the lift, it will take up more space and time to set it up, it will also need more space to store when not in use.
My design is aimed at the home mechanic, this keeps it simple to build and simple to use, also easy to store when not in use, the frames stand up on their end in corner of garage.
Awesome idea. Thanks for sharing.
glad you like it , thanks for the comment.
@johnbower I've just stumbled on your video and I appreciate the project and the inspiration it gives me to make my own project based on your idea.
Thank you and greetings from Portugal.
Thanks for the comment,
Love the lift, and the owl! Respectfully, I do have a possible suggestions/questions.
1. Why not lift and lower from the center?
2. With the addition of a couple pucks the jack could be placed under the lift points of the vehicle.
@veritas6466, To your suggestion no 1. That would be dangerous, one end of frame must be firmly on the floor while other end is being lifted in case wheels rotate.
To your suggestion no 2. If these frames where positioned under the sill jacking points you would have problems, I will name a few (a) you would not get the car as high without having longer frame legs and a higher jack, (b) jacking point centers are not all the same on all car sills, so different frames would be needed for different cars. (c) lifting at four different points under the car sills would cause the car to wobble, where as when lifting under the wheels you get the advantage of articulation from the car suspension which prevents any wobbling. (d) If these frames went across under the sills they would obstruct the car doors from opening, there would also be very little clearance between the frames and the underside of the car for changing things such as the exhaust pipe etc.
Note: a lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for simplicity with safety in mind.
@@johnbowerI was fairly confident you had considered those options and was looking forward to your thoughts. Again, nice work.
Excellent concept, and very nice welds.
glad you like it thanks for the comment
This is just awesome work on your part. Well done. Any blueprint available?
Sorry no blue prints, Glad you like it, thanks for the comment,
Excellent design & well engineered; regarding the comments about it being a slow process to get the car fully jacked up, maybe a high-lift jack or even an air jack would help speed things up.
Thank you for your comment
Спасибо Вам за это видео . Хорошо. Просто.Продумано и выполнено. Я сварщик и благодаря вам буду себе такое делать…. Привет из Минска.
Glad you like it, thank you for your comment
Hello n a great lifting device. Your welding looked very neat n nice also a Kangaroo Jack either side may make lifting easier unless you wanted to go air , yes a good idea n simple 👍
check out my pinned comment at top of comments section to use the lift safely, thanks for watching.
Excellent work!!! Thank you for sharing! Any mods you would improve upon?
The lift works fine, no mods needed, glad you like it and thanks for the comment.
Fantastic! Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Thanks for the comment
very nice, solid build. I like the car too.
I'm glad you like it, thanks for the comment.
Howdy! This a great idea for home use. I do have a question, would it be possible to box in a bit in the middle and use a floor jack to raise and lower the vehicle at that reinforced point? And I must mention, your welding is brilliant and you should build one out of stainless to show off those stacked dimes!
Dave Radke, As for your suggestion of welding a central jacking point in the frames this would be dangerous, If you attempted to lift two wheels off the floor at the same time then none of the frame legs would have any weight on them, there would be nothing to stop the car wheels rotating, this rotating action coupled with the weight of the vehicle could then kick the frame and jack from under the car as it came crashing down. You need to be careful when using a trolley jack at the best of times, if trolley jack wheels are prevented from rolling forward (due to a small ridge or stone under it's wheels) the jack arm will pull backwards from under what it is trying to lift, that is the reason I have designed the frames to be jacked one side at a time, (a) you can clearly see if the jack saddle is slipping out of position, (b) when any one side of the frame is being jacked up the other side will always be resting on the floor. Thank you for your comment.
@@johnbower Makes perfect sense, safety first! Cheers
Great idea, but... If you want to replace something in suspension it'll be difficult to do. I know, that that you use jacks stands but if you use scissor jack you can put jack stand too. It's only good for servicing I think
Piotr W. Thanks for the comment. Note : scissor jacks are not designed for regular use, they are only designed for occasional use such as a road side wheel change, they also have limited safe lifting height. With my jack frames any job under the car can be tackled, wheels can safely be lifted off the floor 500mm if needed. When wheels or suspension need to be worked on, the car can be lowered onto 2 or 4 jack stands positioned beneath the vehicle's designed jacking points.
@@johnbower yeah you have right, but better option will be lift up for car sills jacking points. You can connect your idea with this from this video. ruclips.net/video/rQojAnd7xkI/видео.html
And that will be the best option. Best regards.
On my Corolla E110, i got one point center front and center rear to lift the entire front or rear of the car, super easy, sad that many cars don't have that.
@@johnbower Okay, but if you're going to use jack stands you don't need this framework at all.
@@brianb-p6586 (a) Jack stands do not lift a car they only support the car. (b) No standard jack will completely lift a car 700mm (28") off the floor as my lifting frames do, (c) I do also have high jack stands that will support a car at 700mm (28") off the floor, I will be showing how I made these stands in another video.
Bu insan iyi yada kötü bir iş yapmış internete oturup kötü yorum yapanlar arabanın yağ seviyesini kontrol etmeyi bilmiyor güzel bir çalışma olmuş eksik tarafları düzeltilebilir
Thanks for the comment
I would have welded an access/mating point for your hydraulic jack at the back of the car. To keep from going from side to side. You would have needed a cross-member
Doing what you have suggested would be very dangerous, Read my important note clearly pinned at the top of the comments section.
A lot of thought has gone into designing this lift both for ease of use with safety in mind, unfortunately I can not make it fool proof.
@@johnbowerunderstandable.
couple of suggestions,should have 8 plates with 1/2 inch flat on bottom of main frame to keep from going thru concrete small pieces welded to keep square (not welded to bottom just placed under), second strap tie the wheels to frame to keep from rolling off, one more is frame could be made slide side to side adjustable by inner and outer square so to slide and holes to lock with pins,would make more compact to store too. good design simple. if your concrete is good and thick ok but might give way with just those pipes pushing down if thin.
Yes if being used on a soft surface or thin concrete floor metal plates must be placed under the legs to spread the load. There is no danger of a car with average size wheels rolling off the frames especially a car with small wheels. When the frames are not in use they stand up on their ends in corner of garage taking up little space, Thanks for watching.
oh a lovely job, i am going to share this with a gto owner he needs this badly.
thanks for the comment
The main thing is to remember the limits of shop ‘s ceiling😂
Whatever it’s a great stand!
Yes ceiling height is something to keep an eye on, when first testing the lift ( as in the video) I did not think about the ceiling as I was concentrating on how the lift was performing, but luckily the ceiling was high enough. thanks for the comment.
Nifty 👍🏻 Excellent workmanship!
Glad you like it! thanks for the comment
Excellent work, John! Much gratitude for SHARING!
Thanks for the comment
I like the jack you made for the car. I am pondering make me one. What I would like to make is one from aluminum. Do not know what reason for the metal choice other than the look. Have yourself a wonderful day John. I look forward to see more great videos from you Sir. Peace too. vf
Victory First, thank you for your comment. Note: steel has more tensile strength than aluminum, if aluminum is used then larger sections will be required.
@@johnbower Would using stainless steel work out better ??
@@victoryfirst2878 Carefully fabricated stainless steel with good clean tig welded joints would be excellent, but the cost of materials would make it impractical. Best solution in my opinion is tig welded mild steel frame coated in red oxide paint, with legs made from galvanized steel tube.
@@johnbower The reason I asked you John is that I have access to all kinds of alloys at super reasonable prices. I live near a surplus metal outlet and know the owner. That is why I said what I said. Would you care to give your thoughts on alloy types Sir ???
Thank you for you time too...
excellent and safe idea. i would want the base frame adjustable or wider for different width vehicles
P N. Note: My Volvo XC40 is quite a wide vehicle so most other cars do fit on the frames as they are narrower, but for wider vehicles I think best solution here just have two sets of frames with one set of legs, the legs would would be interchangeable between the frames. Thanks for the comment.
Best weld's I've ever seen!!!
Thanks for the comment
very intelligent, very smart, great craftsmanship thank you for sharing.
glad you like it thanks for the comment
Great idea. Useful for a long term project or restoration!
glad you like it thanks for the comment
Maybe if You use it in front of rear wheels and behind front wheels it could be a great idea. A lot of home-made mechanic job is in wheels, suspension, breaks, and so on
Great job, awesome idea
My first idea was to lift under the sills, but after a lot of thought I decided it was best in many ways to lift under the wheels, and if I need to remove wheels I place jack stands under the sills and remove the frames away from under wheels. thanks for the comment.
Its a very good design. A little slow to operate and stow. But very effective
thanks for the comment
I use air bag jacks which go up in 2 seconds, slide in my double stacked track sleepers that are 12” high combined which takes about 2 minutes in total to raise the whole car, and even less if I’m using a axle stands to remove wheels from front or rear…
Complicated arrangements of jacking a vehicle is exhaustive alone especially wasting 20 mins pre/post work lifting/lowering, besides storage of this system, ever wondered why no one else has done this?? There’s colonies who have designed single wheel lifting already, or use a scissor system that’s air over hydraulic or even the manual lifting version that you can use your shop jack to do the work…
The lift is made for people with common sense, thanks for watching the video.
@@johnbower
Of course, that old adage of common sense…. So how many have you sold.?? What’s the company called you sell through??
Thanks for watching… so you have a nice day now.
John, I did not suggest lifting both ends together . I suggested one end (left and right wheels) at a time sequentially . Lift rear centrally (both rear wheels) to a safe level,then peg off, then do same to front end . End for end . Still incrementally lifting BUT half the operation.
@arcboutant, A lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for ease of use with safety in mind. What you have suggested would be very dangerous, please read my IMPORTANT NOTE pinned at the top of the comments.
Can each lift points be modified by using 1.5 ton bottle jacks (priced at low as $15 each) provide at least 2 rest points to compensate for Jack's low lift stroke . Your design would be useful when doing brakes and tire rotations if your units are positioned under factory lift points using , if needed spacers can be added at factory lift point to your dual bars. These 2 maintenance procedures would make very useful with your design.
Jorge Watanabe. trying to use bottle jacks would cause problems. For stability you need a three ton trolley jack available for £90 to £150.
As for your suggestion of placing the frames under the factory lifting points this again would cause problems,
(a) due to the frames being closer to the centre of the car more weight would be placed on the frame being lifted.
(b) you would not be able to open the car doors as the frame legs would be in the way.
(c) the frames would be close to the underside of the car restricting access to exhaust pipe etc.
(d) The car would not be stable during lifting as not all lift points would be bearing weight (car would be rocking)
Lifting under the wheels as I do is best, if you need to remove wheels just lower car onto jack stands placed under factory lift points.
Nicely engineered 👍
Thanks 👍
That's a great idea... and it works. at 30:00 I was wondering... if you could incorporate the mechanism of a pump truck, ones they use in warehouses, maybe you can get an even lift by only having to jack up from one side..? Might not work or be as stable as you'd probably need wheels on one side.
I don't know... the thought just popped in my head, thought I'd share. Great job!
Thanks for the comment
very nice welds.
glad you like it thanks for the comment
Thats very nice design and I like that idea. But I do not need to do this because I dont work on any cars so I don't need to do this. I would suggest people who are going to work on it to think more carefully because if anything goes wrong, it will collapse and it will crush you to death. Here is what you need to do to make sure that you know what to do before you go ahead. Make sure that you weld it correctly using with gas NOT with electricity because electricity weld do not do very good. It will not hold metal to metal in place as I have tried on my car and it didnt do very good. You are better off to go with gas welding. Make sure that the metal are holding together in place and make sure they are very strong for your safety. Before you jack up make sure you have something to support under the jack for support and backup as you don't want the car to go crush under you when you work under your car. Good luck, be careful and be safe guys.
thanks for watching the video
Great device. Thank you. Is something similar available for motorcycles?
Thanks for the comment, I do believe there are motorcycle lifts you can buy.
@@johnbower Thank you for your answer. Sure, you can buy something like that. Just like lifts for cars. But doing it myself would be an interesting tonic for me.
Thank you so much, its been a great inspiration to do something similar.
Would it be possible to share the measurements?
The measurements are what ever you want to lift. Looks like 2x2 square tube 3/16-1/4 inch thick
@@cheeseymccheese7249 Thank you.
However, I was more interested in the general dimensions of the construction. He already stated in one of the comments that he used "Box section 60mm x 3mm wall" ...
Since he is using an SUV and I'm probably going to utilize it with smaller cars it'll be great to have some sort of reference to go by. That way I can still use it with bigger cars if I need to.
So @John Bower: How long are the horizontal beams, left to right? How far apart are the beams, front to back? How far did you space the "guide pipes", up and down?
Taking the Volvo's width of about 1,9m into consideration I would guess about 2,1m left to right maybe?
Thanks :D
MrMrBanana, The main frames are made from 60mm box section with 3mm wall. Legs are made from 48.5mm O.D. galvanized tube with 4mm wall. Inside width of main frame is 1970mm. 250mm between bottom frame rails (where wheels sit). 250mm vertical measurement between top and bottom leg guides plates. 420mm I.D. between legs on each side. The cantilever bracket for jacking is made from 50mm box section with 3mm wall. When my Volvo XC40 is on the frames there is approx 50mm clearance between the outside of each rear wheel and the frame on each side, "this clearance needs to be kept to a minimum" to keep the weight of the vehicle close to the legs, when lifting smaller cars which are narrower this clearance does become greater, but smaller cars with less weight will not be a problem. Note: high quality welds are needed on all frame joints, "a weld is NOT a weld" if it has not been carried out correctly with proper preparation.
@@johnbower Thanks a lot, Ill make sure the welds are properly made.
Nice job, simple but effective design.
Thank you! Cheers!
Congratulations you are an artist in desing and tig welding thank you so much for
Glad you like it, thanks for the comment
Это лучший вариант из всего, что я нашёл!!! А если добавить немного фантазии можно ещё доработать. Супер!!!👍👍👍👍👍🤝
Thanks for the comment
Nice one... and then You can attach small wheels to each "leg" and move the car around if You need!
David Omberg, This must not be attempted unless both frames are securely braised together with diagonal braising.
@@johnbower You are right but that must be easy to do. Great job anyway.
A lot of work to lift the car a little at a time. That would probably be very good for times when the car has to be lifted for extended periods of time, not for a oil change or other minor maintennce. This appears to be much safer than jack stands.
Thanks for watching.
What exactly will you be doing to the vehicle after going through all the work to raise it?
@Hugo-Fust, To answer your question and anyone else who's not mechanically minded, this car lift is actually simple and safe to use, and in a few minutes can lift any car to a comfortable height in order carry out any type of repair or maintenance needed to the underside, also any repairs to outer bodywork is made easier when the car is higher off the ground, it is also very useful for car restoration projects. Thanks for the comment.
John: Brilliant design: I looked through the description and comments and did not see a materials list. Would you mind providing the outer dimensions and wall thickness of the square pipe as well as the diameter and wall thickness of the round pipe? I'd appreciate it a lot as I'm planning to build a set. Also: Any reason why you used round tubing for the legs rather than square tubing?
Main frame 60mm box section with 3mm wall thickness, legs 48.5mm outside diameter galvanized tube with 4mm wall thickness, leg pins 12mm diameter 8.8 grade high tensile steel bolts, cantilever bracket for jacking made from 50mm box section with 3mm wall. Reason for not using square legs, I was unable to find a snug fitting size to slide inside the uprights, also if a snug fitting size was available it would bind against the internal weld seam of the section it slides into, other reason for using round legs, guide plates with snug fitting round holes can easily be made for the legs to slide through. thanks for the comment
good job john 😊
thanks for the comment.