4 post lift sway
02-24-2012, 01:19 PM
#21
Burning Brakes
I have a mid-America lifts 4 post unit and it is built extremely well and has no sway at all. The four feet have 1/2" thick 12x12 pads. Some of the best money I have ever spent, love it.
02-24-2012, 04:22 PM
#22
Le Mans Master
You'll be fine with a 9'(108") ceiling for two 48" cars, but you need to consider the garage door, and back the top car in. I raised my door track up a bit. Lift set at the 50" clear stop + 4" for the platform thickness, leaves 54" for the top car. 50" clear, seems to work, as have a friend who stores his 79' in his daughters garage, and built a 50" clear platform, to store her stuff above it. As for the earlier mention of black lifts being made over seas, mines black, as custom ordered it that way. Default was red, or could've gone blue.
02-24-2012, 06:18 PM
#23
I have a direct lift. When not loaded with a car I detect a little sway, but when loaded it is rock solid all the way to the top of their extra high model. I wonder if you are missing some parts in the legs....the long nylon sliders.
02-24-2012, 07:22 PM
#24
Race Director
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St. Jude Donor '09-'10-'11-'12-'13
02-25-2012, 12:50 PM
#26
Burning Brakes
I just printed out this entire thread..because my son in law installed a Direct lift in his garage last month and IT IS NOT ROCK SOLID...and does in fact "sway"...
I have owned a Backyard Buddy for close to 20 years and a Gemini for I guess at least 15 years The backyard buddy is rock and I do mean rock solid..The Gemini is the normal 3 sided hollow post lift... BUT DEFINITELY IS NOT LIKE the 3 sided hollow post on the Direct lift...
I just do not like the direct lift posts NOT AT ALL And I am not use I care for the locking mechanism on the direct lift either..but I have not messed with it but of a few minutes checking out the lift either...
Bottom line my son in law placed a 4x4 under each ramp at corners of the post when a car is up on top.. and I do not blame him at all.. No Vettes in his garage yet (he has to wait for me to die then get in line with my own sons) but he does have a 72 Nova and a 68 GTO
Bob G
64 72 76 79 88 (35th ANC) and 98 Corvettes
I have owned a Backyard Buddy for close to 20 years and a Gemini for I guess at least 15 years The backyard buddy is rock and I do mean rock solid..The Gemini is the normal 3 sided hollow post lift... BUT DEFINITELY IS NOT LIKE the 3 sided hollow post on the Direct lift...
I just do not like the direct lift posts NOT AT ALL And I am not use I care for the locking mechanism on the direct lift either..but I have not messed with it but of a few minutes checking out the lift either...
Bottom line my son in law placed a 4x4 under each ramp at corners of the post when a car is up on top.. and I do not blame him at all.. No Vettes in his garage yet (he has to wait for me to die then get in line with my own sons) but he does have a 72 Nova and a 68 GTO
Bob G
64 72 76 79 88 (35th ANC) and 98 Corvettes
02-25-2012, 01:34 PM
#27
Team Owner
02-25-2012, 05:25 PM
#28
If the bottom plates for the main uprights are not exactly square with the uprights...or flat with the floor..., you may get a bit of sway when you raise the lift with weight (car) on it. I had the same thing. It bothered me for a while, but I got used to it.
Then, I decided to resolve that little issue and eliminate any possibility of slippage. I bought a thick rubber mat at Lowe's (about 3/8" thick, black rubber, with perforations); the mat is about 2 feet by 3 feet in size....found in the "Carpeting" area. (The mat is used for individuals who stand on concrete doing work for long periods of time.)
I cut four pieces from it that are the same size as the bottom plates on the uprights. Put the wheels on the rig and raise the uprights off the floor a bit. Then used "Liquid Nails" adhesive to stick the pads to the underside of the bottom plates. Dropped the rig back down on the uprights and let the adhesive cure. Done deal!!! No more sway...no possible slippage. Worked great.
P.S. ISO certification has very little to do with "good" quality. It is a certification that a company is actually following its own procedures regarding Quality. Now, if those procedures don't really provide for a quality product, that's not really a concern of the ISO certification. [Strange...but true. I carried an ISO auditor certification prior to my retirement]
Then, I decided to resolve that little issue and eliminate any possibility of slippage. I bought a thick rubber mat at Lowe's (about 3/8" thick, black rubber, with perforations); the mat is about 2 feet by 3 feet in size....found in the "Carpeting" area. (The mat is used for individuals who stand on concrete doing work for long periods of time.)
I cut four pieces from it that are the same size as the bottom plates on the uprights. Put the wheels on the rig and raise the uprights off the floor a bit. Then used "Liquid Nails" adhesive to stick the pads to the underside of the bottom plates. Dropped the rig back down on the uprights and let the adhesive cure. Done deal!!! No more sway...no possible slippage. Worked great.
P.S. ISO certification has very little to do with "good" quality. It is a certification that a company is actually following its own procedures regarding Quality. Now, if those procedures don't really provide for a quality product, that's not really a concern of the ISO certification. [Strange...but true. I carried an ISO auditor certification prior to my retirement]
Steve L
73 coupe since new
02-25-2012, 08:56 PM
#29
Racer
I remember when I worked in the factory and they were going for an ISO standard. They didn't care about my quality of work, they just wanted to make sure I remembered our 'Mission Statement'.
02-26-2012, 01:51 AM
#30
Race Director
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2020 C2 of the Year - Modified Winner
2020 Corvette of the Year (performance mods)
C2 of Year Winner (performance mods) 2019
2017 C2 of Year Finalist
I'm on my second Direct Lift. The first was a Pro Park 8 plus and then later I sold it to a buddy and bought a Pro Park 9 so my 4x4 Diesel 4 door pickup would fit. Both have been very solid and I do a lot of work on them. The latch system is very good when adjusted properly (not hard).
JIM
JIM
02-26-2012, 09:07 AM
#31
Team Owner
For those that don't understand, ISO simply means that you have a controlled process in place, and you follow that process to the letter. Where does that fall apart? Here's an example.....
A company is making corner posts for their 4 post lifts. Their print calls for the posts to be 72" tall, plus, minus, 1". Their "quality document" calls for them to check each and every post for conformnity. That means the post can be between 71"-73" tall, which IMHO would be pretty crummy, yet still be within spec, and as long as they measure each one, they still meet ISO standards.
Sound good to you??
02-26-2012, 09:32 AM
#32
Racer
Thread Starter
My orig question was are they suppose to sway? The simple answer should have been "no they should not!" as some of you answered, thank you. I shimmed the bottom of each post, my garage floor is not perfectly level, now that I have done that the lift is rock solid, applying an enormouse amount of force when my car is all the way at the top will make some slight movement but not "sway" back and forth like it did. Now I feel MUCH more comfortable under it. The locking system is solid and the secondary emergency lock I case a cable brakes is also good piece of mind. I'm sure the less expensive Atlas 8k lifts sold by Greg Smith Equipment is every bit as good without the certification, in fact I believe the Atlas has grease zerks where as the directlift does not. I am very happy now and now can both work under Vette and park another car in our garage!
02-26-2012, 01:33 PM
#33
Team Owner
My orig question was are they suppose to sway? The simple answer should have been "no they should not!" as some of you answered, thank you. I shimmed the bottom of each post, my garage floor is not perfectly level, now that I have done that the lift is rock solid, applying an enormouse amount of force when my car is all the way at the top will make some slight movement but not "sway" back and forth like it did.
02-26-2012, 11:21 PM
#34
Racer
Thread Starter
04-27-2012, 12:30 AM
#35
Cruising
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sway problem
The direct answer to your question is "no"! It shouldn't have that much sway.
One cause can be the base plate warping or not setting flat for other reasons (poor quality control). However, in our experience any sway was created more with the slide blocks (rub blocks) not fitting properly in the column.
These rub blocks should be snug! However, many lift columns aren't bent to the same spec each time (probably using a manual break rather than a CNC.... not saying a good break operator couldn't hold better tolerances, but they're not going to hold the same tolerance than a CNC will each and every time). If a column has to much tolerance in a particular break, it will cause the rub block to fit sloppy, which allows the column to "sway" or "shake" around the rub block rather than hold tight to it!
We've always recommended even lubricating the rub blocks to keep any premature wear, which if they do wear, will cause them to get sloppy and the column then will shake or sway.
Hope this helps!
Gemini Auto Lifts
800.974.7646
One cause can be the base plate warping or not setting flat for other reasons (poor quality control). However, in our experience any sway was created more with the slide blocks (rub blocks) not fitting properly in the column.
These rub blocks should be snug! However, many lift columns aren't bent to the same spec each time (probably using a manual break rather than a CNC.... not saying a good break operator couldn't hold better tolerances, but they're not going to hold the same tolerance than a CNC will each and every time). If a column has to much tolerance in a particular break, it will cause the rub block to fit sloppy, which allows the column to "sway" or "shake" around the rub block rather than hold tight to it!
We've always recommended even lubricating the rub blocks to keep any premature wear, which if they do wear, will cause them to get sloppy and the column then will shake or sway.
Hope this helps!
Gemini Auto Lifts
800.974.7646
04-27-2012, 02:32 AM
#36
Team Owner
Any 'swaying' is due to the bottom plates on the corner uprights not being exactly perpendicular to them. You will notice swaying more when the lift is empty more that when you have your car on it. That's why I put the thick rubber pads under those corner plates...so that any 'out-of-square' condition could be absorbed by the flexible pads.
Before I added those pads, the lift might 'settle' a bit as the car was raised, but it didn't sway. But, with the pads there is no 'free' movement at all.
If you are that concerned with it, make a short video clip of the swaying action when in use and send it to the lift vendor with your concerns. Then, place it in a post in this tread. With such an issue being documented, you might get some better response out of the vendor as to how to resolve your concerns.
Before I added those pads, the lift might 'settle' a bit as the car was raised, but it didn't sway. But, with the pads there is no 'free' movement at all.
If you are that concerned with it, make a short video clip of the swaying action when in use and send it to the lift vendor with your concerns. Then, place it in a post in this tread. With such an issue being documented, you might get some better response out of the vendor as to how to resolve your concerns.
04-27-2012, 08:34 AM
#37
Racer
Thread Starter
The problem has been fixed 2 months ago as stated above twice. Great lift, been using it weekly on vehicles from a vw Jetta to my wife's Lincoln Navagator (and of course our 70 &71). I'd buy another in a heartbeat since there is a dealer here in Denver.
04-27-2012, 11:25 AM
#38
Melting Slicks
Member Since: Aug 2008
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The direct answer to your question is "no"! It shouldn't have that much sway.
One cause can be the base plate warping or not setting flat for other reasons (poor quality control). However, in our experience any sway was created more with the slide blocks (rub blocks) not fitting properly in the column.
These rub blocks should be snug! However, many lift columns aren't bent to the same spec each time (probably using a manual break rather than a CNC.... not saying a good break operator couldn't hold better tolerances, but they're not going to hold the same tolerance than a CNC will each and every time). If a column has to much tolerance in a particular break, it will cause the rub block to fit sloppy, which allows the column to "sway" or "shake" around the rub block rather than hold tight to it!
We've always recommended even lubricating the rub blocks to keep any premature wear, which if they do wear, will cause them to get sloppy and the column then will shake or sway.
Hope this helps!
Gemini Auto Lifts
800.974.7646
One cause can be the base plate warping or not setting flat for other reasons (poor quality control). However, in our experience any sway was created more with the slide blocks (rub blocks) not fitting properly in the column.
These rub blocks should be snug! However, many lift columns aren't bent to the same spec each time (probably using a manual break rather than a CNC.... not saying a good break operator couldn't hold better tolerances, but they're not going to hold the same tolerance than a CNC will each and every time). If a column has to much tolerance in a particular break, it will cause the rub block to fit sloppy, which allows the column to "sway" or "shake" around the rub block rather than hold tight to it!
We've always recommended even lubricating the rub blocks to keep any premature wear, which if they do wear, will cause them to get sloppy and the column then will shake or sway.
Hope this helps!
Gemini Auto Lifts
800.974.7646
09-24-2016, 01:50 PM
#39
totazman
Were you able to do this? Any comments are welcome as I am close to buying a Direct Lift PP8S. I have two vettes at 50-51 inches each. I have 108" clearance under lowest point of garage door opener linkage.
09-24-2016, 02:39 PM
#40
Burning Brakes
I don't know anything about Directlift 4-post lifts, but I've had a 4-post lift (Backyard Buddy) for 6 years. It doesn't sway at all, and we've done some heavy pushing and pulling under the car at 5 feet or so.
Can you see any slop anywhere when it sways? Any gaps that change width as it moves? Wouldn't that be nice if the problem was fixed by a simple adjustment? It will be interesting to hear what the manufacturer has to say.
Can you see any slop anywhere when it sways? Any gaps that change width as it moves? Wouldn't that be nice if the problem was fixed by a simple adjustment? It will be interesting to hear what the manufacturer has to say.
I have had my Backyard Buddy about 20 years now and really don't notice any sway at all.