"Proper" Way to Use a 2-post Lift on 3rd Gen

[rbattelle]

I once (and only once) attempted to put my truck on a 2-post service lift. I placed the lift pads in the locations discussed in the service manual. When I began to lift the vehicle the drivers-side front pad shot (and I do mean SHOT) out from beneath the truck as it slipped off the frame at a height of about 1. 5 ft. I never attempted to lift it again with a 2-poster.



Truth be told, 2-post lifts scare the heck out of me with a 7000 lb vehicle, not to mention the prospect of doing major axle/suspension work on one (jarring the vehicle on the lift). The shop I use has no safety stands and the lift pads are not rubber.



Since I think it's ignorance on my part that makes me so scared to put my truck on a 2-post lift, I was wondering if anyone out there who has successfully used a 2-post lift on a 3rd gen truck might post some pictures and a little instruction on how to do it with absolute safety. Or, would I be better off just doing my axle/suspension work on the ground with a floor jack and some jack stands?



-Ryan

 

[Tony T.]

Ryan, I never had access to a lift myself, where I use to live I had a shop an used the floor jacks an stands. I do know the pads on the lift have to be placed correctly to avoid a big mistake happening.



Just last Friday I went by Goodyear to have my tires rotated, been using them for serveral years for this an they stuck this new kid on the job of rotating my truck tires. He attempted to put my truck on the lift an I was standing there watching sweating bullets. He lifted the front up about a foot an the extenion on one pad slipped out. He then lowered the truck an tried again to re-position, lifting the front up an using a floor jack to lift rear. The other times the mechanic always used the lift it's self to raise the whole truck.



I had to watch him like a hawk the whole time an ended up going back in the store to complain that he was not attempting to even torque down the lug nuts.



They have always seemed in the past to have someone knowing what their doing, but I may have to take it to Discount tire next time an wait a hour-an half just for a tire rotation.



Tony

 

[jglasgow]

rbattelle -

I have a 10,000 lb capacity 2 post lift that I use to install exhaust systems, oil changes, etc. I've never had a problem putting any Dodge truck on my lift, it's very stable. Fords are another story, it took over an hour to put a diesel powered Excursion on it the other day. For the Dodge trucks I put the rear pads at the point where the the front of the leaf spring attaches to the truck. The front pads I put as far forward as possible before the frame turns up. I raise the truck about a foot off the ground and go around to the back and grab the hitch and pull up and down to see if it lifts off any of the pads. Next time I have a Dodge up there I'll take pictures and post them to show you the exact placement of the pads.

Hope this helps, John

 

[rbattelle]

Next time I have a Dodge up there I'll take pictures and post them to show you the exact placement of the pads.

Hope this helps, John

That would be great!



-Ryan

 

[jglasgow]

Lift Pictures.

That would be great!



-Ryan

Ryan,

Here are the pictures I promised. Referencing the first picture, when centering the truck in the lift, you should have troubles getting out of your truck because your door will open into the lift post. The front legs will have to be extended a bit further than you may want. They will bend a bit under load. Hope this helps.



John

 

[Fred Swanson]

I have not had any issues using my 2-post on any trucks, Ford, Dodge or Chevy. For the Ford's I have 12 inch extention pads. I use the frame for all 4 points, not the suspension components. I owned a 2002 Excursion with the PS, and it was on it several times for the upgrades I did to it.

I've had 12K lb. trucks on it, without an issue, too. I do have stands for the really heavy ones, to prevent any movement when ripping the trannies out.

I spot the front tires just to where the front arms of the lift can pass under. Front pads go on the frame about 4 inches from the transmission crossmember. Rear arms I place on the frame right about where it starts to turn up.

With the truck more rearward, and the huge weight up front, the truck is slightly lower in the rear while up in the air. This also helps with realigning manual trannies too.



Truck is very stable on the lift. I don't get very much movement once up there.

It sure is nice for doing tire rotations/oil changes. I despise going to Discount Tire for anything. It takes so long for the simple stuff, and they are always busy.

 

[rbattelle]

Thanks for the pics, that's what I was looking for! I notice you're using the radius arm bracket for the front lift pads. Your pads are a little different than mine. Mine are just flat (it's a Rotary lift).



-Ryan

 

[Matt400]

When I began to lift the vehicle the drivers-side front pad shot (and I do mean SHOT) out from beneath the truck as it slipped off the frame.

Hi Ryan,

Sounds like the pad may not have been on a "flat" section of the frame.

The shop I use has no safety stands and the lift pads are not rubber.

Metal pads are ok, rubber is better IMO. Safety stands to steady the truck is nice for gnarly work.

would I be better off just doing my axle/suspension work on the ground with a floor jack and some jack stands?

yuck!



I place the truck same as jglasgow does but the arm on my hoist will not reach those locations. I place them on the frame as far forward and rearward as possible while still being on the flat part of the frame. My 2 post is rated for 9K. While working under the truck I place a 3/4 ton under vehicle adjustable stand on each end to make it all solid.



If I don't need wheels free I will use the 12K 4 post lift.

Next time I think about it I will take a photo.

 

[Diesel Dually]

Ryan, Do you have the truck adapters (extentions) for your lift? I too have a Rotary lift and must use the truck adapters on the rear pads to be able to reach the frame on most full size trucks. Just be sure that when you flip the pads up you have the front angled in one direction and the rear pointed in the other. This way the truck can't move forward or backward while on the lift...

 

[ThomasLawrence]

Looks like John and I have the same lift - although he has the nicer triple-telescoping arms. Due to some shipping SNAFU's, I wound up with two sets of front arms - a short set and a long set. I swap the arms depending on what vehicle I'm lifting.



At any rate, you can see some more pics here:

http://home.earthlink.net/~tlawrence5/trans/trans1.html



Basically, the front pads should go right behind the control arms. The rear pads go on a flat section of frame rail. I put the rear pads a little more forward than the service manual shows - this is to offset the added weight of the Cummins up front.



When putting a truck on a 2-post lift (a symmetrical lift in this case), there's two things you're (in effect) balancing - the amount of weight on the front vs. the rear arms, and also the total weight of the truck relative to the posts themselves. You want to position the truck so it's CG is about even with the posts.



For your first time, position the pads as shown throughout this thread. Lift the truck until the wheels just clear the ground, then rock the truck back and forth a bit. If the rear arms move at all, or the frame loses contact with the rear pads, you've got too much weight on the fronts - move either the fronts or rears forward and try again.



With the wheels barely off the ground, you can also measure the amount of deflection on the arms. Measure the height from the base of the arms to the floor, first at the pivot pin, then at and equal distance down each arm (3 feet or so). If the fronts and rears are within 1/8-1/4" of each other, you're good as far as your front/rear balance.



And above all, use some safety stands. It's not fun to be standing under almost 8,000lbs. rocking back and forth. Heck, I even use the stands under the crossbars of my 4-post lift. Gravity's a b****, don't get her upset at you



-Tom

 

[rbattelle]

Ryan, Do you have the truck adapters (extentions) for your lift?

I do, but didn't know that's what they're for! It's not actually my lift, it belongs to the auto shop where I work. They have something like 30 bays including 5 or 6 brand new 2-post Rotary clear-floor lifts.



There are people there who will help you get the vehicle on the lift, but that doesn't mean they're experts on my particular truck. I know for a fact I'm the only Cummins owner who uses the shop at all.



I really wish they had safety stands. As Thomas points out, gravity is a cruel mistress.



-Ryan

 

[WCPoe]

Two post lift

rbatelle, I have a Mohawk 10,000 lb lift. The lift pads have serrated gripper teeth where they engage the frame. The lift columns are made from heavy fork lift channel material. I believe I can swing from the bumpers without disturbing the balance of the truck. If I can attach a picture you may be able to see where I placed the back lift pads which were under the fronts of rear spring perches. The front pads catch the frame a distance behind the front wheels. Sorry the picture dosen't show the front lift points better. I would highly reccomend the Mohawk 10,000 System 1 lift.

 

[DaveMorris]

You guys have these lifts in you garages ????... Dang it, I must be doing something wrong :{ ...



WCPoe that is one nice set-up... .





Dave

 

[Kry226]

I would highly reccomend the Mohawk 10,000 System 1 lift.

So how much does one of those bad boys cost???

 

[rbattelle]

WCPoe, you're living my dream garage now! Very nice...



-Ryan

 

[ThomasLawrence]

You guys have these lifts in you garages

Sure... doesn't everyone?

So how much does one of those bad boys cost???

My 10,000lb 2-post was just under $3K. My 15,000lb 4-post was about $3600.



More pics of my shop here: http://home.earthlink.net/~tlawren349/Garage/



-Tom

 

[rbattelle]

More pics of my shop here: http://home.earthlink.net/~tlawren349/Garage/

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[WCPoe]

Mohawk lift

Kry226 and rbattelle -- The Mohawk System 1 10,000 lb lift is a commercial type lift. I believe it runs over $ 6k with the price increase of steel these days. I picked the Mohawk because I witnessed a mechanic struggling with something underneath another brand lift and the back of the truck was swaying laterally back and forth what appeared to be 8 inches or so. I could just picture the stamped sheet metal columns buckling and allowing the 7,000 lb truck come down on him. After checking around I found the Mohawk System 1 constructed of 3/4 thick inch steel channel fork lift type columns. Additionally, the carriages that hold the lift arms are located and slide within the columns on 8 double sealed roller bearings not nylon slide mechanisms. The lift arms have automatic safety locks so they can’t pivot at all once the arms leave the floor. The 4 inch cylinders pull the 646 type chain over double sealed rollers and the hydraulic lines are all stainless steel incorporating velocity fuses which lock both carriages if a hydraulic leak occurs with the mechanical safeties as well. The lift pads have heavy serrated gripper teeth and can be stacked on top of the silver machined pins in the holders on the side of the columns. Anyway, the lift is probably way over-engineered for my use but I feel confident with it.

 

[NSperduto]

I have almost the same lift as tom in my garage, except mine is offset. It's an eagle, I got it onsale from Eagle for $2600. A couple years ago, I bought a 39 Plymouth extreme basket case for $100, parted it out and had 3k in my pocket, saw the lift on sale and ordered it. Definitely is the best tool I've ever bought. It lifts my ram no problem, but I can't lift and extended cab ford because I can't reach the frame with my pads. The crewcab ford is no problem.



Nick

 

[ThomasLawrence]

I have almost the same lift as tom in my garage, except mine is offset.

I actually started out with an asymmetric lift, then realized that the symmetric lift would fit the truck better (not to mention my truck, at the time, wouldn't fit it's wheels between the carriages). Eagle swapped my upright extensions, and I installed it as a symmetric lift.



While we're talking about lifts, here's how I brought my four-poster home from the shipping terminal: http://home.earthlink.net/~tlawrence51/lift/



-Tom