ChiefCass Posted December 12, 2014 Share #1 Posted December 12, 2014 Got a couple extra dinero and I've wanted a bike jack for awhile now. What's a good, cheap (mutually exclusive terms) bike jack? Any recommendations? I have an `89 XVR13 and I've read multiple threads on jacking the beast off the ground, etc. I can't seem to find any direct recommendations or references (other than "Harbor Freight") for a decent bike jack. I'm not a major wrench twister and the jack wouldn't get used much but I do have a couple of major items to fix on my Blu before she rides again and having her sitting on a jack will be far superior to getting my fat butt up and down off the cold garage floor... Harbor Freight has 3 (seemingly identical) "bike jacks" with PN's 61632, 60536 & 69995 - all for the low low price of $99.99. They also show PN 60636 with a different configuration and double the pricetag. All 4 are rated at 1,500lbs. Sears list model 34612 for ~$120 with same weight rating and featuring 3 locking positions. Any other links / recommendations / experience or leads would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freebird Posted December 12, 2014 Share #2 Posted December 12, 2014 A LOT of us have the Sears jack and mine has held up very well. If you keep your eyes open though, they often run it on sale. I think I paid 79.95 for mine and have seen them at that price or maybe slightly more on a number of occasions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefCass Posted December 12, 2014 Author Share #3 Posted December 12, 2014 (edited) Yeah - post-Christmas EVERYTHING at Sears seems to go to for about 70% of what it cost before Christmas. THANKS! Edited December 12, 2014 by ChiefCass More better info thought completion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Venturous Randy Posted December 12, 2014 Share #4 Posted December 12, 2014 I used a Harbor Freight coupon out of Rider magazine and I believe I got mine for about $60 plus tax. It has worked real well and I have used it for many things. It works real good for putting a transmission in a car or putting the engine in my 83 Venture. It also works good on lifting the front of the riding mower or ATV. My only concern on mine is it is difficult to lower it slowly. RandyA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yammer Dan Posted December 12, 2014 Share #5 Posted December 12, 2014 I used a Harbor Freight coupon out of Rider magazine and I believe I got mine for about $60 plus tax. It has worked real well and I have used it for many things. It works real good for putting a transmission in a car or putting the engine in my 83 Venture. It also works good on lifting the front of the riding mower or ATV. My only concern on mine is it is difficult to lower it slowly. RandyA :sign yeah that: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yammer Dan Posted December 12, 2014 Share #6 Posted December 12, 2014 I used a Harbor Freight coupon out of Rider magazine and I believe I got mine for about $60 plus tax. It has worked real well and I have used it for many things. It works real good for putting a transmission in a car or putting the engine in my 83 Venture. It also works good on lifting the front of the riding mower or ATV. My only concern on mine is it is difficult to lower it slowly. RandyA :sign yeah that: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djh3 Posted December 12, 2014 Share #7 Posted December 12, 2014 I like the Sears alum atv jack. When you look at them I like the ones the front pair of wheels are outside the framework. I think makes it a little more stable. I think list was 129 or so an I paid under 100. We ha d a couple of the "cheap" table type jacks at work. They lasted about 3 days and the jacks were done. No kits to fix either. So sometimes cheaper is not allways a deal. Check craigs list local to you and see what might be available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefCass Posted December 13, 2014 Author Share #8 Posted December 13, 2014 Thanks all - any more input is welcome. I figure to go shopping immediately following Christmas when all the sales go into full swing. I'll post my results and review once I acquire and engage the product. Keep your thoughts coming - I'm really really reading these posts as they arrive (Tapatalk for Android, donchaknow). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djh3 Posted December 13, 2014 Share #9 Posted December 13, 2014 If you go to the HF site and just sort of look at the design of the 2 jacks that have been mentioned, you will see the alum one has a wider foot print so to speak. My ccraftsman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefCass Posted September 13, 2015 Author Share #10 Posted September 13, 2015 Realized I never dropped the rest of the story. Bought aluminum jack from Harbor Freight. Listed $149 on clearance $69 and tax. Works great except lowering is a bit scary - takes a bit of pressure on the release pedal to make anything happen and then everything wants to happen at the same time. First time I lowered bike back to the floor scared me badly. I now have a friend help to steady the bike during the lowering process since I've got one foot off the floor on the release pedal. 😕 Overall, having no experience to judge the jack, I'll say it works but can't recommend it. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yammer Dan Posted September 13, 2015 Share #11 Posted September 13, 2015 (edited) The next time I tried to use my Harbor Freight one after I posted this it dumped all the oil on the floor. Learning to let things down on them takes some practice. Put a board or something on them and have your pardner sit on it and get the feel of it. THE JACK NOT YOUR PARDNER!!! After a little practice you can operate it a lot better. Edited October 5, 2015 by Yammer Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
videoarizona Posted September 13, 2015 Share #12 Posted September 13, 2015 (edited) My el cheapo Harbor Freight has lasted 3 years, so far. (knock on wood)... Took it with me to New Hampshire...where it spent most of 8 months in a storage place sitting vertically against the wall. Still works just fine and lifts my scoots without issue. Only problem I had was getting used to how to lower. It seems if you press gently on pedal, it drops like a stone. If you smash the pedal down...it lowers with more control. I've heard the speed of lowering can be adjusted, but haven't got that far. I raise and lower by myself now. Edited September 13, 2015 by videoarizona spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Condor Posted September 13, 2015 Share #13 Posted September 13, 2015 I think I have a Sears, but don't know for sure. One thing I do know is the thing's a monster and gets heavier every year. My suggestion is to shop around for an aluminum. That high priced one at HB is an aluminum. That's why it's higher priced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dna9656 Posted September 15, 2015 Share #14 Posted September 15, 2015 I bought the lift from Harbor freight and i really like it with reservations....you have to have help to get the bike up on it's center stand or held in place with tie down straps. There is a wheel chock that comes with the life but it's not trust worthy so I bought BOTH of the other wheel stands HF sells and bolted (one at a time) to the lft, I don't trust them to hold the bike up so I got a "Venom" scissor jack from ebay. it lifts the bike up so I can get the center stand down. I also bought HFs bike dolly, the whole bike rolls on it. I use it to turn the bike around in the garage. it has a side stand platform. I'm going to order another side stand platform and bolt (or weld) it to the motorcycle lift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonestarmedic Posted September 22, 2015 Share #15 Posted September 22, 2015 Try this on the table lift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonestarmedic Posted September 22, 2015 Share #16 Posted September 22, 2015 1 foot pieces of angle iron. Bolt or weld to the lift. 5\4 × 6" board. Made removeable section for the foot pedal. Wheel chock is a U.S.General. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dna9656 Posted September 22, 2015 Share #17 Posted September 22, 2015 1 foot pieces of angle iron. Bolt or weld to the lift. 5\4 × 6" board. Made removeable section for the foot pedal. Wheel chock is a U.S.General. Pics of removable section? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yamagrl Posted September 22, 2015 Share #18 Posted September 22, 2015 Some of the older harbor freight MC jack has a back-asswards way to lower it. Lightly touching the release lever makes the jack lower REAL FAST... to lower slowly you have to jam the release lever down all the way. I know it sounds dumb and it is. I think they may have corrected it in the newer models. I also have the Harbor Freight lift and it has worked perfectly for over 2 yrs. I did change to a regular front wheel chock. I also have Center Stand/Scissor Lift that that I bought on Ebay. about $60 if I recall. I use it mostly to just to hold our other bikes upright. One of the best investments I've made. 1100 LB capacity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonestarmedic Posted September 22, 2015 Share #19 Posted September 22, 2015 Pics of lift out section of side wings. I put 2 pieces of angle iron at each end of the section. Making a "T" shape. One piece supports the stationary board and the other the lift section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dna9656 Posted September 23, 2015 Share #20 Posted September 23, 2015 This is similar to the one I got on Amazon. Some of the older harbor freight MC jack has a back-asswards way to lower it. Lightly touching the release lever makes the jack lower REAL FAST... to lower slowly you have to jam the release lever down all the way. I know it sounds dumb and it is. I think they may have corrected it in the newer models. I also have the Harbor Freight lift and it has worked perfectly for over 2 yrs. I did change to a regular front wheel chock. I also have Center Stand/Scissor Lift that that I bought on Ebay. about $60 if I recall. I use it mostly to just to hold our other bikes upright. One of the best investments I've made. 1100 LB capacity [ATTACH=CONFIG]101784[/ATTACH] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yamagrl Posted October 5, 2015 Share #21 Posted October 5, 2015 I found this sticker on my HF MC Jack that gives the back asswards lowering instructions. Some of the older harbor freight MC jack has a back-asswards way to lower it. Lightly touching the release lever makes the jack lower REAL FAST... to lower slowly you have to jam the release lever down all the way. I know it sounds dumb and it is. I think they may have corrected it in the newer models. I also have the Harbor Freight lift and it has worked perfectly for over 2 yrs. I did change to a regular front wheel chock. I also have Center Stand/Scissor Lift that that I bought on Ebay. about $60 if I recall. I use it mostly to just to hold our other bikes upright. One of the best investments I've made. 1100 LB capacity [ATTACH=CONFIG]101784[/ATTACH] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
videoarizona Posted October 8, 2015 Share #22 Posted October 8, 2015 I found this sticker on my HF MC Jack that gives the back asswards lowering instructions. [ATTACH=CONFIG]101896[/ATTACH] Heather...that is exactly how my HF jack works. Backwards in my mind but it does work. Sigh. Slam that pedal down, Son! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ozlander Posted October 13, 2015 Share #23 Posted October 13, 2015 How do you hold the bike on the stand? Looks like it could/would slide off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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