has it been done before?

[pedrobedro]

I was given an old Bradbury Jackette with a quick lift facility which will lift my car high enough to put a pair of ramps under the wheels one end at a time. If one end was on axle stands you would need the lift to move when you lift the other end or the stands would tilt as it got higher. Watch your trolley jack and see how far ir rolls to accommodate the arc as it lifts higher.

 

[BrokenBiker]

the plan is to lift all 4 corners at once to avoid any tilting or lean.

then once the car is at its highest point, apply axel stands (probably homemade to make sure they are substantial enough) and then lower the car to the stands, leaving lift units in place unless they need to be removed to get access to brakes, suspension and so on

 

[KemppiFrog]

One catch that comes to mind if using a single hydraulic pump, is that it will pump up the least loaded corner first. Or, most likely, the light end of the car. You will need some sort of distribution system to even out the flow. Or, a hand control that allows you to feed the rams as needed. Joystick on four valves?
KF

Mind wandering a bit more.... Four ratchet lifts. Think a fork under the wheel with another fork that lifts the tyre. Both on a sliding system that can be trolleyed jacked up a few inches at a time, then locked, move onto the next corner. With a bit of thought, there is no limit to the height.

I jacked the roof of our barn up in one piece, using similar thinking. 80cm lift, with one bottle jack, a few Acros and some home made locking props. Needed enough room for a second storey, worked fine.
KF

 

[BrokenBiker]

I thought bottle jacks had one length of travel per pump?

no matter what weight it is lifting it will raise the same height each time?

 

[KemppiFrog]

I thought bottle jacks had one length of travel per pump?

no matter what weight it is lifting it will raise the same height each time?

Sorry, got some idea you were using one pump and 4 rams.

 

[BrokenBiker]

no, bottle jacks lol, although I am now looking into electric rams, as I can wire all 4 rams up to one control box, switch each one so I can alter all at once, or one at a time, switch for raise/lower and a pot to control speed of lift/fall.

providing I can find 4 dc electric rams with atleast 1 ton capability and the right size for my application

 

[BrokenBiker]

just stumbled across these...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12v-Elect..._Lifting_Moving_Equipment&hash=item232650c8fb

 

[Flapdisk]

That looks handy mate

 

[KemppiFrog]

.providing I can find 4 dc electric rams with atleast 1 ton capability and the right size for my application

Sounds like DrNick is your man for the rams. Had some a few days ago and seems to have steady flow of useful bits. PM him?

I might put a sketch up of what I was thinking of on the way home today. Interested? On the idea of the sliding fork to lift the wheel, with a locking pin, so you could use one jack for all four.
KF

 

[BrokenBiker]

Sounds like DrNick is your man for the rams. Had some a few days ago and seems to have steady flow of useful bits. PM him?

I might put a sketch up of what I was thinking of on the way home today. Interested? On the idea of the sliding fork to lift the wheel, with a locking pin, so you could use one jack for all four.
KF

I think im going to go with those electric scissor jacks, will cut down on the fabrication a bit too.

your forklift idea sounds interesting

 

[bs2236]

I have seen one of those DC scissor jacks used in anger, I wouldn't like to think that I had to rely on it working more than a few times. It certainly didn't fill me with confidence.

Those on eBay might be a different manufacturer or better quality so can't say too much other than fully investigate them before putting your hand in your pocket.

 

[KemppiFrog]

I'll put a sketch up tomorrow. One of the prompts was, I was driving the wife's Twingo today and it is very close to the ground and has the start of an exhaust burble/leak.

Waddya mean? Cuts down on the fabrication? That's the fun bit....

 

[BrokenBiker]

will be looking into them quite deeply, then probably buy one, spend a few hours just lifting and lowering the front of my dads jag which has the weight of my Renault over its front wheels lol.

if it holds up I will buy more

as for the fabrication being the fun part, I agree, it is, but for something like this, I prefer simplicity, less to go wrong. obviously I am going to make sure it is structurally safe and capable of more weight than it needs to lift, but a simple design is key to a good job

 

[KemppiFrog]

Still mulling over this one... Looked at the Twingo and the fork to get around a wheel would have to be quite wide or, made up of triangular sections (more fabrication) So I am leaning towards a 6/8mm plate under the wheel for the lift. Need to trolley jack it up a bit to get the plate under, but that is quick enough.
The thought of supporting the car on four scissor jacks, a touché unstable? And increasing the base would probably overstress the geared joints.
KF

 

[BrokenBiker]

the scissor jacks will only be for the lift aspect, and will be situated inside a frame that contacts the floor. when at desired height, pins will be pushed through the frame to lock everything in place to reduce any risk of it collapsing. the base of the frame will be wider than the part the wheel sits in/on, and the base of the jack will be free floating, so when at height and everything is locked in, the jack can be 'lowered' which will essentially bring the base up off the floor, so all the weight and stresses will be put through the steel frames.

trying to incorporate a ramp system so the car can be driven on before being lifted

 

[octo0072000]

wind up ramps

some wind up ones here new these are £330 these are used made by CJ Autos any good for you lift up to two tons

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/wind-up-c..._Lifting_Moving_Equipment&hash=item2581ad222d

cj autos page

http://www.cjautosheywood.co.uk/adjramp.html

 

[BrokenBiker]

they are pretty much what I am going to be making, but I don't want to have to wind each one up separately.

if you can imagine those ramps, with 12V motors on the screws, that is pretty much my design at the moment, but with a wider and longer base

 

[octo0072000]

they are pretty much what I am going to be making, but I don't want to have to wind each one up separately.

if you can imagine those ramps, with 12V motors on the screws, that is pretty much my design at the moment, but with a wider and longer base

all you need to use is a 18/24 volt cordless drill or impact wrench to wind them up takes 2 mins

 

[BrokenBiker]

but, using a drill means I have to wind all 4 up separately.

with the 12V scissor jacks I can wire them all to one control unit, and they will all rise and fall simultaneously. I plan on also incorporating a switch system that will allow me to control the jacks singularly too.

have worked out how much steel I need now. so am going to start ordering it all bit by bit.

have decided that once the frame is made for the top (where the wheel sits) I am going to use SS treadplate for the top, instead of having the wheel sit in a cradle.

this will help if one corner has to be lowered to allow a wheel to be removed.

 

[octo0072000]

but, using a drill means I have to wind all 4 up separately.

with the 12V scissor jacks I can wire them all to one control unit, and they will all rise and fall simultaneously. I plan on also incorporating a switch system that will allow me to control the jacks singularly too.

have worked out how much steel I need now. so am going to start ordering it all bit by bit.

have decided that once the frame is made for the top (where the wheel sits) I am going to use SS treadplate for the top, instead of having the wheel sit in a cradle.


this will help if one corner has to be lowered to allow a wheel to be removed.

only problem i can see is the 12V scissor jacks are only made for occasional use not sure how reliable they would be under the use you are putting them too