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

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.

Thanks for the comment

Roger, I'm a retired HVAC mechanic and spent my first 10 years 1970-1980 working on oil burners (diesel). I only wish throw away gloves were available to protect my skin from the long list of harmful chemicals I worked with. Then there's the blood I lost doing ductwork (sheet metal cuts). Then there's the electrical shocks, some from 20,000 volt ignition transforms, others from 480 VAC power systems. Then there's the burns I got from steam lines and flu vents (often over 1,000 deg F). I've seen 4 men lose fingers. I was lucky, I only had 2 nails literally yanked out of my fingers by a co-worker dropping a heavy propane tank while I was setting blocks beneath it. Then there's working on rooftops in the bitter cold. My 50 years in the trade would have been a lot less painful if I'd had the right gloves. But those were the good old days. I'm not trying to start a debate here, but the younger guys in the trades need to hear truthful information from guys like me, who've already had their machoectomy.

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...

Ron Hateley, Glad you like it, thank you for your comment.

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 end in corner of garage, thanks for the comment.

Thanks for the comment

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.

Thanks for the comment.

John Proctor, thank you for your comment

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 and the lifting frames can be removed. thank you for your comment

@@johnbower I can't wait to see it. Thank you for sharing.

Thank you very much!

Glad you liked it!

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

Thanks for the comment

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 pair of frame legs are firmly on the floor while the other pair are 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 there is nothing stopping the wheels rotating and kicking the frame and jack from under the car as the weight of the car came crashing down, that is the reason why one pair of the frame legs must always be resting on the floor when the other pair is being lifted. Thank you for your comment.

@ Alan Rosenberg, Glad you like it thanks for the comment.

glad you like it thanks for the comment

thanks for the comment

Glad you like it thanks for the comment

Thank you! Cheers!

Thanks 👍

glad you like it, thanks for the comment

@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.

Thanks for your comment

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.

Glad you like the idea, thank you for your comment.

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

Thanks! 👍

Thank you very much!

Thanks for the comment

@@johnbower its a very interesting idea as are some of your other projects on UKposts

Glad you like it, thanks for the comment

If you watch the complete video you will see that wheels can be removed if needed, Thanks for the comment

Thanks for the comment,

Thanks for the comment

thanks for the comment

@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.

Thanks for the comment.

Thanks for the comment

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. ukposts.info/have/v-deo/qoGgnnelm22pzH0.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.

@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.

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.

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.

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.

Thank you for your comment

Thanks for the comment,

glad you like it, thanks for the comment

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...

James Puig, thanks for the comment

Watch the complete video, you will see that wheels can be removed for brake work / bearings etc if needed. If you watch one of my other videos I show the lift being used to replace ABS sensor and wheel bearing on my Astravan.

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.

Hi Peter, Box section is 60mm x 3mm wall. When making the telescopic legs tube was the way to go, (it had advantages over square), it did not need to be a snug fit inside the box section as it was easy to make snug fitting guide plates to prevent any side play, it is ready available galvanized, it is easier to handle and I think it looks better. Thanks for the comment.

Thanks for the comment

Thanks for the comment

Thanks for the comment

56WagonWheel, One main advantage with my car lift ( opposed to off the shelf car lifts ) it does not have or need any built-in hydraulic mechanism, this keeps material costs to a minimum. thanks for your comment.

thanks for the comment

Check out my reply to MrMrBanna's same question above, thanks again for your comment.

Thanks

@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.

To have the lifting frame on two jacks would be dangerous, if neither end of the frame is resting on the floor there is nothing stopping the car wheels rotating, this rotating action coupled with the weight of the car could then kick the frame and jack from under the car wheels. Thank you for the comment

Thanks for watching.

If the frames where properly linked together, with a bigger size of box section used for the main cross pieces, then yes you could lift one of the frames up from a central point providing the other frame was resting on it's four legs, but this would complicate the build, It would cost more and take up more space to store the frames when not in use.

thanks for watching the video

@we-are-electric1445, To your first suggestion, Most modern cars only have four jacking points, these are at designated positions under the car sills, so when jacking the car up at these jacking points, It is not possible to get an axle stand into place when the jack is under the jacking point. To your second suggestion, If you need to use the lifting frames on soft ground then just position a metal plate under the legs. If the legs had fixed plates attached to the bottom of them you would not be able to assemble the legs into the frame as I show in the video. Note: A lot of thought has gone into designing these frames both for simplicity with safety in mind.

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

Glad you like it thanks for the comment.

@schwellenzaehler4564, Having the frames made up into sections as you have suggested would not work because you still have to get the long sections of the frames underneath the tyres, it would also complicate fabrication and assembling the frames. Storing the frames when not in use is not a problem as the design allows them to be stood up on their ends in a corner taking up little space. Thank you for your comment.

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.

thanks for watching

Thanks for the comment

Marco Fabbricat. When jacking the frame up at one end the other end legs must always be resting on the floor (not on a jack), only jack each end up no more than 150mm at a time before jacking the other end. Note: "never ever" try jacking both ends at the same time the car wheel can rotate and kick the frame and jacks away. I have shown all measurements in one of the other comments on this site. thank you for the comment.

@@johnbower Thanks again for the information, very important and valuable. I understood and you were right to let me know and I completely agree with you, I will look in the previous comments for more details, is it possible to contact you via email?

Glad you like it, thanks for the comment

Thanks for the comment, Note: it would be dangerous to use more than one jack, when any one side of the frame is being lifted the other side of the frame must always be resting on the floor.

@ApprenticeGM, As for which is the best way to drill the leg holes. Because I use heavy gauge galvanized steel tube with a 4mm wall thickness it does not really matter which way the holes are drilled, but looking at it with an engineering point of view it is best to have them drilled inline and pointing the same direction the car is pointing, this way will give slightly more strength to the legs when they are tilting. Thank you for your comment

I went back and saw how you oriented the pins and your explanation made sense.

Mike Fennema, Yes most modern cars do not have suitable jacking points for a service jack, this is the main reason I decided to build these Jacking frames, just drive onto them and jack them up, if needed I can safely lift the underside of the car 700mm off the floor. Thank you for your comment.

@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.

Thanks for the comment

Thanks .

Thanks for the 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 the comment.

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?

thanks for the comment,

thanks for watching the video

Thanks!

Klaus Brinck, It would be very dangerous to jack up both sides of the frame together, If you did this there would be no weight left on any of the frame legs, the car wheels could rotate a little, this rotating action of the wheels coupled with the weight of the vehicle would kick the frame and jack from under the vehicle as it came crashing down. The frames are designed to be jacked up one side at a time, when any one side of the frame is being jacked up the other side must always be on the ground. A lot of thought has gone into designing these frames with safety in mind.

@@johnbower Ok, didn´t know that, really hard to just imagine... ;-)

thanks for the comment

Video shows me using the lift for the first time, but after using the lift a few times it's surprising how quick and easy it is to set up, it is very stable and lifts any make of car. Thanks for the comment.

Sorry but these frames have been designed for people who know better.

@@johnbower there's no need to insult people who have valid observations. This system is only useful if used to lift higher than reasonable drive-on ramps; you could have simply identified that height difference.

@@brianb-p6586 My reply to Ross Kennedy was not meant to be an insult I was just pointing out that most people here can see the benefit of using my lifting frames. Nice to see you have a valid observation with my system, thank you for the comment

@rosskennedy1960 Please explain to me how you drive onto 4 separate car ramps? If you have the average car ramp which are roughly 8-12"s high how do you place the to rear ones under the car , you can place the fron ones in front of the wheels how do you get the rear ramps placed in front of the rear wheels ( average cars ground clearance is less the the height of the ramps so it won't fit.

@@SM-yg1ts I built crib style wood ramps with 2x12's (ramp and top) and 2x3" for the cribbing underneath and drove my dad's Toyota Four Runner up onto all four simultaneously. Height is 10-12".

I am someone with over 50 years experience in metal welding / fabrication, and judging by the comments you have made can clearly tell you have little experience in this field, thanks for watching the video.

Thanks for the comment

I have listed materials complete with measurements, listed in one or two of my replies to previous comments

Main frame is made from 60mm square box section with 3mm wall . legs are made from galvanized tube 48.7mm outside diameter with 4mm wall . pins for the legs are 12mm diameter 8.8 grade high tensile steel. cantilever arm for jacking made from 50mm square box section with 3mm wall. thanks for watching.

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.

If you have the tools and experience to build these frames yourself, then cost of material would be around three hundred pounds

You can do it!

I have designed this for home mechanics etc, simple to build, simple to use, compact when not in use, can be stored on end in corner of garage. Thanks for the comment.

Stop assuming that everyone is working inside a garage with concrete under them. I do my work as needed in the driveway which is dirt / gravel and something like this would add great stability when going under my vehicles even for oil changes and exaust work.

This project could still be used when wheels are removed. use one for the axle with both tires as seen in the video and use the other just forward of the wheels on the axle where the tire needs to be removed ans stack some sections of 2x10 on the rack for height adjustment.

If you had watched the complete video you would have seen any type of repair or maintenance can be carried out, including removing any wheels

I did see you put the car on jack stands and move your frames a lot of steps but your idea was good just not time saving@@johnbower

that is something I did not think of Ha Ha

The legs are made from heavy gauge tube which have a 4mm thick wall, If plates were welded to the bottom of the legs it would be difficult to fit the legs into the frames. If the frames are being used on a soft floor then metal plates can simply be placed under the legs to spread the load. Thanks for your comment.

Robert Rab, Nearest size of square box section available to make square legs would be a sloppy fit causing frames to wobble. No need to weld on feet, if feet are needed just fit a plate under legs. It would be dangerous to lift both sides of the frame at the same time using two jacks, there would be nothing stopping the car wheels rotating and kicking the frame and jacks from under the car. As for you saying you would have used hardened pins, that would be dangerous hardened steel can be brittle causing it to break under load, yes the pins do need to be tough and the correct term used here is high tensile steel, I used 8.8 grade high tensile steel for the pins.

@@johnbower well I never said to Jack both sides at the same time I said it be nice to have two jacks and two lifting bar . That so you don't have to move the jack and the lifting bar from one side of the auto to the other side back in forth if I was going to life more then one at a time I will just go by a 4 post hoist

@@robertrabhudsonhornet5869 The point I am trying to get across is If someone is using just one jack then there is no chance of lifting the frame one side while a second jack is still under the other side, which would most likely happen if two jacks were being used. Note: A lot of thought has gone into building these frames both for ease of use with safety in mind.

@copiertech101, Yes you definitely are missing something

ask your mum

@@johnbower I did your mum had zero clue.