Asymetric 2 post lift - where do you put the pads? Options

[Calwaterbear]

OK guys, 2 post asymetric. have the long arms for the rear,

So do you put the pads on that metal bump out puck shaped part on the undercarriage? or better locations?

[wndsrfr]

OK guys, 2 post asymetric. have the long arms for the rear,

So do you put the pads on that metal bump out puck shaped part on the undercarriage? or better locations?

I have the same type of lift, I use the rear "pucks" and either the front pucks or the pinch weld at the rear of the wheel well. Most of the weight will be on the rear points, be careful not to bump the front ones hard....damhik...

[Calwaterbear]

OK guys, 2 post asymetric. have the long arms for the rear,

So do you put the pads on that metal bump out puck shaped part on the undercarriage? or better locations?

I have the same type of lift, I use the rear "pucks" and either the front pucks or the pinch weld at the rear of the wheel well. Most of the weight will be on the rear points, be careful not to bump the front ones hard....damhik...

Thanks, I put it on the 4 pucks (bottom of the longs) seems to work fine

[mepstein]

OK guys, 2 post asymetric. have the long arms for the rear,

So do you put the pads on that metal bump out puck shaped part on the undercarriage? or better locations?

I have the same type of lift, I use the rear "pucks" and either the front pucks or the pinch weld at the rear of the wheel well. Most of the weight will be on the rear points, be careful not to bump the front ones hard....damhik...

Thanks, I put it on the 4 pucks (bottom of the longs) seems to work fine

That's what I do at the shop. Then you push down on each end to make sure it doesn't wobble. I have to use a small riser on the back pads to make the car level but every lift is different.

Be careful doing an engine drop on a lift. Even though it's mid engine, it can change the weight distribution.

[DM_2000]

I have the same type of lift, I use the rear "pucks" and either the front pucks or the pinch weld at the rear of the wheel well. Most of the weight will be on the rear points, be careful not to bump the front ones hard....damhik...

The arms need to have some sort of locking device so they don't swing out if bumped. ( If that is what you are eluding to. )

[wndsrfr]

The arms need to have some sort of locking device so they don't swing out if bumped. ( If that is what you are eluding to. )
[/quote]

Bingo...had a diesel Suburban walk its way around on those arms while I cringed behind the post when the arms shifted....pitiful old school screws that don't provide much friction just didn't hold. My 914 weighs about 1/3 as much but could squirm its way off of the arms move much.

[Calwaterbear]

[quote name='wndsrfr' date='Sep 9 2017, 07:07 PM' post='2526125']
The arms need to have some sort of locking device so they don't swing out if bumped. ( If that is what you are eluding to. )
[/quote]

Bingo...had a diesel Suburban walk its way around on those arms while I cringed behind the post when the arms shifted....pitiful old school screws that don't provide much friction just didn't hold. My 914 weighs about 1/3 as much but could squirm its way off of the arms move much.
[/quote]

My lift has locking mechanisms that look like ratchet teeth that engage and keep the arms from moving . pull up on the rod, give it a 90 degree trun and it slides down to engage the teeth with the arm.

[mepstein]

I don't think any of the arms on our lifts are locking. Cars go up and down all day. With 500lbs + on each pad, how do they move?

[Mark Henry]

I lift on the "pucks" all the time.

And speaking of pucks, I use 4 hockey pucks, one on each pad, gives a littler extra height and I never scratch paint or damage the bottoms of cars.
Yes I mean real hockey pucks.

I don't think any of the arms on our lifts are locking. Cars go up and down all day. With 500lbs + on each pad, how do they move?

You can move a car on a lift....stubborn nut, long breaker bar could spell disaster if not careful.

[wndsrfr]

I don't think any of the arms on our lifts are locking. Cars go up and down all day. With 500lbs + on each pad, how do they move?

330k miles diesel, 7000 pounds, oil spooge on everything, old steel lift pads sorta convex, once it started walking ohhhhh shiiiit...lemme outta here! Thankfully it settled down and I slow, slowly, eased it down.

[mepstein]

I lift on the "pucks" all the time.

And speaking of pucks, I use 4 hockey pucks, one on each pad, gives a littler extra height and I never scratch paint or damage the bottoms of cars.
Yes I mean real hockey pucks.

I don't think any of the arms on our lifts are locking. Cars go up and down all day. With 500lbs + on each pad, how do they move?

You can move a car on a lift....stubborn nut, long breaker bar could spell disaster if not careful.

Our lifts have rubber pads so no need for pucks but we do use them on floor jacks all the time. On a 914 it nice to use a low pro jack to slide under the rocker and then drop the hockey puck in the jacks metal cup. Get back an inch or so.

[cary]

Most arms have arm have a lock that activates after you get about a foot off the ground. You'll see a spring and a thing that looks like a gear.

Like Mark, I use the hockey pucks all the time. We use 3 * 3 scraps of OSB to keep from scratching the paint.

[DM_2000]

My 2 post lift is a 1990's Gilbarco ( rebranded from some sort of Japanese maker near as I can tell )

It uses manual locking rods made from rebar and a wing bolt in a "sort of but not really looks like a lower control arm and tie rod" when viewed from top of lift. The rough surface of the rebar allows the wing bolt to grab. I'm pretty sure current Fed regs require an auto locking device.

The attached pic shows the automatic locking version ( call out 6 and 7 ) . On the other side of call out 2 is where the system is located. Mine is slightly different in that it is manual lock and has a slider / wing bolt at the arm end rather than a rod in tube like 6 / 7 .

This type of system would be easy to replicate and install on a non locking lift.

As for arms moving, a lightweight / rigid car on a lift can be more prone to shifting an arm than a heavy flexible one. Nothing is completely level / square, sometimes a car will rock on two diagonal pads allowing the lightly loaded one to move.

Also, the lift pads need to contact a flat / horizontal surface. Try to cheat and pickup a slightly angled surface and the arm may kick out.

To give some sense of car flex, I built a full cage in a 80's full sized GM car for oval track. Pre cage the jack stands could be out 1" + and the car would sit on all 4. Post cage, if the stands were out 1/4" or so the car would rock back and forth on the stands.



ALI ( Automotive Lift Institute ) maintanins a list of certified lifts www.autolift.org/ali-directory-of-certified-lifts/

[mepstein]

Most arms have arm have a lock that activates after you get about a foot off the ground. You'll see a spring and a thing that looks like a gear.

Like Mark, I use the hockey pucks all the time. We use 3 * 3 scraps of OSB to keep from scratching the paint.

Maybe ours lock once they get off on he ground. No issues so far. Always give it the push test on both ends before it goes up high.

[Mark Henry]

Most arms have arm have a lock that activates after you get about a foot off the ground. You'll see a spring and a thing that looks like a gear.

Like Mark, I use the hockey pucks all the time. We use 3 * 3 scraps of OSB to keep from scratching the paint.

Maybe ours lock once they get off on he ground. No issues so far. Always give it the push test on both ends before it goes up high.

My 2-post is a made in the USA AAMCO, as soon as you lift a couple inches the locks automatically come into play. They have acme threads and the locks engage the threads, they're spring loaded, once fully down they hit a cam and release.
You can override the locks, only one at a time, by pulling up on the lock mechanism.