I've been looking at scissor lifts. I've never worked with one, but spent way too much time around post lifts. I believe the scissor lift may be a possible winner?
- low, mid-rise, full height (double scissor). Call is 26", 45", 76" lifts. You can drop a motor with a mid-rise with room.
- No concrete work required - just lag bolt in place - scissors sit on a big pad and spread the load.
- Take up no real space, compared to a post lift.
- Can drive over and park. Can DIY some ramps with 2x10s to make low cars more smoothly drive over.
What am I missing? Downsides? I have resisted putting a lift in my garage for years, just concerned that it would push me into the deep end of working on cars. But getting older, harder to roll under, crane neck, etc.
I belong to another forum called, Garage Journal. Some hardcore geeks there. They've done a few group buys of scissor lifts from China. Been trying to figure out if that's a reasonable thing to try and execute. It seems like there are a handful of makers for this kind of lift, then plenty of rebranding in the USA. My understanding is that basic steel stuff is fine. Any issues are with commonly available/replaceable hydraulic parts. But I've not heard of people having product issues.
Anyone have experience? Thoughts? Bought big stuff out of China?
Filippo